Strategic Planning of Special Issues in Small / Niche Academic Journals

As a member of the Editorial Board of a small academic journal, when organizing and running Special Issues, you should keep several key points in mind, drawing upon your defined role and ethical considerations as outlined in the sources.

Understand Your Role: As an Editorial Board Member (EBM), organizing or supervising Special Issues is one of your defined responsibilities. EBMs are considered essential for a journal's operations and development.

Suggest Relevant Topics: You can suggest topics for Special Issues, ideally those related to your research interests. Recommending hot research topics is also a valuable contribution.

Select and Supervise Guest Editors (if applicable): If your role involves supervising Special Issues, you will need to make decisions on the feasibility reports for new manuscript titles and evaluate the qualifications of proposed Guest Editors. You might also recommend suitable Guest Editor candidates. Be aware of procedures in place should a Guest Editor become unavailable, for instance, if they pass away; in such cases, consultation with remaining Guest Editors or Editorial Board Members is necessary, and a suitable EBM might be invited to take over if needed.

Attract High-Quality Submissions: A key part of running a successful Special Issue is attracting suitable expert authors. You can help recruit prominent scholars from your field and invite colleagues to publish. Scholars are more likely to trust a journal when they see distinguished scholars and recognized experts on the Editorial Board.

Ensure Rigorous Peer Review: Peer review is fundamental to a rigorous process. You may be invited to review manuscripts yourself. Importantly, you can also help to identify suitable reviewers for the journal, particularly when resolving conflicting or invalid reports by seeking additional reports. Ensure that reviewers you select are qualified for the content of the manuscript, are free of conflicts of interest (CoIs), and have no known ethics or performance concerns.

Manage the Review Process: Ensure the review process is conducted according to the journal's policies. Reviews should be constructive and professional. Confidentiality of the material under review must be respected.

Make Editorial Decisions: As an EBM, you may be responsible for making final decisions on manuscripts within your field of expertise. This includes making decisions on feasibility reports and providing final approval before launching Special Issues. If authors appeal a decision you made (especially if it was double-checked by you), you may be asked to assess the appeal.

Maintain Quality Over Quantity: Focus on the quality of the content published within the Special Issue. The sources suggest that one good Special Issue can be more beneficial than ten poor ones. This underscores the importance of attracting high-quality papers and ensuring thorough peer review.

Declare and Manage Conflicts of Interest: Be vigilant about potential conflicts of interest for yourself and others involved in the Special Issue, including authors, reviewers, and Guest Editors. Editors managing manuscripts must be free of CoI. Reviewers are also required to be free of CoIs and declare any potential conflicts.

Align with Journal Scope: Confirm that the content of the Special Issue fits within the journal's aims and scope. Updates to a journal's aims and scope, while typically coordinated by management and the Editor-in-Chief, are part of strategic development.

Engage with Journal Staff: Maintain open, transparent, and professional communication with journal staff. They facilitate the peer review process and communication with the board.

Utilise Resources and Training: Journals should provide training for editors and reviewers, and establish policies on peer review. Familiarize yourself with these resources.

Given that you are part of a small academic journal, maximizing the potential of Editorial Board Members like yourself is emphasized. Your active participation in activities such as organizing Special Issues is crucial for the journal's success and development. While learning from larger journals is suggested, remember that Editorial Boards should be proportionate to submissions.