Senior Director, Professional and Consumer Publishing, American Academy of Pediatrics
Tell us a bit about yourself. Where are you from, and what did you study? Where are you currently based?
I grew up in central Connecticut and went to college at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York, with a major in Communications and a specialization in Journalism. I had a genuine interest in newspaper or magazine publishing in college; including a fun internship at a baseball hobby magazine based in New York. But I’m thankful that my career went down the book publishing path! I’m now based in the Chicago area, and I’m very appreciative to have had the chance to live in multiple amazing parts of the country.
Describe your current role and organization. What are your main responsibilities? What type of organization do you work for?
I work for the publishing program of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), and I’m the Senior Director, Professional and Consumer Publishing – which can be simplified (over-simplified) as the books side of our program; whereas we also have a thriving journals program. I oversee a talented team of developmental editors, copy editors, production managers, designers, and digital publishing professionals that develop award-winning books, brochures, toolkits, and subscription websites. Many of our publications are for health professionals and some are for patients and families.
Walk us through a typical day in your role. What challenges do you face? What opportunities do you encounter?
I used to be very hands-on with content development, which I found to be very creative. I now focus on managing the work of creative people like that – a different type of role but it has become equally fulfilling in fueling my creative side! I spend much of my day helping work through challenges and opportunities, developing and executing strategic goals, advocating for publishing activities, developing and maintaining an ambitious budget, and more. If I predicted my day-to-day activities 25 years ago, I might have declared, “That sounds boring.” But it’s far from boring, and I’m energized by it constantly.
Share your journey in scholarly publishing. What was your first role in this field, and how did you land it? What path led you to your current position? What unexpected challenges have you faced?
My early publishing career was at an entrepreneurial publishing company in Connecticut that focused on collectibles and other pop culture topics. We had New York Times best-selling publications on fun topics like Beanie Babies, Pokémon, commemorative state quarters, and more. The environment was fun and fast-paced, but it also became a boom-and-bust story in the end. I ultimately sought out a job in scholarly publishing at the American Academy of Pediatrics because it felt like a good, stable opportunity at a time when I was raising young children. It has been an amazing path!
Can you share a memorable project, achievement, or pivotal moment in your career development? Was there a defining moment or influential person who shaped your career?
I’m still very proud of my early efforts at the AAP in developing an online subscription website based on our venerable Red Book publication – a legendary publication providing guidance on pediatric infectious diseases. We had a friendly rivalry with a very similar publishing program to ours — the American Psychiatric Association (APA) – over which of our “book” publications would launch online first (the legendary DSM from APA or the AAP Red Book). Our vendor did launch Red Book first, by the way. It was a real challenge (and still is) to develop effective book-based publications on platforms that are largely built for scholarly journals.
There have been so many influential people that have helped shape my career. Too many and too important to describe briefly here. But I will mention one anecdote that I worked with a great sales manager in my early days of publishing who would sit in on creative meetings, and when he would come across an idea that he knew would be a winner, he would simply say, “Ship it.” He’d say nothing about the creative process and the blood, sweat, and tears it would take to build the concept, just that we needed to start to “ship it” out to customers. And I love that simple confident enthusiasm, and I’ve adapted the “Ship it!” concept into the rest of my career (while still enjoying the creation part of it).
What tools, websites, and organizations are essential for your career growth? How do you stay updated with industry trends and developments?
I enjoy in-person conferences the most for professional development; events such as vendor conferences or the Society for Scholarly Publishing (SSP) conferences. I enjoy The Scholarly Kitchen, Clarke & Esposito’s the Brief, and other blog or social media posts from industry professionals that I admire.
In your experience, what skills or qualities are essential for success in scholarly communications?
I know what works for me – creativity, curiosity, commitment, communication, compromise, and collegiality. But I’ve seen other sets of skills and qualities achieve high success in scholarly publishing, so I think the most important part is to use your own core qualities to their highest potential!
What do you wish you knew more about in your field?
Whenever I’m at an industry conference, I marvel at the deep knowledge everyone has about their own publishing businesses and the subject matter that their organizations specialize in. It would be so fun to simultaneously be an expert in every aspect of scholarly publishing, but in the real world, I’m content with trying to be an expert in my niche!
What future trends do you foresee in the field of scholarly publishing?
I foresee a much more diverse workforce within scholarly publishing, spurred by the particularly inspiring DEIA efforts I’ve seen within our industry. I know there are always threats and obstacles to goals like that (human history shows that), but I believe that the more diverse workforce within scholarly publishing will lead to better and more innovative publishing efforts and be an impetus for greater scholarly content and resources to enhance our world.
What motivates you in your work? What keeps you passionate about your role in scholarly publishing?
My creative drive motivates me. I’ve found that anything that interests me turns into a creative challenge and can make any project an exciting adventure. At the AAP itself, the organization’s mission around child health is super motivating. Every day, I collaborate with countless AAP colleagues and members with a unifying goal of improving child health. I take a lot of pride in being a part of a successful publishing program that gets important content out to the world to help children, parents, and communities.
How do you balance your professional and personal life? Any fun facts or hobbies outside of scholarly communications?
Oh yes, balance is important! Among my favorite activities are concerts and travel. I’m seemingly on a mission to see every band I’ve ever liked (even if only briefly) live in concert. It’s gotten to a point where I’ve seen so many concerts that sometimes I will select my next one purely because “I haven’t seen this particular band yet.” And I love to travel. I’ve visited 46 out of the 50 states in the US (so you know I’m motivated to complete the puzzle), but I also want to expand my international travel in the coming years.
What advice would you give to aspiring professionals in scholarly communications?
I would say, “enjoy what you do.” If you can’t look back and say to yourself that you really enjoy your job, you may not be in the right industry or job situation for you. I’m not saying that you have to enjoy every single day. I mean, many days may involve a particularly challenging or stressful situation that needs your best problem-solving skills. Those may not feel great in the moment. But if you look back at those challenging times and say with pride, “Wow, I really used my skills to get me and others past that difficult moment” – then I would say you are going places in your career!
