The U.S. Army Journal of Installation Management is the Army's print forum for ideas, experiences, case studies and opinions relating to the many disciplines that pertain to the broad area of installation management. Each edition will feature articles from a select group of garrison leaders and other contributors discussing topics relating to the issue's designated theme, which will ordinarily stem from some part of the Installation Management Campaign Plan (IMCP). The IMCP is available at the IMCOM Web site, http://www.imcom.army.mil/hq/.
Articles will be evaluated for consistency with commander's intent and for topical fit within the theme. All submissions are carefully reviewed and may be shared with a subject matter expert to provide a second opinion as to accuracy and relevance. Where appropriate to maintain consistent focus and high editorial quality, authors may be asked to clarify or expand on some aspect of their papers.
All articles should be titled and designate the name of the author(s) of record, along with a short bio of approximately 50-60 words.
Length
Articles should be of adequate length to engage a reader in a substantial exploration of the topic. A good average length is about 2,000-3,000 words, although longer articles are acceptable. Articles lacking in depth or substance will be returned to the writer with suggestions for bringing the work up to standard. If the standard is not achieved, the article will be excluded.
Manuscript Style
Articles must be titled as concisely and explicitly as possible. The editorial staff may edit titles for grammar or to fit a space, but authors' titles will be left intact to the extent practical.
Writing should be clear and concise, ideas should be the author's own, and cited material must be properly accredited. We are looking for a scholarly or expository text-not a Command Information news story. Standard article structure normally proceeds from a thesis statement, to three main points of discussion, followed by conclusion, recommendations, and summary. Proposal outlines or abstracts are not required, but will be considered and feedback provided if writers want to test an article idea.
The Journal does not require adherence to a particular academic style, but rules of good writing always apply. A good and widely available reference book is The Elements of Style, by Strunk and White. For articles with several citations, an academic style such as the American Psychological Association (APA) Style or the Chicago Style can be helpful in managing references. Word processing programs have made these citation protocols much more user friendly than in the past.
The following stylistic guidance is offered to answer the most frequently asked questions:
-Military ranks are denoted in the military style, i.e. LTC, MG, SGT, etc.
-Names of people and organizations are spelled out on first reference with the acronym, if any, in parentheses following. Thereafter, people are normally referred to by last name only-organizations by acronym.
-IMCOM style calls for capitalizing Soldier, Civilian and Family, listed in that order.
-Senior Commander and Region Director are capitalized, garrison commander is not.
Although most of the audience is senior installation management professionals, vocabulary should be accessible to a general college-level audience, with technical or function-specific language used only as necessary and explained to the extent practical. The editorial staff will edit all manuscripts for general rules of good grammar and style. Substantive changes will be referred to the author for clarification. Editors will also consider security and appropriateness when editing manuscripts.
Writers should include a short biography that mentions current duty assignment, education, and any credentials or experiences that establish the writer's topical authority. Also include contact information that allows editorial staff to reach you. We will not publish contact information.
Accompanying Material
Photographs, charts, and other supporting visuals are encouraged, but will often have to be modified or recreated by the designers for reproduction quality. Photos must be print quality-normally 300 DPI or close to it. Do not embed visuals into the text of an article-instead, submit them separately, with identifying information and relevance to the article.
Clearance
All articles and supporting visuals must have any required clearance for operational security. Editors will also screen for public releasability.
Engage the Audience
Authors wishing to invite discussion from community members are welcome to reference their articles in posts to IMCOM Garrison Commanders' Net, an Army Professional Forum established for members of the IM Community. Just log in to http://www.garrisoncommand.com/ and register with your CAC or AKO account if you're not already a member Garrison Commanders' Net is not affiliated with the Journal..
Submission
The U.S. Army Journal of Installation Management is produced by the United States Army Installation Management Command Public Affairs Office, 2511 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA 22202. EMAIL THE EDITOR
