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PDW: Philosophical Methods for Management Research

As a reminder, you are warmly invited to this PDW!  It will take place on Friday, Aug 4, 2016 from 8:00AM to 10:00AM, in M202 room of the Marriott Marquis Atlanta Hotel.  There is no need to pre-register.

This new Professional Development Workshop explores the potential of philosophical methods to advance management research for the benefit of society and humanity. It is designed to stimulate the imagination of participants, by inviting them to brainstorm various ways that philosophical methods (e.g. thought experiments, critical theory, discourse ethics, constructivism, hermeneutic circles) can be applied to management and organization research issues, and to challenge them to evaluate their analytical potential. The organizers invite colleagues to examine:

·         What lies at the interface between philosophical methods and traditional management research?

·         What are some of the more productive modalities for transitioning from observation and practice to philosophical reflection, and back?

·         How can organizations leverage philosophical tools to understand practical challenges?

The workshop will begin with a few brief presentations outlining possibilities worth exploring, such as: the multiple roles of philosophical methods in management research; the justification of universal ethical norms in business; the role of deliberation in business, and the application of hermeneutic circles. Based on feedback from the participants, a selection of different topics will be discussed in small groups. The results reported back from each discussion will be recorded and circulated to all participants after the workshop.

We seek to develop a comprehensive perspective on how to alert management scholars to the value of philosophical methods, and to increase the relevance of these methods for their research. A research network focusing on the application of philosophical methods in management and organisation studies may be created as a result. 

We look forward to seeing you there,

The Organizers:

Cristina Neesham (Swinburne University)

Thomas J. Donaldson (University of Pennsylvania)

Andreas Scherer (University of Zurich)

Steven Segal (Macquarie University)