The Story of Academy-owned Journals: Irish Academy and Irish Journal of Management 1996-2025

This paper contributes to the final edition of the Irish Journal of Management (IJM). Sadly, the IJM’s fate is not unique, and many smaller academy-aligned journals are struggling for survival. It is therefore of value to consider why this is the case, and to contemplate the wider global landscape of publishing academic research. The paper begins by considering the challenges and opportunities facing academy-owned, not-for-profit journals. It offers insight into who gains from publishing academic research and contemplates alternative options to the prevailing ‘publish-for-profit’ model, in support of academy-aligned publications. The paper goes on to reflect on the mission, ambition and purpose of academy-owned journals by presenting a case study of the relationship between the Irish Academy of Management (IAM) and the IJM, tracking the journey over nearly three decades, from 1996 to 2025. As IJM publishes its final edition in 2025, this paper concludes by reflecting on the future of academy-owned not-for-profit journals.

For a long time, academic journals were a niche branch of publishing, run primarily by and for research communities (The Conversation, 2025). However, this started to change after the Second World War and academic publishing is now a billion-dollar industry. Today, five leading publishers (Elsevier, SAGE, Springer Nature, Taylor & Francis, and Wiley), often referred to as ‘the big five’, control over 60% of the market. Academic publishers’ have benefited most from this market shift, with estimated profits of 30-50% (Van Noorden, 2013), even though the system is primarily funded by researchers, their institutions, and the public (Major-Smith, 2024). Publishers profit by selling access to journals through subscriptions or pay-per-view payments and by charging researchers or their funders’ fees to publish, often for content created with public or institutional funds. The academics who create the research and perform the unpaid editorial functions and peer reviews generally do not receive royalties or monetary benefits from their work, amounting to free labour.

Major-Smith (2024, p.1) highlights the inequity in a system where, ‘academic publishers …charge huge sums of money to both researchers to publish their research and readers … to access it’. These issues are amplified by the recent shift from a ‘pay-to-read’ to a ‘pay-to-publish’ model (Major-Smith, 2024), each model discriminating against those who do not have capacity to pay. Moreover, the ‘pay-to-publish’ model incentivises publishers to increase the number of papers published, placing escalating pressure on primarily unpaid academic editors to manage increasing numbers of journal submissions and on unpaid reviewers to review significantly more papers per annum, all on a voluntary basis. As articulated by Arash Abizadeh, a former journal editor, in 2024:

‘Commercial publishers are incentivised to try to publish as many articles and journals as possible, because each additional article brings in more profit. This has led to a proliferation of junk journals that publish fake research and has increased the pressure on rigorous journals to weaken their quality controls’.

Thus, the for-profit model could potentially damage editorial standards, undermine the quality of research published, and ultimately harm academic contribution to knowledge. Notably, mass resignations of journal editors are becoming more frequent, highlighting the growing tension between running a for-profit publishing business and upholding research integrity (The Conversation, 2025).

Countering this trajectory, academic publications supported by academies and societies of management continue to offer a not-for-profit alternative to the above model. Open Access ensures journal publications are permanently available online, free of charge, for anyone to read, download, and reuse with minimal restrictions, provided the original source is cited (Tennant et al., 2016). Academies with affiliate journals tend to offer an Open Access approach to submission, where there is no monetary cost to the submitting authors. Several academies provide author guidance through special interest groups and early career supports, combining online guidelines with ‘meet-the-editor’ sessions and in many cases, offering academic writers’ retreats for nascent and early career researchers. Notably, these supports are dependent on voluntary contributions by senior academics, underpinned by a strong ethos of ‘paying it forward’ to further generations of management discipline academics. Collectively, academy journals and development supports offer greater access to dissemination channels for academic research.

There are numerous national and international academies across the world. While not all academies of management publish journals, there is a long tradition of academies publishing affiliate journals. The publishing activity of an academy depends on its size, resources, and goals, and the challenges faced by smaller academies and their affiliate journals, including the IJM, are different to those faced by larger academy publications. Larger academies with strong links to the Irish Academy of Management and affiliate English language journals include: the Academy of Management’s Academy of Management Journal (established 1958), the European Academy of Management’s European Management Journal (established 1982), the British Academy of Management’s British Journal of Management (established 1990), and the Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management’ Journal of Management and Organization (established 1995). In each case, the journals seek to support their members in producing responsible research papers.

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  The Academy of Management is the largest in the world, with circa 19,000 members spanning more than 120 countries. Although the Academy of Management publishes a total of seven journals, the Academy of Management Journal (AMJ) is their official journal (with the highest Association of Business Schools [ABS]¹ ranking of 4*), published by the Academy of Management, who holds copyright, and partners with the publisher, Taylor & Francis, to produce and distribute its publications. The AMJ mission is:

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    ‘To publish empirical research that tests, extends, or builds management theory and contributes to management practice… To be published in AMJ, the research must make strong empirical and theoretical contributions, and the manuscript should highlight the relevance of those contributions to management practice’ (AMJ, 2025²).

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  The European Academy of Management (EURAM) has over 2,500 members. The European Management Journal (EMJ) is the official journal of EURAM, published by Wiley, and with an ABS2 rating. EMJ is:

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    ‘A general management journal, concerned with governance, organization, and behaviour of entities, and their relationship with participants, counterparts, competitors, and contexts. It is distinctively interested in linking (management specialised domains to each other and to the social sciences where they belong); shaping (improvement) and leveraging on the European cultural inheritance in an outreaching spirit (global relevance)’, (EMJ, 2025³).

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  The British Academy of Management (BAM) has over 2,000 members. The British Journal of Management (BJM) is the official journal of BAM, published quarterly by Wiley-Blackwell, and has an ABS4 rating. Included in the Social Sciences Citation Index, BJM is:

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    ‘An important outlet for high quality papers across a range of disciplines and functional areas of management. Published quarterly it welcomes papers that make inter-disciplinary or multi-disciplinary contributions, as well as research from within the traditional disciplines and managerial functions’ (BJM, 2025⁴).

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  The Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management (ANZAM) has about 1000 individual members and 50 institutional members, which include most universities in Australia and New Zealand. The Journal of Management and Organization (JMO) is the official journal of ANZAM, is published by Cambridge University Press, and has an ABS2 rating. JMO is:

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    ‘An international peer-review journal committed to publishing high quality and influential research to provide in-depth understanding of management and organizational issues’ (ANZAM, 2025⁵).

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  The IJM, as the official journal of the IAM, is published bi-annually by Sciendo (now Paradigm since 2025), a publisher that is part of the De Gruyter group. It is an ABS1 ranked journal, acknowledging it status as a journal that publishes research of a recognised, but more modest standard, in its field. It:

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    ‘Aims to publish well-written and well researched articles that will contribute to the understanding of management-related issues in both Irish and international contexts’ (Irish Academy of Management Strategic Plan 2020-2025, p.).

  A smaller journal than those discussed above, the IJM welcomed,

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    ‘Contributions from a wide range of management viewpoints including inter-disciplinary and multi-disciplinary perspectives as well as traditional disciplines and functions’ (IJM, 2025⁶).

Academies of Management around the world publish society journals, which are governed by the respective academy and represent the interests and best practices of academic integrity, inclusion, and diversity. In many cases, special interest groups promote scholarly activities that foster research among Academy members (Barrows, 2020). These journals uphold each Academy’s mission to advance management scholarship, disseminate research, and provide a platform for researchers to share their work with a specific audience. These journals maintain the quality of research through a rigorous peer-review process and help define the field by publishing high-quality and empirically and theoretically rigorous scholarship. By publishing their own journals, academies of management can control the content and uphold their mission of enhancing the management profession through scholarship and education (Bhukya et al., 2022; Barrows, 2020; Collings et al., 2025; Roche and Kelly, 2025; Rockmann et al., 2021). The overriding purpose of affiliate journals is to:

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  Uphold the academy’s mission: Publishing journals is a key part of the Academy›s mission to enhance the profession of management. By controlling the publication process, they can ensure that the research meets their standards and contributes to the Academy’s overall objectives.

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  Serve their members and the community: Publishing in these journals helps researchers demonstrate expertise and present their work to an audience that includes peers with similar interests. It also serves as a platform for researchers to share their work with the broader management community and contribute to its development.

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  Advance the field of management: Academy-owned journals are published to advance the understanding of management theory, research, and practice. They serve to disseminate new knowledge and promote a deeper understanding of the field for students, academics, and professionals.

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  Define and shape the field of research: Academies of Management publish journals that focus on specific areas, such as theoretical insights or empirical research. This allows them to shape the conversation, define the central debates, and identify important future questions for the field to investigate.

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  Control research quality: Through a strict peer-review process, journals ensure that published articles are scientifically valid and meet academic standards. This rigorous process also helps to highlight the relevance of the research to the management field.

Academy journals are typically non-profit and often associated with a university or scholarly society. Academy journals generally offer benefits over those produced by commercial publishing houses such as a mission-driven focus on advancing knowledge, greater affordability and accessibility, and direct control over the scholarly communication system by the academic community itself. The key benefit of an Academy/non-profit journal is that it offers a:

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  Mission-Driven Focus: Unlike commercial publishers whose primary goal is profit, academy and university presses are mission-driven organisations accountable to their stakeholders (scholars, libraries, and the public). Their priority is the dissemination of knowledge for the greater good, rather than maximising shareholder returns.

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  Greater Affordability and Accessibility: Commercial publishers often charge very high subscription prices which has led to a «serials crisis» for many university libraries. Academy journals, which are often subsidised by their parent institutions, tend to have lower subscription prices or may adopt open-access models with more reasonable publication charges, making research more widely available to a global audience.

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  Control over Scholarly Communication: Publishing with an academy press allows the academic community to retain greater ownership and control over its own system of research dissemination. Academics provide most of the labour (writing, editing, peer-reviewing) for free, and in a non-profit model, the benefits and governance remain within the academic ecosystem.

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  Niche and Specialised Research Support: Non-profit publishers are often more willing to support highly specialised or emerging interdisciplinary areas that might be overlooked by commercial publishers due to smaller potential audiences or lower profitability.

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  Long-Term Preservation and Stability: University presses tend to keep scholarly works in print (or available digitally) for much longer periods than is typical in the commercial publishing world, ensuring long-term access and preservation of important research.

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  Quality Control and Peer Review: Both commercial and non-commercial academic journals utilise the vital process of peer review, but non-profit presses emphasise that their editors and editorial boards, who are often active scholars themselves, are deeply embedded in the scholarly community and can provide valuable, specialised feedback, which maintains high standards for academic publication.

In essence, while prestigious commercial journals offer wide recognition, academy journals often provide a more ethical, affordable, accessible and community-oriented approach to advancing human knowledge.

This paper presents a case study of the relationship between the Irish Academy of Management (IAM) and the Irish Journal of Management (IJM), tracking the journey over nearly three decades, from 1996 to 2025. Drawing on a celebratory session of the IJM at the IAM Conference 2025, where the evolution of both the academy and journal was discussed, this paper captures the origins of the IAM as remembered by its founders. Supplemented by historical documents and insights from IJM editors and past Chairs of the IAM, this paper chronicles the road travelled through the academy and journal relationship, from the initial discussions that led to the evolution of the IJM, and through to the present day. The findings include insights, captured in person at the 2025 celebratory session and supplemented by email responses. The celebratory session took place in person on 26^th August 2025 at Maynooth University and was moderated by Prof Felicity Kelliher, a past Chair of the Irish Academy of Management (2017-2020) and IJM Special Issues Co-Editor (2017, 2022, 2024). Participants consisted of,

Professor Richard Harrison, University of Ulster, 1988-1999, now Professor Emeritus of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, University of Edinburgh Business School, Scotland (founding member of the IAM), email contribution.

Professor Patrick (Paddy) Gunnigle, University of Limerick (IAM Conference Chair, 1999 [hosted by University of Limerick] and IJM editorial board member), email contribution.

Professor Kathy Monks, Dublin City University (founding member of the IAM, IAM Chair, 1999-2002 and IJM editor, 2005-2008), in-person and email contribution.

Dr Jim Walsh, University College Cork (founding member of the IAM and Inaugural IAM Chair, 1996-1999).

The IAM was founded by Dr Jim Walsh (University College Cork), Prof Kathy Monks (Dublin City University) and Prof Richard Harrison (University of Ulster, 1988-1999). As recalled by Prof Monks:

‘Jim was the brains behind the initiative and the one with the energy and enthusiasm to get the IAM up and running. He drove the concept and played a very crucial role as the key founder. Jim invited me to join himself and Richard [Harrison] from University of Ulster. I think this was crucial to viewing the IAM as an all-Ireland academy from the very beginning … we each agreed to contact academics we knew from across management and business disciplines within Irish universities and third level institutions to see if they would be interested in forming an Academy. These individuals were invited to the first conference in 1996’.

Prof Richard Harrison reflected on the formation of the Academy and the initiation of the Annual Conference,

‘I was indeed very much involved with Jim and Kathy and have fond recollections of our many conversations leading up to the launch, with Jim very much involved in the “heavy lifting” on the operational logistics of actually making the vision a reality. Part of the rationale for embarking on the Academy was the very significant increase in the scale of business and management research and education, in Ireland and elsewhere, in the late 1980s and 1990s’.

Dr Jim Walsh initiated and chaired the inaugural management conference in 1996, which was hosted by University College Cork. The vision was for the conference to rotate across higher education institutions on the island of Ireland, creating a forum to enhance cross institutional collaboration and to promote research by and among Irish academics. As described by Kathy, this movement was motivated by,

‘… a camaraderie, as partners in arms, where the focus was to allow people - PhD students and academics - to present their research in an open forum. There were very few PhD students at the time, and not many academics with PhDs, or with a research focus; so, we thought the conference would give both a stage and an audience … this focus was vital in the early days, to get the Academy up and running’.

Richard noted that,

‘The academy and conference was seen from the outset as a vehicle for sharing experience, building capacity and raising the profile and legitimacy of business and management research and education within the higher education institutions in Ireland… while it is sad to see the Journal cease production… the history of the academy itself has continued to demostrate the relevance of these aspirations’.

The theme of the first conference was ‘Management Research in Ireland: The Ways of the Past and Way Forward’. Prof Monks recalled, ‘about 35 attended, which gave us momentum’. Prof Bill Roche (Professor of Industrial Relations and Human Resources, University College Dublin) was the keynote speaker at the inaugural conference (1996), where he spoke about, ‘Business education and business research in Ireland: the ways of the past and the way ahead’, based around the conference theme. Within the keynote, Prof Roche reflected on his belief that ‘the conference could prove to be a watershed event in Irish management education’, and that its ‘very occurrence is indicative of the collective self-awareness that has now developed among the research community in Irish business education’ (Roche, 1997, p.78). The keynote transcript became a submission to the Journal of Irish Business and Administrative Research (IBAR), later IJM, and was published in 1997 (Roche, 1997). This was the first direct link between Ireland’s management journal (IBAR, later IJM) and the proposed Academy.

Kathy recalls that at the 1996 conference, ‘we mooted the idea of an all-Ireland academy’. A decision was taken at an open forum to set up a committee which would advance a variety of issues, including the drawing up of a constitution for the establishment of the Irish Academy of Management (IAM). That Committee, chaired by Dr Jim Walsh, met throughout 1996/97 and drafted the IAM constitution. Prof Monks chaired the 1997 management conference at Dublin City University, which attracted 50 attendees. The proposed Constitution for the Academy was voted on by delegates at the 1997 Conference and adopted in principle, leading to the establishment of the IAM as an all-island academy to promote the advancement of research, knowledge and education in the field of organisation and management studies. The constitution detailed: (1) the associate name, (2) purpose and power, (3) membership, (4) organisation structures, meeting and voting, (5) the council, (6) elections to the council, (7) the management committee, (8) finances, (9) sub committees, (10) property, (11) amendments, and (12) dissolution. The IAM’s purpose was to:

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  Build an inclusive, diverse community of scholars.

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  Champion responsible business and management education, research and thought leadership.

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  Encourage the highest quality business and management research, education and practice.

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  Foster open respectful debate, cooperation and collaboration within the Academy.

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  Mentor early career scholars.

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  Stimulate research and the exchange of ideas within the wider business community.

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  Build wider appreciation and acceptance of the science and practice of management.

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  Contribute to national and international debates on business and management.

  Source: evolved IAM purpose from initial development in 1997, IAM Website, 2025

Kathy recalls that, ‘The formal inauguration of IAM – the legal entity – was then established in 1997’, and a national Council was established. Representatives from the management and business academic community from across the island of Ireland were invited onto Council. Dr Jim Walsh was elected the inaugural Chair of the IAM in 1997. Kathy highlighted the valuable contributions made by schools of business in supporting the nascent Academy:

‘We couldn’t have done this with support from Irish business schools. In particular, the first conferences in 1996 and 1997 were sponsored by the host university’s business schools [University College Cork and Dublin City University]. This was an act of faith on their behalf as the IAM was still a concept that might or might not materialise. I certainly remember Dublin City University Business School contributing funding for materials as well as secretarial support and financial assistance with the conference dinner. This was in 1997. I am sure other business schools provided similar financial support’.

Around the same time, the Committee was approached by Dr Teresa Brannick of University College Dublin (RIP), the long-time editor-in-chief of IBAR (1978-2005) to discuss the possibility of IBAR becoming the affiliate journal to the nascent Academy, and the Committee subsequently deliberated on the potential for IAM to adopt the Journal. This made sense to the Committee, as articulated by Prof Monks,

‘In line with academies of management worldwide, the IAM needed a journal to enhance management scholarship in Ireland. A management journal, IBAR, already existed in Ireland and was edited by Teresa Brannick [Editor-in-Chief], Aidan Kelly and Bill Roche. It was financed by University College Dublin School of Business. When Teresa approached us with her proposal, it made a lot of sense. Rather than operating two management journals in Ireland, it seemed logical, to those involved in the IAM at the time, to transform IBAR into a management journal that would support and enhance the IAM. We agreed that this was the best way forward and discussed the transition process for IBAR with Teresa and her colleagues’.

‘We felt that IBAR needed a new title, to better encapsulate the IAM ethos of all management disciplines and to make the journal affiliation to the IAM very clear to those who submitted to the journal. This would be a big transition for IBAR, which had been in existence for many years. We had a great relationship with Teresa, who was pragmatic about the proposed name-change. Ultimately, it was agreed that the journal ownership would transfer to the IAM, and its name would change to the Irish Journal of Management. The name change happened in 1996-97. However, it was acknowledged that this transition could take some time. Therefore, Teresa remained editor-in-chief of IJM and the members of the IAM committee became the editorial board for IJM from 1997, and they were all listed as editors. I was the first formal Editor of IJM, and I edited the journal from around 2005-2008. The period of 2005-6 was a sort of transition period from IBAR and my position as Editor was formalised in 2006. I was editor for three years’.

It is important to acknowledge the significant support of the Schools of Business across the Island of Ireland. In 1997, the IJM was financed by the IAM, University College Dublin, University of Limerick and University of Ulster. The logos of these institutions appeared on the front cover of IJM, which was published by Blackhall Publishing, Dublin. Other schools have sponsored the journal to the present day, and these institutions are acknowledged in this paper. For example, Prof Monks highlighted the additional support offered by her own university, during her tenure as IJM editor, ‘Dublin City University supported IJM by providing me with research assistant support when I was editor’.

The story of the IJM trajectory is told by its past and current editors in the paper titled, Shaping Management Scholarship in Ireland - Editorial Perspectives on the Irish Journal of Management in this edition of the journal, while this paper specifically considers the partnership between the IAM and the journal. Notably, the cross over between the two entities is significant, as evidenced by the presence of Prof Kathy Monks and others, on both the inaugural IAM committee and as editors of the IJM.

From 1997 to 2025, the IAM evolved as a key mechanism for both management studies research and early career mentorship across the island of Ireland. Dr Jim Walsh University College Cork served as the first chair of the IAM, from 1997-1999, followed by Prof Kathy Monks Dublin City University (2000-2002), Prof Roy Green of University of Galway (2003-2004), Dr Thomas O’ Toole, South East Technological University (2005-2007), Prof Michael Morley, University of Limerick (2008-2010), Prof Alma McCarthy, University of Galway (2010-2011; 2012-2013), Dr Joe McDonagh, Technological University Dublin (Acting Chair 2012), Prof Margaret Linehan, Munster Technological University (2014-2017), Prof Felicity Kelliher, South East Technological University (2017-2020), Prof Anthony McDonnell, Cork University Business School, University College Cork (2021-2023) and Dr Margaret Heffernan, Dublin City University (2024-present).

The IAM became a company limited by guarantee in 2016, an initiative led by Dr Joe McDonagh (Technological University Dublin). The IAM registered at the Company Registrations Office (CRO) the same year. Once created, the company appointed formal directors and followed the CRO’s annual formal audit and financial reporting requirements in subsequent years. Once the company was established, the IAM registered as a Charity in 2016. The move to charity status required liaison with the charity registration office, and the submission of an annual report and accounts. These documents have been submitted annually, on behalf of the IAM, to the charity registration office since 2017.

The IAM generated most of its income from the fee-paying annual conference from 1996 to 2019, where any residual between conference costs and revenue were returned to the IAM. The IAM depended on this revenue to pay standing annual costs, including the significant outlay to pay IJM publication costs. In 2020, at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, an institutional membership strategy including an annual membership fee was proposed and, following agreement with individual institutes, this strategy was launched in 2020. The IAM now has 14 member institutions (Dublin City University, Maynooth University, Munster Technological University, National College of Ireland, Queens University Belfast, South East Technological University, Technological University of the Shannon, Technological University Dublin, Trinity College Dublin, University College Cork/Cork University Business School, University College Dublin, University of Galway, University of Limerick, University of Ulster), representing almost all higher level institutes on the island and placing IAM on a more sustainable financial footing. Atlantic Technological University is represented on the IAM council and has ambassador status. The Academy also has over 300 individual members and the annual IAM conference is attended by 220-300 people per annum. Today (2025), the annual conference is in its 29^th year, and several initiatives have been introduced by the academy including,

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  The Early Career Development Network, established in 2019.

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  Special Interest Groups.

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  International liaison with Academies, including the British Academy of Management and the International Federation of Societies of Academies of Management (IFSAM).

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  Grants and Awards (including the IAM-BAM Doctoral Scholarship, launched in 2017; the BAM-IAM Collaborative Research Grant, launched in 2019, and the IAM Outstanding Business Educator Award, launched in 2023).

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  Responsibility for publishing the Irish Journal of Management.

Of relevance to the IAM-IJM relationship is the Early Career Development Network, established in 2019 by senior Irish academics for the purposes of supporting early career development. The inaugural Early Career Development Network event was held in person in University of Limerick in early March 2020, just prior to the COVID-19 lockdown in Ireland. Since then, it has grown from strength to strength. Management research students and early career researchers are offered supports that include bi-annual PhD/doctoral virtual writers’ retreats, regular ‘meet-the-editor’ sessions involving international journals and a bi-annual early career development event, held each Spring and at the annual conference each autumn and incorporating international keynote speakers. Professional development workshops are also offered through the academy. This initiative offers many of the benefits of academy-owned journal access described earlier in this paper.

The IJM has been an integral part of the IAM purpose from the beginning. Its goal is to,

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  Encourage submissions (e.g., from early career researchers, supervisors, Irish academics).

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  Target papers from the annual IAM Conference, by liaising with the Conference Chair(s).

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  Promote Special Issue(s).

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  Target prior authors/imminent scholars in Ireland to contribute ‘insight’ articles.

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  Encourage invitation-led practitioner/policy perspectives.

As articulated in in the IAM strategy (2019-2025),

The IJM aims to publish well-written and well researched articles that will contribute to the understanding of management-related issues in both Irish and international contexts. It publishes research papers, teaching submissions, book reviews, and special journal issue submissions.

While the name change, from IBAR to IJM, occurred in 1997, the process of achieving the transition from IBAR to IJM took place over several years. As recalled by Prof Monks,

‘By 2002, the editorial team consisted of the editor-in-chief, Teresa Brannick, and a board of 11 editors who were drawn from all the major third level business schools in Ireland (North and South), and who were involved in the IAM. In addition, Margaret Linehan [Munster Technological University] was book reviews editor and there was also an editorial advisory board that was drawn mainly from Irish business schools. By 2005, the decision was taken by the IAM Council to move to a new editorial structure that was adopted by the IAM in 2006’.

This new editorial structure was recorded in a memo written by Kathy to the IAM council in 2005 (memo extract, exhibit 1),

As recalled by Kathy,

‘From this point further, Teresa’s role as editor-in-chief, her role was purely titular. She was always kept informed of any changes that were made and her advice was sought about the operation of the journal, but I do not remember any occasion on which she made a particular stance on any issue. I think she was happy enough with the way things were going’.

From 2005, Prof Monks took up the editorship and the day-to-day running of the journal. It was agreed that every member of the IAM would receive 2 hard copies of each journal issue. Annual IAM membership was included in the fee for those who attended the annual IAM conference. Alternatively, individuals could pay an annual membership fee to IAM. The services provided by Blackhall publishing were,

‘… copy editing; proofing; production; printing; distribution to all libraries and members (Blackhall changes this distribution list every January, matched from the updated membership list they get after each IAM conference. Blackhall is notified of any directly paying members by the IAM council secretary. Each member receives 2 free copies of the journal…. The costs of the journal to IAM are €7,750 per year for 2 issues’, (extract of memorandum from IAM to Blackhall Publishing, April 2006).

Editors sought to ensure that guest editorships and conference special issues were part of the journal landscape. The ambition was to publish two issues per year: a regular issue and a special edition showcasing papers from the annual IAM conference. As articulated by Prof Monks,

‘This was an important aspect of an Academy-owned journal, to help develop publishing and editorial skills among the Irish Academy members. Responsibility for editorship therefore devolved throughout the IAM community and gave the opportunity to gain editorial experience and status to various guest editors’.

As detailed above, physical copies of each edition were posted to every IAM member, and institute libraries across the island of Ireland were asked to retain a copy in their archives, to further encourage engagement with the publication by researchers. Notably, at the celebratory session at IAM conference 2025, many attendees remembered the impact of seeing their names on the black and yellow cover as contributors to the journal.

IAM council meet 3 times per year, at 4-month intervals, and the IJM Editor provides an annual progress report, updating the council on such topics as: editorial assistance, the conference edition/special issue and normal edition status, number of articles received, accepted, desk rejected, and rejected after resubmission, outcomes from the editorial board meeting, reviewer response rations, and assistance of the IAM council. Notably, challenges relating to the quality of paper submissions and editorial assistance have been highlighted in the IJM reports since 2007 (Progress Report: IJM, Aug 2007).

With the advent of technological access to journal papers, and through the introduction of online academic databases within university libraries such as ABI Inform, Emerald, Science Direct and others, the need for printed copies of journal publications disappeared. The IJM adopted a dual access approach, and the journal was made available in both print copy and online from 1997 via EBSCO⁷. The last hard copy of the IJM was printed in 2014. Academic databases within the management disciplines became more widely available for use in Ireland during the early 2000s, mirroring general trends in digital resource adoption in higher education (Fleming et al., 2017). Online and open access presented both opportunities and challenges (Harzing and Adler, 2016; Willinsky, 2006), as we discuss later in the paper. In essence, while online capacity enhanced access to and distribution of the IJM to a global audience, it increased the number of submissions to the journal which placed significant additional pressure on the editors to complete a desk-review of these submissions and to secure suitable reviewers.

Ties to the IAM Conference have been consistent since the first paper written by Bill Roche in 1997 (published in IBAR), following his keynote address at the inaugural conference in 1996. The Annual Conference is now in its 29^th year (2025), and has been hosted (in alphabetical order) by: Atlantic Technological University (2005, 2009), Dublin City University (1997, 2008, 2020 [virtual]), Maynooth University (2012, 2025), Munster Technological University (2010, 2024), National College of Ireland (2011, 2019), Queens University Belfast (2007, 2017), South East Technological University (2002, 2013, 2021 [virtual]), Technological University Dublin (2000), Trinity College Dublin (2004, 2022), UCC (1996, 2006, 2018), University College Dublin (2003, 2016), University of Galway (1998, 2015, 2023), University of Limerick (1999, 2014), University of Ulster (2001). During the COVID-19 pandemic, the conference was held virtually (hosted by Dublin City University in 2020 and by South East Technological University in 2021).

Each conference chair was encouraged to promote the IJM as a home for papers that had won track and conference paper awards at the annual conference. This approach ensured a steady flow of guest editors on conference special issues of IJM through the 2000s and 2010s. IAM conference special issues were produced each year from 2002 to 2006, in 2009, and again from 2015-2017. Over time, the annual conference attracted international delegates, and this widened the journal’s scope to publish papers beyond the Irish context.

In recent years, it became increasing difficult to entice awardees to publish in the IJM conference special issue as award-winning authors sought to have their research published in higher ranking international journals, as such publications were seen as key performance indicators when seeking promotion and/or tenure. As new and established academics and PhD students strategised around where to publish, the IJM editors struggled to maintain a high-quality flow of submissions to fill the bi-annual journal issues.

Independent special issues were thus encouraged and generated valuable special issues in recent years that have focused on: Entrepreneurship in Ireland; The impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on management and organisational related issues; Social Enterprise; and Entrepreneurial Education. Guest editors are notably from the active IAM community, reinforcing the links between the academy and the IJM.

By the early 2020s, strategies were sought to maintain the journal considering both increasing workload in filtering out poor quality papers and in processing submissions. Key issues included,

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  Low number of quality submissions, outside of special issues.

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  Perceived local ethos, partly influenced by the journal title including ‘Irish’.

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  Complex online submission system.

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  Varying quality of publisher and editing support.

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  The importance of having IJM indexed and recognised in ranking systems e.g. Scopus, and Chartered Association of Business Schools Academic Journal Guide (ABS)².

By 2022, it was felt that the IJM could not continue along its current trajectory. The IAM council established a sub-committee to assess options and agree courses of action that could facilitate the IJM’s future trajectory. This sub-committee met throughout 2022/24, where future opportunities and challenges were discussed (see Table 1),

Two distinct paths were discussed, (1) seek a new approach to IJM under the existing model with a greater focus on the emerging technological university sector and on practice-based papers, or (2) retain the journal but change its focus (e.g., sustainability). Despite best efforts, ultimately there was general agreement that to retain the IJM would be a difficult path, particularly considering the challenges raised in Table 1 around the IJM’s future trajectory.

With a heavy heart, and following significant discussion, it was ultimately agreed to terminate the journal. The IAM council agreed that it was important to take time to craft a final edition of the journal, to appropriately reflect on what is a nearly 30-year journey (from 1996 to 2025), and in acknowledgement of IBAR (1979 to 1996), recognising the contributions of those who established the journal, those who submitted papers, and our current and past editors. Those invited to contribute to the final edition include the past editors of the journal, those who were instrumental in establishing the IAM, and those who were heavily involved in the academy and journal trajectory. This paper is a contribution to this final edition. It was also agreed that the journal’s final edition would be included in the IAM Conference 2025 and 2026 schedule as celebratory sessions, to celebrate its achievements and acknowledge the current and past editor contributions.

Careful consideration was taken in how to inform stakeholders of this decision. The chair of the IAM council, alongside the IJM editor-in-chief notified sponsors, deans of faculty, guest editors overseeing special issues that were in progress, and all authors who had manuscripts under review or in process at the time of the decision to wind down. The scheduled shutdown of new submissions and coordination of the final cycle of editions (2024-2025) was also communicated to all stakeholders and contributors in a consistent way, ensuring transparency throughout the wind-down process. All new submissions to the journal were emailed by the sitting Editor-in-Chief of the journal, Prof Marian Crowley-Henry, informing them directly of the decision to close the journal, with the following text, and submitted papers were removed from the online submission system:

“Dear [Corresponding Author], Thank you for submitting your paper to the Irish Journal of Management. It is with regret that I must inform you that, after nearly 50 years [including the IBAR period, the IJM’s predecessor], the Irish Journal of Management will be winding down in 2025. This decision was not made lightly by the editors or the council of the Irish Academy of Management. However, due to a combination of factors including shifts in the academic publishing landscape, we find it necessary to wind down the publication at the end of 2025. We are therefore not accepting any new papers. Wishing you every success with your research and in finding a new home for your work. Kind regards, The Editor”.

The final publisher of the IJM is Sciendo/Paradigm⁸. They have professionally processed papers and published the IJM on their online platform since 2015. The publishing contract with them expires at the end of 2025, after which no further issues of the journal will be processed or published.

Finally, the maintenance of the journal archive was an important aspect of this plan. A sub-committee was established to ensure that the archive was managed in a way that is fair to those who published in the journal, right back to 1979. This committee has enacted the following strategy, as ratified by the IAM council in 2025. While Sciendo (De Gruyter Group) have an archive facility, and archives the contents of this journal on Portico - a digital long-term preservation service of scholarly books, journals and collections - the sub-committee found that it needed to plan to ensure archiving of earlier papers, pre-2015. The IJM back catalogue is protected through an International Standard Serial Number (ISSN 1649-248x for its print version [p-ISSN] and 2451-2834 for its electronic version [e-ISSN]). This unique eight-digit code identifies the IJM, across all media formats.

It is important to acknowledge the journal’s significant successes. This open access journal has an Association of Business Schools (ABS) 1 star rating, ensuring external validation of quality. The IJM is listed on Scopus since 2024, following a rigorous evaluation process by the Content Selection and Advisory Board based on criteria such as academic contribution, ethical practices, and regular publication. Careful consideration of the IJM editorial and review board ensured that there was a consistent international presence, with a diversity of reviewer specialisms to optimise reviewer availability/suitability. During the latter years, the journal was supported by an international publisher, De Gruyter group. There was evident collaboration across co-editors and co-authors that crossed disciplinary boundaries, and the journal was strongly supported by Irish institutions; in 2025, the IJM is/was sponsored by Cork University Business School (CUBS)/University College Cork, Dublin City University, National College Ireland, Trintiy College Dublin and University College Dublin. Without this support, it would have been financially onerous to maintain the journal as a charitable organisation. Most importantly, the IJM has provided a legacy to Irish academia, providing many of Ireland’s leading academics with a road to development, acting as a home for their first papers. Archiving the IJM is an important step in protecting this legacy and in offering in-context papers that show the trajectory of business and management research development in Ireland.

There appears to be a consensus that ‘scholarly publishing is in a period of rapid, transformational change, fuelled by new policies, new business models, new technologies, and a drive toward increased transparency and reproducibility’ (Okereafor, 2023, p.1). Models that prioritise accessibility, equity, and the free dissemination of knowledge are at the forefront of this movement. The relationship between academia and the for-profit publishing industry is a fundamental barrier. How academies can and should challenge publishers’ profiting from the free labour of researchers, editors and reviewers remains a conundrum. If research is to be shared widely and equitably, the current financial dynamics of academic publishing are unsustainable. A key means of equitable access to readers is to provide Open Access to journal publications. The societal impact of Open Access is significant, essentially levelling the playing field for researchers. However, while empirical evidence is primarily positive, Open Access has the potential to become unsustainable if high-cost options, such as pay-to-publish or pay-to-view are allowed to prevail in a widely unregulated scholarly publishing market (Okereafor, 2023).

Notably, there are regular calls for caution when contemplating dissemination of knowledge through online open-access channels. As articulated by Harzing and Adler (2016) in the Academy of Management Learning & Education Journal (p. 140):

Unfortunately, however, open-access, online technologies are interacting with new revenue-generating business models and historic assessment systems, leading to the rise of predatory open-access (POA) journals that prioritize profit over the integrity of academic scholarship.

While beyond the scope of this paper, the advent of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is noted here as having a dual impact on Open Access journals, potentially lowering costs, improving quality, and increasing accessibility through automation, while also presenting challenges like potential biases in AI tools and the need for new ethical guidelines (Okoreofar, 2023). AI can streamline editorial processes, enhance discoverability, and help overcome language barriers, which could make Open Access more feasible and effective. However, there are concerns about the potential for misuse, the reliability of AI in peer review, and the ethical implications of using AI-generated content. The most pressing risk is the generation of scientific misinformation and disinformation (Okereafor, 2023), where AI can be used to generate convincing but false text, data, and graphics that will become increasingly difficult to detect. AI is also being used to assist in peer review and plagiarism detection in scholarly publications, even though these tools are deemed unreliable and inaccurate. Using AI to estimate the quality of articles and predict citation counts also risks amplifying biases, putting authors from under-represented disciplines, institutions, or regions at a disadvantage. These future challenges reinforce our regret that this is the final issue of an independent, academy-aligned open access journal that facilitates in-context management and business research and offers fair and equitable access to all capable authors to disseminate their research.