Senior Technical Editor

SSI-Venesco JV LLC • Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center, McLean, VA / FHWA Headquarters, Washington, DC • Full-time • Contingent upon contract award

About the Role

You are the editorial authority on a Federal highway research publications program. You own the editorial process end to end for high-stakes technical documentation, you set and enforce stylistic consistency across a large-scale program, and you mentor a team of technical editors and writers.

The work is transforming raw research data and engineering language into authoritative documents that stand up to Federal publishing standards — reference checked, fact checked, copyright cleared, accessible, and correct. Subject matter spans highway safety and operations, autonomous vehicles, human factors, roadway design, roadway materials, bridge engineering, and emerging surface transportation technologies.

Products on this program range from one-page briefs to complex documents exceeding 500 pages, so comfort at both extremes matters.

This role requires expert-level command of the GPO Style Manual and an uncompromising eye for detail. You and your team are expected to work independently, managing the full lifecycle of a document from outline to final publication, including online and web publishing.

Responsibilities:

Editorial leadership

• Oversee the entire editorial process for high-stakes technical documentation across the program.
• Direct editorial staff alongside the Project Manager — assign tasks and ensure timely, accurate completion.
• Mentor junior editors and writers and build consistency of practice across the team.

Substantive editing

• Perform and supervise substantive editing, copyediting, proofreading, rephrasing, reformatting, and rewriting for logical flow, coherency, and organizational structure.
• Verify technical accuracy of content, schematics, and data tables, and ensure they integrate seamlessly with narrative text.
• Conduct reference checking, fact checking, and verification of copyrights, product names, and trademarks.

Standards enforcement

• Ensure every document conforms to the current TFHRC RD&T Communication Reference Guide and the GPO Style Manual, with the Chicago Manual of Style governing anything those two do not cover.
• Ensure all content meets Section 508 accessibility requirements, including alternative text for non-text elements.
• Manage copyright and permission clearances, model release forms, and publication forms.

Quality control

• Serve as the quality gate for all publications and documents produced under the program.
• Apply version control and quality assurance across every stage of editing, writing, layout, and document production.
• Support the Quality Control Plan — identify defects, prevent recurrence, and report status to the client.

Lifecycle ownership

• Manage documents from outline through final publication, including electronic and print production and web publishing.
• Facilitate and monitor internal review processes for publications, e-newsletters, and internal communications.
• Coordinate review and approval with technical subject matter experts, management, the Office of Chief Counsel, and the Office of Public Affairs.

Required Qualifications

Education: Master's degree in English, Journalism, or a technical field.

Experience: 

• 10 or more years of professional editorial experience, including supervisory and project management experience.
• Expert-level command of the U.S. Government Publishing Office Style Manual.
• Demonstrated experience editing complex technical documentation — research reports, technical manuals, or scientific publications.
• Demonstrated experience ensuring Section 508 accessibility compliance in published content.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in transportation, especially highway and surface transportation research.
• Experience in a Federal publishing environment or with a scientific or technical society press.
• Experience with the Chicago Manual of Style as a secondary authority.
• Experience mentoring or supervising a team of editors.

Technical Skills and Competencies

• Superior mastery of English grammar, punctuation, and typography.
• Proven ability to translate engineering and research language into content suitable for both technical audiences and public transparency.
• Meticulous attention to formatting, referencing, and copyright compliance.
• Working knowledge of online and web publishing workflows and content management systems.

Location, Schedule, and Credentialing

• Onsite at TFHRC in McLean, VA and/or FHWA Headquarters in Washington, DC, with offsite work permitted subject to client approval.
• Business hours fall between 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, with a one-half hour unpaid lunch. Full-time baseline is 1,880 productive hours per year.
• Unclassified position. A USDOT badge is required, which means a favorable HSPD-12 / PIV background check at the low risk / non-sensitive level — a National Agency Check with Inquiries including fingerprinting, covering the past five years. Work cannot begin until FHWA Personnel Security authorizes the candidate to report.

How to Apply

• Submit a résumé of no more than two pages that clearly states your education, your years of relevant experience, and the specific programs and products you worked on.
• Include a portfolio or work samples — publications, layouts, articles, campaigns, videos, or live web pages you personally produced. Redact anything not cleared for public release.
• Be prepared to sign a letter of intent to accept employment contingent upon contract award, and to undergo a Federal background investigation.