iQ Submission Terms and Conditions

REVIEW PROCESS

Welcome to iQ, the distinguished journal of the Records and Information Management Practitioners Australasia (RIMPA Global). Our mission is clear: to disseminate a wealth of knowledge in records management, reaching a broad spectrum of industry professionals and stakeholders.

At iQ, we pride ourselves on presenting a rich tapestry of content, contributed not only by esteemed experts in the field but also by those with fresh perspectives and innovative ideas. Whether you’re an academic with research to share, a practitioner with insights into best practices, or someone at the intersection of theory and practice, your contributions are valued here.

Our editorial team is open to receiving both unsolicited submissions and commissioned works. Our primary focus lies in original research, insightful case studies, and groundbreaking innovations that resonate with professionals in records and information management. Contributions that explore and elucidate industry initiatives are particularly welcomed.

While we do not offer financial compensation for contributions, the intellectual property rights remain with the authors, ensuring recognition and preservation of their work. For RIMPA members, publication in iQ is not only an honour but also an opportunity for professional advancement, contributing towards official status upgrades and eligibility for the Article of the Year Award at the RIMPA Live conference.

The editorial process at iQ is thorough and constructive. Initially assessed by the Editor, submissions may be forwarded to members of the Editorial Board or specialists for further review. We offer a supportive approach, providing guidance for refinement and resubmission if needed. Authors have the option of a double-blind review process, ensuring impartiality and confidentiality.

Our reviewers are tasked with identifying submissions that are most relevant and beneficial to our readership, focusing on clarity, innovation, and robust research methodologies. We also value the integration of existing literature, encouraging authors to provide references that facilitate deeper exploration of the subject matter.

We invite you to contribute to iQ, a platform where knowledge meets practice in the realm of records and information management. Your expertise and insights have the power to enlighten and inspire our diverse and dedicated audience.

An Author’s Guide 

Reviewers will either accept a paper without any caveats, return it for recommended amendments or reject it. Acceptance of returned papers which are resubmitted is dependent on changes being made which satisfy the recommendations made for amendments.  Authors are entitled to request copies of any comments made on their paper by an external reviewer, whatever the outcome of the review. 

ACCEPTANCE 

When submissions have been accepted, authors must:

  1. Complete, sign and submit to the Editor an iQ Form for Authors, (see below).
  2. Submit a brief biography (maximum 100 words)
  3. Provide a head and shoulders photograph of themselves (minimum 1MEG)
  4. Provide other appropriate photographs, illustrations, tables, etc, which the author authorises to be published in iQ with the submission (should the Editor choose to use them).

Articles/papers accepted for publication in iQ will be edited by the Editor with a view to spelling, grammar, punctuation, and journalistic presentation, and may be reduced in length, at the Editor’s discretion, to meet the journal’s production requirements. The Editor may also write an appropriate magazine headline for the article/paper and add sub headlines if and where appropriate. The Editor also reserves the right to split an article/paper over more than one issue of the magazine where available editorial space is limited.

COPYRIGHT 

Articles submitted to iQ should be the wholly original work of the named authors. All authors of accepted work must complete and submit an iQ Form for Authors, which must be signed by all authors and/or, where applicable, any employer or agency entitled to hold the copyright of an employee’s output. Please refer to the iQ Copyright Policy Statement for further information. 

SUBMISSION PREPARATION CHECKLIST

As part of the submission process, authors are required to check their submission compliance with all the following items. Submissions may be returned to authors that do not adhere to these guidelines.

General

  • The submission has not been previously published, nor is it before another journal for consideration.
  • The submission is provided in Microsoft Word format. Submissions will only be considered if provided electronically to [email protected].

Word Count

  • Feature Articles are between 1500 and 2000 words.
  • General articles are between 450 - 1500 words.
  • Book Review articles between 500 - 800 words.

Format

  • Provide a short headline/title.
  • Provide a summary introduction of 40-80 words.
  • Break the article up with short subheadings, if possible, particularly if the article is long.
  • All illustrations, figures, and tables are placed within the text at the appropriate points, rather than at the end.
  • URLs and hyperlinks for all references have been provided.
  • Where citation notes are used, they must be shown as endnotes and correlated to numbers in the text.
  • Provide relevant photos/illustrations and diagrams.
  • Photographs and any other illustrative material should be submitted in JPEG format.

Author Assets

  • Include a short 50-100-word biography describing yourself plus your qualification/s and current professional status.
  • Include a clear headshot (between 1-2 megabytes). ‘Selfies’ are not acceptable.

When writing a submission, please consider the following:

  • iQ does not publish advertorial or “people profiles”. Please do not mention personalities, products, or commercial services in your work. Talk to our advertising team if this is of interest.

  • Personalise, where you can, by talking to “you” as you would in a conversation. Try to avoid talking about “we”, “us” and “our”.

  • Avoid prosy or lyrical styles of writing.

  • Make the reader an offer. What benefit will they gain by getting beyond the headline and first paragraph? Can they relate?

  • Write what you know about from personal experience or research. If you are making a technical claim or referring to research, please provide full references.

THE IQ COPYRIGHT POLICY STATEMENT 

The copyright of articles/papers published in iQ is assigned by the author/s to RIMPA for a once only publication in iQ. The author/s otherwise retain full copyright in their work.   However, RIMPA retains the right to briefly quote from all work previously published in iQ in reviews, promotional copy, etc. 

Further, where the work concerned receives its first publication on the pages of iQ, RIMPA requires as a condition of publication that where the work is later published elsewhere the author includes in the text the notation, ‘This work was first published in the (month and year) issue of iQ - The RIMPA Quarterly Magazine of the Records and Information Management Practitioners Alliance.’  

All proprietary and patent rights associated with the contents of your article are unaffected by the temporary assignment of copyright, and remain with either the author(s) or their employing institution.  

Authors must confirm that their work is original. Permission must be obtained from the appropriate author/s or publisher/s for the use of any lengthy excerpts from other copyrighted material in works submitted to iQ. Those excerpts must be fully acknowledged. Copies of relevant written permissions must accompany the form. Failure to obtain such permissions could lead to litigation. Most authors/publishers do not require permission applications where the excerpt is only brief, or the excerpt is used in a legitimate review, as long as the original author and work is credited. If in doubt, intending authors should contact the appropriate copyright holders before using their material in work submitted for publication in iQ. 

Authors are required to indemnify RIMPA in respect of claims made against it by third parties for copyright infringement relating to publication of the article, or concerning authorship or rights of publication over the article, in the completed Form for Authors.