In 2018 we asked journal editors and board members at 50業子 to tell us about their experience working on their journal, the major issues they face, and the positive points they take away from their work. Over 5,000 editors across , , , , and completed the survey. We thank everyone that took the time to share their feedback. Read on for some of the key findings and ways we can help.
We were happy to see that 72% of editors rate the communication they have with staff at 50業子 as excellent or good. It was also inspiring to learn that 79% of editors feel very or quite motivated in their role.
We found that on average editors are spending 2 hours and 30 minutes on editorial tasks each week. Almost all editors are involved in managing peer review, but other activities include working on journal development, making editorial decisions about papers, the journal and editorial board, and writing content for the journal.
60% of editors are interested in taking on new responsibilities. The responsibility that editors most want to take-on is improving the quality of the submissions of the journal. Other tasks that editors have a substantial amount of interest in performing are doing more to promote their journal, having more say in their journals development, and investigating areas that their journal should move into.
Finding peer reviewers is a cause of frustration of our editors, with 49% finding issue with the task. Many pointed to the well-known difficulty of recruiting reviewers. One editor lamented:
I have one manuscript for which I've contacted 14 relevant potential peer reviewers which have been incredibly time consuming to find and this makes me reluctant to take on additional assignments.
22% of editors feel a lack of networking/communication with other editors as a cause of frustration. More specifically, 33% of editors do not feel like they are a part of a network of their journals editors.
Finding peer reviewers is the top frustration across all of our journal imprints. Interestingly, the second most reported frustration differs across our many brands. Springer and Palgrave editors feel that the second most frustrating thing is the heavy workload on their journal, while BMC and Scientific Reports editors pointed to a lack of networking communication with other editors.
We appreciate all feedback good and bad, and are constantly working towards improving the editorial experience at 50業子. Visit our Editor page to stay updated on new policies, resources, and services. Other considerations:
Let us know what else you would like to see from us in the comments.