At the Ilomata International Journal of Management, we are dedicated to upholding the highest standards of publication ethics and actively preventing any form of malpractice. This responsibility is diligently upheld by our Editorial Board. We do not tolerate unethical behavior in any form. Each editor, author, and reviewer must adhere to good publication practices, in line with the COPE Code of Conduct for Journal Editors guidelines. The full guidelines can be found on the COPE website as part of our Core Practices.

Authors and Contributors

1. Authorship Definition: Each author is considered to have agreed to the content and the submission process of the work, including obtaining necessary permissions from relevant institutions. We do not specify a particular type of contribution for authorship and encourage authors to follow their field's prevailing guidelines.
2. Disclosure and Declaration: Authors must provide information about funding, financial or non-financial interests, and ethical approvals, including informed consent for research involving humans or animals.
3. Role of Corresponding Author: The corresponding author will manage approvals from all authors, handle communications between the journal and authors, and ensure transparency in the use of materials.
4. Author Contributions: We value transparency in author contributions and publish a statement of contributions in each manuscript.
5. Affiliation: Authors' primary affiliation should reflect the institution where the research was conducted. This address will not be changed after publication.
6. Changes in Authorship: Authors should confirm the correct group of authors and their order at submission. Any changes after submission must be approved by all authors involved and are not allowed after manuscript acceptance. Author names will be published as per the accepted submission.
7. Author Identification: Authors are advised to use their ORCID ID when submitting work or to obtain it during the submission process.
8. Deceased or Incapacitated Authors: If a co-author dies or becomes incapacitated during writing or review, the decision to include them must be approved by a legal representative, usually a close relative.
9. Confidentiality: All communications with the journal should be treated as confidential, including correspondence with the Editor-in-Chief and Handling Editors, and reviewer reports, unless explicit consent to share such information has been given.
10. Authorship Issues or Disputes: In cases of authorship disputes, authors are requested to resolve the matter themselves. The journal will not investigate or make decisions. If a dispute cannot be resolved, the journal reserves the right to withdraw the manuscript from the editorial process or raise the issue with the authors’ institution.
11. Content Generated by Artificial Intelligence: AI-based tools cannot be considered independent authors and are not responsible for research design. The use of AI tools must be transparently described in the research methods.
12. Revising Author Names After Publication: If authors wish to change their name post-publication, we will update the metadata without announcing the change to protect privacy.
13. Journal Editors and Staff as Authors: Editors and staff involved in compiling a manuscript are excluded from editorial decisions regarding that manuscript.
14. Ethical Responsibilities of Authors: Authors must maintain scientific integrity and avoid misrepresentation of research results. Rejection decisions should be respected, and independent review may be required.
15. Fundamental Errors: Authors are obligated to correct significant errors in their publications upon discovery.
16. Suggesting Reviewers: Authors may suggest independent reviewers and provide appropriate contact details to facilitate the review process.

Complaints and Appeals

1. Policy and Process: All initial complaints should be handled by the Editor-in-Chief or the editor responsible for handling the paper, covering appeals against editorial decisions and complaints about delays or publication processes.
2. Complaints about Scientific Content: The Editor-in-Chief or Handling Editor will assess the author's arguments and reviewer reports to decide whether the rejection decision should be upheld, requires independent opinion, or if an appeal should be considered. Appeal decisions are final.
3. Complaints about Process: The Editor-in-Chief, along with the Handling Editor and relevant internal contacts, will investigate and provide appropriate feedback to improve the process.
4. Complaints about Publication Ethics: The Editor-in-Chief or Handling Editor will follow guidelines from the Committee on Publication Ethics and may seek advice in difficult cases. Complaints can be escalated to the Committee if the complainant is not satisfied with the handling of their complaint.

Conflict of Interest

Authors are expected to disclose all interests that could potentially affect their research, both directly and indirectly. This disclosure process is intended to ensure transparency and help readers identify potential biases in the research. Disclosed interests may include financial relationships with research sponsors, compensation for consulting, and other interests that may affect research outcomes, including but not limited to:

1. Research Grants and Support: Authors must mention any research grants or other support such as salaries, equipment, or symposium expenses received from organizations that may have a financial interest related to the publication of the manuscript.
2. Employment and Affiliations: Authors must disclose current, past, or expected employment that might have a financial impact related to the publication, including dual affiliations if any.
3. Other Financial and Non-Financial Interests: These include ownership stakes in companies, patents, and non-financial interests such as positions on editorial boards, mentorship relationships, or roles as expert witnesses which could bias the outcomes of the publication. Authors should also disclose non-financial interests that may influence their research. These include professional affiliations, personal relationships, and beliefs that could bias the published work. Examples include positions on editorial boards, consulting activities, roles as expert witnesses, or mentorship relationships.

Post-Publication Discussion

At the Ilomata International Journal of Management, we may need to remove articles from our online platform under certain conditions:

1. If we receive information that content infringes legal rights, such as defamation or intellectual property rights violations.
2. If there is a court order or government directive requiring the removal of content.
3. If published content potentially poses a serious and urgent health risk. Such removals may be temporary or permanent. We will maintain bibliographic metadata such as title and authors, accompanied by an explanation of why the content was removed.

Responsibilities of Reviewers

At the Ilomata International Journal of Management, we set the following guidelines for reviewers:

1. Reviewers must maintain the confidentiality of all information in the paper and treat it as privileged information.
2. The review process should be objective and free from personal criticism of the authors.
3. Reviewers are expected to express their opinions clearly with strong supporting arguments.
4. They should identify and recommend relevant work that has not been cited by the authors.
5. If they are aware of substantial similarities with other works, reviewers must report this to the Editor-in-Chief.
6. Reviewers should not assess manuscripts if there is a conflict of interest, whether competitive, collaborative, or other, with the authors or related institutions.

Responsibilities of Editors

At the Ilomata International Journal of Management, our editors' responsibilities include:

1. Editors have full authority to reject or accept articles.
2. They are responsible for the content and overall quality of the publication.
3. They continuously consider the needs of authors and readers to improve the quality of publications.
4. They ensure the quality of papers and the integrity of the academic record.
5. Editorial decisions are based on significance, originality, clarity, and relevance of the papers.
6. They do not reverse previous decisions without valid reasons, except in cases of ethical breaches.
7. They maintain the confidentiality of reviewer information.
8. They ensure all publications meet internationally recognized ethical guidelines.
9. They only accept manuscripts believed to meet the journal's standards.
10. They act promptly if errors or suspicions of violations are detected.
11. They ensure there is no conflict of interest between staff, authors, reviewers, and the board.