Conference Tracks

Special Tracks

Innovation and Entrepreneurial ecosystems for Business and Sustainable Development

While academics and practitioners alike are increasingly trying to understand the role of ecosystems in promoting the development of new business models to boost economic activity and development, much remains to be understood on the means and contexts through which these complex social structures actually do so. In this vein, this special track invites studies on the dynamics and processes that enable value creation and sustainable development in innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystems as well as on contextual factors that contribute to the success of these efforts, like governance, multi-stakeholder interactions, legitimacy, spatial location, institutional aspects, to mention a few, but not limited to them.  It also welcomes both qualitative and quantitative studies from different industries and countries. 

Overcoming the Innovation Paradox in Developing and Emerging Economies:

Technology and Management to Reach Prosperity

For over a century, innovation has been widely recognized as the crucial factor for economic development and prosperity. As such, innovation has also become a main policy target to nurture the comparative and competitive advantages of firms and regions worldwide. However, emerging countries seem to still struggle to obtain the positive benefits of investments in innovation, a phenomenon that has been called the innovation paradox by the World Bank. Why? Lacking managerial skills and capabilities across firms and organizations in these countries have been pointed to as the main reason behind this challenge, preventing firms from upgrading technologically and building innovation capabilities. This special track invites qualitative and quantitative contributions that provide answers on how to overcome this challenge. We welcome papers with studies that can provide successful (and also unsuccessful) stories of innovation policy, industrial and technological development, as well as papers addressing firm management practices and strategies to build innovation capabilities and grow in developing economies.

Management History

This track covers business, management, and organizations broadly and historically. Issues include labor studies, industry history, gender race and ethnicity in labor patterns, managerial organization, historical cultural studies, managerial concepts, practices, and theoretical frameworks that affect communities, and demographic and economic changes in management. Management history proposals should broaden and deepen theoretical frameworks and provide a straightforward approach, constraints, and historical background.

Public Management

This track analyzes how government policies, regulatory frameworks, public sector management, and regional geopolitics in Latin America impact private-sector business operations and economic development. Papers related with the impact of the State participation in private companies’ management are welcome, for example, an analysis of the State non-economic goals as determinant of the financial and market performance of such companies.

General Tracks

Accounting, Taxation and Management Information and Control Systems

This track focuses on research in Accounting and Finance in Latin America. It welcomes papers that are relevant to broad issues in accounting or finance for academics in the region. A particular preference is expressed for topics that provide lessons to all participants such as implementation of IFRS, how culture affects financial or accounting issues, research on issues in financial markets. Research papers that compare different countries to arrive at regional perspectives are particularly valued. Very narrow papers in taxation or other national or local topics are unlikely to be successful nor are intensely applied research (e.g. how to file a tax return in particular city or country).

Asia and Latin American Business and Economics

This track delves into the opportunities, challenges, and potential collaborations arising from the intersection of Asia and Latin America, which shed light on the evolving economic landscape, trade agreements, investment opportunities, market trends, cultural influences, and sustainable development initiatives.

Consumer Behavior

Papers that shed light on the choices of Latin American consumers are welcome in this track. Approaches to understanding the consumer can come from any field such as psychology, anthropology, sociology, etc. The consumer as individual and as part of groups such as families or as types such as gender or socio-economic status. Response to marketing activities would also be appropriate in this track.

Corporate Finance

The financial concerns of companies operating in Latin America or from Latin America is the focus of this track. Means of acquiring funds, investing them, managing, controlling and distributing them are all included. Issues of risk and performance, capitalization, cash flow. Mergers and acquisitions. Annual reports, shareholder interests, governance.

Culture, Social and Ethical Issues

The focus of the culture, social and ethical issues track is on a range of topics that include corporate social responsibility, sustainability, business ethics, cultural differences across borders, and social issues in the workplace.  Papers with an emphasis on how cultural, social and ethical issues impact growth strategies of MNCs within Latin America are of particular interest.  Individual, firm and country level papers are welcome.  In addition, papers that address practitioner concerns related to corruption and moral issues within the context of Latin America are invited as well.  Finally, the idea of cultural shifts due to globalization (or the influence of foreign investors) is particularly relevant to this track.  

Economics and Global Issues 

This track takes a macro view of the Latin American business environment and considers the economics of the region. All economic factors are appropriate such as income, inflation, employment, interest rates, productivity and distribution of wealth. Government policy, natural resources, trade, trading blocks, etc. are all relevant in this track. Political and social trends that affect economics in the region as well as regional trends in business policies and practices.

Entrepreneurship and Family Business

The Entrepreneurship Track is interested in papers that address issues that would be of interests to academics in the entrepreneurship, strategy, general management, family business and corporate governance areas. It includes topics such as small business, family business, corporate governance, strategy and general management.  Other topics are management control, ownership, governance and the use of theories to explain behavior of individuals and groups that interact with management and organizational issues. Papers in this track need to address the Latin American context and could compare or contrast the countries of Latin America with those of other regions in their practices and actions.

Financial Markets, Investment and Risk Management

Papers for this track should deal with securities issuance and trading, portfolio management and performance, asset pricing, derivatives and risk management in financial markets, investor behavior, managed funds, financial institutions, and financial market and institutions regulation at a national or international level. Papers should address issues relevant to Latin America.

Information Systems, Business Intelligence, Technology Management and Operations

Papers related to all aspects of IT Management are welcome. IT-specific subjects such as network planning, technical support and software design are appropriate as are general management issues applied to IT such as change management, strategic alliances, competition, evaluation, etc. This track also focuses broadly on the issues related to managing supply chain and operations in manufacturing and service organizations in Latin America. This includes but is not limited to analysis, design and development, technology and systems. Issues related to materials and inventory, manufacturing, transportation and logistics are welcome. Extra-firm issues such as partnerships, regional infrastructure, and environmental issues are also appropriate for this track. Performance improvement, planning, measurement and productivity can be addressed.

Management, Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management

The Human resource track receives papers that relate to people and management in organizations.  This includes organizational behavior, motivation and coaching, leadership, personality, workplace attitudes, and employee performance.   Other topics include more macro issues such as group dynamics, teams, teamwork, organizational culture and culture as social variable that affects individuals and organizations.  The track is interested in papers that traditionally address human resources in Latin America.  This track is also especially interested in papers that relate to Latin American organizations as they move into the new centers of influence and opportunity for Iberoamerican nations, such as East Asia, India, Africa, or the Middle East. 

Marketing Management

This track is focused on marketing of services and products and on strategies specific to Latin America. Therefore, themes related to relationship marketing, market orientation, international marketing, product, price, place and promotion management, marketing models, customer equity, branding and brand equity are welcome.

Strategy, International Business and Global Competitiveness

Latin American companies are a growing force around the world even as foreign companies have sustained interest in Latin American investments and markets. This track welcomes papers that explore the effects of policies, strategies, industry perspectives and relationships across borders.

Teaching Cases and Management Education 

This track has two foci. The first is about teaching management in Latin America:  pedagogical projects, curricular frameworks, activities of curricular interest, activities of interdisciplinary integration. Assessment and institutional self-evaluation. Theories of education and the teaching-learning process in Latin America. The teaching-learning relationship. Teaching practices at the different levels of college education. Teaching methodologies. Virtual and in-class learning environments. The second focus is cases used for teaching about management in Latin America. These should be cases prepared for use in the classroom. Teaching notes should be included and do not need to fit the page limit for other papers. Real life cases are preferred over hypothetical cases. Games and other learning exercises are also welcome and should be presented so that they can be used by other teachers.