Professional Development Workshop (PDW):

Contemporary Research on Addressing Societal Challenges

Organizers: Dovev Lavie (Bocconi University) & Kerstin Neumann (University of Innsbruck)

31 July-4 August 2026 in Philadelphia, PA, USA

PDW Description:

Despite increasing attention by management scholars to the study of societal challenges and the progress made by promoting sustainability and responsibility in the private sector, societal challenges have worsened. Moreover, ambiguity and backlash from policymakers and institutions regarding the SDGs reduce the motivation of profit-driven firms to address these challenges. This PDW brings together renowned scholars to share their complementary perspectives and provide research directions for the management field to examine solutions to societal challenges. Questions include: How can stakeholder governance effectively address societal problems across different institutional environments? How can prosocial behavior thrive in firms, and how can digital platforms foster such behavior? What are the challenges that AI imposes on firms’ commitments to solve societal challenges, and how can firms maneuver diverse (often contrary) stakeholder expectations about critical social issues in a polarized world? How can we organize collective action to address societal challenges while accounting for political and market failures? Structured in two parts: panel presentations and round table discussions, this PDW will provide a vibrant space for (early career) scholars to interact with leading experts and to develop their research ideas with the guidance of these experts, as well as to effectively integrate their research on societal challenges into mainstream strategy and organization theories.

This PDW consists of two parts. In the first part, each panelist will briefly share their perspective on societal challenges and highlight their latest research. This introduction will be moderated by the organizers, aiming at unearthing new perspectives and theoretical/empirical considerations, followed by a short Q&A with participants. In the second part, the panelists will facilitate roundtable discussions on their topics in which pre-registered participants can discuss their own work-in-progress, while drawing on diverse theories and empirical approaches.

Below you will find the list of distinguished panelists with their topics. Their bios and summaries of their respective topics are accessible in the corresponding “More details” links.

To register to the PDW and help us pre-assign participants to panelists based on shared interests and preferences, please fill out this short registration form.