Q: In the status 'Awaiting CE Decision,' what does 'CE' mean?

You seem to be following the status of your manuscript quite avidly – you are no doubt eager to know the outcome. This is a good thing. :-)

Now, you’ve actually touched upon a few things in your query. So, let’s take them one by one.

• ‘CE’ means ‘Chief Editor.’ In most journals, this role is known as ‘Editor-in-Chief’ (EiC), but here, it seems to be ‘CE.’ The EiC/EC makes the final decision on the manuscript. So, your manuscript is awaiting a final decision.
• One month from submission to final decision does seem quick, especially if it seems to have gone through a peer review, as indicated by the ‘Waiting for Reviewers’ Scores’ status. So, this might be a rapid-publication journal. Alternatively, the peer review may have been done internally, rather than by an external individual. This does happen sometimes, when the journal has someone in-house with the relevant subject area expertise. So, they have probably reviewed it and communicated their decision to the CE.
• The decision could be a revise-and-resubmit, a desk rejection, or a suggestion to submit to a related journal (in case this is a big publisher). You will know the final decision in a few days’ time. In case you don’t, you can send them a mail requesting an update.

In case it’s a desk rejection, as you know, you can make any changes as necessary and submit to another journal. In which case, to avoid or minimize the chances of a desk rejection, you may send the other journal(s) a presubmission inquiry.

In case it’s a revise-and-resubmit decision, you may prepare yourself by going through these resources:

• Do's and don'ts for responding to peer reviewers' comments
• What should I do if I cannot understand a peer reviewer's comment?
• How to handle peer review comments [Course]

All the best for whatever’s next!