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09.14.2021 | SSP News & Releases

Society for Scholarly Publishing Releases Second Annual Professional Skills Map

September 14, 2021 – Mt. Laurel, NJ – The Society for Scholarly Publishing (SSP) is pleased to announce the second annual edition of the Professional Skills Map. Many thanks to all who participated in the survey in late 2020! The Professional Skills Map is the first of its kind in the scholarly publishing space: Users at any career stage can discover roles across scholarly publishing and make direct comparisons about the necessary elements for success.

This powerful tool is designed for users to explore individually or with a mentor to identify necessary skills for a current or desired role. At the industry level, the map helps identify trends over time, showing which skills are emerging and increasingly in demand as the field of scholarly publishing evolves.

In late 2019, SSP decided to undertake the ambitious effort of surveying the wider scholarly publishing industry, reaching out to SSP members and others via email and social media about the professional skills needed and desired in their roles. Results of the first yearly survey and map are outlined here.

The mapping tool uses data from 265 individuals to draw correlations between respondents’ current roles and their self-reported areas of strength and desired development. 

The survey asked respondents to share the type of organization they are affiliated with, the business area for their current role, their title, and years in the industry. Among respondents, 49% were from publishing companies, 20% were from societies, 7% were involved in consulting, 6% were from research or service providers, 3% were from libraries, and 15% selected ‘other.’

Then, respondents were asked to identify multiple personal characteristics and skills affiliated with their current position and future career development. The results allow users to see patterns in roles across organizations or departments.

By mapping identified skill sets to associated roles, SSP hopes the map will help publishing professionals recognize their core strengths and areas for further development while encouraging exploration of new or overlooked roles that align with their interests and competencies. 

“The Professional Skills Map empowers publishing professionals in diverse roles across the industry to explore opportunities for growth in their careers,” said project co-lead Sarah Andrus. “We are so pleased to continue updating the map each year as part of SSP’s commitment to supporting career development and celebrating talent in our community.”

To explore how sets of characteristics and skills apply to particular publishing roles, visit the Skills Map


About the Society for Scholarly Publishing The Society for Scholarly Publishing (SSP), founded in 1978, is a nonprofit organization formed to promote and advance communication among all sectors of the scholarly publication community through networking, information dissemination, and facilitation of new developments in the field. SSP members represent all aspects of scholarly publishing—including publishers, printers, e-products developers, technical service providers, librarians, and editors. SSP members come from a wide range of large and small commercial and nonprofit organizations. They meet at SSP’s annual meetings, educational seminars, and regional events to hear the latest trends from respected colleagues and discuss common and mutual (and sometimes divergent) goals and viewpoints.

Contact Melanie Dolechek, Executive Director | info@sspnet.org | 303-422-3914

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