Proceedings of the International Conference on Business Excellence

The Role of Reviewers

Reviewers play an essential role in maintaining the quality and integrity of PICBE. They provide independent expert assessments that help the editors reach fair decisions and help authors improve their work. PICBE operates a single-blind peer-review process. Manuscripts are not anonymised for review: reviewers may have access to the authors’ names and affiliations, while reviewer identities are not disclosed to the authors.

The stages of the review process are described in the Peer Review Policy.

Before Accepting an Invitation

Invitations to review are sent through Editorial Manager. Before accepting an invitation, reviewers should consider whether:

• the manuscript falls within their area of expertise;
• they have any conflict of interest, in which case they should declare it and decline the invitation where necessary; and
• they can complete the review within the deadline indicated in the invitation, which is set in line with the ICBE conference calendar.

Evaluation Criteria

Reviewers are asked to assess:

• the originality and significance of the research;
• the methodological rigour and the appropriateness of the analytical approach;
• the clarity and coherence of the manuscript;
• the relevance of the manuscript to the aims and scope of PICBE and to the selected ICBE conference track; and
• the contribution of the paper to theory, practice, or policy.

Recommendation

Reviewers are asked to recommend one of the following outcomes: accept; accept with minor revisions; major revisions; or reject. The decision rests with the editor, who considers all reviewer reports together with the editorial evaluation.

Writing the Report

Reports should be constructive, specific, and courteous, and should assist both the authors and the editorial team. Reviewers should explain the reasons for their recommendation and, where revisions are needed, indicate clearly which changes are required.

Confidentiality and Ethical Concerns

Manuscripts under review and reviewer reports are confidential. Reviewers must not share the manuscript or use its content for any purpose other than the evaluation. Reviewers who suspect plagiarism, fabrication or falsification of data, redundant publication, or other misconduct should inform the editor rather than investigate the matter themselves. Reviewers are encouraged to follow the guidance of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

Revised Manuscripts

Reviewers may be asked to evaluate revised versions of manuscripts they have reviewed, together with the authors’ point-by-point responses.

Contact

Questions about a review assignment should be sent to the editorial office at icbe@fabiz.ase.ro.