INFORMS Journal on Applied Analytics Editor’s Statement: A Farewell

As I enter my sixth and final year as editor-in-chief (EiC) of the INFORMS Journal on Applied Analytics (IJAA), and I write my final editor’s statement, I am saddened, excited, and quite retrospective: I am sad to end my tenure as EiC of this excellent journal to which I have focused the bulk of my career, I am excited to move on to the next phase of my career, and I am exceedingly retrospective about my time here.

A lot has happened over the past five years.

• The journal statistics have improved in nearly every measure:

  • — The time that articles are under review has been cut in half.

  • — The impact factor has risen to all-time highs (at least as far back as my data go).

  • — The overall acceptance rate has fallen.

  • — The total submissions per year have risen steadily over these years; I anticipate 2021 will end with the highest number of submissions in at least a decade.

• The name of the journal underwent a change from Interfaces to the INFORMS Journal on Applied Analytics. This name change was bittersweet for me; although I deeply respect and admire the journal and laud its proud history, I believe the new name has drawn (and will continue to draw) a new respect for and awareness of the journal’s contribution to the field of analytics and allow it to achieve new heights. A slight broadening of the journal’s scope has resulted in new types of research being submitted, thus broadening the perspectives of IJAA readers.

• I was lucky enough to be at the helm during the journal’s 50th anniversary for which we celebrated its proud history with a special issue that everyone should read. Please refer to the introduction (Gorman 2020b) for a summary of its contents. The issue is full of information on the journal from the perspectives of its editors-in-chief (Lilien et al. 2020), the authors who have contributed to it (Gorman 2020a), and the organizations that have been so integral to its success (Gorman 2020c). The history and trends in research in the journal are discussed in Freeman et al. (2020), and the history of the Edelman, our organization’s flagship award, is documented in Gorman et al. (2020).

• I have worked continuously to create an active, diverse, and hardworking editorial board. During my time here, I have gradually and gently implemented a course of change that resulted in a turnover of approximately 33% in our board members. I thank the entire board for working so diligently to make the journal a success, an accomplishment that certainly could not have been achieved without you!

The road has not always been easy and there have been bumps along it. At the outset of my time in this position, I effectively ran the pipeline dry, being blissfully unaware of the careful balancing act between having too many and (worse) too few accepted articles ready for publication. I announced a spate of special issues, not all of which were successful at attracting submissions. But I have strived to promote the journal’s value at every turn and will continue to do so throughout my career.

I leave the journal in solid shape and in a good position going forward. I am ready to step down, and I look forward to working with my successor to ensure a smooth transition. The search committee will be formed by early January 2022 and will start accepting nominations through spring 2022. The committee will make a recommendation to the board by the summer meeting of the INFORMS board. I am very thankful for my time here and will enjoy watching IJAA continue to progress and evolve.

For Practitioners

In my last editor’s statement (Gorman 2021), I laid out the case for why academics should want to publish in IJAA. I believe that the case before practitioners is quite different but is just as strong. Let me state some of the reasons publishing in IJAA is good for practitioners and their organizations. I know during my 10 years in the rail industry and my 20 years as a consultant, publishing my work has been key to my success. (Many thanks to John Milne for providing the seeds to my thinking; he credits some of his success at IBM (and now Clarkson University) to his active publishing while at IBM).

So why should a practitioner publish?

• Visibility. Visibility within the practitioner's employing organization has tremendous value. It promotes the work as being journal worthy and of high intellectual value. Procuring the formal verification letter from the implementing organization is a challenge, to be sure, but it provides another point of validation.

• Credibility. Publishing a paper on successful projects, be they with internal or external clients, provides tangible evidence that the author has impressive capabilities. Such a paper can stimulate new business or can help justify the funding of potential future projects.

• Intellectual advancement. The process of writing a paper and presenting it at a conference sharpens the mind. The thinking required in writing sharpens the thinking process and helps to identify potential shortfalls of an approach. The feedback from reviewers provides a valuable external perspective on possible improvements.

• Career advancement. When it comes to promotions and raises, tangible evidence of success goes a long way within any organization. Furthermore, by publishing in IJAA, that proof is also shared with people in other organizations who are facing the same problem and who might be interested in meeting the person who solved it.

• Organizational prestige. Any organization that is capable of implementing work worthy of publication in IJAA is at the forefront of thinking in that field. Apart from the financial benefits of implementing analytical projects, potential investors, business partners, and employees develop respect; admiration; and a desire to hire, work with, and/or invest in that organization.

• Improved hiring. An author or organization can provide the published paper to prospective new employees to demonstrate that the organization is doing interesting and valuable work, which is no doubt attractive to the best and brightest.

• Networking. By publishing thought-provoking work, an author can build a network of like-minded practitioners who might help further improve approaches and results or simply add enjoyable relationships with people of common interests to the author’s life.

In closing, practitioners should strongly consider these advantages and share their work via publication in IJAA—an investment worth making!

Other Notes

Planned Special Issue

We have one special issue on decision analysis underway and already have a healthy number of submissions. The guest editors are Saurabh Bansal (Pennsylvania State University), Karen E. Jenni (U.S. Geological Survey), Jeffrey Keisler (University of Massachusetts Boston), and Johannes Ulrich Siebert (MCI Management Center Innsbruck).

Editorial Board Changes

I am happy to announce the addition of a new editorial board member, Weiwei Chen (Rutgers University), to our board. I am incredibly sad to announce the departure of John Milne (Clarkson University) from the board. John has handled the editing duties for the Edelman issue every year for the past 10 years and has done a stellar job. Upon his departure, he has provided for his successor a detailed and precise Edelman Editor’s Handbook, which details the many responsibilities, deadlines, and best practices of being the Edelman special issue editor. I am happy to announce his successor has been selected. A long-time member of the IJAA editorial board, Pelin Pekgün (University of South Carolina), is stepping into the role. I know from her quality-minded and detail-oriented role as associate editor (and some help from John on the transition!) that she will do a great job.

IJAA is constantly evolving its editorial board. We are looking for application-savvy reviewers and associate editors in methodological areas such as simulation, statistics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, metaheuristics, and pattern recognition, among others. If you have passion and expertise in any of these areas, or if you know someone who you would like to recommend, please contact me.

Closing Note

I am grateful to have had the opportunity to act as EiC for IJAA over these five (soon to be six) years; however, I am both sorry to leave the position and eager to try something new. Thanks to the incredible staff at INFORMS for their help and support while I was in this position, particularly Kelly Kophazi, Alice Mack, and Matt Walls, and for working so tirelessly in their incredibly valuable roles for the INFORMS Journal on Applied Analytics.

Thank you,

Michael F. Gorman