Building Your Peer Reviewer Target List

Author: Penny Freedman

There are many jobs to juggle as an editor running a successful journal – everything from soliciting articles, building a strong board, and navigating publishing ethics. This month we’re highlighting the various components of running a journal, with an eye on providing tips and advice. 

Finding quality peer reviewers is an essential task of managing a successful journal. Ideally, over time, you will create a pool of reviewers that you can rely on time and time again for thorough and accurate reviews. Building that resource can seem like a daunting task to undertake. Read on below for tips on where to focus your efforts.

• Begin your search for qualified reviewers by checking the reference list of the manuscript you are seeking reviewers for.
• Search Springer Nature Link, Nature, BMC.com, PubMed, or similar platforms for researchers that are publishing in the same field. Always ensure that there aren’t any conflicts of interest before considering them as a reviewer.
• Take a global perspective when narrowing down your list of reviewers. An ideal review will include reviewers from more than one country.
• Check with your editorial board members for individuals in their network that might be suitable for reviewing.
• Begin the conversation with potential reviewers with a simple query, not the full manuscript.
• Don’t overwork your reviewers. Try to limit to one request per month, and only after they have finished any outstanding reviews for your journal.
• Remember to thank reviewers for their contribution. For many of our journals we offer the option to provide verification certificates of thanks through our peer-review tracking systems Editorial Manager and eJP.

Learn more about peer review.