Manufacturing & Service Operations Management Workflow (msom-workflow)
Overview
This is the router. It does not replace any specialized skill; it tells you which msom- skill to use right now* for your M&SOM manuscript.
Default assumption: unless the user says otherwise, treat the target as M&SOM — the premier operations-management journal, published by INFORMS and sponsored by the MSOM Society, founded 1999 and published quarterly. M&SOM covers the design, procurement, production, delivery, and recovery of goods and services. The non-negotiable gate: an operations decision or problem must be central to the contribution, executed at top-tier rigor — whether the work is analytical/stochastic (optimization, queueing, stochastic models, game theory, revenue management) or empirical OM / data-driven analytics. A strong analytics, marketing, or finance-flavored paper is routinely desk-screened if the OM core is not the primary contribution. Submissions are routed by author-chosen Department (six of them) and two preferred Department Editors, so "fit" means matching the right department, not a generalist pool.
Editorial team: Georgia Perakis (MIT Sloan) is listed as Editor-in-Chief on the 2026-06-20 M&SOM home and editorial-board pages; INFORMS announced that her final term expires 31 December 2026 and that the search committee aims to propose a successor by 1 July 2026. The M&SOM home page lists 2024 Impact Factor 4.2 and five-year Impact Factor 6.6. Check the masthead and editorial-board page before relying on current editor names.
When to trigger
- "What should I do next?" with a half-built M&SOM manuscript
- You have a model or dataset but the operations decision is not yet the centerpiece
- A reviewer/DE pushes on "where is the operations contribution?" and you are unsure which stage is the bottleneck
- You received an M&SOM decision letter (R&R or reject) and need to switch into response mode
- You keep bouncing between model, analysis, and writing without a plan
Routing table
| Current symptom |
Next skill |
| Idea is vague; not sure an operations decision is central or M&SOM-fit |
msom-topic-selection |
| Model/hypotheses lack a crisp operational mechanism or tradeoff |
msom-theory-development |
| Front end reads as a gap; the OM conversation is not engaged |
msom-literature-positioning |
| Method/identification may not match the operations problem |
msom-methods |
| Have proofs/numerics or data; unsure about rigor, replicability |
msom-data-analysis |
| Results exist but the "managerial/operational so-what" is thin |
msom-contribution-framing |
| Exhibits cluttered, off INFORMS style, or not self-explanatory |
msom-tables-figures |
| Prose buries the operations insight; too much notation up front |
msom-writing-style |
| Ready to submit; need the ScholarOne + department-routing preflight |
msom-submission |
| Want to understand double-anonymous review and department routing |
msom-review-process |
| Received an R&R; need to plan and draft the response |
msom-rebuttal |
Default order
msom-topic-selection — lock an operations decision that is central and M&SOM-fitmsom-theory-development — build the model / operational mechanism and its tradeoffmsom-literature-positioning — engage the OM conversation and the right departmentmsom-methods — match the analytical/empirical method to the operations problemmsom-data-analysis — proofs, numerical studies, estimation, identification, replicabilitymsom-contribution-framing — turn results into an operational/managerial insightmsom-tables-figures — finalize exhibits in INFORMS house stylemsom-writing-style — front-load the insight; control notation; structured abstractmsom-submission — ScholarOne preflight, anonymization, department routingmsom-review-process — set expectations for double-anonymous, department-routed reviewmsom-rebuttal — after an R&R, plan revisions then draft the response letter
msom-tables-figures and msom-writing-style are late-stage polish. Do not invoke them while the model or identification is still unsettled.
Difference vs. other OR/OM and management stacks
- M&SOM: an operations decision is central; analytical or empirical; INFORMS double-anonymous; 32-page typeset cap; ScholarOne at mc.manuscriptcentral.com/msom; author-routed departments.
- Management Science (INFORMS): broader OR/management scope and an OM department, but not OM-exclusive; its author-facing fee policy differs from M&SOM's submission-guideline page.
- Operations Research: methodological OR contributions where the method can be the contribution; M&SOM insists the operations problem is.
- POM (Production & Operations Management): overlapping OM scope, different society (POMS) and house style.
If an operations decision is not the centerpiece, M&SOM is the wrong venue.
Router output snapshot
【Stage detected】topic / theory / positioning / methods / analysis / framing / exhibits / writing / submission / review / rebuttal
【Operations lever central?】yes / reshape (→ topic-selection)
【Lane】analytical / empirical
【Next skill】msom-...
【Live-check items】page cap, departments, masthead → author guidelines
Anti-patterns
- Do not skip
msom-topic-selection — a paper whose OM core is only a backdrop is desk-screened.
- Do not let
msom-tables-figures beautify exhibits before the model/identification is settled.
- Do not let
msom-rebuttal draft a response before you have actually revised the manuscript.
- Do not treat
msom-writing-style as a substitute for a real operations contribution.
1---2name: msom-workflow3description: Use when deciding which msom-* sub-skill to invoke next, or when sequencing manuscript work from topic selection through rebuttal for a Manufacturing & Service Operations Management (M&SOM) manuscript. Routes — it does not replace — the specialized skills.4---56# Manufacturing & Service Operations Management Workflow (msom-workflow)78## Overview910This is the router. It does not replace any specialized skill; it tells you **which msom-* skill to use right now** for your M&SOM manuscript.1112Default assumption: unless the user says otherwise, treat the target as M&SOM — the premier operations-management journal, published by INFORMS and sponsored by the MSOM Society, founded 1999 and published quarterly. M&SOM covers the **design, procurement, production, delivery, and recovery of goods and services**. The non-negotiable gate: an **operations decision or problem must be central to the contribution**, executed at top-tier rigor — whether the work is **analytical/stochastic** (optimization, queueing, stochastic models, game theory, revenue management) or **empirical OM / data-driven analytics**. A strong analytics, marketing, or finance-flavored paper is routinely desk-screened if the OM core is not the primary contribution. Submissions are routed by author-chosen **Department** (six of them) and two preferred Department Editors, so "fit" means matching the right department, not a generalist pool.1314> Editorial team: Georgia Perakis (MIT Sloan) is listed as Editor-in-Chief on the 2026-06-20 M&SOM home and editorial-board pages; INFORMS announced that her final term expires 31 December 2026 and that the search committee aims to propose a successor by 1 July 2026. The M&SOM home page lists 2024 Impact Factor 4.2 and five-year Impact Factor 6.6. Check the masthead and editorial-board page before relying on current editor names.1516## When to trigger1718- "What should I do next?" with a half-built M&SOM manuscript19- You have a model or dataset but the operations decision is not yet the centerpiece20- A reviewer/DE pushes on "where is the operations contribution?" and you are unsure which stage is the bottleneck21- You received an M&SOM decision letter (R&R or reject) and need to switch into response mode22- You keep bouncing between model, analysis, and writing without a plan2324## Routing table2526| Current symptom | Next skill |27|--------------------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------|28| Idea is vague; not sure an operations decision is central or M&SOM-fit | `msom-topic-selection` |29| Model/hypotheses lack a crisp operational mechanism or tradeoff | `msom-theory-development` |30| Front end reads as a gap; the OM conversation is not engaged | `msom-literature-positioning`|31| Method/identification may not match the operations problem | `msom-methods` |32| Have proofs/numerics or data; unsure about rigor, replicability | `msom-data-analysis` |33| Results exist but the "managerial/operational so-what" is thin | `msom-contribution-framing` |34| Exhibits cluttered, off INFORMS style, or not self-explanatory | `msom-tables-figures` |35| Prose buries the operations insight; too much notation up front | `msom-writing-style` |36| Ready to submit; need the ScholarOne + department-routing preflight | `msom-submission` |37| Want to understand double-anonymous review and department routing | `msom-review-process` |38| Received an R&R; need to plan and draft the response | `msom-rebuttal` |3940## Default order41421. `msom-topic-selection` — lock an operations decision that is central and M&SOM-fit432. `msom-theory-development` — build the model / operational mechanism and its tradeoff443. `msom-literature-positioning` — engage the OM conversation and the right department454. `msom-methods` — match the analytical/empirical method to the operations problem465. `msom-data-analysis` — proofs, numerical studies, estimation, identification, replicability476. `msom-contribution-framing` — turn results into an operational/managerial insight487. `msom-tables-figures` — finalize exhibits in INFORMS house style498. `msom-writing-style` — front-load the insight; control notation; structured abstract509. `msom-submission` — ScholarOne preflight, anonymization, department routing5110. `msom-review-process` — set expectations for double-anonymous, department-routed review5211. `msom-rebuttal` — after an R&R, plan revisions then draft the response letter5354> `msom-tables-figures` and `msom-writing-style` are **late-stage polish**. Do not invoke them while the model or identification is still unsettled.5556## Difference vs. other OR/OM and management stacks5758- **M&SOM**: an operations decision is central; analytical *or* empirical; INFORMS double-anonymous; 32-page typeset cap; ScholarOne at mc.manuscriptcentral.com/msom; author-routed departments.59- **Management Science (INFORMS)**: broader OR/management scope and an OM department, but not OM-exclusive; its author-facing fee policy differs from M&SOM's submission-guideline page.60- **Operations Research**: methodological OR contributions where the *method* can be the contribution; M&SOM insists the *operations problem* is.61- **POM (Production & Operations Management)**: overlapping OM scope, different society (POMS) and house style.6263If an operations decision is not the centerpiece, M&SOM is the wrong venue.6465## Router output snapshot6667```68【Stage detected】topic / theory / positioning / methods / analysis / framing / exhibits / writing / submission / review / rebuttal69【Operations lever central?】yes / reshape (→ topic-selection)70【Lane】analytical / empirical71【Next skill】msom-...72【Live-check items】page cap, departments, masthead → author guidelines73```7475## Anti-patterns7677- **Do not** skip `msom-topic-selection` — a paper whose OM core is only a backdrop is desk-screened.78- **Do not** let `msom-tables-figures` beautify exhibits before the model/identification is settled.79- **Do not** let `msom-rebuttal` draft a response before you have actually revised the manuscript.80- **Do not** treat `msom-writing-style` as a substitute for a real operations contribution.
brycewang-stanford