EASE course: Editorial School for Journal Editors

Module 6 – Publishing impact: developing a journal

Wednesday, 8 October 2025

Part II of our popular Editorial School for Journal Editors took place in October 2025. Jo Wixon presented the second of the four modules.

The format of the session was a 60 minute lecture, followed by a moderated breakout session in which small groups consider a case study, and then a final session in which each group fed-back their discussions from each of the breakout groups and answer further questions from delegates.

Each module was recorded and made available to participants together with handbooks for easy reference.

Module 6 content

Journals have a tendency to become static and frequently fail to develop in response to changing researcher and publishing needs. Editors are frequently too busy to consider changes to workflows, aims and scope or other publishing and editorial issues unless specific problems arise. However the journal environment changes constantly, and it is important for both new and established journals to consider how and why they should implement changes, and to have ongoing development strategies to ensure they remain attractive to their research community.

This workshop looked at how editors can easily build development strategies that are realistic and practical, and achievable within their own busy schedules.

Learning objectives

1. Evaluating your journal – Before any development strategy can be considered it is vital that journals understand their strengths and weaknesses. Delegates were provided with tools and tips on how to evaluate the health of their journal and to identify areas in need of development or change
2. Planning for development – Plans need to be realistic and achievable. Delegates were provided with tools for establishing development priorities and ways to build realistic plans for change
3. Achieving indexation – For many editors, achieving indexation in reputable indexes is a primary goal. However, this is not easy, and good planning is required if applications for indexing are to be successful. Delegates learned the basic steps they need to take in order to improve their chances of becoming indexed.