Building the team

This branch covers establishing a writing function and filling its roles, divided by the organisational task: setting up the function, defining staffing and levels, applying a competency model, hiring and building capability across emerging markets. It leaves onboarding and development, day-to-day management, the competency model itself, applicants’ job searches, freelance business growth and global professional standards to neighbouring branches.

• Setting up an in-house writing function — establishing a function, department structures, institutional editing services and the departmental handbook
• Staffing the roles and levels of a writing team — publication and regulatory support roles, career levels, assignment readiness and written role boundaries
• Putting a competency model to work in a writing group — role descriptions, applicant assessment, career paths, development and cross-functional responsibilities
• Hiring medical writers and document editors — selection criteria, candidate sources, interviews, writing assessments, editor selection and recruitment constraints
• Building writing capability in emerging markets — recruitment and training, shared centres and the capabilities needed to serve several markets