The Journal of Strategic Information Systems: Scopus, Scope, Metrics & Submission Guide

Key Takeaways for Researchers

• Publisher and frequency: Elsevier; one volume with four issues annually.
• Identifiers: print ISSN 0963-8687; online ISSN 1873-1198; supplied Scopus Source ID 12396.
• Scope: information systems linked to strategy, management, organizations, business transformation and society.
• Indexing: Elsevier lists Scopus, SSCI and SCIE among the journal's indexing services.
• 2024 Scopus metrics: CiteScore 17.9, SJR 3.765, SNIP 3.450; Q1 in relevant categories.
• Current Elsevier indicators: Impact Factor 11.8 and an acceptance rate of 6% are displayed on the journal insights page.
• Publishing model: hybrid; current open-access APC USD 4,150 excluding taxes, with no publication fee for the subscription route.
• Fit matters: a strong paper should be novel, theoretically persuasive, methodologically sound, empirically credible and strategically relevant.

Journal Information at a Glance

The table below separates verified journal information from items that should be reconfirmed in the live indexing or publisher system.

What This Journal Profile Covers

• Aims, scope and topic fit
• Scopus indexing and metrics
• Article and contribution expectations
• Peer-review and timeline indicators
• Open access and publication fees
• Manuscript-preparation priorities
• Submission-readiness checklist
• Ethical publication support

Methodology and Source Basis

This page was prepared from the supplied Scopus source record and Contentxprtz template, then checked against authoritative or institutionally maintained sources. The principal sources are Elsevier's official ScienceDirect journal homepage and journal insights pages, Elsevier's subscription listing, the journal's published author advice, current editorial-board page, current special-issue submission instructions, and university research portals that reproduce 2024 Scopus metrics.

Metrics, editorial roles, acceptance rates, fees, indexing coverage and author instructions can change. A researcher preparing an institutional submission, PhD milestone document or funding report should reconfirm time-sensitive values directly in Scopus, Clarivate and the official publisher site.

The Journal of Strategic Information Systems Aims and Scope

JSIS is primarily interested in what information systems mean for strategy, organizations and management—not simply whether a technology works. Elsevier describes the journal as focusing on the strategic management, business and organizational issues associated with the introduction and utilization of information systems in a global context.

The official scope emphasizes how IT becomes part of strategic thinking; how information systems align with business strategy; how organizational arrangements and change are shaped by technology; how firms justify and evaluate information systems; and how organizations transform through the effective management and application of IT. It also welcomes inter-organizational, global and cross-cultural questions and the impact of emerging technologies. A transdisciplinary or critical perspective is explicitly welcomed.

Research themes that can align well

Recent 2025–2026 content on ScienceDirect includes work on digital transformation, IT investment differentiation, strategic agility, platforms, generative AI, inclusive immersive technologies and organizational change. These examples show that contemporary technologies are welcome when the manuscript develops a substantive strategic or organizational contribution rather than presenting the technology as the contribution by itself.

How to Judge Whether Your Manuscript Fits JSIS

A useful fit test is to ask whether the manuscript would still make sense if the technology label were removed. If the central contribution is only “AI improves X,” “blockchain affects Y,” or “a new system predicts Z,” the strategic information-systems contribution may be too weak. A stronger JSIS framing identifies the organizational mechanism, strategic tension, management problem, theoretical implication or societal consequence created or reshaped by the information system.

JSIS's own published advice strengthens this interpretation. The journal says it is looking for novel, theoretically strong, methodologically and empirically sound, relevant work that builds on current IS literature, advances what is known, and can interest both researchers and practitioners. It also identifies out-of-scope IS connection, lack of strategic/management/organizational/societal relevance, dated work, narrow topics, recycled submissions and poor writing as common rejection reasons.

Understanding Its Scopus Coverage and Journal Metrics

The Journal of Strategic Information Systems is indexed in Scopus. Elsevier also lists SSCI and SCIE, while the supplied record identifies Scopus Source ID 12396. For the 2024 Scopus reporting year, university research portals reproduce CiteScore 17.9, SJR 3.765 and SNIP 3.450, with Q1 placement in the Information Systems and Management category and other relevant categories.

Metrics answer a visibility question; they do not answer the manuscript-fit question. A Q1 label or high citation indicator does not make a journal appropriate for every information-systems paper. Universities may also use different category or ranking rules, so PhD scholars should check which database, reporting year and category their institution recognizes.

What Does the Journal Publish?

Current issues clearly identify research articles, while JSIS also publishes review articles through its dedicated review-issue activity. Editorials and announcements appear in the journal, but these should not be treated as standard unsolicited manuscript categories unless the current Guide for Authors or an editor explicitly permits them.

The journal is methodologically broad in the sense that its scope does not prescribe a single empirical tradition. The more important requirement is that theory, evidence and method fit the strategic information-systems question. A qualitative case study, quantitative archival study, survey, mixed-method project, critical analysis or conceptual review can only be competitive if the research design supports a meaningful contribution to the journal's domain.

Preparing a Stronger, Journal-Aligned Manuscript

The safest preparation strategy is to work backwards from the journal's explicit editorial criteria. Before formatting details, make the strategic IS contribution unmistakable.

1. State the strategic IS problem. In the first page, connect the digital phenomenon to strategy, management, organizations or society.
2. Show what is new. Distinguish the paper from established findings and explain the theoretical mechanism or insight it adds.
3. Engage current IS literature. The journal specifically advises authors to build on current information-systems work, including relevant JSIS research.
4. Match method to claim. Avoid methods that cannot credibly support the level of causal, theoretical or generalizable argument being made.
5. Explain relevance without overselling. Clarify who can act differently because of the findings—managers, platform owners, policymakers, institutions or researchers.
6. Read recent JSIS papers. Compare framing, theory development, methodological transparency and contribution statements with recent articles in your topic area.

Preparing and Submitting a Manuscript

The journal's current special-issue instructions direct submissions to Editorial Manager. Authors should use the official ScienceDirect journal homepage to open the latest Guide for Authors immediately before submission.

What to verify before uploading

• The selected article type or special-issue designation is correct.
• The manuscript files, title-page details and anonymization requirements match the current guide.
• All author names, affiliations, ORCID details and corresponding-author information are accurate.
• Figures, tables, supplementary files and data statements are complete and internally referenced.
• Declarations on competing interests, funding, ethics and any required AI-assisted writing disclosure are complete under current Elsevier policy.
• References are accurate and consistently formatted; every in-text citation appears in the reference list and vice versa.

What Happens After You Submit a Manuscript?

JSIS applies an editorial suitability screen before external review. Current special-issue instructions state that submissions considered suitable for peer review are reviewed by at least two independent reviewers. The retrieved official material does not provide enough evidence to state the journal's current identity-transparency model with confidence, so authors should verify whether the live Guide for Authors requires single- or double-anonymized files.

Elsevier's journal insights page currently reports 4 days from submission to first decision, 89 days from submission to decision after review, 456 days from submission to acceptance, and 12 days from acceptance to online publication. It also displays a 6% acceptance rate. These are historical journal-level indicators and should not be interpreted as guaranteed timelines. A manuscript requiring several rounds of revision can take much longer, while a desk decision can arrive faster.

Open Access, Subscription Publishing and Fees

JSIS is a hybrid journal. Elsevier currently offers an open-access option with an article publishing charge of USD 4,150 excluding taxes. The publisher notes that the amount may be reduced during submission where institutional arrangements, waivers or other eligibility apply.

The subscription route carries no publication fee charged to authors according to Elsevier; the published article is then available to subscribers under the publisher's access model. Authors should choose based on funder mandates, institutional agreements, budget and dissemination requirements rather than assuming that paying an APC affects editorial evaluation.

Publication Ethics and Research Integrity

Because JSIS is published by Elsevier, authors are expected to comply with the publisher's ethics and authorship policies as incorporated into the journal's current Guide for Authors. Typical requirements include original submission, appropriate authorship, disclosure of competing interests and funding, permission for copyrighted material, research-data statements where relevant, and transparent declaration of generative-AI use when required by current policy.

As a practical publication-readiness step, run a final integrity check before submission: verify that the data support the reported results, all borrowed ideas and wording are cited, tables and figures have clear provenance, authorship reflects genuine contribution, and no manuscript is simultaneously under consideration elsewhere. Professional editing should improve communication without fabricating data, references, authorship contributions or reviewer responses.

JSIS Publication-Readiness Checklist

How Contentxprtz Can Support Publication Readiness

Contentxprtz can ethically support researchers preparing for JSIS through academic editing, manuscript language polishing, reference and citation checks, journal formatting, cover-letter editing, manuscript assessment and publication-readiness review. For a journal as selective as JSIS, the most useful support is not cosmetic formatting alone; it is helping the author make the argument clear, internally consistent and aligned with the journal's stated research domain.

That support does not guarantee acceptance, peer-review success or publication. Editors and reviewers independently evaluate originality, significance, theory, method, evidence and fit.

Authoritative Sources to Recheck Before Submission

• Elsevier / ScienceDirect — journal homepage, aims, editors and publishing options
• Elsevier — journal insights, metrics, timelines, acceptance rate and APC
• Elsevier — ISSN, frequency and scope summary
• JSIS Advice to Authors — fit and rejection guidance
• Editorial Manager — JSIS submission portal
• Scopus Source ID 12396 — current source profile and metrics