Splint International Journal Of Professionals

Purpose. These guidelines specify the requirements for preparing and submitting MPI essays. Authors must use these guidelines together with the separate Author Checklist. The checklist should be used to structure the essay in the required format.

1. Source Research Paper

• The essay must be anchored in a recent research article that provides the core insight for the problem being addressed.
• The reference paper should normally be published within 18 months of submission and should be from an FT-50 journal and/or an ABDC A* journal.
• References should be used to support context, examples, industry evidence, and implementation implications, but the central argument should remain linked to the chosen research paper.

2. Problem of Practice

The manuscript must open with a clearly labelled section titled Problem of Practice. This section should function as a short executive summary for the target reader.

Requirement	Instruction
Length	Maximum 200 words
Problem	Clearly state the managerial or organisational problem being addressed
Solution/Insight	Provide a one-sentence summary of the proposed research backed solution or insight
Reference paper	Cite the core research paper that serves as the basis for the solution
Target audience	Identify the specific practitioner audience, such as CEOs, product managers, HR leaders, policymakers, supply chain leaders, marketing heads, entrepreneurs, or digital transformation leaders

3. Manuscript Format

Item	Requirement
Language	UK English
File format	MS Word only. Do not submit the main manuscript in PDF or LaTeX format
Font	Times New Roman
Font size	12 point
Main essay length	Maximum 2,000 words, excluding references
Title length	Maximum 60 characters, including spaces
Sub-heading length	Maximum 25 characters, including spaces

4. References and Hyperlinks

• Use endnotes, not author-date in-text citations.
• Follow the Chicago Manual of Style, full-note format.
• Hyperlink the relevant word or phrase where the source is mentioned in the text.
• Place the endnote number after the full stop at the end of the sentence where the hyperlinked word or phrase appears.

Example: Customer involvement can strengthen a sense of ownership and encourage sustainable behaviour.¹

Note: In the manuscript, the phrase “Customer involvement” should be hyperlinked to the relevant source, and the endnote number should appear after the full stop.

5. Tables and Figures

• All tables and figures must be provided in an editable format.
• Tables and figures can be included in the main Word file and/or uploaded as a separate editable Word or PowerPoint file.
• Each table or figure must be clearly numbered, such as Figure 1, Figure 2, Table 1, or Table 2.
• Each table or figure must include a source line immediately below it.
• Do not submit figures only as flat screenshots if the underlying content can be provided in editable form.

Source-line examples

• Source: Created by the author(s).
• Source: Created by the author(s) based on [Chicago Manual full-note reference].
• Source: Adapted by the author(s) from [Chicago Manual full-note reference].

6. AI Use Disclosure

If AI tools are used in preparing any part of the manuscript, figures, tables, charts, summaries, or illustrations, their use must be clearly acknowledged. The disclosure should identify the tool, provider, date of use, purpose of use, and prompt used, where applicable.

Example for AI-generated figure: Figure 1. Supply chain diagram. Source: Generated by ChatGPT 4o, OpenAI, March 12, 2026, using the prompt “Create a simplified supply chain graphic.”

Example for AI-assisted chart: Source: Data collected by the author(s); chart generated via ChatGPT-4o.

Authors remain responsible for accuracy, originality, copyright compliance, permissions, and appropriate attribution even when AI tools are used.

7. Anonymised Main Manuscript

• Remove author names, affiliations, email addresses, acknowledgements, and other identifying details from the main manuscript.
• Check the document title, header, footer, comments, tracked changes, and file name for identifying information.
• Where possible, remove personal metadata from the Word file before submission.
• Acknowledgements should be placed in a separate title page file, not in the anonymised manuscript.

8. Separate Title Page File

Submit a separate title page file using the MPI title page format. The title page should include the essay title, author details, disclaimer, keywords, and structured abstract fields required by the template.

• List all authors with their job title, department, university or institution, and email address.
• Mark the corresponding author clearly, where applicable.
• Include acknowledgements or additional disclaimers on the title page, not in the anonymised manuscript.
• Ensure that all co-authors have consented to the submission and that permissions from relevant sources have been obtained before submission.

9. Submission Package

File	Purpose
Anonymised main manuscript	Main essay file in MS Word format, without author identifying information
Title page file	Separate MS Word file containing author details and structured abstract fields
Editable figures/tables file, if needed	Separate editable Word or PowerPoint file containing numbered figures or tables
Author Checklist	Use the quality-control document before submission

10. Final Pre-Submission Checks

• The Problem of Practice is limited to 200 words and includes the problem, solution/insight, a reference to a research paper, and the target audience.
• The main essay is within 2,000 words, excluding references.
• The title and subheadings comply with the character limits.
• The main manuscript is anonymised.
• References are formatted as Chicago-style endnotes.
• Hyperlinks and endnote numbers are placed correctly.
• Figures and tables are editable, numbered, and sourced.
• AI use, if any, is disclosed.
• The title page file follows the MPI title page format.
• The separate Author Checklist has been used to assess essay quality before submission.