Desk Editor : S&R

Overview

Desk Editor : S&R Jobs in Durbanville, Western Cape, South Africa at AOSIS

Title: Desk Editor : S&R

Company: AOSIS

Location: Durbanville, Western Cape, South Africa

About Us

AOSIS unlocks knowledge through open access scholarly journal and book publishing, media and interaction development, Moodle LMS expertise, and online accredited CPD® learning.

Job Description

Desk Editor: Submissions and Review (Team Leader)

Department: Journals Publishing

Reporting to: Editorial Operations Supervisor

Direct reports: Submissions and Review Desk Editors and/or Editorial Coordinators

Employment type: Full-time

Location: Cape Town (Office-based)

Role purpose

The Desk Editor: Submissions and Review (Team Leader) is responsible for the operational leadership of a team managing manuscript submissions, peer review workflows, and editorial administration across a portfolio of scholarly journals.

The role combines hands-on editorial workflow management with people leadership, ensuring manuscripts progress efficiently through submission, technical screening, peer review, and editorial decision stages. The incumbent is accountable for team performance, workflow compliance, service standards, turnaround times, quality assurance, and continuous process improvement.

Key responsibilities

Editorial operations leadership

• Oversee the end-to-end management of manuscript submissions and peer review workflows across assigned journals.
• Ensure adherence to journal policies, publishing standards, ethical guidelines, and internal operating procedures.
• Monitor manuscript turnaround times and proactively address workflow bottlenecks.
• Ensure accurate manuscript tracking, data integrity, record-keeping, and system compliance.
• Escalate operational risks, integrity concerns, author complaints, and workflow exceptions appropriately.
• Support the implementation of new publishing platforms, workflow enhancements, and operational initiatives.

Team leadership and direction

• Provide day-to-day leadership, guidance, and support to the Submissions and Review team.
• Set clear expectations, priorities, and service standards for team members.
• Allocate workloads and resources to ensure equitable distribution and optimal productivity.
• Develop team capability through coaching, mentoring, training, and knowledge sharing.
• Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, continuous improvement, and professional conduct.
• Lead regular team meetings and workflow reviews to ensure alignment with departmental objectives.

Performance management and accountability

• Establish, monitor, and manage individual and team performance targets.
• Track productivity, service levels, manuscript throughput, turnaround times, and quality metrics.
• Conduct regular one-on-one review meetings with team members.
• Identify performance concerns early and implement appropriate coaching, support, and corrective action plans.
• Recognise and reinforce strong performance and positive behaviours.
• Ensure staff comply with departmental procedures, workflow requirements, and organisational policies.
• Contribute to recruitment, onboarding, probation reviews, development planning, and performance appraisals.
• Maintain accountability for achieving agreed departmental KPIs and operational objectives.

Peer review and editorial support

• Oversee reviewer invitation, follow-up, assignment, and tracking activities.
• Resolve complex author, reviewer, and editor queries.
• Support Editors-in-Chief, Section Editors, and Editorial Boards in the management of submissions and reviews.
• Ensure peer review processes are conducted fairly, efficiently, and in accordance with journal requirements.
• Maintain high levels of author, reviewer, and editor service.

Quality assurance and compliance

• Monitor workflow quality and identify opportunities for improvement.
• Conduct periodic audits of manuscript records, correspondence, and workflow compliance.
• Ensure adherence to publication ethics, confidentiality requirements, data protection obligations, and company policies.
• Assist with internal and external audits as required.

Reporting and continuous improvement

• Produce regular operational and performance reports.
• Analyse workflow trends, resource requirements, and service metrics.
• Recommend and implement process improvements that increase efficiency, quality, and scalability.
• Support departmental projects and strategic initiatives.

Minimum Requirements

Education

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent qualification. (recognition for prior learning)
• Relevant publishing, editorial, communications, or project management qualification advantageous.

Experience

• Minimum 3-5 years' experience in scholarly publishing, editorial administration, manuscript management, or peer review coordination.
• Minimum 1-2 years' experience in a supervisory, team leader, or people management role.
• Experience working with manuscript management systems such as OJS, Editorial Manager, ScholarOne, Janeway, or similar platforms.

Knowledge and skills

• Strong understanding of scholarly publishing and peer review workflows.
• Excellent organisational and workflow management skills.
• Strong leadership and people management capability.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office and workflow management systems.

Key performance indicators

The Role Will Be Measured Against

• Manuscript turnaround times.
• Peer review cycle efficiency.
• Team productivity and output.
• Quality and compliance audit results.
• Author, reviewer, and editor service levels.
• Workflow backlog management.
• Achievement of departmental operational targets.
• Staff development and performance outcomes.
• System and process compliance.
• Continuous improvement initiatives successfully implemented.

Success profile

The successful candidate is a highly organised operational leader who combines strong editorial workflow expertise with the ability to build accountability, develop people, solve problems proactively, and consistently deliver high-quality publishing services at scale.

This role is accountable not only for managing manuscripts, but for leading a high-performing team that delivers measurable operational outcomes.

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