About the Journal

Focus and Scope

The journal Piccola Impresa/Small Business aims to contribute to the study and dissemination of knowledge on small-scale entrepreneurship by providing a space where researchers in this field can freely share the results of their empirical investigations and engage in theoretical discussions.
It is an international academic journal specifically dedicated to the study and theoretical reflection on the administration and management of small businesses, their role in the economy, and the policies and regulations affecting them. Adopting a multidisciplinary approach, the journal seeks to address issues related to small enterprises—an essential component of both the Italian and global productive structure—by developing original interpretative and regulatory models, rather than deriving them from managerial theories shaped around large corporations. It promotes original contributions that enhance the understanding of the real evolution of the sector.
The journal publishes works in Italian, English, and French, featuring contributions from both established scholars and young researchers from Italy and abroad. It serves as a platform for integration and dialogue between representatives of different schools of thought and diverse disciplinary approaches.
At the same time, Piccola Impresa/Small Business seeks to foster engagement between academia and the business world, as well as with professionals and the labor market. To this end, in addition to publishing studies and research of particular interest to non-academic audiences, it organizes seminars involving entrepreneurs, managers, and professionals, analyzes significant business cases, includes informational sections of common interest, and highlights books and articles of scientific relevance.

The journal is accredited by the Italian Academy of Business Economics (AIDEA) as a Q1 multisectoral journal. Additionally, it is classified by ANVUR as a scientific journal for Area 13.

Peer Review Process

The contributions are subject to a double-blind peer review process.

Only contributions that have not already been published are considered. Their originality is verified through plagiarism detection software. The submitted articles are evaluated by two anonymous reviewers, who are chosen by the collegial body responsible for managing the review procedures. Articles must be submitted only after registering on the journal website.

Double-Blind Peer Review

Reviewers are first asked to give a score from 1 to 5, where 1 is poor and 5 is excellent, for the following elements:

- Relevance of the topic.
- Originality of the contribution.
- Strength of the conceptual foundations.
- Methodological rigor
- Importance of the empirical analysis (if present).
- Clarity of presentation.
- Interest for the readers of the journal (academics and economic operators).

Next, reviewers are asked to provide a detailed evaluation:

- of the main points of interest in the article;
- of the article's weaknesses;
- of any further suggestions or revisions.

Finally, reviewers must provide a summary evaluation, choosing one of the following options:

- accept;
- accept with some revisions;
- request a major revision;
- reject.

To submit a proposal to the journal’s editorial team, the user, after registering, must click on "New Proposal" in the "Dashboard" section. This will start a quick submission process. The procedure requires specifying the "section of the journal" to which the article is to be submitted, the "language of the proposal", a series of "proposal checks", and the uploading of the article in an anonymous form, in a single file and organized according to the editing instructions provided below. The process involves uploading a single file containing the text, tables, figures, and any other necessary materials. Only anonymous letters to the reviewers, after the review process, may be uploaded in separate files. In addition to author information (name, surname, email address, and affiliated university), the guided process requires entering a series of article details (title, authors, English abstract, references, and keywords), which are the metadata used for DOI registration. The author initiating the submission process is responsible for any changes to the metadata throughout the submission process, particularly the title and the names of the authors. Author names may be changed only before the communication of the paper’s acceptance. Changes can only be made by the author who initiated the submission process by accessing the "edit metadata" section of the submission. Furthermore, only the author who initiated the process can monitor the submission's progress and upload modified articles or other files. The author initiating the guided process identifies the "corresponding contact with the editorial team". Following this procedure ensures an indisputable blind peer review and, at the same time, efficient management of the submission, as the article and its information will always remain separate but linked only for the Journal's Administrative Office.

Focus and Scope

Peer Review Process

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