Head of Publishing Strategy & Performance

Head of Publishing Strategy & Performance

JOIN THE COMMUNITY.

Making science better, together.

careers.

Be part of a community working together to make science better. A society publisher with the perfect blend of not-for-profit purpose and commercial perspective. Here, we help each other be the best we can be: a team big enough to impact and small enough to care.

At IOP Publishing, our mission is to make science accessible, discoverable, and impactful. As our new Head of Publishing Strategy and Performance, you will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of our publishing programme and ensuring we continue to serve the global scientific community with excellence.

This is a strategic, relationship-driven, high-visibility role—perfect for someone who enjoys working at the intersection of publishing, data, market insight, and organisational strategy.

In this influential leadership position, you will partner closely with our Chief Publishing Officer, the Senior Publishing Management Team, and colleagues across Publishing, Sales, Finance, and Technology. Your work will help us understand market shifts, respond to industry trends, and make confident, data-informed decisions.

What will you be doing?

• Lead the development of future-facing publishing strategies that drive growth, respond to market change, and unlock new opportunities.
• Partner with leaders across the company to shape commercial and regional plans that deliver on IOPP’s goals and objectives.
• Track and interpret performance against strategic objectives, identifying areas for course correction.
• Lead and develop our Insights Team, ensuring high-quality business, customer, and market intelligence supports decision making across IOPP.
• Build and maintain strong networks across the scholarly publishing sector to keep IOPP at the forefront of industry developments.
• This role is central to helping IOPP stay agile, informed, and aligned in a rapidly evolving publishing landscape.

You will bring a blend of strategic thinking, commercial understanding, and exceptional communication skills. We are looking for someone who is energised by complex problem-solving and confident influencing at senior levels.

Knowledge & previous experience

• Deep knowledge of STM journal publishing, industry trends, and the needs of researchers, funders, librarians, and learned societies.
• Experience shaping or implementing publishing strategy, commercial plans, or market analysis.
• Strong numerical and analytical skills, with the ability to interpret data and guide high-quality decision making.
• A collaborative working style, skilled at building trusted relationships across teams.
• The confidence to lead conversations, influence without direct authority, and communicate complex ideas with clarity.
• The ability to see the bigger picture while staying connected to operational realities.
• A degree is essential, and postgraduate experience in the physical sciences (MSc or PhD) is helpful but not required.

We pride ourselves on being a flexible and inclusive employer; if you have a preference to work flexibly, please do apply.

IOP Publishing is a society-owned scientific publisher, providing impact, recognition and value for the scientific community. As the publishing arm of the Institute of Physics, 100% of our profit goes towards public and scientific good.

Purpose: We are a world leader in the development of electronic publishing for the scientific community—working in the interests of science and scientists, we aim to maximise the impact of the research we publish.

Culture: We offer an international culture with offices in Europe, Asia and the US and our reach is global. Our culture blends dedicated and intelligent professionalism, informal collaboration and authenticity with a social conscience.

Financial Benefits: a competitive salary starting from £60,000 (Band

D), an excellent pension scheme (up to 12% company contribution), a discretionary annual bonus scheme and a range of other benefits available through our benefits platform.

Health and Wellbeing: 33+ days holiday (including bank holidays), plus an extra day’s leave to use for…