When a new or revised manuscript is submitted to a journal in Editorial Manager (EM), the Journal Office or Editor (with proper permissions) assigns a first Editor to handle the submission, thereby introducing the submission into the editorial workflow. This first Editor may have permission to assign a second, who may have permission to assign a third and so on, forming an assignment chain (also called Editor chain).

Alternatively, a publication site can be configured as Direct to Editor, with automated assignment of either a first editor, or a chain of multiple editors in one action.

To use the Assign Editor action the following must be true:

• You must have permission to Assign Editors for this submission:

  • For newly received submissions and revisions, only editors with Receive New Submission permissions can assign the First Editor.
  • Once one editor is assigned, then only the current Handling Editor may be able to Assign another editor, if they have permission.
  • The Handling editor is the most recently assigned Editor who has not made a decision or been terminated.
• The status must allow for editor assignment:

  • There are no currently invited, assigned or agreed reviewers pending.
  • There is not a partially saved decision by any Editor.
  • The submission is not currently being edited, revised, or sent back to author.
  • The submission has not reached a final disposition (Accept, Reject, Withdrawn).

How

1. Locate the submission in the appropriate Main Menu folder:

   • With Editor if you are the most recently assigned Editor and plan to assign a subordinate Editor.
   • New/Revised Submissions Requiring Assignment if you are responsible for screening and assigning new/revised submissions.

     • A button may appear for 'Batch Assign Editor' if configured for your role. To assign several submission to the same editor, click this button, and see this FAQ for more details.
   • Submissions with Required Reviews Complete if you are the current handling editor and want to invite a new subordinate editor after all reviews (and subordinate editor decisions if relevant) have been completed.
   • Note that Assign Editor may also appear as an action in other folders and Search Submission results, if the submission meets the conditions above.
2. Click Assign Editor in the action menu of a submission to open the Assign Editor screen.

   If the screen ‘Assign Editor Chain’ or ‘Reassign Editor Chain’ appears instead, see How can multiple editors be assigned in a single Chain in Editorial Manager?

   • If this is a New Submission or New Revision you will be assigning the first Editor.
   • If you are the currently assigned Editor, you will be assigning a subordinate.
3. A list of all users with assignable Editor roles will appear, showing their current workload, classification matches, availability, and the number of past assignments they have handled within a specified timespan. At the top of the list, you will also see a search bar, which allows you to search for a specific Editor. See screenshot.

   • To search for an Editor, enter the information you wish to search for in the Criterion field (e.g. last name, or email address) and then add the relevant details to the Value field (See screenshot).
   • Alternatively, if you are not using the search function you can sort the list by clicking the arrows on the column headers.
   • Click an Editor's name to open their personal information, statistics, and list of assignments.
   • Any Editor with an existing or potential relationship will be highlighted in red text, for example:

     • Assigned to a previous revision.
     • Requested by the Author.
     • Possible author – if the last name matches any of the author list.
4. Click the 'Select' radio button for the Editor you wish to assign. Note that Editors cannot be selected for assignment if they are:

   • The Corresponding Author (see screenshot).
   • Already assigned to this version of the submission.
   • Blocked to the submission (see this FAQ for more information).
5. Click one of the buttons:

   • Send Default Letters: to send the preconfigured assignment notification(s) without viewing or customizing.
   • Send Custom Letters: To view, customize, or select an alternate letter template before sending.
6. If you chose to customize the letters, you will see a list of the people configured to receive a letter when an Editor is assigned to a submission.

   • Click 'Customize' next to an individual's name if you want to personalize a particular letter.
   • Click the 'Letter Drop-down' next to an individual's name to select a different letter to be sent. Note: if you personalize a letter, and then select a new letter, your personalized text will be lost.
   • Check the 'Do Not Send Letter' box next to an individual's name to prevent any letter being sent to that person.
7. Click Confirm Selections and Send Letters.

When the assignment process has been completed

• You will see a confirmation screen listing who has been assigned and who has been notified.
• The submission will appear under 'New Assignments' for the newly assigned Editor.
• The status will change to 'With Editor'.
• If you remain assigned after handing off to a subordinate, you can monitor the progress. See How can I view submissions I assigned to another editor?