Dr. Susan Skomal, who has served the non-profit publisher BioOne as President and Chief Executive Officer since 2005, will retire at the end of this year. During her 16-year tenure, Skomal stewarded the growth of BioOne as a leader in sustainable scholarly publishing and tirelessly engaged a community of independent society publishers, academic institutions, and libraries with a shared goal of maximizing access to critical scientific research in organismal biology.
BioOne’s Board of Directors convened a national search to find her successor and anticipates that an announcement will be made within a few weeks.
Skomal’s dedication to the founding ideal of sustainability for libraries and publishers is evidenced by the organization’s increased impact in both communities under her leadership.
Under Skomal’s direction BioOne’s staff has grown from a staff of two to a team of eight publishing professionals, all while navigating the evolving scholarly communications landscape and difficult financial climates. Skomal steered the organization through a series of changes designed to minimize internal costs and maximize the impact of collaboration. In 2009 and again in 2019, BioOne tackled ambitious platform migrations. These moves were fuelled by feedback from BioOne’s publishers, librarians, and end users, to deliver on a growing list of standards, capabilities, and infrastructure requirements to enable the most effective sharing and discovery of research. The 2019 migration saw BioOne become the first client on SPIE’s new publications platform; by strategically aligning with another not-for-profit organization, BioOne demonstrated the viability of forging a pathway independent of large commercial interests. Also in 2019, BioOne began to internalize its sales operation, bringing more expertise in house and further positioning BioOne as a lean and efficient organization.
Since taking the reins, Skomal has also spearheaded a variety of experiments in publishing and broader community support. In 2013, BioOne launched an open access journal, Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene. This wholly-owned publication demanded the development of an end-to-end publishing platform and hiring of an editorial board. After determining that true success would require more robust scalability and investment income, Skomal and the BioOne Board made the decision to transition Elementa to its new home at the University of California Press where it continues to thrive. Expanding BioOne’s services further, in 2017 the BioOne Career Center was developed, facilitating connections between individuals and organizations across the biosciences. And since the 2018 birth of the BioOne Ambassador Award, Skomal has proudly welcomed four cohorts of early career authors into the community. Hailing from BioOne Complete publications, these scientists are recognized for their creative approaches to communicating the impact of their research to the public.
Together, these initiatives in publishing and beyond demonstrate Skomal’s and BioOne’s enduring commitment to the exploration and innovation necessary to best serve the community she has spent 16 years cultivating.
With her retirement, Skomal will be “embarking on another chapter full of surprises.”
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