By Tony Alves, SVP of Product Management, HighWire Press - Silver sponsor of the ALPSP Annual Conference and Awards 2024.

For almost 35 years, from my early days as

an editorial assistant to today as SVP of product at HighWire Press, I’ve been

observing how publishing systems can foster collaboration and build a more

connected and trustworthy scholarly community. The publishing process is a

highly automated ecosystem where advanced workflow systems coordinate

communication among authors, editors, and reviewers. These platforms foster

collaboration, streamline workflows, and accelerate the time from manuscript

submission to publication. On 5 June at the SSP Annual Meeting, I had the

privilege of moderating an Industry Breakout Session titled “Publishing Systems

Can Enable Collaboration and Build Community,” I was joined by Chris Shillum

from ORCID, Dukhbhanjan Sujlana from Convey, Yvonne Campfens from OA

Switchboard, Hylke Koers from STM Solutions, Jessica Thibodeau from Copyright

Clearance Center (CCC), and Oleg Ruchayskiy from Prophy Science. Together, we

explored how integrated technologies are transforming the scholarly publishing

ecosystem and creating a virtuous circle that benefits all stakeholders.

 

I started by introducing the concept of the

scholarly community as an interconnected system. At its core, publishing is a

collaborative endeavor that involves researchers, institutions, funders, and

publishers, as well as the public, which both funds and benefits from our work.

The glue that holds this ecosystem together is the technology that enables

efficient workflows and access to the tools we need to support scholarship.

Systems like the one we’ve been building at HighWire, called DigiCorePro, streamline

everything from manuscript submission to publication, fostering collaboration

among all players while ensuring that scholarly research moves quickly and

smoothly through the publishing process.

A key focus of the session was the role of

persistent identifiers (PIDs) in fostering transparency and trust in scholarly

communication. Chris Shillum from ORCID was the first to address this topic.

ORCID IDs are essential for linking researchers to their work, making it easier

for institutions, funders, and publishers to accurately attribute contributions

and track outcomes. Chris highlighted how ORCID’s integration across platforms

reduces administrative burdens for researchers, allowing them to focus on their

work rather than paperwork. ORCID’s role in peer review enables reviewers to

link their reviews to their ORCID profiles, promoting transparency and

incentivizing participation in peer review, which is crucial as we work to

address the reviewer crisis.

 

Another area where transparency and

efficiency intersect is financial disclosure, which is where Dukhbhanjan (DK)

Sujlana and Convey come in. DK introduced Convey, a web-based platform that

allows researchers and other individuals to manage financial disclosures in one

place. This system simplifies the disclosure process by eliminating redundant

data entry, ensuring that individuals can share their information with multiple

organizations seamlessly. encouraging adoption of Convey by academic

institutions, societies, and publishers can help in maintaining trust in the

research process.

 

Yvonne Campfens from the OA Switchboard

discussed how the community-led initiative is simplifying the exchange of open

access (OA) publication information. The OA Switchboard acts as a centralized

hub for metadata exchange, reducing complexity and administrative burdens for

publishers, funders, and institutions. By allowing all relevant parties to be

notified when an OA article is published, the OA Switchboard streamlines

compliance with funding requirements and OA agreements. What stood was the

emphasis on simplicity and collaboration—two principles that are essential as

we work to make open access more efficient and scalable.

 

Hylke Koers from STM Solutions introduced

the STM Integrity Hub, an initiative that aims to protect research integrity

through the use of data intelligence and advanced technology. The Integrity Hub

connects publishers to external databases like PubPeer and Retraction Watch to

screen manuscripts for signs of research misconduct, including papermill

activity and duplicate submissions. Hylke’s presentation highlighted the

importance of collaboration in maintaining the integrity of scholarly

publishing. By providing a centralized platform where publishers can access a

wide range of data and tools, the Integrity Hub helps to ensure that research

is trustworthy and that misconduct is caught before publication.

 

Jessica Thibodeau of CCC, showcased the

Scholarly Communications Suite. This suite of tools helps streamline the

management of open access agreements and Article Processing Charges (APCs),

leveraging persistent identifiers like Ringgold IDs to ensure accuracy and

compliance. Most compelling was how CCC’s tools enhance data interoperability

while improving workflow efficiency for publishers and researchers.

Disambiguating author affiliations and track research outputs is vital for

ensuring that scholarly work is accurately represented and recognized.

 

Lastly, Oleg Ruchayskiy from Prophy Science

tackled one of the most pressing issues in our industry: the peer review

crisis. Oleg demonstrated how Prophy uses big data and AI to match reviewers

with manuscripts, creating digital “fingerprints” for researchers based on

their publication history. This system makes it easier to find qualified

reviewers quickly and ensures that conflicts of interest are detected before

they become a problem. Oleg also shared exciting upcoming features, including

fraud detection and reviewer availability tracking, which can increase trust

and improve efficiency.

 

Throughout the session, one thing became

clear: collaboration is at the heart of scholarly publishing. Whether it’s

ORCID ensuring that researchers are properly credited for their work, Convey

simplifying financial disclosures, the OA Switchboard streamlining metadata

exchange, or the STM Integrity Hub safeguarding research integrity, these

technologies all share a common goal—building a stronger, more trustworthy

scholarly community. As publishers, we have the responsibility to integrate

these tools into our workflows to enhance transparency, efficiency, and

integrity.

 

I concluded the session by emphasizing how

publishing systems like DigiCorePro are crucial in addressing key challenges,

such as diversifying reviewer pools, improving content integrity, and reducing

time-to-publication. Publishing systems integrate innovative tools into

seamless workflows, fostering collaboration and community-building across the

scholarly ecosystem. The SSP 2024 Industry Breakout Session highlighted that

the future of scholarly publishing relies on leveraging technology and

collaboration to create a more efficient, transparent, and resilient ecosystem

that meets the evolving needs of researchers, institutions, funders, and the

public.

About the author

Tony Alves, SVP of Product Management, HighWire Press

Email: tony.alves@highwirepress.com

www.highwirepress.com