Editorial Director, Nature Research Journals

Job Title: Editorial Director, Health and Applied Sciences, Nature Portfolio (m/f/d)

Location: New York or Berlin

Reports to: VP of Research Journals, Nature Portfolio

Closing date: January 5, 2025

About Springer Nature Group

Springer Nature opens the doors to discovery for researchers, educators, clinicians and other professionals. Every day, around the globe, our imprints, books, journals, platforms and technology solutions reach millions of people. For over 175 years our brands and imprints have been a trusted source of knowledge to these communities and today, more than ever, we see it as our responsibility to ensure that fundamental knowledge can be found, verified, understood and used by our communities – enabling them to improve outcomes, make progress, and benefit the generations that follow.

About the Brand

Nature Portfolio is a flagship portfolio of journals, products and services including Nature and the Nature-branded journals, dedicated to serving the scientific community. Visit nature.com and follow @Nature / @NaturePortfolio

About the Role  

The Editorial Director, Health and Applied Sciences drives the strategic growth and development of a set of thematically-connected journals within the Nature portfolio by leading and inspiring the relevant Chief Editors and the editorial teams they oversee. The Editorial Director, Health and Applied Sciences is a key member of the Nature portfolio senior management team, working closely with the Director of Publishing Strategy, the Director of Editorial Performance, the Editor-in-Chief and the Editorial Director team on projects and activities that ensure overall portfolio success.  

The Editorial Director Health and Applied Sciences is an important contributor to defining and articulating Nature portfolio strategy within the Nature portfolio and beyond. As a Nature portfolio Editorial Director, the person in this role would also develop an area of expertise important to overall Nature portfolio development and take on leadership and advocacy for that area across the broader team.

Role Responsibilities:

1. Drive the editorial and publishing development of a portfolio of journals 

• Lead, motivate and inspire your team to produce journals that deliver top-quality content and a best-in-class author experience.

• Agree with the Director of Publishing Strategy and VP of Nature journals on the annual goals for journal submission, publication and transfer volumes as well as target turnaround times.  

• Ensure a data-informed approach to journal management and development, and that all KPIs are regularly monitored, reported and met, and that action is taken as needed. 

• With the VP of Nature journals, take responsibility for the performance of your portfolio of journals.

• Support the development of strong transfer pathways. 

• Champion workflow improvement and adoption of new approaches/tools to support journal performance

• Interpret and disseminate external intelligence and market research to support the  development of your team and portfolio of journals. 

• Understand the trends, challenges, and opportunities in the subject areas covered by your portfolio to support strategic business development.

• Contribute to overall strategic development of the Nature portfolio and the broader Springer Nature journals group.

2.  Create a positive team environment in which your team feel engaged with strategic goals and understand what is expected of them and the value of their contribution Springer Nature

• Ensure that our strategic priorities are well understood by your team. 

• Proactively engage with change management to support business development.

• Inspire and motivate Chief Editors and editorial teams to achieve agreed strategic goals.

• Set performance goals for your team, and ensure that these are well communicated, cascaded  into individual objectives and targets as appropriate, monitored regularly, with appropriate  action taken as necessary.  

• Be visible to and engage regularly with your team to monitor performance and their  development; carry out regular performance appraisals that focus both on targets/achievements and personal development. 

• Coach Chief Editors in team management and professional development to promote positive engagement among all team members.

• Understand the value and importance of regular communication with your wider team – both to  solicit their suggestions and ideas, and to report back to them on our activities and progress 

• Oversee travel and other costs to optimize application of available funds for strategic success.

• Provide subject-based and policy guidance to your team, and oversee the investigation and  resolution of research integrity issues. 

• Be aware of staff wellbeing, regularly monitor employee satisfaction and seek to address  recurring issues.  

• Role-model our values and ways of working and ensure that these are incorporated into the  day-to-day running of your team.

3. Contribute to the wider Nature portfolio and Springer Nature Journals division  

• Take part – and encourage your team to take part – in cross-departmental projects and/or  company-wide task forces and working groups. 

• Develop an area of expertise with broader strategic relevance and champion it within the Nature portfolio and beyond, internally and externally

• Build close working relationships with the other Directors in the Nature portfolio and broader journals division, as well as the Journals Group VPs.  

• Champion your subject area within the wider organization, including the Journals Group,  ensuring high visibility and inclusion in key projects.  

• Ensure that you understand and can explain the key strategic goals of the division, and key  internal and external publishing initiatives and developments: such as open Research, SharedIt,  ORCID and Publons. 

• Manage effective relationships and service-level oversight across Springer Nature to support your journal portfolio with e.g. Production, Sales, Marketing, Finance, and other editorial groups, and  work with them to deliver mutually advantageous results  

Key Relationships

• VP of Journals, Nature Portfolio

• Editor-in-Chief, Nature

• Editorial Directors, Nature Portfolio

• Director, Publishing Strategy, Nature Portfolio

• Director of Editorial Performance, Nature Portfolio

• Publishing Team, Nature Portfolio

• Chief Editors 

• Director, Submissions & Author Services (PP&I)

• Editorial Directors, OA portfolio

• Publishing Directors, hybrid portfolio

Experience, Skills & Qualifications

Experience

• A strong understanding of the needs and challenges of publishing high-quality research journals

• Professional editorial experience, ideally in a managerial capacity

• Experience in strategic development of high-quality research journals

• Demonstrable experience of leading a team within a scientific/academic publishing environment  

• Proven experience of identifying and acting on market opportunities 

• A deep understanding of the research community and its needs

Skills

• Excellent management and communication skills 

• Strong analytical skills and an interest in their application to support business goals

• Enthusiasm and passion for excellence in research 

• Strong leadership and team-building qualities 

Qualifications      

• An advanced degree and, ideally, research experience in a topic area covered by Nature Portfolio