International Journal of Managing Projects in Business: Scopus, Metrics & Submission Guide

Journal Information at a Glance

How This Guide Was Researched

This profile prioritizes the official Emerald journal page and author guidelines, the supplied Scopus source record, the ISSN International Centre record, and, for SJR-specific context, the SCImago journal record. Metrics, editorial teams, fees and database coverage are time-sensitive; reconfirm them before submission or before relying on them for a university requirement.

Aims and Scope: Where IJMPB Sits in Project Research

Emerald describes IJMPB as a bridge between academic project research and project-management practice. The journal seeks high-quality theoretical and empirical research that improves understanding of project management while encouraging new insights through multidisciplinary approaches rooted in the social sciences. That wording matters: the journal is not limited to project scheduling techniques or conventional delivery tools. It is interested in projects as organizational, managerial and social phenomena.

For manuscript fit, that can include research on project governance, decision-making, leadership, project teams, organizational support, stakeholder relationships, projectification, innovation, risk, sustainability, technology and data use, major projects, public or humanitarian projects, project success, and the interaction between projects and wider institutions. The journal’s current calls for papers also show interest in data science in project management, multimodality in project studies, people and identity in projectification, and societal or humanitarian challenges.

A paper is less likely to fit if projects are merely the setting and the manuscript makes no meaningful contribution to project scholarship. Likewise, a purely technical study may need to explain why its findings advance managerial understanding, project theory, methods or practice. As a practical publication-readiness step, compare your research question and claimed contribution with several recent IJMPB papers rather than relying only on a broad keyword match.

Understanding Its Scopus Coverage and Journal Metrics

The journal can be identified by Scopus Source ID 21100446517, and Emerald includes Scopus in its ranking list. Emerald’s current metrics panel reports a 2025 CiteScore of 7.2 and a 2026 CiteScore Tracker of 6.0 at the time the page was checked. The tracker is updated during the year and should not be confused with the finalized 2025 CiteScore.

Emerald also displays a 2025 Journal Impact Factor of 3.1 and a 2025 five-year Impact Factor of 3.4. SCImago’s 2024 record reports an SJR of 0.680 and Q2 placement in Business and International Management, Management of Technology and Innovation, and Strategy and Management. That is specifically an SJR/SCImago quartile; institutions that require a Scopus CiteScore quartile should verify that separate measure in the current Scopus Sources interface.

What Does the Journal Publish? Recent Themes and Research Direction

Recent Emerald content shows a journal interested in both established project-management questions and the changing social context of projects. Recent and forthcoming work includes governance and decision-making, integrated project management in healthcare ecosystems, collaboration between nonprofit and public organizations, sustainable project control, projectification and identity, and data-rich approaches to project management.

Article Types and Manuscript Classifications

The official guidelines list submission types including Research Paper, Research Notes, Practice Notes, Thesis Research Notes, Book Review and Forthcoming Project Management Events. They also describe classifications used during submission, including research paper, viewpoint, technical paper, conceptual paper, case study, literature review and general review.

For PhD scholars, the presence of Thesis Research Notes may be particularly relevant, but the correct category should be chosen from the live submission system and aligned with the actual manuscript. A literature review, for example, should do more than summarize papers; it should have a clear review purpose and analytical contribution. A case study should be framed so its organizational experience produces insight for the journal’s project-management readership.

Is This Journal a Good Match for Your Research?

A strong IJMPB fit usually begins with a project-centered research problem, a contribution that matters to project scholars or practitioners, and evidence that the chosen method is capable of answering the research question. The journal explicitly welcomes theoretical and empirical work, so there is no single preferred method implied by the scope.

If you remain unsure, Emerald’s FAQ says authors may contact the editor with the paper title and structured abstract for suitability guidance. That is more reliable than submitting a weakly aligned paper simply because the journal is indexed in a desired database.

Preparing a Manuscript for IJMPB

Length, files and structured abstract

The current author instructions specify 8,000–12,000 words, including the structured abstract, references, text in tables and figures, and appendices, with an allowance of 250 words for each figure or table. Article files should normally be supplied in Microsoft Word format; a PDF may accompany the Word file but is not accepted by itself. LaTeX may be used with an accompanying PDF.

Submissions require a structured abstract of no more than 250 words in total, including keywords and article classification. Required headings are Purpose, Design/methodology/approach, Findings and Originality. Research limitations/implications, practical implications and social implications may be included when applicable. Authors may provide up to 12 concise keywords.

References, author details and anonymity

The journal accepts recognized Harvard referencing styles and provides Emerald’s Harvard style as a model. Citations should be complete, accurate and consistent, and DOI information should be included where available. Author names and affiliations are entered in ScholarOne. Biographies and acknowledgements, if used, should be uploaded separately, which also supports the double-anonymous review process.

Before submission, remove author-identifying information from the manuscript, including figures and captions, and handle self-citations neutrally. Funding should be disclosed in the acknowledgements, together with the funder’s role where relevant.

What Happens After You Submit a Manuscript?

The corresponding author submits through the journal’s ScholarOne system accessed from Emerald. The publisher explicitly states that the journal does not accept submission by email or through third-party agents or proxies. Authors should create or use their own account and remain responsible for the submission.

1. Editorial screening: the journal office checks scope, policies, format and basic manuscript quality.
2. Double-anonymous review: suitable manuscripts are sent to at least two independent referees.
3. Editorial decision: the editor may accept, request minor or major revisions, or decline the manuscript.
4. Revision: authors respond to reviewer comments and revise the manuscript where invited.
5. Production after acceptance: licensing, copyediting, typesetting, proof review and EarlyCite publication follow.

Emerald currently displays 35 days to first decision for submissions between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025, and 39 days from acceptance to publication for its stated reporting period. The general review guidance also says the journal’s goal is to inform authors of a first decision within 60 days. These are journal-level goals or historical averages, not guaranteed timelines for a specific manuscript.

The reported acceptance rate is 15.2% for submissions between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025. That figure is useful context, but it should not be converted into a personal probability of acceptance. Scope fit, novelty, evidence, execution and reviewer judgment still determine the outcome.

Open Access, Publication Fees and Author Choices

IJMPB follows Emerald’s hybrid model. Authors can choose gold open access after acceptance, in which case an article processing charge is payable and the article is published under a CC BY 4.0 licence. Authors who do not choose gold OA are not asked to pay a publication or review fee under the journal’s stated policy.

Emerald also offers a green open-access/self-archiving route for the author accepted manuscript. The publisher states that this route is available without an embargo after official publication under its current policy. Because APCs and institutional agreements change, the safest approach is to check Emerald’s live APC price list or the editorial system before making a funding decision rather than relying on an old amount quoted elsewhere.

Publication Ethics, Authorship and Responsible AI Use

Emerald states that its publishing ethics are informed by COPE guidance. Submitted manuscripts should be original, not under simultaneous consideration elsewhere, and transparent about conflicts of interest, permissions, funding and research involving human participants. Where ethics approval or informed consent is required, the manuscript should contain the appropriate statements and details without compromising reviewer anonymity.

The publisher also has a specific AI policy. Large language models cannot be credited as authors. Emerald requires responsible and transparent use and distinguishes between generating new submission content and using tools to edit an author’s own existing material. Authors should read the current Emerald research and publishing ethics guidance before submitting, because AI and integrity policies continue to evolve.

A Publication-Readiness Checklist for IJMPB

How Contentxprtz Can Support Publication Readiness

Contentxprtz can support researchers before submission through academic editing, language polishing, manuscript assessment, journal formatting, reference and citation checks, structured-abstract review, cover-letter editing and reviewer-response editing. For IJMPB, the most useful support is journal-specific: checking whether the manuscript communicates a clear project-management contribution, follows the required structure, and presents the research in precise academic English.

That support is editorial and preparatory. It cannot guarantee peer-review success, journal acceptance, a particular review timeline, indexing or publication. The authors remain responsible for the research, data, analysis, citations, ethical declarations and final submission.