Assistant Managing Editor - OA

About our Team:

We are the Editorial Management team for Medical and Life Sciences Gold Open Access Journals at Sage India—a collaborative, agile, and mission-driven group of publishing professionals. We manage a diverse portfolio of journals, ensuring operational excellence and editorial integrity. Our work spans across Sage’s global offices in India, the UK, and the US, and we are proud to support editors, authors, and reviewers in delivering impactful research to the world.

What is our team’s key role in the business?

We are the engine behind the publishing lifecycle and maintain the quality and visibility of established titles. Our team ensures that each journal meets rigorous editorial standards, adheres to peer-review best practices, and remains competitive in the global academic landscape.

By closely tracking journal performance and supporting editorial boards, we directly contribute to enhancing scholarly impact, expanding readership, and achieving business growth targets.

We work closely with cross-functional teams to ensure seamless journal operations and strategic growth.

Could You Be Our Assistant Managing Editor?

Are you a detail-oriented publishing professional with a passion for academic excellence? Do you thrive in a fast-paced, collaborative environment and enjoy working with global stakeholders? If so, you might be the perfect fit for our team.

Top Qualities We’re Looking For

We’re seeking someone who is:

• Organized and proactive, with the ability to manage multiple journals independently.
• A strong communicator, comfortable engaging with editors, authors, and internal teams.
• Analytically inclined, with a knack for interpreting performance data and identifying trends.
• Adaptable and collaborative, able to work across time zones and departments.
• Committed to quality, with a deep understanding of peer review and editorial workflows.

Preferred (but not essential):

• Familiarity with peer review management systems like ScholarOne or Editorial Manager.
• Exposure to publishing contracts and business models.

Your New Role

As an Assistant Managing Editor, you will be responsible for the day-to-day management of a select group of journals. You will serve as the primary liaison for editors and authors, ensuring the highest standards.

You will support the editorial development of your journals by:

• Monitoring journal performance and timelines.
• Supporting indexing and abstracting efforts.
• Collaborating with marketing on journal promotions.
• Preparing reports and insights to inform editorial strategy.

This is an individual contributor role, ideal for someone looking to deepen their expertise in open access publishing while contributing meaningfully to the growth of Sage’s journal portfolio.

OVERVIEW

1. This position requires the candidate to hold a postgraduate qualification in medicine and/or life sciences.

2. You will report directly to the Managing Editor and/or anyone else designated by him/her.

3. You will regularly correspond, as advised, with all concerned staff in the Sage UK/US office to report in a prescribed reporting format on a daily or weekly basis via email, telephone or video conference.

4. You will manage various tasks as assigned to you, from time to time, in the peer review process of manuscripts in the journals, from submission through export to Sage Production using ScholarOne or any online peer review management system.

5. You will maintain high quality communication and excellent relationships with fellow journal editors, authors, reviewers, and other Sage staff.

Key Accountabilities:

1. Uphold ethical and quality standards by following the relevant manuscript submission guidelines (MSGs), Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and Equator Network guidelines, where applicable and appropriate.

2. Ensure that all submitted manuscript files are in proper order.

3. Conduct preliminary evaluations of manuscripts and recommend and process further action in terms of whether the manuscript needs to be unsubmitted (request authors for clarification) or can proceed for peer-review.

4. Select and invite suitable peer-reviewers for individual manuscripts until at least the manuscript receives sufficient good enough reviews (usually 2) in order to recommend/make a decision. Reviewer suitability is to be assessed by considering all potential conflict(s) of interest(s).

5. Request assistance, when appropriate, to ensure that manuscripts are processed through the peer-review management system adhering to the workflow timelines.

6. Evaluate the peer-review reports received and make recommendations and not decisions on manuscripts based on peer-review reports and editorial review (accept, minor revise, major revise, reject). However, looking at the caliber demonstrate we provide training to make such decisions on manuscripts.

7. Maintain positive work relationships and high-quality and prompt (usually within 24 hours except weekends and holidays) communication with fellow journal editors, authors, reviewers, and Sage staff worldwide.

8. Respond to journal mailbox queries, when assigned, from journal editors, authors, reviewers, and Sage staff.

9. Perform the assigned work with little-to-no supervision from the Managing Editor or other supervisors in Sage India/UK/US.

10. Be flexible enough to attend video/audio conferences with US and UK colleagues after the usual office-hours.

11. Demonstrate eagerness to develop editorial knowledge and proficiency.

Productivity Standards:

1. Each individual journal will have pre-determined timelines for tasks, which you will meet or exceed. You will be provided with the specific task timelines for each journal.

2. On the successful completion of your training and probationary period, you will select/invite at least 160 suitable reviewers per day if that is all the task you were to perform in each day.

Other:

1. Respond to any email inquiries from fellow journal editors, authors, reviewers, and other Sage staff within 24 hours of receiving the email (except weekends and holidays), and respond in a clear, articulate, and organized manner.

2. Occasional correspondence with the support staff at ScholarOne may be necessary to troubleshoot issues with the ScholarOne site.

3. Assist fellow Sage staff with any projects or initiatives, as requested.

4. Provide guidance, training and assistance to the fellow Editors or any other colleague(s) as assigned.

Act as a Liaison Between Sage and Journal Editors:

1. Communicate in a professional and personable manner with editors, authors, reviewers, and other Sage staff on any issues concerning their journal.

2. Closely monitor manuscript progress (to prevent delays) as they move through the various stages of the peer review process.

3. Promptly (within 24 hours, except weekends and holidays) inform your manager of any written (or other) communication you receive from editors/authors/reviewers/Sage staff that are tense or critical in nature and any appreciation.

Supportive Team Member:

1. Contribute ideas and give feedback in a concise and productive way.

2. Be available to provide support to fellow Editors, and other colleagues, as assigned as and when needed.

3. Assist in the training of new Sage colleagues.

4. Participate in projects, committees, or task forces as assigned by manager.

5. Participate in other activities, as needed, to achieve company and department goals.

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job function satisfactorily. The requirements listed within this position description are representative of the education, skills, experience and qualifications required. Incumbents in this position must always maintain absolute confidentiality with company information.

Management reserves the right to amend or rescind the essential functions of this position at any time, without prior notice.

Skills, Qualifications & Experience :

• This position requires the candidate to hold a postgraduate qualification in medicine and/or life sciences with 5+ years of relevant experience.
• Effective communication skills, both oral and written are required.
• Strong attention to detail.
• Prior exposure to peer review process and a fair understanding of scientific manuscripts is desirable but not mandatory.

A cover letter is important to us, this offers the hiring manager valuable insights into how your skill set aligns with the role, what unique contributions you can bring to the team and why you are interested in this position. Therefore, when applying for this role online, please upload your cover letter and CV as one document.

Applications without a cover letter may regrettably not be reviewed.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

At Sage we are committed to building a diverse and inclusive team that is representative of all sections of society and to sustaining a culture that celebrates difference, encourages authenticity, and creates a deep sense of belonging. We welcome applications from all members of society irrespective of age, disability, sex or gender identity, sexual orientation, color, race, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief as creating value through diversity is what makes us strong.