Submissions

Author Guidelines

The Journal of Personnel Management (JPM) is a peer-reviewed, fully open-access scholarly journal published biannually. The journal provides an academic platform for disseminating original, high-quality research in human resource management, personnel management, leadership, organizational behavior, management sciences, and closely related disciplines.

JPM is committed to advancing scholarly knowledge, promoting research integrity, ensuring transparent editorial practices, and supporting the responsible dissemination of research findings. The journal welcomes theoretical, empirical, conceptual, and interdisciplinary contributions that offer meaningful insights into contemporary organizational and personnel management challenges.

All authors are required to carefully review these guidelines and comply with the journal's editorial and publication policies before submitting manuscripts.

1. Aims and Scope

JPM publishes scholarly research contributing to the understanding and advancement of personnel management, human resource management, leadership, organizational behavior, and organizational effectiveness.

The journal welcomes research addressing, but not limited to, the following areas:

• Human Resource Management: Recruitment and selection, employee training and development, performance management, compensation and benefits, talent management, employee engagement, strategic human resource management, and employment relations.

• Leadership: Leadership styles, leadership development, transformational and transactional leadership, ethical leadership, inclusive leadership, leadership effectiveness, and cross-cultural leadership.

• Organizational Behavior: Employee motivation, job satisfaction, organizational commitment, organizational culture, employee well-being, work–life balance, teamwork, organizational citizenship behavior, and workplace diversity.

• Management Sciences: Organizational strategy, managerial decision-making, organizational development, innovation management, change management, and related organizational practices.

• Emerging Management Issues: Digital human resource management, artificial intelligence in personnel management, hybrid working arrangements, employee sustainability, workplace technology, and contemporary challenges affecting organizations.

JPM encourages rigorous quantitative, qualitative, mixed-methods, and conceptual research that advances theoretical knowledge or offers meaningful practical implications.

All submissions must be relevant to the journal's published Aims and Scope.

2. Types of Manuscripts

JPM considers the following categories of scholarly manuscripts:

1. Original Research Articles: Empirical studies presenting original findings using appropriate quantitative, qualitative, or mixed-methods approaches.

2. Review Articles: Critical reviews synthesizing existing knowledge and identifying research developments and gaps.

3. Systematic Literature Reviews: Reviews employing transparent, systematic, and reproducible methods for identifying, selecting, evaluating, and synthesizing relevant literature.

4. Conceptual and Theoretical Papers: Scholarly contributions proposing, extending, integrating, or critically evaluating conceptual frameworks, theories, or research models.

5. Case Studies: Research-based case analyses addressing organizational, managerial, leadership, or human resource management phenomena.

All manuscripts must demonstrate academic rigor, originality, relevance, and a clear contribution to scholarly knowledge or professional practice.

3. Submission Policy

Manuscripts submitted to JPM must be original, unpublished, and not simultaneously under consideration by another journal.

By submitting a manuscript, authors confirm that:

• The submitted work is original and represents an authentic scholarly contribution.

• All listed authors have made appropriate scholarly contributions and approved the submission.

• The manuscript has not been previously published, except where permitted under the journal's applicable preprint policy.

• The manuscript is not simultaneously submitted to another journal.

• All sources, quotations, data, figures, and other scholarly materials are properly acknowledged.

• The research complies with applicable ethical and legal requirements.

• All required permissions for third-party copyrighted material have been obtained.

• Relevant funding, conflicts of interest, ethical approvals, and other declarations have been disclosed.

• All authors agree to comply with JPM's editorial, ethical, and publication policies.

Manuscripts must normally be submitted through the journal's official online submission system:

https://journals.smarcons.com/index.php/jpm/about/submissions

Authors should provide accurate submission metadata and upload all required manuscript files and supporting materials.

Submissions that do not comply with the journal's requirements may be returned for correction before editorial assessment.

4. Manuscript Preparation

4.1 Language

All manuscripts must be prepared in clear, academically appropriate English.

Authors are responsible for the accuracy, clarity, readability, and consistency of the manuscript.

4.2 File Format

Manuscripts should preferably be submitted in Microsoft Word format (.doc or .docx).

The online submission system may also accept OpenDocument and RTF formats.

Submitted files must not be password-protected or otherwise restricted in ways that prevent editorial assessment.

4.3 General Formatting

Authors should follow the formatting requirements below:

• Page size: A4

• Font: Times New Roman

• Body text: 12-point

• Line spacing: Single-spaced

• Margins: Approximately 1 inch on all sides

• Page numbering: Continuous throughout the manuscript

• Alignment: Consistent throughout the document

• Heading levels: Normally no more than three levels

• Headings: First-level 14-point bold, second-level 13-point bold, and third-level 12-point bold, where appropriate

• Abbreviations: Defined when first introduced, unless widely recognized

Research manuscripts should normally be approximately 20–30 single-spaced A4 pages, consistent with JPM's established manuscript preparation guidance. Longer or shorter manuscripts may be considered when justified by the research design, manuscript type, or scholarly contribution.

Authors should use consistent terminology, clear section organization, and appropriate academic language.

4.4 Equations and Mathematical Expressions

Mathematical equations must be accurate, legible, and appropriately numbered when referenced in the text.

Authors may use Microsoft Equation Editor, MathType, or other compatible equation-editing tools.

Equations should be submitted in editable form wherever feasible.

5. Structure of the Manuscript

5.1 Separate Title Page

To support the double-blind peer-review process, authors must provide identifying information separately from the anonymized manuscript.

The title page should contain:

• Full manuscript title

• Full names of all authors

• Institutional affiliations

• Corresponding author's name and email address

• ORCID iDs, where available

• Author contribution statement, where applicable

• Relevant acknowledgments

Author names and affiliations must be entered accurately in the online submission system.

5.2 Anonymized Main Manuscript

The main manuscript submitted for peer review must not contain author-identifying information.

Authors should remove names, affiliations, identifying acknowledgments, and unnecessary identifying document metadata.

Self-citations should be presented objectively without revealing authorship. Essential references should not be removed merely to preserve anonymity.

Any identifying information in supplementary files must also be handled appropriately.

5.3 Abstract

Every research manuscript must include an abstract of no more than 250 words.

The abstract should concisely communicate:

• The research purpose or objective

• The methodological approach

• The principal findings, where applicable

• The theoretical or practical contribution

• The main conclusion or implication

Abstracts must be self-contained and should not normally contain citations, tables, figures, or unexplained abbreviations.

5.4 Keywords

Authors must provide 6–10 keywords that accurately represent the subject matter and principal concepts of the manuscript.

Keywords should facilitate academic indexing and information retrieval.

5.5 Main Manuscript Sections

Original empirical research articles should normally include:

1. Introduction: Research background, problem statement, significance, objectives, research gaps, and expected contribution.

2. Literature Review and Theoretical Framework: Critical examination of relevant literature, theoretical foundations, and development of research hypotheses or questions, where applicable.

3. Research Methodology: Research design, population, sampling procedures, data collection, instruments, measurement, ethical considerations, and analytical approaches.

4. Results and Analysis: Accurate presentation of findings supported by appropriate statistical analysis, qualitative interpretation, or other relevant analytical procedures.

5. Discussion: Interpretation of findings in relation to existing literature, theoretical arguments, and research objectives.

6. Theoretical and Practical Implications: Contributions to scholarship and implications for organizational or managerial practices.

7. Limitations and Future Research: Relevant study limitations and suggestions for future scholarly investigation.

8. Conclusion: Concise synthesis of principal findings and contributions.

9. Declarations: Applicable ethics, consent, funding, conflict-of-interest, data availability, and other required statements.

10. References: Complete reference list in APA 7th edition format.

Alternative structures may be adopted for conceptual articles, qualitative studies, case studies, and review manuscripts when appropriate.

6. References and Citation Style

JPM follows the American Psychological Association (APA), 7th edition, citation and referencing style.

Authors must ensure that:

• Every in-text citation corresponds to a reference-list entry.

• Every reference-list entry is cited in the manuscript.

• Sources are accurate, verifiable, relevant, and appropriately acknowledged.

• References are arranged alphabetically according to APA 7th edition.

• Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs) are provided in URL format where available.

• Retracted publications are not presented as valid supporting evidence without a clear scholarly reason and appropriate identification.

• Sources are not fabricated, manipulated, or misrepresented.

Authors may use EndNote, Mendeley, Zotero, or another reference-management tool to improve referencing accuracy.

6.1 Journal Article

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (2025). Title of the article. Journal Title, 10(2), 100–120. https://doi.org/xxxxx

6.2 Book

Author, A. A. (2024). Title of the book. Publisher.

6.3 Book Chapter

Author, A. A. (2024). Title of the chapter. In B. B. Editor (Ed.), Title of the book (pp. 10–25). Publisher.

6.4 Institutional Report

Organization Name. (2025). Title of the report. URL

6.5 Webpage

Author or Organization. (2025, January 10). Title of webpage. Website Name. URL

The examples above illustrate reference structures only and are not actual bibliographic sources.

Authors should consult the official APA Publication Manual for complete referencing requirements.

7. Tables, Figures, and Supplementary Materials

All tables and figures must contribute directly to the presentation or interpretation of the research.

Authors should ensure that:

• Tables and figures are numbered consecutively.

• Each table and figure is cited in the manuscript.

• Tables and figures are placed close to their first relevant discussion where feasible.

• Tables contain clear titles and appropriate explanatory notes.

• Figures are sufficiently legible and suitable for publication.

• Third-party copyrighted material is used only with appropriate permission or under an applicable legal exception or license.

• Original data visualizations are presented accurately without misleading alterations.

Tables should preferably be submitted in editable format.

Table numbers and titles should appear above tables, in accordance with APA 7th edition.

Figure numbers and titles should follow APA 7th edition conventions.

Relevant supplementary files, including questionnaires, additional analytical results, research instruments, protocols, or supplementary datasets, may be submitted where appropriate.

8. Research Ethics and Publication Integrity

JPM is committed to responsible research conduct and ethical scholarly publishing.

The journal follows recognized principles of publication integrity, including relevant guidance issued by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

Authors must ensure that:

• Research findings are reported honestly and transparently.

• Research data are not fabricated, falsified, or selectively manipulated in a misleading manner.

• All relevant sources are properly acknowledged.

• Duplicate publication and inappropriate simultaneous submission are avoided.

• Participant confidentiality and privacy are protected.

• Necessary institutional or ethical approvals are obtained.

• Informed consent is obtained where applicable.

• Authorship reflects genuine scholarly contributions.

• Financial and nonfinancial conflicts of interest are disclosed.

• Relevant publication corrections and integrity concerns are appropriately reported.

Suspected misconduct may result in further investigation, rejection, correction, retraction, or other proportionate editorial action under the journal's published policies.

9. Ethical Approval and Informed Consent

Research involving human participants, including employees, managers, organizational representatives, or other individuals, must comply with applicable ethical standards.

Where institutional ethical review is required, manuscripts must disclose the approving body and available approval reference.

Where formal ethical approval was not required, authors should explain the applicable exemption or institutional requirements.

Authors must obtain informed consent where required and describe the consent procedures appropriately.

Special attention should be given to confidentiality, anonymity, voluntary participation, and protection against potential workplace-related harm.

Where personal or organizational information is sensitive, authors must avoid unnecessary disclosure of identifiable information.

10. Authorship and Author Contributions

Authorship must reflect meaningful scholarly contributions to the research.

All listed authors must approve the submitted manuscript and accept responsibility for their respective contributions and the integrity of the work.

JPM encourages authors to follow the CRediT Contributor Roles Taxonomy when reporting contributions.

Requests to add, remove, or rearrange authors after initial submission require an appropriate explanation and agreement from affected authors and are subject to editorial assessment.

Guest authorship, gift authorship, ghost authorship, and inappropriate authorship attribution are not permitted.

Authors should consult JPM's dedicated authorship and contributor policies for further requirements.

11. Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence and Automated Tools

JPM supports responsible, transparent, and ethical use of artificial intelligence and automated research tools.

Authors must disclose the use of generative AI tools in manuscript preparation when such use goes beyond routine language correction, editing, or formatting.

Where disclosure is required, authors should identify the tool and explain its purpose and relevant use.

Generative AI systems:

• Cannot be listed as authors or co-authors.

• Must not be cited as substitutes for authentic scholarly sources.

• Must not be used to fabricate citations, data, research findings, or other scholarly evidence.

• Must not replace scholarly judgment, independent verification, or author responsibility.

• Must be used in compliance with applicable confidentiality, privacy, and intellectual property obligations.

Authors remain responsible for verifying all generated or AI-assisted material.

Reviewers and editors should not use generative AI to produce peer-review assessments or editorial judgments in ways that compromise confidentiality, independence, accuracy, or scholarly evaluation.

Any journal use of automated integrity-screening tools must remain subject to appropriate human oversight.

12. Data Availability and Research Transparency

Authors must include a Data Availability Statement explaining the availability of data supporting the study's findings.

Where ethically and legally permissible, authors are encouraged to make relevant data, analytical code, and research materials available through an appropriate repository.

If data cannot be shared because of privacy, confidentiality, participant consent, institutional restrictions, or applicable law, authors should explain the relevant limitations.

Where access may be granted upon reasonable request, authors should describe the conditions and appropriate contact route.

For manuscripts that do not generate or analyze new data, authors may state:

Data sharing is not applicable to this article because no new datasets were generated or analyzed.

Research methods and analytical procedures must be described sufficiently to allow scholarly evaluation and, where feasible, replication or reproducibility.

13. Funding and Conflict-of-Interest Declarations

13.1 Funding Statement

All manuscripts must disclose research funding and relevant grant information.

Authors must identify funding organizations and provide grant numbers where applicable.

Where appropriate, the role of funders in research design, data collection, analysis, writing, or publication decisions should be declared.

If no specific funding was received, authors may state:

This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

13.2 Conflict-of-Interest Statement

All authors must disclose financial, professional, personal, or institutional relationships that could reasonably influence the research or its interpretation.

Where no conflict exists, authors may state:

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest related to this research.

13.3 Other Declarations

Where applicable, manuscripts should also include:

• Ethical approval statement

• Informed consent statement

• Author contributions statement

• Acknowledgments

• Generative AI use disclosure

These declarations should be provided in a way that preserves double-blind peer review during initial assessment. Identifying details may be retained separately until the appropriate editorial stage.

14. Peer-Review Process

JPM follows a double-blind peer-review process, under which author and reviewer identities are concealed from each other during the review.

Following initial editorial screening, eligible research manuscripts undergo independent scholarly evaluation.

Research articles must be evaluated by at least two independent reviewers with relevant subject expertise.

The editorial assessment considers:

• Originality and scholarly contribution

• Relevance to JPM's aims and scope

• Theoretical foundation

• Methodological rigor

• Accuracy and transparency of research findings

• Research ethics and publication integrity

• Clarity of presentation

• Contribution to academic knowledge or professional practice

Following peer review, editorial decisions may include acceptance, minor revision, major revision, or rejection.

Revised manuscripts may undergo additional evaluation when necessary.

The Editor-in-Chief or an authorized handling editor makes the final editorial decision according to the journal's published editorial policies.

All submissions, including those involving editorial board members or guest editors, must be subject to appropriate safeguards against conflicts of interest.

Additional details are available through JPM's Peer-Review Policy.

15. Article Processing Charges and Author Fees

The Journal of Personnel Management (JPM) does not currently charge Article Processing Charges (APCs).

Authors are not required to pay:

• Submission fees

• Editorial screening or processing fees

• Peer-review fees

• Acceptance fees

• Page or color charges

• Copyediting or production charges

• DOI registration fees

• Publication fees

• Other mandatory publication-related charges

Publication in JPM is currently free of charge to authors.

Editorial decisions are based on scholarly quality, methodological rigor, originality, ethical compliance, and relevance to the journal's aims and scope.

Any future changes to the journal's author-fee arrangements will be disclosed publicly before implementation.

For additional information, authors should consult JPM's Article Processing Charges Policy.

16. Open Access Policy

JPM is a fully open-access scholarly journal.

Published scholarly articles are made immediately and freely accessible online without subscription fees, reader registration requirements, paywalls, or embargo periods.

Readers may access, read, download, copy, share, distribute, print, search, link to, and reuse published articles according to the applicable open-access license.

JPM publishes scholarly articles under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

The license supports the dissemination, reuse, adaptation, and lawful redistribution of scholarly research, subject to appropriate attribution.

Complete details are provided in the journal's Open Access Policy.

17. Copyright and Licensing

Authors publishing in JPM retain copyright ownership of their original scholarly work.

Authors grant JPM and its publisher, SMARCONS (Society of Management Research and Consultancy), a non-exclusive license to publish, distribute, preserve, archive, index, and disseminate the published article.

All scholarly articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).

Under this license, users may:

• Copy and redistribute published content.

• Share articles in any medium or format.

• Adapt, remix, translate, and build upon published work.

• Reuse material for commercial or noncommercial purposes.

Appropriate credit must be given to the original author(s), a link to the license must be provided, and modifications must be indicated.

JPM does not require authors to transfer copyright ownership to the journal or publisher.

Copyright in scholarly articles is distinct from any copyright that may apply to the journal website, branding, or administrative content.

For further details, authors should consult the journal's Copyright and Licensing Policy.

18. Digital Archiving and Preservation

JPM recognizes the importance of maintaining the long-term accessibility, integrity, and preservation of the scholarly record.

The journal maintains its published content and associated metadata through its digital publishing and preservation arrangements.

Its dedicated Digital Archiving Policy describes the applicable archival systems, preservation responsibilities, and continuity arrangements intended to support access in circumstances such as website failure, technological changes, platform migration, or discontinuation.

Authors should consult that policy for details of the preservation services and procedures currently implemented by JPM.

19. Author Self-Archiving

Authors may share and archive their scholarly work in accordance with JPM's Open Access Policy and Copyright and Licensing Policy.

Authors may deposit lawful versions of their work, including the submitted manuscript, accepted manuscript, and final published Version of Record, in institutional repositories, disciplinary repositories, personal academic websites, and other appropriate scholarly platforms.

The final published Version of Record may be shared immediately without an embargo, subject to the applicable CC BY 4.0 license and appropriate attribution.

Where available, authors are encouraged to include a link to the article's official publication record and DOI.

20. Corrections, Retractions, and Post-Publication Concerns

JPM is committed to maintaining the reliability, accuracy, and integrity of its published scholarly record.

Where errors, ethical concerns, or research-integrity issues are identified after publication, the journal will assess the concerns under its applicable editorial policies and relevant COPE guidance.

Depending on the nature and severity of the issue, appropriate editorial action may include:

• Publication of a correction

• Publication of a retraction

• Issuance of an expression of concern

• Other appropriate post-publication notices or actions

Authors are expected to cooperate with legitimate editorial investigations and promptly report significant errors identified in their published research.

Further information is available in JPM's Post-Publication Correction and Retraction Policy.

21. Submission Procedure

Authors should submit manuscripts using the official JPM online submission system.

Submission portal:

https://journals.smarcons.com/index.php/jpm/about/submissions

The procedure generally involves:

1. Registering or logging into the journal's online submission system.

2. Starting a new manuscript submission.

3. Selecting the appropriate manuscript category.

4. Providing complete and accurate manuscript metadata.

5. Entering author names, affiliations, and other required details.

6. Uploading the anonymized manuscript file.

7. Providing the separate title page and supplementary materials where required.

8. Completing the submission declarations and checklist.

9. Reviewing and confirming the submission.

Corresponding authors should regularly monitor the submission system and respond to editorial communications.

22. Related Editorial and Publication Policies

These Author Guidelines must be read together with JPM's dedicated editorial and publication policies.

The following official journal pages provide additional information:

• Aims and Scope

• Author Guidelines

• Peer-Review Policy

• Publication Ethics Policy

• Research Misconduct and Whistleblower Policy

• Plagiarism Policy

• Article Processing Charges Policy

• Open Access Policy

• Copyright and Licensing Policy

• Digital Archiving Policy

• Post-Publication Correction and Retraction Policy

• Privacy Policy

• Accessibility Policy

Authors must comply with the journal's applicable policies throughout the submission, review, publication, and post-publication processes.

Where these guidelines summarize a dedicated policy, the corresponding policy page provides the fuller requirements and procedures.

23. Contact Information

For manuscript submission assistance and questions relating to editorial or publication policies, authors may contact:

Editorial Office
Journal of Personnel Management (JPM)

Publisher: SMARCONS (Society of Management Research and Consultancy)

Address: Plot No. 201-B, Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission Housing Project, Opposite Bahria Town, Canal Road, Lahore, Pakistan.

Journal website: https://journals.smarcons.com/index.php/jpm/

Submission portal: https://journals.smarcons.com/index.php/jpm/about/submissions

Authors are encouraged to use the official journal website and contact page for current correspondence information.