PLOS reviews

Poor communication between departments/teams Lack of resources

Zero opportunity to move up the career ladder - no real promotion opportunity except the small step from publications assistant to senior publications assistant. Many roles were cut as a result of cost-cutting reductions-in-force leaving staff without roles to move into and no hope of progression. Instead more work is given to those on the lower rungs, without any increase in pay or appreciation. Lowest level staff are expected to handle projects as well as all day-to-day journal management with no appreciation for capacity. No bonuses, yearly payrises are below inflation, and the appraisal system is a joke, with limits on the number of people who can be put forward for the highest score and recommended payrise, despite all staff working tirelessly and without thanks. As a result, highest payrises can easily go to 'the favourite' member of a team, leaving others feeling unappreciated. Being hired for publishing knowledge meant nothing without a science degree - even when working on the publishing side of the company. Morale is at an all time low, and many skilled, devoted people with intricate knowledge and experience work are leaving because they have nowhere to move up to. More higher level staff are being recruited, while the lower levels are shrinking and being cut. The recruitment process for replacing leaving staff is slow, left to the last minute, and often makes no sense - there's no urgency, and so there is never a handover period, and teams are left understaffed for long periods of time. The Cambridge office has some great people working there, but the environment is one of stress and low morale. Problems raised regarding accessibility, lack of parking, and poor morale are put off as someone else's problem. More and more targets have been implemented with no resources to produce results, so micromanagement and stress passed down from managers to staff is a real problem.