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Publishing Operations Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Citizens JMP Securities LLC

$200K - $250K/yr

Proven experience leading publishing operations, supervisory review processes, or research production teams * Strong understanding of research publishing workflows, regulatory requirements, control ...

Fanatics

VP, Publishing - Trading Card Games

Seattle, WA · On-site

... Operations, and Finance to ensure cohesive execution. • Build and lead a small, senior, high-leverage team responsible for digital product, organized play, publishing operations, and community and ...

Citizens

Director of Research Publishing

San Francisco, CA · On-site

$200K - $250K/yr

Proven experience leading publishing operations, supervisory review processes, or research production teams * Strong understanding of research publishing workflows, regulatory requirements, control ...

Avcend

Content Manager II

Atlanta, GA · On-site

$34/hr

* Lead end-to-end social publishing operations: Build and manage a strategic editorial calendar, coordinate cross-functional input and approvals, partner with creative teams to produce high-quality ...

IEEE

Edit Support & Production Assistant

Piscataway, NJ · On-site

$16.25 - $21.25/hr

Description Job Summary The Edit Support & Production Assistant position provides editorial and administrative support to the Publishing Operations staff, in addition to transaction/journal/magazine ...

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Publishing Operations information

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$11

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$30

How much do publishing operations jobs pay per hour?

As of Aug 4, 2026, the average hourly pay for publishing operations in the United States is $19.82, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $15.38 and $22.36 per hour, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is the difference between Publishing Operations vs Editorial Assistant?

AspectPublishing OperationsEditorial Assistant
Required CredentialsTypically a bachelor's degree in publishing, communications, or related fieldUsually a bachelor's degree in English, journalism, or related field
Work EnvironmentPublishing houses, print and digital media companies, publishing departmentsEditorial offices, publishing houses, media companies
Employer & Industry UsageUsed across publishing industry for managing production workflowsCommonly used in editorial departments for supporting content creation

Publishing Operations focuses on managing the production, workflow, and logistics of publishing projects, ensuring timely delivery. Editorial Assistants support content development, editing, and research tasks. While both roles are integral to publishing, Publishing Operations handles the process management, whereas Editorial Assistants focus on content support and editing tasks.

What are some common challenges faced in a publishing operations role, and how can they be addressed?

A key challenge in Publishing Operations is coordinating between multiple teams—such as editorial, production, and marketing—to ensure smooth workflow and timely publication. Meeting tight deadlines while maintaining quality standards often requires strong organizational skills and proactive problem-solving. Additionally, adapting to rapidly evolving digital publishing technologies can be demanding, but ongoing training and collaboration help keep processes efficient. Building clear communication channels and regularly reviewing procedures can greatly improve outcomes.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a publishing operations professional?

To thrive in Publishing Operations, you need strong project management, organizational, and analytical skills, often supported by a degree in publishing, communications, or a related field. Familiarity with content management systems (CMS), digital publishing platforms, and workflow automation tools is typically required. Attention to detail, problem-solving abilities, and effective communication are standout soft skills for coordinating teams and ensuring quality. These skills are crucial to efficiently manage publishing schedules, maintain accuracy, and deliver content on time in a fast-paced environment.

What is publishing operations?

Publishing Operations refers to the processes and teams responsible for managing the production, distribution, and delivery of content in publishing companies. This includes coordinating editorial workflows, overseeing printing or digital publication, managing schedules, and ensuring compliance with industry standards. Professionals in this area work to streamline operations, optimize workflow efficiency, and support the successful release of books, articles, or other media. They often collaborate with editorial, marketing, and sales teams to ensure content reaches audiences smoothly and on time.
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Publishing Operations jobs near you
Infographic showing various Publishing Operations job openings in the United States as of July 2026, with employment types broken down into 88% Full Time, 10% Part Time, 1% Temporary, and 1% Contract. Highlights an 95% Physical, 2% Hybrid, and 3% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $41,222 per year, or $19.8 per hour.

Vendor Manager, Publishing Operations

Public Library of Science

Remote

Full-time

Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, Retirement, PTO

Posted 24 days ago

Job description

*This position is fully remote/home based. Applications will be accepted from candidates based in the UK and the following US states: FL, IL, MA, MD, NY, PA, TX, VA.
In the US, this is a union represented position as part of the Pacific Media Workers Guild, Local 39521 of the NewsGuild-Communication Workers of America.
Role Summary
PLOS is a nonprofit, Open Access publisher empowering researchers to accelerate progress in science and medicine by leading a transformation in research communication.
As the Publishing Operations Vendor Manager, you will play a critical role in ensuring PLOS's publishing workflows are supported by a diverse, high-performing network of external partners. You will lead vendor strategy across the publishing lifecycle, ensuring supplier capabilities align with organizational needs. With a focus on quality, scalability, and continuous improvement, you will foster strong partnerships, oversee procurement and contracting processes, drive best practices in vendor management, and support long-term operational resilience.
Supervisory Responsibilities
N/A- This role will involve management of vendors but will be on the individual contributor track and will not have direct line reports.
Responsibilities
  • Oversight of vendor use in end-to-end workflows, ensuring a joined-up and efficient approach
    • Seek continuous improvement in removing departmental silos and promoting cross-functional vendor scoping (e.g. take steps to move vendors to operating across the workflow from submission to publication, rather than siloing on the basis of department).
    • Limit risk to PLOS by ensuring a healthy diversity in the suppliers that support our work, while maximising efficiency and quality
    • Maintain awareness of relative strengths offered by suppliers that offer publishing support, and develop risk-reward scenarios for changing suppliers/opening requests for proposals (RFPs)
  • Management of vendor contract renewal
    • Serve as primary point of contact with suppliers/vendors in contract negotiations (cascading to relevant teams/legal where needed)
    • Track contract end dates and alert teams to pending end of contract three months before renewal date
    • Work with internal stakeholders to review and update tasks, volumes and quantifiable and reportable SLAs based on forecast submission and publication volume.
    • Develop forecast of supplier-side headcount (including optimal seniority of roles, where options exist) likely needed to support outsourced work
    • If needed, support negotiation between in-house teams and suppliers to finalise headcount and budget
    • Work with legal to update contracts
  • Management of RFP process
    • Serve as primary point of contact with suppliers/vendors in RFP process (cascading to relevant teams/legal where needed)
    • Support Director of Publishing Operations & Customer Care and Director of Editorial in pricing negotiations and budget requirements.
    • Work with external consultant to develop short list of suppliers to approach for RFP
    • Support internal stakeholders in drafting RFP documentation and setting success criteria
    • Serve as primary point of contact with suppliers who are submitting proposals
    • Support internal stakeholders in reviewing proposals and interviewing suppliers
    • With external consultant, support internal stakeholders in selecting supplier who is best placed to deliver services to meet PLOS' needs and within budget
    • Work with internal stakeholders and legal to develop contract (process as outlined above in contract renewal process)
  • Vendor onboarding
    • Serve as primary point of contact with new suppliers/vendors in onboarding process
    • Establish onboarding best practice guidance, including a rollout plan and communications templates
  • Work with internal teams to establish KPIs, service level agreements (SLAs) and auditing framework
    • As part of new contract or contract renewal process, work with internal stakeholders to develop/review plans for monthly quality assurance audits to track adherence to SLAs
    • Serve as primary point of contact with suppliers/vendors in sharing auditing results and developing remedial plans where service falls below agreed levels
    • Where service falls below expected standards, support in-house teams in remediation and review vendor plans to improve performance
    • Work with the Engineering and Product teams to prioritise development of data, reports, and other tools needed to track accountability via auditing process
    • Proactively identify opportunities to reduce in-house time spent auditing
    • Maintain PLOS-side feedback tracker, and coordinate the sending of feedback to suppliers
    • Escalate contract breaches to legal for advice
  • Establish a culture of excellence in vendor relationships
    • Develop, maintain and share resources and best practices for vendor management, including how to set appropriate SLAs and audit levels, and how to collect and share feedback
    • Lead training sessions for PLOS staff to share best practices for engagement with vendors
    • Support regular site visits both with external consultant and key contacts from relevant teams.
  • Capacity planning
    • Regularly review number of tasks sent to suppliers to ensure volume is as outlined in contract
    • Work with teams to amend contract and headcount as needed
    • Confirm appropriateness of vendor-side headcount once forecasts and reforecasts of submission and publication numbers are available
  • Maintain awareness of new supplier-side tools and technologies
    • Regularly meet with suppliers to review tools and technologies that they are developing to support efficient peer review
    • Regularly meet with journal teams (publishing, operations, editorial, production, R&R, publication ethics, customer care) to understand what technologies might be most helpful in supporting efficient peer review and publication
    • Liaise with Digital teams to ensure cross-functional alignment
    • Support demonstrations of potentially useful tools to PLOS teams
Knowledge and Skills
Vendor Procurement and Relationship Management
  • Experience in sourcing vendors and managing RFI/RFP processes and onboarding
  • Experience in developing and maintaining long-term, collaborative relationships with vendors such as editorial service providers, production partners or copyediting/typesetting vendors.
  • Experience in drafting and enforcing service level agreements (SLAs); auditing and analyzing vendor KPIs such as turnaround times, quality scores, and author/editor satisfaction; and managing budget.
  • Demonstrated experience in managing multiple vendors across global time zones and high-volume journal portfolios

Publishing Workflow Knowledge
  • Understanding of end-to-end publishing workflows including manuscript submission, peer review, production, copyediting, typesetting, and online publication. Familiarity with publishing standards (e.g., JATS XML, DOI registration, ORCID integration), ethical publishing guidelines (e.g., COPE, ICMJE) and compliance issues (e.g., data privacy, accessibility)

Technology and Systems Proficiency
  • Familiarity with manuscript tracking systems (e.g. Editorial Manager), production platforms, and content management systems
  • Familiarity with tools to increase the accuracy and efficiency of editorial processes and technical checks
  • Experience with tools for data tracking and reporting (e.g. Tableau)

Cross-functional and Cross-cultural Collaboration
  • Proven ability to collaborate with editorial, production, product and legal teams to align vendor operations with business needs
  • Skilled in working across cultures and time zones, with experience managing diverse vendor and stakeholder relationships

Communication and Reporting
  • Clear, professional communication style suited to managing both internal stakeholders and external partners
  • Strong documentation and reporting skills to track vendor activities and support audits or reviews
Qualifications
  • Extensive experience in developing and maintaining productive relationships with editorial and/or publishing services providers
  • Advanced degree or certifications in a relevant field (e.g., in procurement, operations, or project management) a plus
Physical Requirements and Work Environment
  • Prolonged periods stationary at a desk and working on a computer.
  • Some national and international travel will be required.
  • Some flexibility to work across time zones.

The base salary range we've established for these positions is (US): $75,000 - $83,000 or (UK) £50,000- £54,000PLOS also offers a comprehensive benefits package summarized below.
BENEFITS:
US:
  • 401k with employer match
  • Employee sponsored health, dental and vision insurance (Dental and Vision 100% employer paid)
  • Paid Vacation, 11 public holidays and sick leave
  • Parental leave
  • Birthday and three winter holidays days off
  • Short term and long term disability insurance
  • 2 days paid time off for volunteering per year
  • Fully remote work environment with stipend on joining for home office

UK:
  • Private medical insurance
  • Life assurance
  • Income protection
  • Personal accident insurance
  • Pension with up to 10% employer match
  • 25 days holidays, market competitive Maternity and Paternity leave
  • Birthday and three winter holidays days off
  • 2 days paid time off for volunteering per year
  • Fully remote work environment with stipend on joining for home office

About PLOS
Building on a strong legacy of pioneering innovation, PLOS continues to be a catalyst in open science, reimagining models to meet open science principles, removing barriers and promoting inclusion in knowledge creation and sharing, and publishing research outputs that enable everyone to learn from, reuse and build upon scientific knowledge.
Our work is supported by a highly skilled global in-house team, partnerships with local scholarly organizations, and the valued contributions of a diverse, international community of scientific researchers.
We're committed to equal opportunity
We're working to create a more equitable system of scientific knowledge and understanding. Removing barriers to inclusion and facilitating broad participation of voices is core to our success, inside and out.
Beyond accepting distinct perspectives, we seek and support divergent backgrounds among our staff because we know differences strengthen our teams, our work, and our communities. We strongly encourage applicants of all identities to join us as we work towards a future where science is open to all, for all.
Visit plos.org/careers to learn more.
To learn more about how PLOS protects your privacy, see our Employee Privacy Notice.

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