Benjamin: From Doctoral Student to Associate Dean

How 13 Years of Strategic Editing Turned Complex Research Into Leadership and Impact

Customer Starting Point

Benjamin and I first met in 2011, when his program coordinator referred him to me for dissertation edits. 

Unlike the vast majority of the documents I edit, dissertations present serious restrictions for editing: because the writing itself constitutes a key part of earning a degree, it can’t be altered in any significant way. So at first, my job was limited to catching outright errors and inconsistencies only (formatting, grammar, punctuation, etc.). But once I opened Benjamin’s first couple chapters, I had some concerns. Specifically, I worried that even after receiving his PhD, he was likely to struggle as an academic—and it had absolutely nothing to do with the excellence of his thinking or his research.

From the start, it was clear that Benjamin’s success would depend not just on publishing, but on convincing diverse audiences of the value of his work, from reviewers and committees to government and industry partners.

Key Challenges

A maze of technical info and jargon: Benjamin’s work was highly technical and focused on (what was, at that time) a novel and disruptive technology. His doctoral dissertation only needed to impress his advisory committee—a handful of people that would, hopefully, understand enough to pass him. But I knew that once he tried to turn that work into submissions, he’d run into difficulties. Very few people had the expertise to understand his findings, let alone their immense importance for research and practice (especially for stronger supply chains). 

Lack of writing support and guidance: Like most academics, Benjamin had received virtually no training or guidance in the core activity that was going to drive his career: writing. His advisor was a strong researcher in the same boat; when Benjamin did receive his advisor’s (infrequent) feedback on his dissertation chapters, it was usually about aspects of the underlying framework or methodology, with little mention of how they were communicated.

English-language complications: In addition, English was Benjamin’s third language, and he was spending an inordinate amount of time grappling with language concerns instead of the research itself. He’d already submitted one of his chapters to a journal and it had been rejected as “not suitable for publication” with heavy mention of grammar, syntax, and other related issues. Benjamin’s lack of confidence in English meant that he was overthinking (and overcomplicating) almost everything he typed, as he mainly tried to mimic the “voice” of other articles in his field. 

All of these challenges were limiting the reach and potential of Benjamin’s research—and all of them hinged on the writing. Without a clear, reliable plan for addressing them, Benjamin knew his whole career would be an uphill battle.

Journey to a Solution

Before I started editing his dissertation, I asked Benjamin if he’d meet me for coffee to tell me more about his research, in his own words (conveniently, he and I lived in the same city at the time). That single conversation in a Starbucks told me more than his whole dissertation—and made me realize just how little effective writing advice most scholars receive. 

Without the filter of “Academese” language clouding things, I could clearly understand the complex technology that Benjamin was studying and exactly why it mattered. That gave me the foundation to serve as a translator and advocate of his work going forward: my own scholarly background was so far from his that Benjamin was forced to break down his findings into highly accessible, digestible explanations for me. 

As a result, he gained practice in communicating his research to a broader audience; I gained practice in the kind of comprehensive editing that turns scientific findings into a compelling story. 

Implementation

Our work began with my proofread-level edits to Benjamin’s (successful) dissertation. But over the next decade and beyond, it continued with far more comprehensive, results-oriented edits of: 

• Multiple top-tier journal submissions (including some adapted from Benjamin’s thesis) 

• Funding and grant applications worth hundreds of thousands of dollars

• Benjamin’s CV and cover letters

• Award-winning case studies for use in MBA classes

• His tenure and promotion package

• Policy recommendations and white papers

• Mainstream articles 

  
  

… and more. With each new document, I developed a stronger understanding of Benjamin’s research agenda and broader career arc. Over time, this editorial partnership enabled Benjamin to consistently communicate why his work mattered to different audiences, including those outside academia. 

As his writing became clearer, more persuasive, and more polished, industry started paying attention. Benjamin was offered lucrative industry contracts in addition to his academic work, and also asked to serve on important committees and boards for policy development and regulatory oversight of the technology that he studied.

13 Years Later: The Results

In 2024, Benjamin was appointed associate dean of a top business school in Canada, with a 20% pay increase from his associate professor role ($265k → $318k). He also earned significant compensation serving on boards and consulting for firms seeking to apply his research. 

Finding a trusted professional editor and co-strategist early in his career gave Benjamin a strong competitive advantage in the academic job market. He published more and in better journals than many of his colleagues. He was then able to leverage those publications to achieve tenure and other goals as quickly as possible. And his “fast and messy” approach to writing—made possible by outsourcing the time-consuming polishing stage before submitting—left him more time and energy for serving on committees, panels, and projects that strengthened his CV tremendously. 

Key Takeaway: Communicating Your Research Is Paramount

Too many academics are producing brilliant work that goes totally unnoticed because it’s written primarily for their fellow experts. Working with Benjamin, I began to see my brand of edits for what they were: a layer of strategic support and translation between a scholar’s valuable expertise and the audiences who could benefit from it. This meant that I focused on:

• Translating complex methods and results into accessible, compelling narratives

• Emphasizing value and application for non-academic readers

• Maintaining consistency (not repetitiveness) along certain themes and frameworks so his research agenda was clear and convincing

• Handling the finicky work of academic language precision so he could focus on research and leadership

• Ensuring every document highlighted both the academic and practical relevance of his findings

Because I came to understand Benjamin’s work at a deep level, I could help each document he wrote do double duty: meet academic standards and communicate value far beyond the ivory tower.

In Benjamin’s words

“Once people could clearly understand my research, doors opened everywhere. Having an editor who understands my work has made that possible. Thank you!”