Author Guidelines
ISBE 2025
To ensure impartiality, please note that all abstracts and papers must be anonymised. Do not include contact details on your submission(s) but these should be included in the relevant fields as part of the submission process.
ABSTRACT STAGE
Submitting an abstract for review for the ISBE 2025 Conference
Abstracts can be submitted via the ISBE website during the submission window – Monday 24th March to Friday 23rd May (11.59 pm UK).
All abstracts are submitted to one of our conference tracks. You can find a list and full details of the tracks on the ISBE website here.
Please ensure abstracts comply with this year’s Author Guidelines. The deadline for all abstracts to be uploaded for ISBE 2025 is May the 23rd.
To upload your abstract, please login here click ‘new submission’.
Structure of your abstract
For ISBE 2025, we require an abstract of 750 words minimum (excluding any references). The maximum word count is 2,000 words.
Ensure that your abstract includes the following information:
- Topic
- Applicability to the conference theme – ‘Collaborating across Entrepreneurial Ecosystems: opportunities for inclusion, innovation, sustainability, resilience and growth’’.
- Aim
- Methodology
- Contribution
- Implications for policy, if applicable
- Implications for practice, if applicable
A full reference list is not expected at abstract stage.
ISBE accepts six different types of submission:
- Full Papers
- Working Papers
- Practitioner Papers
- Case Studies
- PowerPoint Presentation
- Poster Sessions
Further information about our expectations for each submission type can be found in Appendix I of this document.
Decisions and feedback on all submitted abstracts will be sent to Corresponding Authors on Friday, June 27th.
Please note that only full research papers are eligible to be nominated for Best Paper Awards.
If you require any further information, or need any assistance, please don’t hesitate to contact us at
Early Career Researchers
If you are an Early Career Researcher submitting an abstract to the ISBE conference for the first time and looking for some informal support/guidance, please contact in the first instance.
Anyone who defines themselves as an ECR is invited to indicate this when submitting their abstract so that reviewers are aware and can provide comprehensive feedback where appropriate.
Accessing your reviews
To see decisions and reviews for your submissions, login here and click on the three horizontal lines icon next to your submission.
PAPER STAGE
Submitting a paper for review for the ISBE 2025 Conference
If your abstract is accepted for the conference, you will be invited to submit your paper for expert review. Authors who have submitted abstracts for PowerPoint Presentations or Poster Sessions that have been accepted are not required to submit anything further.
Please ensure papers comply with this year’s Author Guidelines. The deadline for all papers to be uploaded for ISBE 2025 is September 5th 2025.
To upload your paper, please login here and click the edit (pencil) button next to your accepted abstract and scroll to the bottom of the page.
A note on prior publication
All abstracts accepted for, and later presented at, the ISBE Conference will be published on the ISBE online programme; this does not jeopardise subsequent publication of related developed papers.
Papers submitted to the ISBE conference will be made available to ISBE members following the conference via a members-only environment on the ISBE website. All ISBE papers are attributed with an ISBN. Again, this does not jeopardise future publication potential.
Formatting and Layout
Papers should be formatted as follows:
- Paper Size: A4 (21cm x 29.7cm) with a 2.54cm margin all around
- Font: Times New Roman, size 12, headings can be in bold but no underlining please
- Paragraph Format: Papers should be fully justified with single line spacing.
- Title Page: To contain the following information:
- Paper Title: No more than 85 characters including spaces – centred, 12pt Times New Roman, bold and in title case i.e. capitalise the first letter of each main words. All papers should have a clear, concise title; the contribution of a paper should be evident from the title. The title should be no longer than 10 words. Titles which do not match the paper can cause frustration for reviewers.
- Keywords: Up to six keywords for indexing, cataloguing and classification – centred 10-pt
- Do not include any author information.
- Abstract: Using the headings given in your original abstract – justified, 12pt Times New Roman
- Main Text: Maximum 7,000 words, excluding tables, figures & references – single-spaced, fully justified, 12pt Times New Roman
- Pages: Title and abstract page, full text, tables, figures, references etc., all to fit on 20 pages maximum
- Subtitles: Left aligned in Times New Roman bold
- Page Numbering: Right aligned in the footer, in Times New Roman 9pt font.
- Citation and Referencing: Harvard Style (Jones, 2003), in 12pt Times New Roman font. References should be listed in full at the end of the paper in alphabetical order.
Reviewing Process
As you can appreciate, only limited feedback is given on abstracts; more detailed commentary will be available to authors once full papers have been submitted and reviewed by the Track Teams. Where the Track Chair feels a paper needs to be updated or amended in some way, this will be detailed in the review; you will then have an opportunity to address the issues raised and to revise the paper in time for the Conference in November. The aim throughout the process is to work with the authors in a supportive and constructive way to improve the quality of submissions and facilitate their development toward submission for publication. Any suggestions to improve a paper are made in this context.
Best Paper Prize Decision-making Process
ISBE seeks to showcase and support high quality research that can inform policy and/or practice. A blind review process is undertaken and track chairs, based on feedback from track reviewer panels where applicable, select Best in Track awards. In cases, where there may be a perceived conflict of interest, such decisions are taken by the VP Research or the (Deputy) President.
The VP Research then reviews all Best in Track nominees and compiles a shortlist of the strongest submissions in terms of rigour, significance and originality. The VP Research may choose to consult with the President and Deputy President (where applicable) in finalising this shortlist. The shortlisted submissions are then reviewed and adjudicated upon by an independent panel comprising of ISBE Fellows (and potentially other suitably qualified researchers from the Board). The independent panel decide the Best Overall Conference paper awards. The President reserves the right to determine the ISBE President’s Award for the Best ECR Paper Prize, however.
Board members and members of the Executive are eligible to win Best in Track awards however, they are not eligible to be shortlisted or win Best Overall paper awards.
IMPORTANT NOTICE regarding ‘Final version’ papers
If authors would like to submit a ‘final version’ paper for inclusion in the conference app, they can send it to after the conference. Note that any subsequent versions of papers submitted before the conference and following reviewer feedback of initial papers will not receive a second review.
All papers accepted for presentation at the conference and submitted by the required deadline will be included in the Conference App, however, this is subject to at least one author having registered for the conference and having paid the appropriate fees by October the 17th 2025. If you have not registered by this date, your paper will be withdrawn. Please note that to facilitate track scheduling, no more than THREE papers by any one lead author, or presented by any co-author, can be accepted.
2025 timetable
| Date | Action |
| 24th March 2025 | The abstract submission window opens |
| 5th May 2025 | Conference Registration opens |
| 23rd May 2025 | Deadline for submitting all abstracts |
| 27th June 2025 | Reviewer feedback to authors |
| 30th June 2025 | The paper submission window opens |
| 5th September 2025 | Deadline for submitting papers |
| 4th August 2025 | Early bird booking discount for registration ends |
| 10th October 2025 | Deadline for all reviews to be returned to authors |
| 17th October 2025 | Deadline for all presenting authors to have registered |
| 5th & 6th November 2025 | ISBE 2025 Conference, Technology and Innovation Centre, Glasgow |
2025 turnaround times
| Action | Turnaround | Responsible |
| Assign abstracts and papers to reviewers | Within ONE WEEK of submission by author(s) | Track Chair |
| Reviews returned for TC approval | Within ONE MONTH of receipt of abstract/paper | Reviewer |
| Reviews approved by TC within online system | Within TWO WEEKS of receipt of reviewer feedback | Track Chair |
Presentations at Conference
The oral presentation at the Conference should be delivered in English and focus on the following key features of the paper:
- Objectives / Key research question(s) of the paper
- Key model or framework used.
- Nature and source of data used, including any key limitations to the methodology/methods.
- Presentation of key findings – avoiding detailed discussion of statistical data
- Conclusions and implications for research, policy, or practice
- Recommendations for future research and development
It is not necessary to include all the above features, only select those appropriate to your paper and the audience. Remember that the audience will typically comprise a mix of researchers, policy makers, enterprise support representatives and practitioners. The purpose of the presentation is to stimulate discussion and debate.
The preferred presentation format is Microsoft PowerPoint, with a maximum of 6 slides and 15 minutes presentation time. Following feedback from delegates at previous conferences, Session Chairs will enforce strict timings.
Please bring your PowerPoint presentation to the conference on a USB memory stick and upload it onto the PC/laptop in the relevant presentation room before your presentation session is due to begin. You might like to bring a few photocopies of either your PowerPoint visuals or your full paper for handing out to interested delegates.
Queries/Problems
All queries or problems should be directed to our conference support team ().
Appendix I: Expectations for Papers
Full Papers – these are papers which have been through a refereeing process by our expert reviewers and have been accepted – all refereed papers should be of publishable quality, and potentially suitable for international journal publication. Full papers can be theoretical, conceptual, methodological and have an empirical dimension. All full papers are eligible for best paper awards.
In a full paper, the literature review is an important element, and it is necessary to clearly articulate how the paper contributes to extant literature. Thus results, implications and value will be linked to the literature presented. The methodological orientation of full and working papers must be clearly articulated.
It is not necessary (unless the paper is a methodological one) to provide a long explanation of the methodology. One should merely position the methodology within clear bounds. Only where justification is required will a lengthy methodology section be required.
All full papers submitted will be expected to contribute to their particular field.
As ISBE is keen to highlight policy and practical implications, where appropriate these are expected.
Working Papers – these are ongoing research pieces and give an insight into current research thinking and activities. They are an opportunity for authors to present their work and receive some constructive feedback prior to developing the research for publication. This classification can include PhD studies, pilot studies and initial stages of projects.
Working papers will contain many of the elements of a full paper but the review will be less rigorous. Such papers are intended for research in progress and will allow the author freedom to present research which may not yet be ready for publication as a full article.
The methodological orientation of full and working papers must be clearly articulated.
Less attention could be given to methodological considerations unless the methodology is unusual. A working paper can allow researchers to present unusual (avant-garde) work that they wish to present to peers, stimulate debate and receive feedback.
A working paper should be short and concise, and a good comparison is that of a research note style. It should identify key issues for discussion and debate.
Practitioner papers enable practitioners to highlight excellent and distinctive practices in enterprise creation and development. The papers must present evidence of the practices’ effectiveness and clearly highlight their practical or policy implications.
Practitioner papers will vary depending on the author’s style, purpose, and academic ability. For example, they may or may not contain a literature review or methodology. Such papers will be judged by their contribution and logic. A good comparison would be that they may read like a short book chapter.
Abstract headings must be embedded in the article’s structure. Collaborations between practitioners and academics are especially encouraged. In practitioner papers, an explanation of methodology is desirable but not essential as long as authors clearly state what they did, why they did it, and why it is important.
A well-written practitioner paper should be short (3,000-5,000 words) and to the point. The conclusion should have a moral which clearly sums up the logic and arguments in the paper. Book chapter or essay styles are welcome. Such papers should demonstrate a clear contribution to relevant policy development; good practice; or a critical evaluation of current practice.
Case Studies – two types are welcomed. Case Studies may be submitted as examples of practice or as full teaching cases with teaching notes.
For the former, we welcome intensive studies of a single group, incident, or community; they should involve an in-depth, possibly even longitudinal examination of a single instance or event. We expect that from the case study, a sharpened understanding of why the instance happened as it did, and what aspect might become important to look at more extensively in future research should be evident. For the latter, Harvard style, Case Centre or other appropriate format may be used. The inclusion of an abstract is not mandatory in respect of teaching cases.
Both types of case studies must be written with abstract headings embedded in the structure. Obviously, a teaching case study will differ from an empirical case study but in both the objectives, approaches, results, implications, and value must be clearly articulated.
Teaching case studies is a methodology in its own right, so there is no need to dwell on methodology unless the case is built around an unusual data capture methodology.
Case studies should be short and concise, and articles that deviate too much from their purpose are discouraged.
Teaching cases should be submitted along with a short accompanying summary. However, contributors must structure their presentation around the abstract themes. Pedagogical contributions from the case should be explored.
PowerPoint Presentation—For work in its very earliest stage, there are a limited number of spaces for PowerPoint presentations at the conference without an accompanying written paper. A full review is not given for this type of submission, and only the abstract will be included in the proceedings on the conference app.
A PowerPoint presentation must have an abstract and outline details of the presentation.
PowerPoint presentations should be accompanied by a short written overview that elaborates upon the project’s aims and objectives, current stage of development, and key issues the author intends to raise for discussion.
Presentations will still be limited to 6-8 slides. The methodological orientation must be clearly articulated.
Poster Session – Posters should be a one-page poster that can be attached to the wall of a conference breakout room. The poster will ideally be an A3-sized document and should provide an overview of the aims and objectives of the study, the key literature, the proposed methodology, key findings, potential implications (where relevant) and the likely contribution to knowledge.
Depending on the track schedule, it may be possible to talk through your poster but please note this is not guaranteed.
Authors are responsible for the transit of their poster to and from the conference venue.