Real Impact is far more than citations. It’s about making a difference. It’s communities joining together to find ways to make changes. Impact is the provable effects of research in the real world.
We appreciate it’s not always easy for academics and researchers to see the impact of their work. That’s why we’ve launched ‘Real Impact’ to aid the cause and call on research communities to come together and break down barriers.
So, join our conversations, have your say in our blogs, read our toolkits, and download our resources to help bring your research to life. Together we can make a difference.
Real Impact Manifesto
We are committed to supporting meaningful, real world impact.
Emerald will now lead the publishing charge towards meaningful impact.
For over 50 years, research impact has sat at the heart of Emerald’s business. Emerald’s core ethos is making a difference through research, and we are proud of our heritage supporting the communication of research for policy and practice.
With a sector increasingly full of pressure and expectation, we recognise the challenges faced by colleagues in connecting research to impact. We also recognise that traditional markers of influence, such as citations, are not sufficient to tell the story of impact. Emerald feels strongly that we have a key role and responsibility in not only supporting the impact agenda, but also in challenging outdated approaches to measuring effects.
Emerald will now lead the publishing charge towards meaningful impact. We will continue to work with our global author network to publish research which makes a difference and invest further in the research community to support real world change.
Emerald commits to:
- Support the community of practice to overcome barriers to impact, working in partnership with key agencies to strengthen connections between research and society.
- Challenge simplistic and outdated approaches to impact, shifting beyond metrics and celebrating impact of all shapes and sizes.
- Drive impact literacy in the research sector – including within Emerald itself – championing knowledge and skills development and developing new tools and innovative approaches.
Join us in making a difference.
Impact Case Studies
- Read our collection of stories, outlining impact achieved in the real world

We are committed to supporting meaningful, real world impact.
We believe our role is to help researchers tell their story in a more meaningful way which is why we have created the Real Impact Showcase Book. Read the inspirational stories of our Real Impact Award 2018 winners and highly commended entries and the commitment they have to creating real change in the real world. …
Read ArticleRecent News & Blogs
- Uncover news and views from across the globe and add your voice to the impact debate
A new chapter for research publishing has started and, for everyone at Emerald, open research forms a vital step towards our vision of real impact. Like with all research publishing landmarks in the past 50 years – whether it be the arrival of the internet, digital technology or social media – change must be embraced. …
Read ArticleWikiRate – Designed for Impact
Dr Richard MillsHumanity faces serious issues of sustainability, and the behaviour of companies is woven deeply into many of the problems (and possible solutions). The issues concern everyone, but the relevant data is scarce and access to the most comprehensive sources is heavily restricted. Furthermore, the determination of what constitutes relevant data on company impacts is itself …
Read ArticleIt’s time to wind down and look back on the past year. It’s been a busy one for us with a new CEO, new products, new partnerships, winning awards and much more, and we want to say thank you for all your support. Next year promises to be equally if not more exciting. We’re also …
Read ArticleResources
- Explore and download our range of resources to support your pursuit of impact

Following the recent impact factor results, we asked Dr Julie Bayley, Director of Research Impact Development at the University of Lincoln: “Do journal rankings still matter when it comes to assessing real impact?” We’ve split the interview into 8 bite-sized videos. Click on the links below to hear Julie’s thoughts.
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