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.

 

Today, we are living in a turbulent time. Events such as the Brexit, the Covidi-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war have created an unprecedented scenario that presents both challenges and opportunities for PSFs. On the one hand, emerging economic and political complexity 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. With their strong and distinctive knowledge base, PSFs 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 proposals 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 (Co-Editor-in-Chief at Critical Perspectives on International Business)

David Brock: Ben-Gurion University of the Negevl (Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Professions and Organisation)

James Faulconbridge: Lancaster University (Editorial board member of Journal of Professions and Organization)

Claudia Gabbioneta: University of York (Senior Editor of Organisation Studies, Consulting Editor of the Journal of Professions and Organisation)

Na Fu: Trinity College Dublin (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)

Crawford Spence: King's College London (Editorial board member of Accounting, Organisations and Society, The Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, and Contemporary Accounting Research)

 

Topics of Interest

 

We invite 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 a one-page title and abstract to Dr Jingqi Zhu (jingqi.zhu@liverpool.ac.uk) by September 1^st 2022. Notifications of acceptance to the workshop will be sent by September 9^th 2022. There is a limited budget to assist with flights and hotel accommodation for those attending and in need of additional funding.

 

Convenors

 

Jingqi Zhu, University of Liverpool

David Brock, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

Na Fu, Trinity College Dublin

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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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