International Journal of Information Management: Scopus, Metrics, Scope & Submission Guide

Quick Answer: What Is International Journal of Information Management?

International Journal of Information Management is a peer-reviewed information-systems journal published by Elsevier under the Pergamon imprint. Its official aims and scope position it as an outlet for research examining the design, development, implementation and management of information technologies and systems, as well as their strategic and societal implications.

The journal is indexed in Scopus under Source ID 15631. The supplied source record identifies the print ISSN as 0268-4012; Elsevier lists the online ISSN as 1873-4707. Its subject coverage spans information systems, information management, organizational behavior, human resource management, and library and information sciences, with substantial attention to digital transformation and emerging technologies.

Researchers may consider IJIM when their study addresses a meaningful information-systems problem and offers a clear contribution beyond a narrow application of technology. Before submission, compare the manuscript with recent IJIM articles, check the latest author instructions, and confirm that the paper's theoretical framing, method, and contribution match the journal's editorial expectations.

Key Takeaways

• Publisher: Elsevier; the journal page identifies Pergamon as the publishing imprint.
• Scopus: indexed, with Source ID 15631.
• ISSNs: print 0268-4012 and online 1873-4707.
• Current metrics displayed by Elsevier: CiteScore 54.9 and Impact Factor 27.0.
• Peer review: double anonymized; suitable manuscripts are typically sent to at least two independent reviewers.
• Article types: Research Articles, Research Methods Articles, Theory and Review Articles, and Research Notes.
• Open access: hybrid model; Elsevier currently lists an optional OA APC of USD 3,990 excluding taxes, while the subscription route has no publication fee.
• Submission preparation: authors must separate the title page from the anonymized manuscript and follow the journal's detailed file, abstract, keyword, highlight, data, ethics and reference requirements.

Journal Information at a Glance

What This Page Covers

• The journal's aims, disciplinary position and likely readership
• Scopus indexing, journal identifiers and current metrics
• Research topics and manuscript types IJIM accepts
• How to evaluate whether a study is genuinely aligned with the journal
• Manuscript formatting, abstract, keywords, highlights and reference style
• Double-anonymized peer review and what happens after submission
• Open-access options, APC information and subscription publication
• Ethics, authorship, competing interests, AI disclosure and research data
• A practical pre-submission checklist for researchers and PhD scholars
• How Contentxprtz can support ethical publication readiness without promising acceptance

Methodology and Sources

This profile was prepared using the supplied Scopus source record together with current authoritative publishing information from the official ScienceDirect journal page, the journal insights page, the official Guide for Authors, the editorial board page, and the supplied Scopus source profile.

Metrics, charges, indexing details, publishing timelines, editorial appointments and author policies are time-sensitive. Values in this article are presented with their source context, and researchers should verify the live official pages before making a submission or institutional reporting decision.

What Does International Journal of Information Management Aim to Publish?

IJIM describes itself as an information-systems outlet with broad global reach. Its scope is built around how information technologies and systems are designed, implemented, governed and used, and how those systems shape organizations and society. That breadth allows the journal to publish research across technical, managerial, behavioral and policy-facing questions, but the work still needs a clear information-management or information-systems contribution.

Core areas highlighted by the journal include the strategic integration of IT in business, IT strategy and governance, organizational change, digital innovation, and emerging technologies. The journal specifically identifies areas such as social media, mobile and cloud computing, digital platforms and ecosystems, big-data analytics, artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things and blockchain-related technologies.

Examples of potentially aligned research

• AI adoption, governance, human–AI interaction and organizational consequences
• Digital transformation, platform strategy and ecosystem governance
• Information-system implementation, use, continuance and organizational value
• Business analytics, data-driven decision making and information quality
• Cybersecurity, privacy, trust and responsible digital innovation
• Social media, digital commerce and technology-mediated behavior
• Knowledge management, organizational learning and information sharing
• IT governance, enterprise systems and strategic alignment
• Digital work, careers, skills and employee responses to emerging technologies
• Methodological innovation in information-systems and information-management research

A manuscript can mention AI, analytics or digital transformation and still be a weak fit if the technology is only background. The more important question is whether the study advances understanding of an information-management phenomenon, theory, method or managerial problem that is relevant to IJIM's readership.

Recent Themes Show the Journal's Breadth

Recent 2026 content visible on the journal page includes work on dependence on AI and employee creativity, student adaptation to generative AI, AI and career development, technology-mediated routines, ethical questions in agentic information systems, open-source software accountability and digital product strategy. These examples reinforce the journal's interest in technology as an organizational and societal phenomenon rather than simply as a technical artifact.

For manuscript-fit assessment, recent articles are more useful than a keyword list. Review several papers from the latest volumes and ask whether your research question, theoretical framing, unit of analysis and method would make sense beside them. A study may sit broadly inside “information management” but still be unsuitable if it lacks the level of theoretical or empirical contribution represented in recent IJIM work.

Understanding Its Scopus Coverage and Journal Metrics

The supplied record identifies IJIM as Scopus Source ID 15631, and Elsevier lists Scopus among the journal's indexing services. The publisher also lists the Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), SJR, SNIP and the Australian Business Deans Council (ABDC) among the journal's visibility and evaluation references.

Elsevier's journal page currently displays a 54.9 CiteScore and 27.0 Impact Factor. An institutional journal browser updated in June 2026 reports 2024 Scopus metrics of SJR 6.260 and SNIP 6.932, with Q1 placement in reported categories. Because CiteScore, SJR, SNIP and quartiles are recalculated by reporting year and can differ by category, authors should confirm the current database record when a university, funding body or promotion process requires a specific threshold.

What the metrics do—and do not—tell you

High citation indicators can signal strong visibility and influence within relevant scholarly communities, but they do not determine whether an individual paper will pass editorial screening or peer review. Journal selection should combine database status with scope, audience, article type, methodological fit and the manuscript's contribution.

Who Leads the Journal?

The official editorial-board page currently lists Michael Chau, PhD of The University of Hong Kong and Andrew Schwarz, PhD of Louisiana State University as Co Editors-in-Chief. The wider board includes associate editors and an international review board spanning many countries and specialisms.

Editorial appointments can change. If author decisions depend on a particular editor's expertise or role, verify the live editorial board rather than relying on an older citation or third-party directory.

What Types of Manuscripts Does IJIM Accept?

The official Guide for Authors identifies four main submission categories.

Is This Journal a Good Match for Your Research?

A useful fit decision starts with contribution, not prestige. IJIM may be a plausible target when the paper addresses a recognizable information-systems or information-management problem, engages relevant theory, uses a method capable of supporting the claims, and explains why the findings matter beyond the immediate sample or technology.

Preparing and Submitting a Manuscript

IJIM's author instructions require editable source files for the complete submission. Word files should use a single-column layout; LaTeX files may use double-column formatting. A PDF alone is not accepted as the editable source file for the manuscript.

Double-anonymized submission files

Because the journal uses double-anonymized review, authors must provide a title page and an anonymized manuscript separately. The title page should contain the article title, author names, affiliations, acknowledgements, declaration of interest, and full corresponding-author contact information. The anonymized manuscript should contain the main paper, references, figures and tables without author-identifying information.

Abstract, keywords and highlights

• The abstract must be concise and factual and should not exceed 250 words.
• Authors should supply 1 to 7 keywords in English.
• Highlights are required as a separate editable file.
• The journal asks for 3 to 5 highlight bullets, each no more than 85 characters including spaces.
• A graphical abstract is encouraged but not mandatory.

Article structure and references

The guide asks authors to divide the paper into clearly defined numbered sections and subsections. References should follow APA style, 7th edition, with the reference list arranged alphabetically and then chronologically where relevant. Before submission, every in-text citation should match a reference-list entry and bibliographic details should be checked against the original source.

Tables, figures and artwork

Tables should be editable text rather than images, numbered consecutively and cited in the manuscript. Figures and other artwork are supplied as separate files and should meet Elsevier's resolution and format requirements. Authors should prepare captions and verify permissions for any third-party material.

Research Data and Transparency Requirements

The Guide for Authors states that IJIM follows Option C of Elsevier's research-data guidance. Authors are required to deposit research data in a relevant repository and cite and link the dataset in the article. If data cannot be shared, the manuscript should explain why.

This requirement matters during project design, not only at final submission. Researchers working with confidential organizational data, personal information, proprietary datasets or contractual restrictions should plan early for consent, anonymization, permissions, repository selection and an appropriate data-availability statement.

What Happens After You Submit a Manuscript?

IJIM uses double-anonymized peer review. The manuscript is first assessed by the editors for suitability. If it is considered appropriate for peer review, the journal states that it will typically be sent to a minimum of two independent reviewers for expert assessment. Editors make the final accept-or-reject decision.

Elsevier's current journal insights display indicative timeline statistics of 4 days from submission to first decision, 65 days from submission to decision after review, 258 days from submission to acceptance, and 15 days from acceptance to online publication. These are publisher-reported journal-level indicators, not promises for an individual manuscript; actual timelines can vary with editor availability, reviewer recruitment, revisions and the complexity of the paper.

The journal also provides an appeal route under Elsevier's appeal policy. One formal appeal per submission may be considered if the required conditions are met.

Open Access, Subscription Publication and Fees

IJIM operates a hybrid publishing model. Authors can choose an open-access route or publish under the subscription model.

• Open access: Elsevier currently lists an Article Publishing Charge of USD 3,990 excluding taxes. The publisher notes that the amount may be reduced during submission where applicable.
• Subscription: Elsevier states that there is no publication fee charged to authors under the subscription route, with the published article available to subscribers.

Authors should confirm the current APC, institutional agreements, country-based arrangements, funder requirements and licence options during submission. A listed APC should never be treated as evidence that payment improves acceptance prospects; editorial decisions are separate from the payment route.

Publication Ethics, Authorship and AI Use

Authors are expected to follow Elsevier's publishing ethics policies. The submission declaration states that the work should not be under consideration elsewhere and should not have been published previously except in permitted forms such as a preprint, abstract, lecture, academic thesis or registered report.

Authorship and contributions

All listed authors should have made substantial contributions, participated in drafting or critical revision, approved the submitted version and accepted accountability for the work. Corresponding authors are also required to report contributor roles using the CRediT taxonomy where applicable.

Competing interests and funding

Financial and personal relationships that could bias the work must be disclosed. Funding sources and the role of funders should also be declared. Authors should finalize the authorship list before submission because post-submission changes are generally not encouraged and may require formal review.

Generative AI disclosure

Elsevier's current policy allows responsible use of AI tools during manuscript preparation, but the tools cannot replace human critical thinking, expertise or evaluation. Where generative AI or AI-assisted technologies are used for manuscript preparation, authors must provide a declaration describing the tool and purpose. Basic grammar, spelling and reference-checking tools do not require that declaration under the policy described in the guide.

Why Manuscripts Commonly Struggle at Editorial Screening

The journal does not publish a definitive public checklist of desk-rejection reasons or an official acceptance rate. Still, authors can reduce avoidable mismatch by checking the manuscript against the journal's stated scope and submission requirements before upload.

• A weak connection to information systems or information management
• Insufficient theoretical contribution for the research question
• A review that is descriptive rather than integrative or theory building
• Methods that are not sufficiently rigorous or transparent
• Claims that exceed what the design or data can support
• Failure to anonymize the manuscript correctly
• Missing highlights, declarations, data statements or required files
• References, tables or figures that do not follow the journal's instructions
• Language or structure problems that obscure the novelty and contribution

These are publication-readiness considerations, not predictions of editorial outcomes. A technically compliant manuscript can still be rejected for scholarly reasons, while a promising study may require substantial revision before it communicates its contribution clearly.

A Practical IJIM Publication-Readiness Checklist

How Contentxprtz Can Support an IJIM Submission

Contentxprtz can support authors who already own and understand their research with ethical manuscript preparation services such as academic editing, language polishing, journal formatting, reference and citation checking, manuscript assessment, cover-letter editing, reviewer-response editing and publication-readiness review.

For an IJIM-targeted manuscript, useful support may include checking whether the contribution is visible in the title, abstract and introduction; improving the logic connecting theory, method, results and discussion; applying APA 7 consistently; reviewing anonymization and submission files; and flagging incomplete declarations or unsupported claims. The intellectual decisions, data, analysis, interpretations and final submission remain the authors' responsibility.

Professional editing cannot guarantee acceptance, peer-review success or publication. Editorial decisions are made by the journal and its reviewers on the basis of scholarly quality, fit, rigor and policy compliance.

Final Journal-Selection Perspective

International Journal of Information Management may be an appropriate target for researchers whose work makes a substantive contribution to information systems and information management, particularly where digital technologies are examined in organizational or societal contexts. Its Scopus coverage, SSCI listing and strong citation indicators make it highly visible, but visibility should follow—not replace—a careful fit assessment.

Before submission, confirm the current author guidelines and fees, compare the manuscript with recent IJIM papers, and check that the submission package satisfies double-anonymized review, data, ethics, highlight and reference requirements. A strong journal-selection decision is ultimately based on scope, audience and contribution alignment rather than metrics alone.