Call for Human Relations Editor-in-Chief
The Tavistock Institute of Human Relations (TIHR) is seeking to appoint a new Editor-in-Chief for Human Relations to succeed Professor Paul Edwards from January 2017.
Human Relations is a leading international multidisciplinary social science journal which has been published for almost 70 years. The Editor-in-Chief is responsible for setting and maintaining the scholarly and professional standards of the journal and for providing the strategic direction for its future development. He or she will work closely with an editorial team to manage the receipt and review of scholarly submissions and to encourage submissions and special issues. The appointment is for five years, reviewed after three years.
The journal is published 12 times a year. The Editor-in-Chief's workload is expected to be about six days a month for which the post holder will be remunerated in accordance with a professorial grade at UK universities. Joint applications will be considered.
For further details, job and person specifications and application procedure, please see below.
To arrange an informal discussion of the role with Prof. Paul Edwards, current Editor-in-Chief or Prof. Chris Warhurst, Chair of the Human Relations Editorial Management Committee, please email Claire Castle, Managing Editor: c.castle@tavinstitute.org
Closing date for applications: Friday 27 May 2016.
Background information
The Tavistock Institute
The Tavistock Institute is an independent social science research, advisory and professional development organisation. It was established in 1947 as a company limited by guarantee with charitable status. It seeks to apply social science ideas and methods to problems of policy and practice, change and innovation, and organisational analysis and design. A distinctive feature of the Institute's work is its focus on social, organisational and policy dynamics through action-research, organisational analysis and formative evaluation.
The Institute is a pioneer of key organizational development interventions including, for example, action research and systems psychodynamics thinking, and the staff of the Institute is made up of social scientists from a cross section of disciplines including sociology, economics, anthropology, psychology, policy science, organisational studies and the Arts.
The Institute's programme of work currently includes projects with government, voluntary organisations and industry in Britain, in Europe and further afield. Its income is entirely derived from research tenders and contracts for specific research, organizational development consultancy, professional development programmes, conferences and publishing activities. Its client/funding base includes government bodies and private and voluntary sector organisations and networks in various domains including:
Education and Training
Employment and Welfare-to-Work
Health and Social Care
Local, Regional, Rural and International Development
Technology Development
Manufacturing and Production
Financial Sector
Construction
Mining, Oil and Gas
The Institute's professional development activities include a number of certificated courses: coaching for leadership and professional development, a practitioner certificate in consulting and change, a certificate in the dynamics at Board level, a certificate in supervision of coaching and consultancy, as well as the flagship experiential leadership development programme, an annual two week working conference on 'Authority, Leadership and Organisation' at the University of Leicester.
Among its portfolio of activities, the Institute owns the leading social science journal Human Relations and hosts Evaluation: The International Journal of Theory, Research and Practice, published by SAGE.
For further information see www.tavinstitute.org
Human Relations
Human Relations is a leading international journal with a distinctive niche in the interdisciplinary study of the social sciences, mainly as applied to organizational and work-related settings. Its focus reflects the traditions of the Tavistock Institute of Human Relations, which has owned the journal since it was founded almost 70 years ago.
The journal is published twelve times a year, which provides distinctive opportunities to present special issues with a particular focus or theme. Its readership is highly international, as are those who submit papers to it, though there is particular strength in North America and Europe, which remain key markets. Most issues are sold to libraries rather than individuals. However, changes in technology are opening up new markets that provide scope for an innovative editor to exploit. SAGE is the current publisher of the journal and shares responsibility for marketing the journal.
The editorial arrangements under which the current Editor-in-Chief, Professor Paul Edwards, University of Birmingham, operates consist of a full-time Managing Editor who has day-to-day responsibility for the effective operation of the Editorial Office, a part-time Editorial Assistant (reporting to the Managing Editor) who has day-to day responsibility for receiving and processing manuscripts through the electronic system ScholarOne Manuscripts (formerly Manuscript Central), and a team of nine Associate Editors working in the UK, North America, Australia and Taiwan. The Editor reports to the Human Relations Editorial Management Committee (HREMC), which has oversight of the journal on behalf of the Council of the Tavistock Institute of Human Relations (TIHR). There are usually two meetings of this committee each year. This committee has responsibility for the appointment of the editorial team, receives and approves the annual budget and receives reports on the operation of the journal. It also maintains relations with the publisher, currently SAGE. The committee reports to the Council of Management of the TIHR. The Editor-in-Chief and the Managing Editor are ex officio members of the HREMC. The editorial team traditionally meet three times a year (with North American members taking part by video-conference). Currently, this includes one meeting annually at the Academy of Management conference in North America.
For further information see www.humanrelationsjournal.org
Job Specification
The role of the Editor-in-Chief is to maintain and if possible enhance the scholarly reputation and professional standards of Human Relations by publishing high quality output of academic material that reflects the traditions, focus and international reputation of the journal. The role is supported by a full-time Managing Editor and a part-time Editorial Assistant.
Within this configuration, the Editor-in Chief has the following tasks and responsibilities:
| 1. Set and communicate the journal strategy, in consultation with the editorial team and the Human Relations Editorial Management Committee (HREMC). This includes a regular review of the content of the journal and ensuring that it is addressing the major issues in its field, for example through the selection of special issues and the commissioning of critical essays and critical reviews. |
| 2. Oversee the work of the Managing Editor and the editorial team. |
| 3. To ensure the timely production of the journal. |
| 4. Ensure that the editorial review process is providing a satisfactory throughput of high quality publishable papers. |
| 5. Ensure the smooth and timely operation of the review process and identify and implement any appropriate steps to improve it. |
| 6. Chair meetings, three times a year, of the editorial team. |
| 7. Oversee the allocation of manuscripts to the editorial team, handle an appropriate number of papers as action editor, and respond to inquiries about the suitability of papers for the journal. |
| 8. Provide feedback as required to the HREMC on the strategy, policies and performance of the journal. |
| 9. Liaise closely with the publisher to agree and implement a marketing strategy. |
| 10. Represent the journal at academic conferences and in promotional activities. |
| 11. Attend two meetings a year of the HREMC. |
| 12. Identify and recommend to the HREMC an appropriate editorial team. |
| 13. Attend a selected number of major conferences each year. (These are likely to include as a minimum, the Academy of Management). |
| 14. Recommend conferences that should be covered by the editorial team to publicise the journal and to solicit papers. |
| 15. Prepare an annual draft budget, in close consultation with the Managing Editor, to submit to the HREMC. |
| 16. In collaboration with the editorial team, and in close liaison with the Managing Editor, maintain a relevant reviewer database of sufficient size and quality to ensure the quality of the review process. |
It is recognised that the role of the Editor-in-Chief can be time-consuming. It is estimated that it takes an average of about six days a month. There will, therefore, be appropriate pro rata payment for this role at the equivalent of a UK university professorial salary.
The appointment will start on 1st January 2017 or as soon as feasible thereafter, subject to negotiation. The appointment will be for five years with a review after three years. Joint appointments will be considered.
Person Specification
The successful candidate for the post of Editor-in-Chief of Human Relations is likely to possess and be able to demonstrate evidence of the following qualities:
| 1. A PhD in an appropriate area of the social sciences. |
| 2. An impressive record of publications in academic journals. |
| 3. International standing in the field. |
| 4. Extensive experience of reviewing papers submitted to academic journals. |
| 5. A familiarity with the key journals in the field of interdisciplinary social science applied to work and organizations. |
| 6. A capacity to judge excellence in academic writing across a range of social science methodologies and organizationally-related topics. |
| 7. Impressive oral and written communication skills. |
| 8. A willingness and an ability to engage in dialogue with those submitting papers to the journal and to provide timely responses and feedback. |
| 9. A strong international professional network, preferably with strong links in North America. |
| 10. An ability to work closely and participatively with, and to exercise leadership over an editorial team. |
| 11. A capacity to develop and implement strategies to ensure the continuing success of the journal. |
| 12. Availability to attend/participate in meetings with the HREMC and, as necessary, the publisher. |
| 13. An ability to convince the HREMC, at the time of appointment, that they have sufficient time to devote to the effective editorial leadership of the journal. |
| 14. A commitment to the inter-disciplinary ethos of the journal. |
| 15. Some experience of academic editing would be an advantage. |
Application Procedure
To arrange an informal discussion of the role with Prof. Paul Edwards, current Editor-in-Chief or Prof. Chris Warhurst, Chair of the Human Relations Editorial Management Committee, please email Claire Castle, Managing Editor: c.castle@tavinstitute.org
Applications should submit a brief CV (no more than five pages), supported by a letter (max. 1000 words) that outlines your experience and ability to perform the role, to Claire Castle, Managing Editor: c.castle@tavinstitute.org.
Closing date for applications: Friday 27 May 2016.
It is anticipated that interviews will be held in office of SAGE Publishers in London in the week commencing 20 June 2016. Interviews can be video-conferenced.
The new Editor-in-Chief would be expected to start on 1 January 2017 after a handover period with the current Editor-in-Chief who is due to complete his term at the end of December 2016.
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Best wishes,
Claire Castle
Managing Editor, Human Relations
Tavistock Institute of Human Relations
Email: c.castle@tavinstitute.org
Website: www.humanrelationsjournal.org