Organisation and Management in Professional Service Firms: Establishing Research Agendas for the Post-Brexit/Covid-19 World
Call for Papers
Paper Development Workshop Sponsored by Society for Advancement of Management Studies (SAMS) and University of Liverpool Management School (ULMS)
9-10 September 2021
University of Liverpool, UK
Submission deadline: Friday 19 March 2021
The professional service firm (PSF) sector plays an increasingly important role in the contemporary global economy and society. It represents one of the most rapidly growing, profitable and significant sectors in the global economy, and contributes to the development of human capital, innovative business practices and professional standards. In the global market, PSFs not only engage in export and internationalisation themselves, but also play a vital role in facilitating global trade and investment. In the broader social arenas, PSFs attract a large proportion of the best-qualified graduates from all over the world, and are closely linked to patterns of elite reproduction, social stratification and social mobility through their hiring, promotion and reward practices. As such, studying the management and organisation of PSFs can offer insights into the contemporary challenges facing societies, organisations and individuals within the knowledge economy.
Two 'black swan' events – Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic – have created an unprecedented scenario that presents both challenges and opportunities for PSFs. On the one hand, new regulatory restrictions over trade and travel following Brexit and Covid-19 pose significant challenges for PSFs' capability to attract international talent, maintain stable client bases, and organise sustainable operations within and across countries. On the other hand, social changes also require PSFs to rethink their business model and explore new, creative markets and approaches to adapt to the new environment. In the aftermaths of Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic, PSFs, with their strong and distinctive knowledge base, can play a leading role in experimenting and implementing novel approaches in management and organisation, supporting key stakeholders in establishing new ways of doing things in the challenging environment, and informing policymakers in various societal and economic issues. More controversially, however, these highly critical, volatile and unpredictable environments may also expose PSFs to a range of professional misconduct.
Workshop objectives and Format
We will have a 'live' face-to-face workshop. The workshop will be structured to provide extensive feedback and hands-on mentoring to participants (early career scholars and doctoral students) whose research papers have been accepted by the workshop organizers. Throughout the workshop, leading scholars and editors will serve as mentors for participants, help them to develop their research ideas, suggest publication techniques, and generally provide a supportive scholarly environment. It is not simply a short feedback session but will also provide people with plenty of time for discussion, reflection and progression so that the participants could improve their work significantly at the end of the event.
The programme will have three components. First, participants will be allocated into small groups, each group consisting of three participants and one mentor. Each mentor will lead the small-group discussions, provide detailed feedback and hands-on mentoring. Second, there will be two plenary sessions, one on the research agenda of the field and one 'Meet the Editors' panel. Third, there will be a range of structured and unstructured activities (e.g. 'speed-dating', campus/Liverpool tour, workshop dinner night) to offer chances for networking among participants and mentors.
Workshop Mentors
Mehdi Boussebaa: University of Glasgow (Associate Editor of Critical Perspectives on International Business)
David Brock: Ben-Gurion University of the Negev/Israel (Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Professions and Organisation)
James Faulconbridge: Lancaster University (editorial board member of Journal of Professions and Organization)
Na Fu: Trinity College Dublin/Ireland (editorial board member of Human Resource Management Journal, International Journal of Human Resource Management, Employee Relations, and Journal of Professions and Organisation)
Daniel Muzio: The University of York (General Editor of Journal of Management Studies, Founding Editor of Journal of Professions and Organisation)
Roy Suddaby: University of Victoria/Canada and Liverpool (former Editor of the Academy of Management Review)
Topics of Interest
We welcome papers related to the impact of Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic on the management and organisation of PSFs to enrich our understanding, not only about their adverse effects, but also about the many opportunities. For example, we envisage research leading to the development of novel approaches contributing towards improving individual and organisational performance and achieving social prosperity. We are also interested in how PSFs influence the post-Brexit/Covid-19 world in positive and negative ways, and how they are linked to societal challenges in the broader political economy.
We are interested in, and welcome, a wide range of professions and knowledge-intensive organisations including law, accounting, architecture, healthcare, management consulting, financial service, advertising, information and communication, R&D, the clergy and education. Themes include but are not limited to: strategy, managerial systems, labour relations, governance structure, organisational models and structures, professional identity, professional projects, micro-organisational issues of PSFs, professionals' career paths and mobility, diversity and inclusion in professions, internationalisation and global PSFs, new/emerging professions and organisations, hybridity and logics of PSFs, professional misconduct and wrongdoing.
Submission Instructions
We encourage authors to submit their 'idea' papers (maximum of 2,000 words). Your submitted paper should describe the project and research question, theoretical framing and contribution, research design, preliminary findings and reference. Each applicant can submit only one paper. Your cover page should include all the author names, emails and affiliations. Authors whose 'idea' papers are accepted and who have confirmed participation will need to submit full papers prior to the workshop. We can accommodate up to about 18 papers for this event. Please submit your papers to Dr. Jingqi Zhu (Jingqi.Zhu@liverpool.ac.uk). The deadline for submission is Friday 19 March 2021.
You will be notified about the acceptance of your submission by 19 April, and will need to confirm participation by 3 May 2021.
Confirmed participants are expected to submit full papers for discussion at the workshop by 10 July 2021.
Each participant is eligible for up to £150 travel bursaries (one funded participant per paper).
Organisation Committee
Dr Jingqi Zhu, University of Liverpool
Professor David Brock, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel
Dr Na Fu, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
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David M. Brock
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Editor-in-chief | Journal of Professions and Organization
Professor | Guilford Glazer Faculty of Management | Ben-Gurion University | Tel: +972-525-491-351
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