California Management Review serves as a source of evidence-based research that inspires, informs, and empowers stewards of modern organizations. We disseminate ideas that engage scholars, educate students, and contribute to the practice of management.

If you would like to inquire on whether your work is appropriate for publication in CMR, please request advance feedback by contacting cmr@haas.berkeley.edu.

Timeline Estimates Submitting Online Content Guidelines Style Guidelines Charts & Figures

Timeline Estimates

• Email queries will be promptly acknowledged. If you do not receive a response within 10 business days, please follow up to ensure your request was received.


• ​If your submitted article is selected for external review, authors can typically expect a preliminary publication decision within 8 to 10 weeks. There are exceptions to this timeframe, and if your submission is part of a special section or issue, the timeframe will likely be longer. If your online submission is successful, you will receive an automated e-mail confirmation of receipt within 24 hours. If you do not receive said e-mail, contact CMR immediately as your submission was most likely not received.


• ​Accepted articles are generally published within 6 to 10 months. Accepted articles may be made publicly available ahead of their issue's publication date via the SAGE OnlineFirst platform. Special sections and issues take significantly longer.


• ​If your submission will not be sent out for review for publication consideration, you will be notified within 4 weeks.


• CMR does not accept multiple submissions (manuscripts simultaneously submitted to other publications).


• CMR does not give publication consideration to manuscripts that have been previously published or are posted online.

Submitting Online

• ​There is no fee for submitting a manuscript for publication consideration in CMR.


• Authors should upload manuscripts in Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx) format (not as PDFs).


• The author(s)' name should not appear anywhere on the actual manuscript, filenames, charts, figures, or graphs.


• You will be required to include a summary (abstract) of its basic argument.


• You will be required to select at least three (3) keywords that indicate the general subject of the article.


• Manuscripts should be double-spaced with 12 point font and run approximately 5,000 to 8,000 words, excluding charts, tables, figures, and end notes. Please inquire with the editor before submitting articles of greater or shorter length.


• Notes, citations, and references should be numbered in the text and compiled at the end of the manuscript (endnote format). All bibliographic material should be contained directly in the notes and not as a separate section.


• Tables, charts, and diagrams should be uploaded as separate documents with references for insertion throughout the document.

Content Guidelines

CMR primarily publishes original articles that are both research based and address issues of current concern to managers.

CMR interprets management broadly, to include subject matter taught in business schools as well as work in other fields that is applicable to management functions and practices. CMR typically publishes articles that extend our knowledge of a given topic either by contesting or building upon existing theories or by presenting new empirical work. Additionally, every manuscript should also be practitioner oriented, including prescriptive advice for managers that will help them in their role as manager. CMR is particularly interested in manuscripts that focus on corporate strategy and organization, the management of technology, business and public policy, and managing in the global business economy.

Articles that present the results of original research and analysis are given high priority, but we also invite reports on business surveys, analyses or descriptions of new or revised business techniques, and perspectives on contemporary social, economic, and political issues. We also welcome articles by practitioners on contemporary business policies and practices as well as revisions of papers originally prepared for academic conferences or scholarly publications. All submissions are subject to peer review. CMR does not give publication consideration to article posted online or multiple submissions (manuscripts simultaneously submitted to other publications).

Style Guidelines

• Articles should be as jargon-free as possible. Terminology and acronyms that are not common knowledge should be defined. Technical material should be placed in notes or appendices whenever possible.


• Three descending levels of headings should be used periodically and consistently throughout the article. They should be descriptive but brief.


• CMR uses endnote style (not scientific notation), and references or bibliographies should be folded into the notes (not listed as a separate section). Citation order should be author(s) (first name first), title of work, complete publication information (city, state, publisher, date or name of periodical, volume and issue number, date), and page number references. The accuracy of citations and references is the responsibility of the author(s).


• CMR uses the Chicago Manual of Style as primary reference source.


• For more specific style questions, consult a recent issue, read a sample article, or contact our Senior Editor Gundars Strads.

Charts & Figures

• Tables, charts, diagrams, and other graphic materials should be used for providing necessary information or clarification of central concepts. They should be clean and uncluttered and should appear on separate pages. If copyright permission is required for publishing this graphic material, it is the author's responsibility to obtain it at his/her cost.


• Please note that we are a two-color journal, which means that all charts/graphs must also be in two-color, unless you want to pay a printing fee. When you revise and resubmit, please make sure to upload the individual native files for any graphs/tables/figures/etc. instead of embedding them in a word document. If for some reason you are unable to upload them in the system, please send them as attachments in a separate email to cmr@haas.berkeley.edu. Or if there are too many to attach, send us an email that includes a link to where we can download them.