Editorial

Citation

McHugh, M. (2006), "Editorial", Leadership & Organization Development Journal, Vol. 27 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/lodj.2006.02227baa.001

Editorial

It is just over two years now since I assumed the mantle of Editor for the Leadership & Organization Development Journal (LODJ). At this juncture it is a good time to take stock and reflect upon journal developments that have taken place over the period of my editorship. When I wrote my first editorial for LODJ in 2003 I referred to the significant changes that had occurred in the journal over the first 25 years of its existence. In particular, it was noted that LODJ had established itself as an authoritative publication for all of those concerned with the issues of leadership and organization development. The diversity of its readership was cited as a strength, and the quality enhancement of the journal that had occurred over the years was in no small way attributable to the efforts of the editorial team at Emerald and my predecessors, Professors Susan Cartwright and Tony Berry.

It was from this point that I started with a range of objectives for LODJ that were intended to advance further the academic standing of the journal. I had indicated that the journal would aim to attract new and important contributions that transcend the boundaries of single disciplines and would raise further the profile of the journal, particularly within an international context. As part of the journal’s evolution, I indicated that we would seek to publish innovative research that investigates searching and important management research questions. Within this, it was the intention to increase the emphasis placed upon the quality of arguments presented, methodological sophistication and thorough data analyses that would provide the basis for meaningful discussion, and conclusions that would contribute in a positive way to academic debate and management practice. To support the development of LODJ it was also the intention to increase the membership of the editorial advisory board (EAB) and to develop an editorial team.

Reflecting on the objectives for the journal that were articulated two years ago, I can now provide an update on our various achievements. In the last two years we have seen an increase in the number of manuscripts submitted to the journal (submissions for 2004 and 2005 exceeded 100 each year) and an increase in the quality of papers accepted for publication. LODJ attracts submissions from across the world, with the majority coming from the US and Australia. Increasingly, submissions are being received from Scandinavia, the Middle East, the Far East, Canada and the UK. Eight issues of LODJ are published each year and individual issues contain five papers. Thus, 40 papers are published annually running to around 700 pages per volume. Acceptance rates for the journal have reduced and currently stand at 40 per cent. It is anticipated that as an outcome of increased submissions and the application of more stringent quality controls, acceptance rates will reduce further in the future. At this point in time, the number of papers scheduled for publication means that Volume 27 is fully committed.

The papers published in LODJ reflect the diversity of the journal’s scope. That said, the foci of papers appearing in volumes 25 and 26 highlight the growing interest in emotional intelligence and its links to leadership and organization development. Organizational culture has been the subject of investigation in a number of articles, and in a number of cases where leadership and organization development represent the core of papers, the topics being addressed reflect the complex web of interrelationships that reflect the reality of organizational life. This is further reflected in a planned special issue of the journal focusing on interorganizational relationships (IORs) and the implications for leadership and organizational development that will be published later in 2006. This special issue will be edited by Professor Paul Humphreys from the University of Ulster and Professor Ronan McIvor from the University of Missouri. Paul and Ronan are two acclaimed supply chain management specialists who have conducted much work on the behavioural aspects of IORs.

Two years on, as an outcome of ongoing debate and discussion with the journal’s managing editor, Paula Fernandez, and through dialogue with academic colleagues across the globe regarding the strategic development and positioning of LODJ, I am delighted to report the expansion and strengthening of the EAB and the appointment of an extensive editorial review board (ERB). The new revised EAB and the newly appointed ERB are listed in this issue.

The decision to appoint an ERB in addition to an EAB was taken as a result of an increase in the number of paper submissions being received by LODJ and a desire to provide quality enhancements to the administrative system for the journal. As noted previously, at present over 100 papers are submitted to LODJ each year and the average time from submission to the delivery of editorial decisions to authors is 12 weeks. The appointment of a highly competent and committed ERB of 40 members is intended to lead to reductions in the timeframe from submission to decision, and to provide high quality reviews and feedback to authors.

As part of the strategic development process for LODJ, the journal’s editorial objectives, scope and philosophy were revised last year. In particular, the revisions sought to emphasise the diversity of LODJ as a journal which addresses a range of topics relevant to organizations, and which are reflective of societal developments. An important aspect of the philosophy of LODJ is that it does not have a methodological preference; papers on the continuum from quantitative based studies to qualitative case studies are equally welcome.

In seeking colleagues to join the EAB we have been cognisant of the journal’s editorial objectives, scope and philosophy, and our desire to enhance further the international reputation of LODJ. Thus, in addition to those colleagues who are leading figures in the leadership and organizational development fields and who have been loyal and strong supporters of the journal for many years, we have made a number of new and highly significant appointments to the EAB. These internationally recognised colleagues who come from across the globe are intended to complement the range of skills and expertise already evident in the EAB of LODJ. It is intended that the new appointments to the EAB will advance the development of LODJ as a leading journal in its field. The new members of the EAB are highly respected academics and include:

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  Professor Brent Ruben, Rutgers University;

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  Professor Jean Hartley, University of Warwick;

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  Dr Mike Morley, University of Limerick;

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  Professor Gary Yukl, State University of New York at Albany;

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  Professor David Lamond, University of Western Sydney;

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  Professor Tom Redman, University of Durham;

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  Professor Malcolm Higgs, Henley Management College;

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  Professor Iain Densten, University of New South Wales;

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  Martin Clarke, University of Cranfield;

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  Dr Kim Buch, University of North Carolina;

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  Professor Peter Case, University of West of England;

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  Professor Barry Posner, Santa Clara University; and

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  Professor Beverly Alimo-Metcalfe, University of Leeds.

I look forward to working with the EAB to advance further the standing of LODJ.

Investment in technology at Emerald has continued to enhance dissemination of the content of LODJ and its circulation has been rising rapidly over the last few years. It is anticipated that further efforts will be made over the coming months to exploit technological developments in respect of processing manuscripts.

As part of Emerald’s Literati Club Awards for Excellence it has been highly pleasing to report that the paper “Transformational leadership: an examination of cross-national differences and similarities”, written by Karen Boehnke, Nick Bontis, Joseph DiStefano and Andrea DiStefano, and the paper “Prediciting openness and commitment to change”, by Anuradha Chawla and E Kevin Kelloway, were selected as winners of the LODJ Outstanding Paper Awards in 2004 and 2005 respectively. Both papers make a significant contribution to our knowledge and understanding of important organizational issues.

A major development for the journal that took place in 2005 was the launch of the joint Emerald European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD) Outstanding Doctoral Research Awards. LODJ was selected as one of the participating journals in these awards and the competition attracted many high quality submissions. Dr Richard Adams, Imperial College London (formerly based at Cranfield School of Management) was a very worthy winner of the LODJ Outstanding Doctoral Research Award in 2005 for his thesis “Perceptions of innovations: exploring and developing innovation classification”.

This issue of LODJ contains five thought-provoking papers that once again reflect the fact that leadership and organization development are wide ranging topics which impact upon a multiplicity of issues in our complex, highly dynamic and changing world. Philip Vardiman, Jeffrey Houghton and Darryl Jinkerson examine the issue of environmental leadership development, focussing on leader selection and effectiveness; Kankia Bahl explores issues of justice and equity in relation to LMX; Svante Brunåker and Jaana Kurvinen highlight the importance of local initiatives in organizational change processes; John Mullins and Margaret Linehan focus on the desired leadership qualities of public library leaders; and finally, Amanda Hay and Myra Hodgkinson examine approaches for teaching leadership.

I hope that you will find this issue of LODJ interesting and that it acts as a stimulus to debate, discussion and further research. I hope too that it provides practitioners with insights that contribute to enhanced organizational efficiency and effectiveness. In forthcoming issues I look forward again to updating you on developments at LODJ and to providing you with quality papers which advance or knowledge and understanding about the world of “leadership” and “organization development”.

Marie McHugh