Commonly Observed Shortcomings in Manuscripts Submitted to Management Journals

Management research, education, and practice in India are entering into an exciting phase. A valid theory of management practices and systems in the Indian context seems crucial for achieving excellence in management education and practice. In this article, we outline the commonly observed shortcomings in the manuscripts submitted, especially by new and inexperienced researchers, with a view to mitigating disillusionment and reducing the time and trials in the review process. The usual pitfalls in manuscripts submitted to business and management journals include poor writing and presentation, lack of integration, lack of significance, poor research design, scanty description of methods, untidy presentation of results, lack of proper structure and organisation, and inadequate and sloppy discussion and implication sections. Borrowing from our own experiences and the writings of the editors of top tier management journals, we offer guidelines for crafting clear and persuasive manuscripts. We provide suggestions for developing each section of the manuscript: topic choice, abstract, introduction, theory and grounding of hypotheses, research design, methods and results, discussion and implications, and references. We also furnish other broad suggestions to new researchers for enhancing their success in the research publication process that include being open to the suggestions and criticisms by the reviewers, stepping up training in clear writing in doctoral programmes by experienced faculty, enlisting the services of a professional copy editor, developing a team of researchers with complementary skills, and showing grit and hard work.