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We're going to Disneyworld!  Plan a long trip, because you shouldn't have any time to visit the parks from August 9^th through 13^th. Instead, you'll be ears deep in the magical kingdom of SIM content that awaits you. And make sure you book your room at the Walt Disney World Coronado Springs Resort. That's where most all the SIM magic happens.

This year is no Mickey Mouse operation. We've got a big show in store. You were kind enough to submit 351 papers and 31 symposia for review, and 470 of you were kind enough to review those papers, to include some 55 who took on the role of associate editor as well. The anecdotal feedback I received, apart from two curt replies telling me not-so-nice things about those who dare reject their misunderstood work, was that the reviews were insightful and constructive. So sincere thanks to the many reviewers – I know it's a hard task on a tight schedule, but it's evident that year after year, the reviewing is just getting more and more developmental. And those associate editors – well they make all the difference in putting together the strongest program possible – many thanks!

Given the space that AOM allots our division, I was able to select 172 papers and 14 symposia for inclusion on the program. These 172 papers are of two flavors: divisional papers (156) and discussion papers (16). And they are each presented in sessions of four, so we have 39 divisional paper sessions (each led by a session chair) and 4 discussion paper sessions (each led by a facilitator). The divisional paper sessions will be held in 90-minute blocks from 8am to 4:30pm on Monday, August 12^th and Tuesday, August 13^th, in the Coronado Springs Resort. The discussion paper sessions will be held in 90-minute blocks from 11:15am to 6pm on Sunday, August 11^th, in the Egret and Heron Rooms of the Swan Resort.

Divisional paper sessions are the traditional presentation sessions. To shake things up a bit, I organized these 39 sessions into four tracks, and within each track, the sessions are grouped according to the common problems they seek to address or questions they are asking. This stands in contrast to sessions organized according to disciplinary perspective. For example, rather than putting all the ethicists in one session, the economists in another, the sociologists in a third, and the political scientists in a fourth, I've risked mixing them all up. The intent is to favor cross-fertilization of ideas over homogeneity of discipline. The hope is that we develop richer, stronger research insights. The risk is that we talk past each other. Hey, it's an experiment! I hope you'll give me feedback.  Here are the tracks:

Track A: Theorizing social issues in management. Papers in this track are primarily conceptual. The ten sessions in this track address issues such as the drivers of unethical behavior, reframing stakeholder theory, and refining the CSR concept. Most sessions will be held in Coronado Q at the Coronado Springs Resort.

Track B: Managing social issues. Papers in this track are primarily empirical and deal with the process or practice of managing social issues. The twelve sessions in this track address issues such as managing base of the pyramid ventures, repairing trust in the organization, and managing CSR globally. Sessions will be held in Fiesta 1 and Fiesta 2 at the Coronado Springs Resort.

Track C: Assessing business outcomes. Papers in this track are primarily empirical and deal with how the management of social issues affects organizations. The twelve sessions in this track address issues such as the effects of CSR on organizational performance, the effects of misconduct on firm performance, and political influences on firm performance. Sessions will be held in Coronado P and El Paso 1 and 2 at the Coronado Springs Resort.

Track D: Assessing societal outcomes. Papers in this track are mixed method and deal with how the management of social issues affects society. The five sessions in this track address issues such as outcomes in developing countries, institutional influences on social practices, and drivers of social problems. Sessions will be held in El Paso 1 at the Coronado Springs Resort. 

Discussion paper sessions are roundtable sessions, where the emphasis is on paper development rather than presentation. I'm trying an experiment here as well. Rather than focusing on a common issue, I've focused the four discussion paper sessions on a common developmental aim. The hopefully wise idea is to have authors come together to work on refining an aspect of their paper that may increase their odds of future publication. Each session will be led by a facilitator who is an expert on this developmental aim. The four sessions are: Roundtable on refining conceptual papers, Roundtable on refining qualitative papers, Roundtable on refining theory in quantitative papers, and Roundtable on refining methods in quantitative papers. As attendees, you can use the papers in each session as live examples, and work with the authors and facilitator to increase your understanding of how to develop these same skills. Again please note that they are held on Sunday and not in our conference hotel. Rather, all are held in the Egret and Heron Rooms of the Swan Resort.

I've revealed enough about our magic tricks for now. See you in August!

Best,

Mike

*****

Michael L. Barnett

Professor, Management & Global Business

Vice Dean for Academic Programs

Rutgers Business School

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

1 Washington Park, 11^th Floor, Room 1110

Newark, NJ 07102

973-353-3697

View my research papers at:

http://ssrn.com/author=414796