With apologies for cross-posting.
The Evolution and Future of Management
An International Conference Sponsored by the Journal of Management Studies and the Society for the Advancement of Management Studies
LOCATION: St. Anne's College, Oxford
DATE: 26 – 28th March 2012
In celebration of the upcoming 50th anniversary of the Journal of Management Studies (JMS), this conference examines both the relevance of management today and its continuing evolving role in organizations and society.
Over its first half century JMS has been a home for debate, critical commentary, and some of the most forward looking scholarship within management studies. The journal has always been at the forefront of the historical development of management theory and management studies: from classic debates on the nature and design of business schools (Simon 1967); the study of management and managerial work from yesterday (Mintzberg 1979) and today (Tengblad 2006); and to the critical engagement with management (Grey 1999) and its effect on various aspects of business and society.
Leading and managing firms is critically different today than it was at the inception of JMS. Managers find themselves in a world where the clear division between business and government has been disrupted and stakeholders demand accountability beyond traditional firm responsibilities (Scherer & Palazzo 2010). With increased scrutiny and more active stakeholders in a dynamic global marketplace, it comes as no surprise that one's ability to bear managerial uncertainty is a critical component to performance (Heavey et al. 2009). In this uncertain world whether managers take action (or not) depends upon not just upon their assessment of the external environment but each individual's regulatory focus and whether or not they see potential opportunities (McMullen et al. 2009) that they can effectively exploit (Haynie et al. 2009). Historically, firms have developed mechanisms such as organizational control, vertical integration, and various process innovations to help them in their strategic responses (Bucheli et al. 2010) but what does the future of management require?
For scholars it seems clear that various environmental factors have broadened the reach, scope, diffusion and transparency of both management scholarship and practice. Today the evolution of management studies finds itself at an interesting crossroad where a paradox appears to have developed. On the one hand we can see the decline of management (Davis 2009) where control in organizations has move away from managers, where managers have become less respected, and where some question the legitimacy of managers and the power they have in society (Grey 1999). At the same time, the spread of western management techniques and education have infused management practice to a broader range of influence, both geographically and socially. Management practice has spread across the globe, beyond the classic corporation to the public sector and non-profits, and has even invaded our daily discourse with "management-speak."
The research presented at this conference will draw out this paradox and other important questions that will set the foundation for the future of management studies. Our goal is to address the future and relevance of management by examining important questions from a multitude of managerial perspectives, including organizational theory, organizational behavior, strategy, entrepreneurship, human resources, international business and more. Possible themes and research questions might include:
· How has management theory, as a body of knowledge, developed and how has it evolved in interaction with other cognate areas such as strategy, HRM, and organisation theory?
· How has globalization and technology changed the practice of management? How will these two broad factors continue to affect management?
· How does one manage in a world that is increasingly dependent on innovation, entrepreneurship, and a shrinking product and firm life-cycle?
· What affect do dispersed global work teams have on management?
· How has the idea of management, when seen through a discursive lens, affected areas of society beyond the confines of firms; and what has this influence led to?
· What are the contributions and prospects of various critical and normative perspectives on management, in the light of changing practices, societal developments and current academic debates?
· How must management training and education adapt with the evolution of management practice?
All manuscripts that center upon issues relating to the evolution and future of management and/or the relevance of management in an increasingly complex world will be considered for the conference. The goal is to encourage creative and imaginative contributions that engage with the future of management as scholarship and practice. Papers tracks will be commissioned that explore enduring themes, how management has changed, and how it is likely to change in the future. We will invite empirical and conceptual studies that evaluate and build on extant research and seek to advance the field. We encourage participants to reflect on the theoretical frameworks for management that will dominate research in the next decade.
We hope to solicit papers that focus directly on the theme of the future of management. To encourage investigation of the foundations and future aspirations of management, we will run a small, focused conference.
Keynote Speaker
Michael Hitt is currently a Distinguished Professor of Management at Texas A&M University and holds the Joe B. Foster Chair in Business Leadership. Michael received his Ph.D. from the University of Colorado. Dr. Hitt has co-authored or co-edited 26 books and authored or co-authored many journal articles. A recent article listed him as one of the ten most cited authors in management over a 25-year period. The Times Higher Education in 2010 listed him among the top scholars in economics, finance and management and that he is first among management scholars (tied) with the highest number of highly cited articles.
He has served on the editorial review boards of multiple journals and is a former editor of the Academy of Management Journal. He is the current co-editor of the Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal. He received the 1996 Award for Outstanding Academic Contributions to Competitiveness and the 1999 Award for Outstanding Intellectual Contributions to Competitiveness Research from the American Society for Competitiveness. He is a Fellow in the Academy of Management and in the Strategic Management Society, a Research Fellow in the National Entrepreneurship Consortium and received an honorary doctorate from the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. He is a former President of the Academy of Management, a Past President of the Strategic Management Society and a member of the Academy of Management Journals' Hall of Fame. He received awards for the best article published in the Academy of Management Executive (1999), Academy of Management Journal (2000), and the Journal of Management (2006). In 2001, he received the Irwin Outstanding Educator Award and the Distinguished Service Award from the Academy of Management. In 2004, Dr. Hitt was awarded the Best Paper Prize by the Strategic Management Society. In 2006, he received the Falcone Distinguished Entrepreneurship Scholar Award from Syracuse University.
Hugh Willmott is Research Professor in Organization Studies, Cardiff Business School and is a visiting professor at the University of Technology, Sydney. He previously held professorial appointments at the UMIST (now Manchester Business School) and Cambridge and visiting appointments at the Universities of Lund, Uppsala and Innsbruck. He co-founded the International Labor Process Conference and the International Critical Management Studies Conference. He currently serves on the board of Academy of Management Review, Organization Studies, Journal of Management Studies and is an Associate Editor of Organization and he has previously served on the board of Administrative Science Quarterly and Accounting, Organizations and Society amongst other journals. He has contributed to leading management and social science journals and has published over 20 books. He was a member of the Business and Management Panel for the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise and has been appointed to the REF Panel. Full details can be found on his homepage: https://sites.google.com/site/hughwillmottshomepage
Call for Participation
There is no conference fee and we encourage a variety of modes of participation from the presentation of academic papers to the contribution to debate through taking on the role of discussant.
In addition to leading academics in the field of management, the conference will also bring together promising new researchers, with up to ten travel and accommodation bursaries offered to doctoral students on the basis of their proposals.
Call for Papers
Both theoretical and empirical abstracts are invited and the organizers encourage contributions from different disciplinary perspectives, including sociology, psychology, political science, economics, anthropology and cultural studies, and others.
In general, the goal is to encourage creative and imaginative contributions that resonate with the future of managerial work and scholarship. We invite empirical and conceptual studies that evaluate and build on extant research, as well as contributions that seek to advance existing research. We encourage participants to reflect on the theoretical frameworks for management practice, scholarship, and education that will dominate research for the next decades.
An abstract of up to 1,000 words should be submitted by 16.00 GMT 30th September, 2011 by email to Jo Brudenell at: j.m.brudenell@durham.ac.uk
Acceptance of abstracts will be notified by the 30th November, 2011
Full papers to be submitted for circulation along with a short biography and photograph by 24th February, 2012.
Authors of papers presented at the conference will be invited to submit their papers for possible publication in the Journal of Management Studies.
Discussants
If you wish to attend the conference as a discussant, please register your interest with Jo Brudenell: j.m.brudenell@durham.ac.uk
Conference Organizing Committee
JMS Editors Andrew Corbett, Joep Cornelissen, and André Spicer, along with the editorial management team of Jo Brudenell and Margaret Turner.
Jo Brudenell
Editorial Manager
Journal of Management Studies
Durham Business School
Mill Hill Lane
Durham
DH1 3LB
Phone +44 (0)191 334 5395
Fax +44 (0)191 334 5201