In April 2025, we hosted a meeting of the editors from the Academy of Management journal portfolio at our campus in Bath. We asked a selection of them for their tips on publishing in their respective journals – here's what they shared.
Professor Quinetta Roberson (Michigan State University) – Editor-in-Chief, Academy of Management Journal
“The Academy of Management Journal is very specific about making a theoretical contribution, and I would underscore ‘theoretical’, because there are different ways you can make contributions. You could make a methodological contribution – often we get excited by new and novel ideas, but that's not necessarily a theoretical contribution.
“So we often suggest to people think about how you are changing our thinking about a particular phenomenon. How will researchers use your research, your paper going forward to explore this phenomenon. How have you changed or advanced our thinking in some way?”
Professor Ben Galvin (Brigham Young University) – Co-Editor-in-Chief, Academy of Management Collections
“I think my biggest advice would just be very thoughtful about what you're trying to contribute to the literature – and then finding the appropriate journal for that.
“You need to really try to understand, you know, what’s the proper approach? Looking at past articles, reviewing those articles and then understanding the way that the conversations are being had in the journal and approaching it that way, that would be my advice.”
Professor Christine Quinn Trank (Vanderbilt University), Co-Editor-in-Chief, Academy of Management Collections
“So for Academy of Management Collections, what I'm looking for is the writing – and the writing that I and my team are going to be looking for is great writing. I don't want to see any more lit reviews, so that's the number-one thing.
“And then for the other journals, I think the most important thing is to really understand what the journal does. When I was with Academy of Management Review, I got a lot of weird papers. The editor kind of had me there because I was open to unusual papers. A good editor will have somebody like that who can read something that's out there and give it a chance.
“If you're really lucky, you will have somebody in your friend group who can read something that's out there, find the nugget in there that's really great and shine it up. Watch for the journals that have that person that appears to be publishing things like the stuff that you're writing. Because I think that's the one thing: if they get you, then that's the place for you. You've got to find your home.
“That's going to be hard to do, but finding your home, finding that journal that just speaks to you, I think is so important.”
Professor Elizabeth Rose (Indian Institute of Management Udaipur) – Co-Editor-in-Chief, Academy of Management Collections
“I think there are a lot of resources out there and I don't think people make good use of them, so really focus on which journal you're targeting – read recent issues of that journal and spend time on the website. Some of the other journals have got podcasts; they've got lots and lots of paper development workshops, so take advantage of those.”
Professor Gary Ballinger (University of Virginia) – Editor-in-Chief, Academy of Management Annals
“Well, some of the tips are to be provocative and be interesting. One is that it's okay to have a point of view so long as you've got evidence to back it up in the literature.
"And then remember that management sits in this broad collection of science in general, so you're attempting to connect the field of management that you're looking at to other communities of practice in management, but also to areas that might be outside organisational behaviour, strategic management and some of the other divisions of the Academy.
“There are vast literatures in law, sociology, psychology, finance and economics to which [much] of the work that we do should be connected. That would be another tip for publishing in the journals: to make sure you could tell us that this sits in a wider unity of knowledge.”
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