At Hindawi, we are shifting our journal model and appointing Chief Editors on a selection of titles during 2019. The aim is to improve the way the journals support their communities and is in direct response to conversations we have had with academic, open access and policy communities.
We asked three of the new Chief Editors what they thought about the changes and their new roles.
Dr Hiroki Sayama is the new Chief Editor of Complexity. He is the Director of the Center for Collective Dynamics of Complex Systems (CoCo) at Binghamton University in New York state and has served as an Academic Editor since August 2017.
Dr Alice Turner is a reader in respiratory medicine at the Institute of Applied Health Research at Birmingham University. She is the new Chief Editor for the Canadian Respiratory Journal having worked as an Academic Editor since February 2016.
Dr Dan Zhao is the new Chief Editor for the International Journal of Aerospace Engineering. He is an associate professor in the School of Mechanical Engineering at Canterbury University and has been involved with the journal as an Editorial Board member since May 2018.
Welcome to your new role as Chief Editor. How do you see the change in responsibilities?
HS: I am very honored, humbled and excited to have this opportunity to serve the complex systems community as the Chief Editor of Complexity, the signature journal of this research field with nearly 25 years of history of publishing high-impact articles. I feel this is a huge responsibility vested on my shoulders, and I will do my very best.
AT: I will need to generate effective relationships with the editorial team in order to ensure robust reviews occur and are handled in a timely manner. I am looking forward to getting to know my associate editors and the rest of the team during this process.
DZ: As a chief editor, there is a huge responsibility for me to increase the journal impact in aerospace communities and to work with the editorial board to manage an efficient peer-review process and have excellent communication with authors.
What one thing are you most looking forward to achieving as Chief Editor?
HS: I would like to establish a strong, transparent channel of communication and information exchange between the global community of complex systems researchers and the editorial office of this journal. Complexity will continue to serve the complex systems science community and its editorial processes and practices should incorporate what the community needs.
I also want to promote publications of educational, pedagogical and societal outreach-related work on complex systems. With over thirty years of track records, this field is reaching the level of maturity that should begin producing real impacts on our next generation and society at large.
AT: I would like to achieve a higher number of highly cited articles in the journal, which I hope to do by engaging with high impact researchers in Canada in particular, improving our relationship with specific Canadian societies and professional groups, and ensuring article types and policies remain fit for purpose.
How do you feel about Open Science and championing it in your community?
HS: I am a strong advocate of Open Science. It is my pleasure to have a role in promoting it in the Complex Systems Science community, and I would like to explore possible models and roles of Open Access journals for improved dissemination of scientific discoveries.
AT: I feel open access research is vital for us to learn from one another and progress the world’s scientific endeavours effectively.
DZ: Open science in aerospace engineering is quite necessary with a reasonable APC charge, since it is freely accessed and shareable to all readers with different backgrounds.
What advice would you give to researchers submitting an article to your journal?
AT: Think about the audience you are writing for and what your key message to them is. Why would they want to read on? What impact will the research have on the clinical or scientific community?
DZ: Before you submit your manuscripts, please check and confirm the authorship, research data availability. Also check for plagiarism and copyright issues.
What do you think is the key thing your journal brings to your research community?
HS: The journal Complexity has a 25-year history of publishing influential work in the field of Complex Systems. I hope to make this journal *the* place to publish if authors seek high-impact open access publications in this field.
DZ: Valuable data, ideas sharing and technology developments among the researchers – all open to read and use by anyone, anywhere in the world.
What would you like to develop/change in your journal over the coming year?
AT: I would like to enhance access to research datasets through the use of supplementary data in accepted articles, and to improve access to publishing in the journal for newer researchers and new research teams by reviewing the article types we accept, and linking to training schemes in Canada and worldwide.
DZ: Achieving open data with an efficient and open infrastructure would be quite helpful in spreading the journal as widely and broadly as possible.
Thank you to our new Chief Editors for providing the above comments. We look forward to working together to improve our journals and to provide support for our research communities.
This blog post is distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY). The illustration is by David Jury and is also CC-BY.