Susan Heads works as a Publications Officer supporting the Communications and Knowledge Management team with all stages of the publications produced by International IDEA. This includes everything from text, graphics and the various stages of getting a publication ready for print or publishing on the website.

Prior to joining International IDEA on 8 February 2021, Heads has worked within book publishing and translation. She has also experience of working in various policy teams in the British Embassy in three different countries. She was a key member of the communications team during the UK Presidency to the EU, working at the Representation’s offices in Brussels.

Heads’ career encompasses all aspects of the publishing process including typesetting, writing, copywriting, copyediting and design. She has also worked as a reader for various book publishers, reading books in French, Spanish and Swedish and then producing reports in English for Agents and Foreign Rights departments. She became passionate about languages and books at an early age and decided reading in more languages would open up the world of publishing even more.

Heads graduated from Heriot-Watt University with a Master's Degree in Interpreting and Translation (French and Spanish). Swedish came later so that she could read the increasingly popular Scandi Noir genre in its original language. Since then, she has studied international relations in Brussels and a digital media diploma with the CAM Foundation (Communication, Advertising and Marketing).