THE REVIEW PROCESS –HOW TO EFFECTIVELY REVISE A PAPER David Smallbone Professor of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, SBRC, Kingston University Associate Editor, Journal of Small Business Management

THE REVIEW PROCESS  Submitted papers are assigned by Editor-in Chief to an Associate Editor (AE), who reads paper to decide between desk rejection and assignment to a reviewer  A minimum of 2 reviewers are selected on the basis of their experience & specialist expertise  Reviewers recommend accept/minor revision/major revision/rejection & provide comments for the author and for the editor  Associate Editor makes decision which is communicated to author(s) with copies of reviewers reports

JSBM REVIEW CRITERIA  Does the manuscript contain new and significant information to justify publication?  Does the Abstract clearly and accurately describe the content of the article?  Is the problem under investigation significant and concisely stated?  Are the theoretical underpinnings satisfactorily explained?  Is the methodology adequately explained and sound?  Are the interpretations and conclusions justified by the results?  Is adequate reference made to other work in the field?  Is the language acceptable?  Please rate the priority for publishing this article (1 is the highest priority, 10 is the lowest priority)  Length of paper, no. of figures and tables (if appropriate)

YOUR RESPONSE  Recognise that very few papers are accepted without amendment  If minor or major revision, check to see if there is a deadline  Respond to each the specific points raised by reviewers/AE  When paper is resubmitted include a list of your responses to each point raised by reviewers or an explanation as to why you have not accepted the comment  Recognise that even if ultimately rejected, your paper is likely to have been improved as a result of the review process  Do not submit a rejected manuscript to another journal without modification

YOUR RESPONSE  Take care to check references – for accuracy, detail and inclusion in end list  Seek guidance from others in your field who are more experienced in publishing journal articles.