The Requirements
To be a good fit as a Production Leader you will have:- A bachelor’s degree, probably in Journalism, English or a related field
- Three or more years of solid newsroom experience, ideally in a leadership position where you’ve demonstrated an inspiring and upbeat manner
- Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written
- The ability to prioritize work in a fast-paced environment with multiple priorities, and to keep yourself and the team on track to meet deadlines
- A demonstrated ability to package and paginate news
- Experience using software such as InDesign and Photoshop -- experience with Saxotech is a plus
- The creativity to produce attractive pages that follow style guidelines
- Great attention to detail, including strong copy editing, proofreading and fact-checking skills
- An understanding of production timetables and a demonstrated ability to meet deadlines
- The ability to recognize and anticipate obstacles and to work actively to provide remedies
- The desire to be a team player, and the ability to work well with those around you in a truly collaborative environment
- The ability and willingness to work a schedule that includes nights, weekends, and holidays
- The ability to lead and direct the work of others
The Role
In this newsroom production management position, you will supervise seven page producers and oversee the final production of our newspaper and magazines. You will be a hands-on leader, completing pages yourself and directing the staff in person on nights and weekends.You will oversee quality control, manage workflow, supervise producers, and complete other related tasks. As an up-and-coming manager, you can expect support, direction and feedback from the Director of Publications and from the H.R. Department.
We are installing Saxotech, a state-of-the-art editorial system. It will be a plus if you have experience with Saxotech.
Your specific activities will include:
- Supervising the Page Production staff, including scheduling, training, coaching, monitoring, giving feedback, hiring, and other management tasks.
- Finding holes in stories, fixing errors, and showing others how to do it.
- Coordinating with graphic artists, curators, and producers to lay out, edit and output pages to press.
- Monitoring and enforcing style, accuracy and deadlines.
Keys to Success
You’ll succeed by spending time to teach, compliment and reward your staff for doing a good job. You will figure out how to include regular training in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment. You will be focused on meeting goals and always improving yourself and everyone around you. You will find satisfaction in meeting deadlines, making sure your Page Producers feel valued, and in knowing that your readers are well served.You’ll succeed by never complaining. Instead, you’ll find satisfaction in using the staff, time and resources you’ve been given to overcome every obstacle. You will take pride in the newspaper each day, knowing that you made stories better, that you wrote great headlines, that you got the newspaper printed on time, and that you helped your staff learn and grow.
