Once you have identified reviewers, the tool allows you to
send a request via email to the reviewer to see if he or she
is willing to review the paper. If the reviewer is not already
a user of the online tool, you can add the reviewer to the tool
by clicking the "add new reviewer" button and entering
first name, last name, and email address (the reviewer can add
other information later).
When a new reviewer is added to the tool, he reviewer will
not know the login ID and password to use. However, the tool
offers the ability to check for an existing account on the login
screen. This can be used by the new reviewer to retrieve account
information.
If the review agrees to review the paper, usually by replying
to your email, then you click the "agreed" button
(as opposed to the "decline" button). The tool then
sends a second email to the reviewer, giving more information
on how to perform the review. It also makes the paper available
to the reviewer (in the reviewer center). If the reviewer declines
to review the paper, you indicate that by using the "decline"
button in the tool. If yo do not hear from the reviewer (or
you forget to tell the tool whether the reviewer has agreed
or declined), then the tool sends one automatically generated
reminder to the reviewer after one week.
When a reviewer agrees to review a paper, the reviewer has
access to the paper as well as the Reviewer Score Sheet. The
Score Sheet allows the reviewer to provide feedback to both
the authors and the Editor regarding the suitability,
technical soundness, and presentation of the material. It is
important for the referee to provide a clear recommendation
as to whether the paper should (in their opinion) be accepted,
accepted with conditions, reconsidered with major revision,
or rejected.
Parts of the Score Sheet are used to generate the decision
letter and provide feedback to the other reviewers. Thus, it
is important that the reviewer enter the review using the online
tool. In the extreme case in which is is not possible, the part
of the Score Sheet that is available to the authors can be cut
and pasted into the decision letter. It will also need to be
sent in separate emails to each of the reviewers once the decision
is approved.
Sometimes the reviewer sends part or all of the review to the
Editor via email, rather than entering it into the
online tool. In this case, the Editor should encourage
the reviewer to enter it using the tool. If the paper has already
been moved out of the reviewer's account, it can be moved back
in by contacting online support ("Get help now").
If the reviewer still doesn't enter the review, it is important
to obtain a form of the review that is simple text. (Other types
of files may contain information that identifies the reviewer,
so it is good practice to avoid sing such files from the reviewer.)
Then, the following needs to be done.
