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Call for Papers and Proposals 8th Annual ICGS conference ‘Corporate Governance in a Digital Era: Challenges and Opportunities’ The 8th annual conference of the International Corporate Governance Society will take place from Saturday to Sunday 12-13 November 2022 at the University of Miami (The U.S.A.). The conference is intended to provide a forum for international academics and policymakers to showcase and discuss the latest corporate governance research issues and practices. The development of digital technologies, such as artificial intelligence, blockchains, cloud computing, and the Internet of Things, has not only transformed our lives but also changed the business landscape. With Google, Facebook, Alibaba, Amazon, Tencent, and Apple becoming household names, there is no denying the importance of the digital economy propelled by the development of digital technologies. Companies conduct businesses through online marketplaces, and stakeholders connect with one another through social media platforms. The digital era is characterized by the unprecedented power of platform companies, the importance of data to business successes, and the prevalent adoption of artificial intelligence technology. Yet, the digital transformation generates opportunities for firms to monetize new technologies, but also challenges for stakeholders, including employees, customers, and society at large, such as unemployment and the misuse of personal data. Corporate governance practitioners are faced with both challenges and opportunities in a digital era. Boards of directors need to ensure that the data of their stakeholders - especially customers - are safe, and their companies will not become targets of cybersecurity attacks. Stakeholders such as employees and consumers find it easier to get mobilized and engage in collective actions with the help of social media platforms, increasing their power over companies. Retail investors can coordinate their trading activities through information sharing platforms such as Reddit, as shown by the GameStop saga. A growing number of publicly traded companies hold their annual shareholder meetings virtually using online platforms. Governments scramble to enact regulations that can address new realities in a digital era. Meanwhile, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the rate of the digitalization of the world economy. However, we have not developed much insight into how companies can navigate challenges and opportunities brought by the digitalization of businesses to corporate governance. Against this background, the theme of the 8th annual ICGS conference is “Corporate Governance in a Digital Era: Challenges and Opportunities.” We specifically welcome submissions related to what new opportunities and challenges the digital economy can pose to corporate governance and what response strategies companies can adopt to leverage the opportunities and manage the challenges. As a result, we would encourage submitting research on one of the following themes: - What challenges and opportunities does the digitalization of businesses pose to corporate governance? - How can internal and external governance actors affect firms’ responses to disruption created by the digital transformation? - What types of boards and executives are more capable of tackling the challenges and opportunities in the digital era? - How do platform providers (e.g., Facebook and Amazon) govern platform users and platform producers? - How to deal with ethical issues in corporate governance in a digital era? Since the overarching mission of the ICGS is to bring together international governance scholars from multiple disciplines, original research on all areas of corporate governance is very much appreciated. Submissions must build upon previously unpublished and not-yet presented original research. You may submit either a full paper or a research proposal for the conference. In both cases, we are looking for research that will advance the field of corporate governance. A full paper should not be longer than 40 double-spaced pages (including abstract, references, tables, and figures). A proposal submission should include the following sections: (1) Abstract: 200 to 300 words description that summarizes the overall study; (2) Proposal: Narrative description of the conceptual or empirical study; (3) Supporting material: Tables, figures, and references that support the proposal. Overall, a proposal should not exceed 10 single-spaced pages in length or 3,000 words. Papers or proposals can be submitted starting on March 1, 2022, and must be submitted by 12 midnight (EST) on June 1, 2022 in order to be considered for conference presentation. All submissions must be done through our online conference management system, which is accessed through the ‘Conferences’ tab of the ICGS website (www.icgsociety.org). Decisions on submissions regarding their inclusion in the conference program will be communicated to the authors by July 29, 2022. The very best papers and proposals will be considered for the best conference paper award. The author(s) who win(s) this award will be recognized at the conference. CONFERENCE TRACKS. On the title page, the author(s) should indicate which of the following tracks best fits the submission. The Track Chairs may shift proposals if it is evaluated to better fit another track: TRACK A: Corporate Governance in a Digital Era The development of digital technologies has given rise to both challenges and opportunities for corporate governance. This track explores what challenges and opportunities the digital transformation poses to corporate governance and what roles internal and external governance actors can play in addressing the challenges and opportunities. Chair: Jana Oehmichen (JGU Mainz), Vivian Fang (University of Minnesota). TRACK B: Internal Governance and Strategic Leadership In this track, we explore the roles of boards of directors and top executives as well as other internal governance actors. Studies that examine the role of board members and executives in shaping firms’ responses to challenges and opportunities brought by the digitalization of businesses are particularly welcome. Chair: Ryan Krause (Texas Christian University), Taekjin Shin (San Diego State University), Daniel Zyung (Southern Methodist University). TRACK C: Ownership This track explores the antecedents and outcomes of different types of owners. The track also encourages papers on non-traditional means of raising capital that give rise to ownership changes, such as private equity and other forms of alternative investment, and their implications for corporate governance, particularly, in a digital era. Chair: Nikos Kavadis (Copenhagen Business School), Daniele Macciocchi (University of Miami) TRACK D: External Corporate Governance Mechanisms This track seeks to understand how firms’ strategic decisions are influenced by external governance mechanisms, including (but not limited to) the role of external auditors, cultural norms, financial analysts, and media. It also welcomes studies that investigate how these external factors are related to disclosure decisions. Chair: Colleen Honigsberg (Stanford), Michael Withers (Texas A&M University). TRACK E: Corporate Governance and Stakeholders This track focuses on the relationship between corporate governance and stakeholders. Topics can be related to how stakeholders play a governance role as well as how governance actors shape firms’ stakeholder relationship as well as stakeholder related disclosure. Chair: Mark DesJardine (Pennsylvania State University), Vidhi Chhaochharia (University of Miami). TRACK F: Comparative Corporate Governance This track explores corporate governance in a (de)globalizing economy. We want to discuss how transnational non-governmental institutions shape corporate governance across nations. Furthermore, it is interesting and useful to compare governance practices across national economies. Multi-level governance interactions between multiple governance environments are also considered. Chair: Stav Fainshmidt (Florida International University), Orhun Guldiken (Florida International University). Conference program co-chairs: Fabrizio Ferri, University of Miami ([log in to unmask]) Wei Shi, University of Miami ([log in to unmask]) ____ AIB-L is brought to you by the Academy of International Business. For information: http://aib.msu.edu/community/aib-l.asp To post message: [log in to unmask] For assistance: [log in to unmask] AIB-L is a moderated list.