Submission Overview
Manuscripts and all associated files should be electronically submitted via the online portal at https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/jmstudies. Manuscripts must be prepared and formatted according to the journal’s manuscript guidelines. Attention to these guidelines will speed up the review process and will increase the likelihood that a submission will be favourably reviewed by the reviewers, editors, and ultimately the journal’s readers. During the submission process, authors may suggest reviewers or express a preference for a handling Editor; these requests will be considered, but remain at the discretion of the Editorial Office and Editors.
Submission of a manuscript implies a commitment to publish in the journal. A manuscript can only be submitted to JMS if it has not been published elsewhere, nor is it under consideration by another journal. Authors who are in doubt about what constitutes prior publication should consult the Editorial Office.
JMS applies the iThenticate system to all manuscripts that are sent to reviewers. By submitting your manuscript to this journal, you accept that your manuscript may be screened for overlap with previously published works.
Authors who submit manuscripts to JMS are also expected to reciprocate by serving as reviewers for the journal if called upon to do so.
Manuscript Processing Overview
When a paper is received the Editors will read it and decide whether to send it out to referees. Typically, this decision takes no more than one week.
The Editors are committed to providing timely and constructive feedback to authors to ensure an effective and efficient review process. When a manuscript is first received, the Editors evaluate the suitability of the manuscript for JMS. Manuscripts that do not meet these criteria or are judged to be too weak (e.g. methodological flaws, lacking relevant literature, limited theoretical contribution) may be rejected and returned to the author(s) at this point. Authors of a manuscript that is not placed into the review process with our reviewers will receive a letter with feedback on the decision and, where appropriate, with suggestions for further development of the manuscript.
Resubmissions of a manuscript rejected by an Editor will not be considered except where the Editor has indicated that a resubmission of a new, completely revised manuscript on the topic is encouraged.
For each manuscript that passes the initial editorial evaluation, the Editor will assign three expert reviewers from the journal’s editorial review board or other qualified reviewers. All submissions sent out for review are subject to a double-blind peer review process. It is therefore important that the author(s) prepare their manuscripts in such a way that the author(s) cannot be identified. Authors should avoid specific references to themselves or to their own work in the manuscript. The review process varies in length, but typically, we aim to provide a decision on the manuscript with constructive and developmental feedback to authors within approximately three months.
When authors are asked to revise and resubmit a manuscript, they are typically asked to complete their revisions within four months to keep manuscripts actively in process. However, there may be circumstances in which the authors need more time for the revisions, in which case they should contact the handling Editor or Editorial Office (business.jms@durham.ac.uk) regarding any extensions.
When authors resubmit their revised manuscript, they are asked to enclose a separate point-by-point reply to the editorial letter and to the reviewers’ comments. Where there has been no contact from the authors of a manuscript after one year, any subsequent resubmission will be treated as a new submission. Authors will, however, be notified via email if their paper is approaching this deadline. Typically, manuscripts will be revised two to four times before acceptance.
Editors at JMS endeavour to make a final publication decision after the second revision, whenever it is feasible to do so. In some cases, manuscripts may need additional revisions before an acceptance decision can be reached. As methodological rigour, theoretical contribution, and appeal to a general audience of management and organizational researchers are important features of manuscripts published in JMS, the Editor will ask the advice of a second member of the editorial team at or beyond the second revision stage to ensure consistency in the editorial decision-making process. This second Editor may provide further comments and input for the development of the manuscript, but the final decision on the manuscript remains with the handling Editor.
Once a manuscript has been accepted for publication, it will be passed for production to Wiley. When the accepted manuscripts have been received by Wiley the corresponding author will also receive an email from Wiley’s Author Services system which will ask them to log in and will present them with the appropriate license for completion. Manuscripts cannot be published until Wiley has received the signed license agreement.
The manuscript will first appear online in Accepted Articles in an unedited form with a DOI number, after copy-editing it will then be published online in Early View and finally published in print. Typically, manuscripts are published in print within a year of final acceptance.
Any queries at any point in the process can be directed to the Editorial Office (business.jms@durham.ac.uk), who will be happy to advise, update or receive feedback.