Editorial Manager (EM) allows for assigning a chain of multiple Editors to a newly received submission or revision in a single action. Once the Chain is created, the last listed Editor becomes the Handling Editor without any need for action by the higher Editors. Eventually when that Handling Editor makes a decision it will follow the journal's configured Decision workflow back up the Editor chain, in reverse order.

The (Re)Assign Editor Chain screen can be configured to appear instead of the usual Assign Editor screen, before any editor is assigned. However it can only be reached when first assigning a new submission or revision. Once one or more editors have been assigned then any additional editors can only be added individually by the current handling editor.

How?

The (Re)Assign Editor Chain workflow is triggered automatically if has been enabled for that article type (for new submissions), or for the entire journal (for revisions).

1. Locate the submission in the Main Menu folders 'New Submissions Requiring Assignment' or 'New Revisions Requiring Assignment'.

   • If you do not see these folders, then you are not enabled to handle incoming submissions and revisions.
2. Perform any pre-assignment screening, and if necessary, send back to the Author before proceeding. See How can I send Back to Author?.
3. Click Assign Editor. If Editor Chain workflow is configured, then the Assign/Reassign Editor Chain screen appears instead of the standard Assign Editor screen.

   • For new submissions, a pre-defined list of editor roles called the Editor Assignment Chain Template appears, allowing you to select one editor for each step in the chain. This list may be different for each article type.
   • For revisions, a list of all editors assigned to the previous version appears, allowing you to confirm or make changes.
   • At any time you can select the option for 'Assign Individual Editor' to cancel out of Editor Chain mode and go to standard Assign Editor mode, see How do I assign an Editor?.
For Revised submissions only
4. To select editors or make changes to the overall editor chain for New or Revised submissions:

   • Role column: different roles can be selected, including selecting the same role for multiple steps. Only assignable roles appear.
   • Editor column: has one of these options for each step:

     • If only one Editor is available for a specific role (for example, if there is only one Editor-in-Chief), then that individual is selected automatically when the role is selected.
     • If no eligible Editor has that role, then it is noted in red. A different role must be selected, or the step must be removed.
     • If the specific Editor role is configured with Search-Based selection, then a Search Editor link appears in place of the Editor drop-down. This is used in large journals to search for Editors by classification matches.
     • In all other cases, a drop-down list appears, showing the names of Editors with the designated role.

       Note: It is not possible to select the Corresponding Author as an Editor, or any Editor who has been restricted from viewing the submission as described here.

   • Alerts appear in the first column, hover over the symbol to see the reason. For example:

     • The same Editor is listed twice (you will not be able to proceed in this case).
     • The selected Editor has current or pending 'Unavailable' dates.
     • The selected Editor has a similar name to one of the authors.
   • Steps may be removed from the chain with the trash can icon (delete).
   • Steps may be added to the end by selecting an Editor Role from the drop-down list below the grid and selecting the Add to Chain button.
5. To preview or customize assignment notifications to the editors:

   • For new submissions, the assignment letter that will be sent appears next to the name, with a Customize link. Changing the editor role will reset any customizations.
   • Select a different Editor Assignment Letter if needed, or select None.
   • Click Customize to preview the letter text and make any changes.
6. When the Editors and letters have been selected and any letter customizations have been done,

   • For new submissions: select Create Chain and Send Letters.
   • For revisions, there are two buttons:

     • Reassign with Custom Letters to make any changes to the letters before sending, including sending letters to anyone other than the last listed.
     • Reassign with Default Letters will send the default configured letter to the last Editor assigned; other Editors will not be notified with this option
   • Note that these buttons are greyed out until all steps have a valid Editor selected.

When you are done:

• All Editors are assigned and notified as selected.
• The last listed Editor is now the Handling Editor. Depending on permissions, they could invite reviewers, assign another editor to the end of the chain, or make an immediate decision.
• The status changes to "With Editor" and the submission appears in the Handling Editor's 'New Assignments' folder.
• As the assigning editor, you can monitor the editorial progress from your Main Menu under 'View All Assigned Submissions'.