Starnes Holdings Inc Production and Editorial Quality Manager Remote · Full time Company website

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Starnes Media is a Birmingham-based media company serving hyperlocal communities with award-winning journalism and innovative marketing solutions. Our company thrives by proactive planning, serving our communities, and setting the bar high for quality and achievement.

Overview

Are you the person who makes sure nothing falls through the cracks, and can build the system that guarantees it?

We’re looking for a Production & Editorial Quality Manager to own the entire production workflow across six monthly community publications and a growing digital operation. You’ll be responsible for page design, editorial quality standards, copy editing, and the production pipeline that gets everything from raw content to finished publication. On time. On brand. Every month.

This role owns outcomes, not just tasks. You’re the person who sees the full picture 90 days before press and makes sure every piece is moving. Covers are planned and approved early. Content is flowing from editorial to design on schedule. Copy meets the standard before it hits a page. You’re not reacting to problems at the deadline. You’re building the system that prevents them. The best version of this role means the end-of-month crunch disappears because you’ve already made sure everything is where it needs to be.

You’ll also be at the forefront of a major shift: we’re moving to AI-assisted, agentic design systems. Your role isn’t to be replaced by AI. It’s to manage the AI. You’ll oversee templated page layouts, AI-assisted copy editing, and, eventually, agentic design workflows in which content flows into pre-built templates automatically. Your value is the human judgment layer: brand standards, visual quality, editorial accuracy, and the final call on what goes to press.

This role has real ownership. If you want to run something, not just do tasks, this is your opportunity.

You Have

• Strong experience in publication design, page layout, and print production
• A sharp eye for editorial quality, including grammar, AP style, consistency, and visual standards
• The ability to manage a production calendar across multiple publications simultaneously
• Comfort with, or strong willingness to learn, AI tools for design and copy editing
• A project management mindset: you track everything, flag problems early, and don’t let deadlines slip
• The confidence to hold other team members accountable to production schedules and content deadlines
• The ability to build and maintain systems, not just follow them
• Pride in producing work that meets a high standard every single time

We Offer

• Ownership of the entire production pipeline across six publications and growing digital platforms
• The opportunity to build and lead AI-assisted production systems from the ground up
• A role that grows as the company grows. New markets mean more production to manage.
• Paid time off, Blue Cross Blue Shield Medical/Dental/Vision, Life/Disability insurance, and 401(k)
• A company that’s investing in the tools and systems to make this role successful

What You’ll Do

• Own the press output. Every page across all six publications: tracked, on schedule, and meeting quality standards. Nothing goes to press without passing the production checklist. If something is missing, late, or wrong, you catch it before it leaves the building.
• Own the cover pipeline. Every publication’s cover is planned, shot, designed, and approved 30 days before print. If the editorial hasn’t assigned a story or sales hasn't filled ads, you escalate immediately. Not the day pages go to press.
• Own copy editing. All copy runs through the editing system first, then through your human review before publication. You manage this workflow end-to-end. If content comes in late or below standard, you push it back and hold the team accountable to the timeline.
• Manage the editorial-to-design production workflow. Content flows from editors to design on schedule. Bottlenecks are flagged immediately. You enforce the 90/60/30 planning cycle on the production side. If content isn’t where it needs to be at 60 days, you’re raising the alarm, not waiting.
• Build and maintain page layout templates for every standard page type. Templates that accept content drops and reduce production time dramatically.
• Work in ad design as needed. Overflow production, backup coverage, or as volume increases with new client packages.
• Report weekly: pages completed, cover status across all publications, production bottlenecks, and workflow health.
• Lead the transition to agentic design, working with our technical team to build workflows where content flows into templates automatically, with you as the quality and approval layer.

Key Traits for Success

• Highly organized with strong attention to detail
• Proactive. You flag problems before they become crises, not after.
• Comfortable holding others accountable to deadlines and standards
• Willing to embrace AI tools and new production methods
• Takes ownership of outcomes, not just tasks
• High standards for visual and editorial quality
• Speaks up in planning meetings when something is missing or behind

Compensation & Growth Path

• Competitive salary based on experience
• Clear path to expanded responsibility as the company adds markets and scales production
• Opportunity to build and lead a production team as volume grows
• Top performers shape the systems that become the company’s operating standard