The Idea behind this STF

“Inspired by the best in academic publishing—this STF is for researchers who want their logistics and supply chain work to matter now.”

With the ever-increasing speed of change in business and society, academia needs to move at a faster pace, bringing today’s best thinking to decision makers while it is still fresh. To stay relevant and make a difference, we believe that logistics and supply chain scholars must learn how to influence real-world decision-making.

That means producing research that is current, provocative, relevant, and accessible—sharing ideas that people care about, when they need them. In short, we're looking for insights based on current data that help decision-makers create value at the pace the world is changing today.

At the same time, we asked ourselves: Why do many academic articles take two, three, or more years to publish, spanning 40–50 pages, and require multiple (often slow) rounds of revisions? We believe we can learn from other scientific disciplines that have embraced more responsive, high-impact publishing.

Our benchmarks: Journal of the American Medical Association, The Lancet, New England Journal of Medicine, Nature, and Science. Take The Lancet, for instance, a leading medical journal, where the highest-quality research is published in under 4,000 words.

Like The Lancet, this STF offers:

• A fast review cycle (4 months from submission to decision)

• A focus on impact, clarity, and relevance

Like The Lancent, we value:

• Timeliness over theoretical sprawl

• Real-world relevance over excessively expansive literature reviews and methods descriptions

• Clarity and thought-provoking insight over complexity and density

Think of your paper as a bold, relevant, data-backed contribution—designed for impact, not length.