Meeting Production Specifications: Comprehensive Textbook Redesign and Management
I spearheaded the redesign of these textbooks, overseeing the entire process from concept to final delivery. This involved creating print-ready files, including high-resolution PDFs for color and black-and-white printing, ensuring educators had accessible materials for photocopying. Additionally, I produced screen-resolution PDFs optimized for online learning, complete with internal hyperlinks for seamless integration into our learning management system.
The primary objective of this project was to enhance the OpenStax math series by improving readability, ensuring ADA compliance, and elevating visual aesthetics. Additionally, I successfully reduced the page count of each book by 18-20%, streamlining the content while maintaining educational effectiveness.
This extensive series, consisting of 800-1200 pages per book, required meticulous sourcing and crediting of all photographs used, alongside the creation and editing of thousands of illustrations and mathematical graphs. I effectively managed multiple subcontractors throughout the project, ensuring that every aspect was executed to the highest standard. My comprehensive approach guaranteed that the final deliverables met all production specifications and educational needs.
High Volume Versioning — The “base files” from this project facilitated the creation of over 20 custom textbooks tailored for 15 universities and colleges for their math programs. These textbooks were regularly updated, reprinted, and occasionally completely reorganized on a quarterly basis. Collectively, they have reached over 200,000 educators and students, significantly enhancing the learning experience in mathematics classrooms.
Multitasking and Time Management: Efficient Project Coordination
At my previous company, which specialized in producing custom eBooks and ancillary materials, I was responsible for managing file requests and publication edits on a quarterly basis. This role demanded exceptional organizational skills to keep track of hundreds of change requests while juggling multiple projects for various clients each day.
Effective time management and a thorough understanding of production timelines were critical to ensuring timely completion of requested changes. This coordination allowed our print partners to print, bind, and ship books promptly, ensuring that bookstores received and processed them before the start of each quarter or semester—an intricate task, as each institution had different start dates.
Additionally, I developed the ability to work independently and prioritize tasks, allowing me to navigate the quarterly rush smoothly while also dedicating time to longer-term projects during quieter periods. This balance ensured efficient workflow and consistently high-quality outcomes.
Problem-Solving and Quality Control
During the production process, we encountered a small but critical issue when a previous version of a book cover was mistakenly printed alongside the updated content. To resolve this, we quickly generated correct barcodes using large white labels, printed them in-house, and overnight shipped them to the bookstore. The incorrect barcodes were then efficiently covered and replaced with the correct ones, preventing any delays or further complications.
To prevent similar issues in the future, I implemented a versioning system on the last page of each book. This system was developed after a bindery error resulted in a set of books being spiral-bound without key signatures, causing missing end pages. The versioning system provided a subtle yet effective way to indicate the final page to the bindery, while also giving our company a clear reference point for each print version.
Tools Utilized:
Adobe InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, Acrobat Pro, PitStop, Barcode Producer, Movemen MathTools, Desmos, WolframAlpha, and Google Workspace