Journal of Management History: Scopus Indexing, Metrics, Scope & Submission Guide

Quick Answer: What Is Journal of Management History?

Journal of Management History is a peer-reviewed management-history journal published by Emerald Publishing. Emerald describes it as an international and interdisciplinary journal publishing rigorous research on the history of management thought, research and practice, including work on organisations, labour relations, entrepreneurship, institutional and industry histories, gender, race and ethnicity, managerial ideas, communities and changes in management theory and practice.

For visibility, Emerald currently identifies the journal as ranked by Scopus and abstracted/indexed in ESCI, ABI/INFORM, EBSCO Business Source collections, ProQuest and other services. The publisher reports a 2025 CiteScore of 3.5 and a 2025 Journal Impact Factor of 1.7. The live Emerald Insight page also displays a 2026 CiteScore Tracker of 4.0. Authors should treat the tracker as provisional rather than as a final annual CiteScore.

The journal may suit a manuscript when the study has a genuine historical dimension, uses appropriate historical or historically grounded evidence, explains its methodology and contributes to management theory or management-history scholarship. A contemporary management study with little historical analysis may be a poor fit even if its topic falls broadly within business or management.

Key Takeaways

• Publisher: Emerald Publishing.
• Scopus: Emerald lists the journal as ranked by Scopus; supplied Scopus Source ID 21100299410.
• Identifiers: ISSN 1751-1348; eISSN 1758-7751.
• 2025 metrics: CiteScore 3.5 and Journal Impact Factor 1.7, as displayed by Emerald.
• Peer review: double-anonymous, normally with at least two independent reviewers.
• Current manuscript types: Research Paper, Literature Review, Editorial and Book Review.
• Open access: hybrid; authors may choose gold OA with an APC or use the green self-archiving route.
• Fit priority: a clear historical dimension, historical evidence, theoretical contribution and explicit methodology are central.

Journal Information at a Glance

What This Page Covers

• Journal aims and scope
• Scopus and other indexing information
• Current publisher-reported citation metrics
• Article types and word counts
• Manuscript preparation and structured abstract requirements
• Peer review, timelines and acceptance-rate data
• Open-access options and publication fees
• Ethics, originality and authorship expectations
• Journal-fit and pre-submission checklists
• Ethical ways Contentxprtz can support publication readiness

Methodology and Sources

This profile prioritises the current Emerald Insight journal page, the Emerald Publishing journal and author-guidelines page, the supplied Scopus Source Record ID, and Emerald’s 2026 open-access pricing information. Where a metric such as SJR, SNIP or category quartile is not shown on the current publisher page, it is not guessed. Researchers should verify those values directly in the latest Scopus, SCImago or institutional subscription source required by their university.

Publisher pages can update on different schedules. For example, Emerald’s newer Insight interface displays more recent timeline and acceptance-rate figures than an older publisher-page snapshot. This guide therefore labels date-sensitive values and recommends checking the live page immediately before submission.

Journal of Management History Aims and Scope

Emerald characterises JMH as an interdisciplinary journal concerned with the history of management thought, research and practice. The journal welcomes diverse methods and theoretical approaches, but its scope statement is unusually clear on two conditions: papers should be built around empirical historical evidence and should have a theoretical basis.

The journal also expects authors to explain a meaningful contribution to theory. That contribution may come from reviewing how a concept developed, tracing historical foundations of a theory, extending theory through historical evidence, or showing how historical context changes present understanding of management or organisations. Authors should also state the methodology and its limitations rather than treating historical material as self-explanatory.

Topics explicitly represented in the scope

• history of management concepts and literature
• organisational behaviour
• labour relations
• institutional histories and case studies
• industry histories
• entrepreneurship
• gender in management and work
• race and ethnicity in patterns of work
• managerial organisation
• historically grounded cultural studies
• effects of managerial organisation on communities
• changes in managerial ideas, practices and theoretical frameworks
• demographic and economic change affecting management

JMH describes itself as international and signals particular interest in scholarship from outside the Anglosphere and in work that highlights national specificities and similarities. However, locally embedded research should still engage the wider management-history literature and show why the case matters beyond its immediate setting.

What may fall outside the journal’s core fit

As an editorial interpretation of the scope, a manuscript may struggle if it is mainly a contemporary management study, contains a historical introduction but no historical analysis, uses archival material without a research methodology, or reports an organisational history without connecting it to theory or the broader management-history literature. These are fit considerations rather than a prediction of an editorial decision.

Who Should Consider Submitting?

Potential authors include management and business historians, organisational scholars, entrepreneurship researchers, labour and employment historians, accounting and strategy historians, historians of management ideas, and interdisciplinary researchers using archives, biographies, institutional records, oral histories or longitudinal documentary evidence. PhD scholars may also find the journal relevant when a thesis chapter or dissertation study makes a standalone historical and theoretical contribution.

Before choosing JMH, compare your paper with several recent articles. Look at the historical period, types of evidence, theoretical framing, method section and contribution statement. A match in topic alone is weaker evidence of fit than a match in research problem, historical reasoning and scholarly conversation.

Indexing, Scopus Visibility and Journal Metrics

Emerald currently lists Journal of Management History as ranked by Scopus. It also lists the journal as abstracted and indexed in the Emerging Sources Citation Index, ABI/INFORM, multiple EBSCO Business Source products, ProQuest, OCLC Electronic Collection Online, ReadCube Discover and other services. Emerald additionally notes rankings or listings associated with ABS, ABDC (B), ANVUR (Class A), FNEGE and other national or disciplinary systems.

The publisher reports a 2025 CiteScore of 3.5 and a 2026 CiteScore Tracker of 4.0. Because CiteScore Tracker changes monthly until the annual metric is finalised, it should not be reported as the final 2026 CiteScore. Emerald also reports a 2025 Journal Impact Factor of 1.7 and a 2025 five-year Impact Factor of 1.5.

Quartile caution: journals can have different quartiles across subject categories, and database rankings can change from year to year. If your PhD regulations or promotion policy requires a specific Q1/Q2/Q3/Q4 status, check the exact current category and reporting year in the database your institution recognises rather than relying on an undated third-party website.

Article Types and Word Counts

Emerald notes that the total word count includes text, figures and tables. Because the live summary and fuller guidance use slightly different figure/table word-equivalent language, authors should follow the value shown in the submission system and current author instructions when finalising length.

Manuscript and Formatting Requirements

Emerald’s current guidance requires article files in Microsoft Word format. A PDF may accompany the Word file but is not acceptable on its own; LaTeX may be used only with an accompanying PDF. The journal accepts manuscripts in UK or US English.

Structured abstract

The fuller author guidance requires a structured abstract, with four mandatory headings: Purpose, Design/methodology/approach, Findings and Originality. Optional headings include Research limitations/implications, Practical implications and Social implications. The guidance sets a maximum of 250 words for the abstract area as described on the publisher page.

Keywords and references

The live Emerald Insight page asks authors to include up to six short, relevant keywords in the submission system, while the fuller publisher guidance currently mentions up to 12. Because this is another interface difference, follow the live ScholarOne fields and current journal page at the moment of submission. The journal uses the Harvard reference style.

Figures, tables and author information

Figures should be high quality, legible and numbered consistently, with clear captions. All contributing authors should be entered in ScholarOne in publication order with correct names, affiliations and email details. Funding sources and the funder’s role should be disclosed as required by Emerald. Brief biographies, where used, are uploaded separately under the detailed guidance.

Submission Process: Practical Step-by-Step Guide

1. Confirm scope fit. Make sure the research question depends on historical analysis, not merely historical background.
2. Read recent JMH papers. Compare your theoretical framing, evidence and method with recent articles and EarlyCite papers.
3. Check article type and length. Choose Research Paper, Literature Review, Editorial or Book Review as appropriate and follow the current word limit.
4. Prepare the structured abstract and keywords. Use the headings required in the current author guidance.
5. Apply Harvard references. Check every reference against the source and include persistent identifiers such as DOIs where appropriate.
6. Prepare anonymous review files. Because peer review is double-anonymous, ensure the main manuscript does not accidentally reveal author identity where the submission instructions require anonymisation.
7. Upload through ScholarOne. Use the journal’s official submission link from Emerald rather than a link sent by an unverified intermediary.
8. Complete ethics, authorship and funding declarations. Make sure the submission record matches the manuscript.
9. Review the generated submission PDF. Check tables, figures, equations, references and anonymisation before final submission.
10. Keep the manuscript number. Emerald sends confirmation after successful submission and uses the manuscript number for correspondence.

Peer Review, Acceptance Rate and Publication Timeline

Journal of Management History uses double-anonymous peer review. Emerald states that suitable submissions are sent to at least two independent anonymous reviewers. Before external review, the editorial office screens submissions and may decline or return manuscripts that do not meet policies, scope expectations or basic manuscript-quality requirements.

The live Emerald Insight journal page viewed in August 2026 displays 46.8 days to first decision, 51 days from acceptance to publication, and an acceptance rate of 25.4%. An older Emerald publisher-page snapshot displays different figures (46 days, 42 days and 34.4%) based on an earlier reporting window. These differences show why authors should treat timeline and acceptance-rate data as date-specific operational statistics, not fixed promises.

No individual manuscript can be guaranteed a particular review time or outcome. Desk screening, reviewer availability, revisions, ethical checks and production requirements can all affect the timeline.

Open Access and Publication Fees

JMH is a hybrid journal. Authors can publish through the subscription route, choose gold open access, or use Emerald’s green self-archiving route subject to the publisher’s current policy. Emerald says gold OA articles in its hybrid journals are published under a Creative Commons licence and an APC is charged after acceptance, not at submission.

Emerald’s 2026 publisher-wide APC for hybrid journals is £3,222 / US$4,351 / €3,710, plus VAT where applicable. Waivers, agreements or institutional funding may alter what an individual author pays. Because APC policies can change, check the live price list and the editorial system before making a funding decision.

Authors who do not select gold OA should not assume that a publication fee is otherwise required. Emerald explicitly states that the only time it asks authors for money to publish in an Emerald journal is when gold open access is chosen, except for sponsored-open-access arrangements.

Publication Ethics and Author Responsibilities

Authors should follow Emerald’s research and publishing ethics guidance on originality, authorship, conflicts of interest, research integrity, data protection and responsible citation. Every listed author should have made a significant contribution and should agree to be associated with the work. People who assisted but do not qualify for authorship should be acknowledged appropriately.

Historical research can raise distinctive ethics and rights issues. Archives may impose reproduction conditions; interviews and oral histories may require consent; personal or sensitive records may require careful handling; images and documents can be copyrighted even when they are old. Researchers should follow applicable legal, institutional and archival rules and document how evidence was obtained and interpreted.

AI-assisted tools should never be used to fabricate sources, quotations, archival evidence, findings or reviewer responses. Authors remain responsible for accuracy, attribution and compliance with the journal’s current disclosure policies.

How to Decide Whether Your Manuscript Fits Journal of Management History

Common Reasons a Manuscript May Be Unsuitable

• The historical dimension is superficial or decorative.
• The manuscript describes events but does not explain their management significance.
• The theoretical contribution is unclear.
• The historical evidence is thin, untraceable or selectively presented.
• The methodology does not explain source selection or interpretation.
• The paper ignores relevant management-history scholarship.
• The manuscript is outside the journal’s language, formatting or article-type requirements.
• The writing quality makes the argument difficult to evaluate at editorial screening.

These are practical risk indicators derived from the journal’s stated scope and submission expectations; they are not a list of official rejection reasons and do not predict a decision on any specific paper.

How to Prepare a Stronger Journal-Aligned Manuscript

Start by writing a one-sentence historical research problem and a separate one-sentence theoretical contribution. If the two sentences do not connect, the manuscript may need reframing. Then map each major claim to the historical evidence that supports it and explain why the chosen evidence is sufficient.

Build a method section that allows another scholar to understand where the historical material came from, how it was selected, how competing evidence was handled, and what limitations remain. Historical research benefits from source criticism: who created a document, for what purpose, what may be missing, and how later interpretation could distort the record.

Finally, compare the manuscript with several recent JMH articles and the journal’s current scope statement. Check whether your introduction establishes a management-history problem, whether the literature review identifies a field-level gap, whether results and discussion maintain historical context, and whether the conclusion states a contribution that matters beyond the immediate case.

Publication-Readiness Checklist

• Journal title, ISSN and Scopus Source ID match the intended journal.
• The manuscript has a clear historical dimension and theoretical basis.
• Historical evidence is traceable and methodologically explained.
• Article type and word count match the current Emerald page.
• Structured abstract uses the required headings.
• Keywords follow the current submission-system limit.
• References are in Harvard style and have been verified.
• Author names, affiliations, ORCID details and funding statements are accurate.
• Main manuscript is prepared for double-anonymous review.
• Figures and tables are legible, captioned and cited in the text.
• Permissions, archival rights and ethical approvals are documented where needed.
• Similarity concerns have been addressed through proper quotation, citation and original synthesis.
• OA funding has been checked if gold open access is planned.
• The live journal page has been rechecked for any updated metrics, fees or policies.

How Contentxprtz Can Support Publication Readiness

Contentxprtz can help authors prepare a manuscript for clearer, more consistent and policy-aware scholarly communication through academic editing, proofreading, journal formatting, reference and citation checks, manuscript assessment, cover-letter editing, reviewer-response editing and publication-readiness review. For a journal such as JMH, useful support can include checking whether the manuscript consistently communicates its historical research problem, theoretical contribution, method and evidence structure.

Support should remain ethical and transparent. Contentxprtz does not guarantee acceptance, peer-review success, indexing, citation outcomes or publication. Editorial decisions remain with the journal, and authors remain responsible for the research, evidence, interpretations, citations, disclosures and final submission.

Explore Contentxprtz journal publication services

Recent Research and What It Suggests About Fit

The journal’s current pages show recent work on topics such as the historical evolution of dynamic capabilities, reverse mentoring, change management, women’s agency in Renaissance accounting records, Indigenous methodology and entrepreneurship, agribusiness history, artificial intelligence in management history, and the historical development of management tools. The range reinforces an important point: JMH is broad in topic but expects the paper’s reasoning to remain historically meaningful.

For researchers evaluating fit, use recent papers as evidence of editorial conversation rather than as a template to imitate. A strong submission should add a distinct historical question, evidence base or theoretical interpretation.

Conclusion

Journal of Management History is a credible, established Emerald journal for historically grounded scholarship in business, management and organisations. Its current publisher information confirms Scopus visibility, ESCI indexing, a 2025 CiteScore of 3.5, a 2025 Journal Impact Factor of 1.7, double-anonymous review and a hybrid open-access model.

The most important selection question is not the metric alone. It is whether the manuscript uses historical evidence and context to make a meaningful theoretical contribution to management-history scholarship. Researchers who verify current policies, study recent papers and prepare the manuscript around that fit will be in a better position to submit responsibly—without assuming or expecting guaranteed acceptance.

Official and Authoritative Sources

• Emerald Insight — Journal of Management History
• Emerald Publishing — Journal of Management History aims, author guidance, metrics and policies
• Emerald Publishing — 2026 open-access and hybrid APC information
• Scopus — Source ID 21100299410