Plos

Vendor Manager, Publishing Operations

operationsfull-timeUS-Remote

SALARY

$75k – $83k/yr

WORK TYPE

remote

JOB TYPE

full-time

INDUSTRY

general

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About the role

<h2>*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.</h2>

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.

<h2>Role Summary</h2>

PLOS is a nonprofit, Open Access publisher empowering researchers to accelerate progress in science and medicine by leading a transformation in research communication.&nbsp;

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.

<h3>Supervisory Responsibilities</h3>

N/A- This role will involve management of vendors but will be on the individual contributor track and will not have direct line reports.

<h3>Responsibilities</h3>

<ul>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Oversight of vendor use in end-to-end workflows, ensuring a joined-up and efficient approach

<ul>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">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).</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Limit risk to PLOS by ensuring a healthy diversity in the suppliers that support our work, while maximising efficiency and quality</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">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)</li>

</ul>

</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Management of vendor contract renewal

<ul>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Serve as primary point of contact with suppliers/vendors in contract negotiations (cascading to relevant teams/legal where needed)</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Track contract end dates and alert teams to pending end of contract three months before renewal date</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Work with internal stakeholders to review and update tasks, volumes and quantifiable and reportable SLAs based on forecast submission and publication volume.&nbsp;</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Develop forecast of supplier-side headcount (including optimal seniority of roles, where options exist) likely needed to support outsourced work</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">If needed, support negotiation between in-house teams and suppliers to finalise headcount and budget</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Work with legal to update contracts</li>

</ul>

</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Management of RFP process

<ul>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Serve as primary point of contact with suppliers/vendors in RFP process (cascading to relevant teams/legal where needed)</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Support Director of Publishing Operations &amp; Customer Care and Director of Editorial in pricing negotiations and budget requirements.&nbsp;</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Work with external consultant to develop short list of suppliers to approach for RFP</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Support internal stakeholders in drafting RFP documentation and setting success criteria&nbsp;</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Support internal stakeholders in reviewing proposals and interviewing suppliers</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">With external consultant, support internal stakeholders in selecting supplier who is best placed to deliver services to meet PLOS’ needs and within budget</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Work with internal stakeholders and legal to develop contract (process as outlined above in contract renewal process)</li>

</ul>

</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Vendor onboarding&nbsp;

<ul>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Serve as primary point of contact with new suppliers/vendors in onboarding process</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Establish onboarding best practice guidance, including a rollout plan and communications templates </li>

</ul>

</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Work with internal teams to establish KPIs, service level agreements (SLAs) and auditing framework

<ul>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">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</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Serve as primary point of contact with suppliers/vendors in sharing auditing results and developing remedial plans where service falls below agreed levels</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Where service falls below expected standards, support in-house teams in remediation and review vendor plans to improve performance</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Work with the Engineering and Product teams to prioritise development of data, reports, and other tools needed to track accountability via auditing process</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Proactively identify opportunities to reduce in-house time spent auditing</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Maintain PLOS-side feedback tracker, and coordinate the sending of feedback to suppliers</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Escalate contract breaches to legal for advice</li>

</ul>

</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Establish a culture of excellence in vendor relationships

<ul>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">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</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Lead training sessions for PLOS staff to share best practices for engagement with vendors</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Support regular site visits both with external consultant and key contacts from relevant teams.&nbsp;</li>

</ul>

</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Capacity planning

<ul>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Regularly review number of tasks sent to suppliers to ensure volume is as outlined in contract</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Work with teams to amend contract and headcount as needed</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Confirm appropriateness of vendor-side headcount once forecasts and reforecasts of submission and publication numbers are available</li>

</ul>

</li>

<ul>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Regularly meet with suppliers to review tools and technologies that they are developing to support efficient peer review</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Regularly meet with journal teams (publishing, operations, editorial, production, R&amp;R, publication ethics, customer care) to understand what technologies might be most helpful in supporting efficient peer review and publication</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Liaise with Digital teams to ensure cross-functional alignment&nbsp;</li>

<li style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Support demonstrations of potentially useful tools to PLOS teams</li>

</ul>

</li>

</ul>

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