Senior Journal Manager - Production in Oxford

The Senior Journal Manager will oversee production of academic journal titles. You will support external clients (journal editors, learned Societies, editorial offices) by ensuring production processes and outputs match evolving needs, troubleshooting, advising on best practices and reporting on production performance as required. You will negotiate production parameters, accounting for client requirements and in adherence to industry standards. The role will also manage change to processes and requirements as needs evolve, in collaboration with clients, internal stakeholders and suppliers. Acting as a key point of contact, you’ll represent OUP’s production services in meetings and calls, and maintain accurate documentation to support smooth delivery of content and services. As a senior, you will independently identify, initiate and manage projects that contribute to the quality, efficiency, standardization and improvement of work undertaken by the department, and, as a subject matter expert, to deliver training to new and existing members of the department as required. The role requires strong communication and analytical skills, a customer‑focused mindset, and the ability to manage multiple priorities across a range of stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

• Consult with clients on options for all aspects of the production process, making recommendations and highlighting risks to ensure sustainable processes that meet client and business needs.
• Engage internal teams and suppliers to improve performance, resolve issues, and provide analysis, ensuring any updates to client requirements are promptly and accurately communicated to the relevant internal teams, to support effective delivery of journal article and issue content and services to agreed standards.
• Act as the point of contact for client queries and feedback on article and issue production, responding in a timely and professional manner.
• Act confidently as the single point of production contact to clients.
• Proactively communicate any changes to the production process relevant to the client, including recommendations for improvement, soliciting feedback or negotiating agreed processes where required.
• As needed, attend conference calls and face‑to‑face meetings with clients, with potential for occasional domestic travel.
• Provide regular or ad‑hoc reports to clients to an agreed timeline, demonstrating production performance against agreed goals, providing contextual information and analysis, and making recommendations to improve processes and performance.
• Manage supplier delivery of journal‑level change, including monitoring suppliers’ delivery of title work and facilitating a resolution to delays or concerns.
• Intervene or provide guidance during the issue workflow as needed, including the facilitation of issues’ article selection, ad‑hoc content quality review, and bespoke contributions by suppliers.
• Initiate, lead, participate in, document or report on projects that develop and standardize production processes within the department to achieve department and business goals and to ensure an outstanding experience for customers and clients.
• Train, mentor, coach or advise new and existing staff, both in general and with specific reference to client support, to ensure they comprehend production procedures and new developments, while reviewing and suggesting improvements to current training programmes.

We operate a hybrid working policy that requires a minimum of 2 days per week in the Oxford office.

About You

To be successful in this role you will ideally have:

• Experience in production and publishing environments, including the management of new, sensitive, or significantly complex work.
• Experience of client account management.
• Excellent negotiation, influencing, and communication skills.
• Excellent presentation skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to comprehend and communicate complex information.
• Ability to work independently, handle multiple projects simultaneously, and work to tight deadlines.
• Ability to manage contractors or 3rd‑party suppliers.
• Ability to work in a team.
• Ability to learn quickly and work flexibly with varied software.
• Good organizational skills.

Benefits

We care about work/life balance here at OUP. With this in mind we offer 25 days’ holiday that rises with service, plus bank holidays and Christmas closure (3 days) and a 35‑hour working week. We are open to discussing flexibility in respect to working patterns, dependent on role. We also have a great variety of active employee networks and societies. We help make your money go further by contributing to your pension up to 12%, offering loans and savings schemes through our partnership with Salary Finance, in addition to travel to work schemes and access to a wide range of local discounts. This role comes with the added benefit of a discretionary annual payment. Please see our Rewards and Recognition page for more information. We are committed to supporting diversity in our workforce, and ensuring an inclusive environment where all individuals can thrive. We seek to employ a workforce representative of the markets that we serve and encourage applications from all.

£35,000 - £37,000 dependent on skills and experience.