We know that many of the issues that come with being an editor are not unique to Springer Nature, but we are working on ways to help ease frustrations that arise when performing editorial duties. We were thrilled to see that a quarter of respondents reported no frustrations with their role, but we know that the majority of our editors run into challenges. The top three are reported below:
- Securing the required number of peer reviewers for a manuscript
- Identifying potential peer reviewers to contact for a manuscript
- Being asked to handle unsuitable manuscripts
What are we doing to improve?
Reviewer Finder: We want to help make identifying & securing peer reviewers less frustrating. Using an algorithm, this tool provides a list of potential reviewers by matching the manuscript with researchers who have previously published similar papers.
Transfer Desk: Helping to simplify your editorial processes, the Transfer Desk makes it easy to reject articles that don't fit with your journal while helping research find the most suitable home. Sound submissions are sent to a team of subject specialists that find more suitable journals. You'll also receive quality submissions you may have otherwise missed.
Tutorials: Our new author tutorials on writing in English, preparing a manuscript, submitting a paper, and peer review help authors refine their work so that the research you receive is top quality.