Journals Commissioning and Development Editor

Recruiter:

Persona Staff

Job Ref:

CPT006538/Z

Date posted:

Tuesday, May 5, 2026

Location:

Cape Town, South Africa

SUMMARY:
Our client is seeking a commercially aware, relationship-driven Journals Commissioning and Development Editor to help grow and strengthen our portfolio of scholarly journals.

This role suits someone who understands scholarly publishing, enjoys building credibility with academic stakeholders, and can turn market insight into practical journal development actions. You will work across journal growth, editorial board support, community engagement, competitor analysis, and strategic development.

POSITION INFO:
Responsibilities:

Develop and implement journal commissioning and development plans for a portfolio of open access journal.

Build strong relationships with Editors-in-Chief, Editorial Boards, society partners, and other academic stakeholder.
Identify target research groups, and emerging subject areas to support journal growth.
Drive initiatives to increase submissions, visibility, and community engagement.
Conduct competitor and market analysis to identify risks, opportunities, and growth areas.
Support the acquisition or initiation of new journals.
Represent the company at conferences and other relevant academic events where required.
Plan and support Editorial Board and Journal Oversight Committee meetings, including preparation of papers, meeting coordination, and minute-taking.
Manage Editorial Board and committee terms, editorial profiles, and editor contract administration.
Work with internal teams, including indexing, analytics, marketing, and publishing operations, to ensure coordinated execution.
Support journal contract renewals and broader publishing strategy projects.
Coach or guide junior colleagues where required by business needs.

Requirements:

A degree-level qualification, with a master’s degree advantageous.
Experience in scholarly publishing, ideally with responsibility for journal development, commissioning, or portfolio growth.
A sound understanding of the peer review process.
Experience building productive relationships with editors, boards, societies, or other external stakeholders.
Strong written and verbal communication skills.
Good judgement, analytical ability, and commercial awareness.
The ability to manage multiple projects, deadlines, and competing priorities.
A structured, organised, and proactive working style.
Confidence working across teams in a fast-paced, deadline driven environment.
Strong Microsoft Office capability, especially Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint.

To apply, please send your CV with your salary expectations to

Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Persona Staff Pty (Ltd) is POPIA (Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013) compliant, all personal information is protected according to legislation. By applying for any of our available vacancies, you give Persona Staff consent to process your Personal Information for Recruitment Purposes, according to the POPI ACT, 2013. If you have any concerns regarding your Personal Information and our compliance towards the legislation, you are welcome to request our POPI Act Policy.

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