For organizers who breathe a sigh of relief after researchers have inputted their abstracts into the submission software, the next hurdle in the pipeline is managing revisions and resubmissions. While it may be cumbersome for organizers to sift through submissions and process any revisions, with the advent of automated abstract management systems, such as that of Dryfta, organizes a flexible and automated workflow that greatly simplifies such miscellaneous submission tasks. When handled properly, organizers can turn the revision tall order into an incredible opportunity for attendees to correct any mistakes and upscale their drafts, a process previously onerous and backbreaking.
Apart from using software that will simplify your organization tasks substantially, here are a few other measures you can take to ensure that you handle revisions and resubmissions without a hitch.
Tell your attendees what is acceptable and what is not
Offer clear and transparent guidelines for authors. In order to do so, ensure that your organization and managing personnel fully understand what the abstract management software entails and how it is handled. Event managers must ascertain that all attendees understand submission protocols to avoid delays and confusion.
Reiterate deadlines, again and again
Even the most qualified of researchers aren’t left unscathed by the human propensity for misconstruing and forgetting. It is important for organizers to communicate any and all submissions and revision deadlines clearly. It also helps to set up automated notifications to keep authors informed. Modern abstract management systems such as Dryfta excel at sending timely reminders, thereby maintaining momentum throughout the review cycle.
Revision is not a one-size-fits-all task
Different academic conferences warrant starkly different needs when it comes to revision and resubmission. It is efficient to adopt a software that supports both simple and multi-level, multi-track workflows. For small to medium events, a fairly straightforward workflow where authors submit an initial abstract, receive reviewer feedback, and then either confirm final acceptance or submit one round of revisions works well. For larger events with multiple submission tracks, a software like Dryfta is built to sophisticated workflows that involve several rounds of review for authors and reviewers.
Organizers need to put on a balancing act
Literary editors understand and acknowledge the fact that some manuscripts benefit immensely from multiple drafts. For sure, the best films and books are seldom written overnight. Similarly, in abstract management as well, it is important to streamline a revision policy that allows room for this reality. Set limits like a wise publisher, allow for just enough revisions to help attendees knock it out of the park but not so many that the process loses momentum and falls flat. Dryfta allows organizers to program these limits into the workflow, after which the abstract status is moved to either final acceptance or rejection. Automated notifications keep authors informed of the decisions at every stage.
Pay attention to the user interface
Even the most well-equipped abstract management system will fail from a platform interface that is shabby, difficult to navigate. Rather, the user interface must read like a well-written novel: intuitive, engaging and almost impossible to put down. Organizers benefit from adopting software that contains easy to use dashboards where authors can individually track their submissions. Dryfta provides a centralized author dashboard where submitters can track the status of their abstracts, upload revisions, update profiles and handle multiple submissions simultaneously.
The final verdict: Dryfta
Dryfta’s abstract management system speaks for itself. For over a decade, the manual team at Drfyta has worked tirelessly to offer the kind of automated and state-of-the-art abstract management platform that the software is. We take the long road so you don’t have it. Dryfta today offers organizers all the tools that they need to help abstract drafts grow into final presentations with minimal effort.
Clients who have organized academic events with us before, have gained agility in managing the simple and the sophisticated. Our happy customers, many of whom have chosen to work with us repeatedly, report better workflows, a marked decrease in administrative errors and an overall increase in efficiency that is hard to ignore.