Getting Past the Editor's Desk

Abstract

To reach acceptance, every research paper submitted to Project Management Journal (PMJ) must pass several hurdles. This editorial aims to declare the editorial process and reveal major reasons for early rejection. Once submitted, the managing editor reviews each paper for completeness of material and adherence to the published organization and formatting requirements (https://journals.sagepub. com/author-instructions/PMX). Should the paper not comply with the guidelines on the first submission, the managing editor will return the paper to the author(s). The author(s) may correct the issue and resubmit the paper at this stage. Following the guidelines on the first submission will save the authors and managing editor valuable time. When in compliance with the guidelines, the research paper moves on to the desk of an editor in chief. The editor in chief conducts a high-level review of each paper, ensuring it matches the mission of PMJ, is of sufficient academic quality, makes an evident contribution to the discipline, and holds interest to a broad range of practitioners and academics. The editors in chief reject between 60% and 70% of all submissions. If a paper passes the desk of the editor in chief, it continues to the desk of an Editorial Board member (https://journals. sagepub.com/editorial-board/PMX); at this point, our editors have full decision-making authority. The editor will first review the paper at a deeper level and will desk reject those unlikely to pass the review process. The editors typically desk reject about one-half of the papers they receive; the remaining 15% to 20% go to reviewers for a double-blind peer evaluation. So how can one avoid a desk rejection? The best advice may come from our experience as editors in handling close to the 500 papers we receive each year. Although it may be in our job description as editors to reject papers, keep in mind that we are most pleased when we see an exciting and quality paper cross our desk, progress through the editorial and review process, and see it published as a significant contribution to the discipline of managing projects, programs, or portfolios. To that end, we present the more common reasons for desk rejection.