Publishing Coordinator - Team Leader

• Noumea-based position
• Attractive expatriate package
• Join the principal development organisation in the region

Description

The Pacific Community (SPC) is the principal scientific and technical organisation in the Pacific region, supporting development since 1947. We are an international development organisation owned and governed by our 26 country and territory members. In pursuit of sustainable development to benefit Pacific people, our unique organisation works across more than 25 sectors. We are known for our knowledge and innovation in such areas as fisheries science, public health surveillance, geoscience, and conservation of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture.

The Operations and Management Directorate (OMD) provide corporate services to all SPC Divisions and Programmes. It consists of three key departments: Finance, Human Resources and Information Services. OMD is focused on improving the effectiveness of systems, policies and management to provide high-quality customer-oriented services.

The role – the Publishing Coordinator – Team Leader will be responsible for managing SPC’s Publishing and Library services, to provide effective and efficient publishing and library services to the entire organisation; as well as for the delivery of all publishing-related projects in the organisation, and for leading documentation processes for all corporate/governance meetings.

The person will also be responsible for implementing cost recovery of Publishing and Printery services, managing the customer service relationships with internal and external stakeholders, oversight of the outsourcing of Publishing services, and ensuring the Team meets its business reporting obligations. He/she will manage all other aspects of the Publishing process in SPC and the operations of the Publishing Team while supervising Publishing and Library staff in both Noumea and Suva.

The key responsibilities of the role include the following:

1. Managing the Publishing Team to ensure efficient, timely and effective delivery of all publishing services whilst developing and meeting the Publishing Team’s business reporting obligations

• Staff are managed and supervised to achieve objectives, and to create an environment that promotes high performance, collaboration, staff development and succession planning,
• Services meet the KPIs set out in the OMD business plan while business reporting metrics are determined and agreed with the Head, Publishing, Translation-Interpretation and Library Section,
• The Team adheres to SPC policies, including Publishing, Procurement and Travel.

2. Overseeing the delivery of publishing and library services and workflows, and client and stakeholder relationships

• Publishing production processes are coordinated across all publishing activities, and projects progress as planned and on schedule,
• Improvements in the alignment and efficiency of job request portals and processes are pursued with other OMD divisions,
• Conceive, develop and implement appropriate communication and resource materials (e.g. service guides, style guides, author guidelines), and outreach strategies, to promote organisational awareness of and compliance with Publishing processes within SPC,
• The Publishing and Library Intranet sites are well-maintained and up-to-date, and continuous improvements are sought out,
• Effective liaison and coordination occur, relationships are maintained within OMD and other divisions.

3. Publishing due diligence across the organisation, identifying and assessing risk and operational efficiencies in relation to SPC’s publishing-related activities, and developing appropriate responses

• Provide documentation services to corporate governance meetings (Conference of the Pacific Community, CRGA and its committees),
• Promote and improve compliance with relevant SPC policies, including the Publishing Policy and Instrument of Delegations,
• Publishing due diligence promotes and maintains high standards and compliance with publishing-specific policies and international conventions,
• Publishing quality standards, policies, procedures and processes are reviewed, updated and implemented to address organisational reputational risk and operational efficiencies,
• Copyright protection is maintained and publishing services are adapted to a changing technological, operational and user environment.

4. Implementing a cost-recovery model that ensures the Team’s services are financially sustainable, well managed and cost recovered

• Full cost recovery (FCR) for relevant services is implemented and communicated appropriately to divisions and programmes,
• Opportunities for outsourcing are identified and implemented; supplier network of freelance professionals is managed and maintained.

5. Editing and editorial oversight for the organisation

• SPC publications communicate successfully with their target audiences and conform to international and SPC’s publishing standards.

6. Supporting SPC’s information and knowledge management processes

• Meeting corporate requirements for information and knowledge management in relation to production, distribution and archiving of publications in digital and print formats.

For a more detailed account of the key responsibilities, please refer to the online job description.

Key selection criteria

1. Qualifications

• A university degree in an appropriate discipline, or equivalent work experience in appropriate fields.

2. Technical expertise

• Four to six years’ experience in managing teams, including ideally in a comparable publications area or publishing house,
• Six to eight years’ experience in structural editing, copy-editing, proofreading and writing, particularly for documents of a scientific and technical character,
• Well-developed negotiation and influencing skills,
• Extensive knowledge of, and experience in, information production and process management,
• Extensive knowledge of publishing principles (writing, editing, graphic design, layout, printing, distribution, publishing context),
• Knowledge of library services, functions and processes,
• Understanding of multi-project workflow management and coordination,
• Rapporteur experience.

3. Language skills

• Excellent written and oral communications skills for effective communication in English,
• Knowledge of French is considered to be an advantage.

4. Interpersonal skills and cultural awareness

• Excellent interpersonal skills with a collaborative, inclusive mindset and leadership,
• Cultural sensitivity and awareness, and the ability to effectively work with team members from different cultural backgrounds,
• Knowledge of Pacific Island countries and territories is an advantage.

Salary, terms and conditions

Required start date – As soon as possible

Contract Duration – This position is budgeted for three years and is subject to renewal depending on performance and funding.

Remuneration – the Publishing Coordinator – Team Leader is a Band 11 position in SPC’s 2019 salary scale, with a starting salary range of 4,022–4,931 SDR (special drawing rights) per month, which currently converts to approximately XPF 574,566–704,457 (USD 5,711–7,002; EUR 4,815–5,903). An offer of appointment for an initial contract will be made in the lower half of this range, with due consideration being given to experience and qualifications. Progression within the salary scale will be based on annual performance reviews. SPC salaries are not presently subject to income tax in New Caledonia.

Benefits for international staff employees based in New Caledonia – SPC provides subsidised housing in Noumea. Establishment and relocation grant, removal expenses, airfares, home leave, medical and life insurance, and education allowance are available for eligible employees and their recognised dependents. Employees are entitled to 25 days of annual leave and access to SPC’s Provident Fund (contributing 8% of salary, to which SPC adds a matching contribution).

Languages – SPC’s working languages are English and French.

Equal opportunity – SPC is an equal opportunity employer. Recruitment is based entirely on merit; in cases where two short-listed candidates are judged to be of equal rank by the selection committee, preference will be given to Pacific Island nationals.

Child protection – SPC is committed to child protection, irrespective of whether any specific area of work involves direct contact with children. SPC’s Child Protection Policy is written in accordance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Police clearance – Successful candidates will be required to provide a police clearance certificate.

Application procedure

Closing date: 8 December 2019

Job Reference: AL000243

Applicants must apply online at http://careers.spc.int/

Hard copies of applications will not be accepted.

For your application to be considered, you must provide us with:

• an updated resume with contact details for three professional referees
• a cover letter detailing your skills, experience and interest in this position
• responses to all screening questions

Please ensure your documents are in Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF format.

All positions at SPC have specific screening questions. If you do not respond to all of the screening questions, your application will be considered incomplete and will not be reviewed at the shortlisting stage.

Screening questions:

1. Briefly describe a recent publishing project (or other multi-function projects) that you have managed or coordinated, outlining the milestone steps to completion, and how you addressed any and any issues that arose. Please describe the final product that was produced.
2. Describe your philosophy on, and approach to, managing small to medium-sized, multi-functional teams, including how you ensure that all interrelated functions perform effectively to meet management and client expectations, and how you deal with poor performance, disengagement and trust issues.
3. Describe some of the steps you take to plan and set priorities (for self and team), manage your workload and meet deadlines (for self and team).