Organization Science Winter Conference

Facilitating the Creation and Transfer of Knowledge
February 7–10, 2013
Steamboat Springs, Colorado

We are pleased to announce the Nineteenth Annual Organization Science Winter Conference (OSWCXIX). OSWCXIX is sponsored by Organization Science in order to stimulate knowledge about organizations through experimentation and boundary-crossing conversation. It combines the leading-edge ideas of strategy and organization scholars, executives, entrepreneurs, and interested non-business scholars, in a community-enhancing setting. The meeting will take place February 7–10, 2013, at the Sheraton Steamboat Resort in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. See Conference Registration and Hotel Accommodations to take advantage of early-registration discounts.

Call for Papers

Co-chairs:

Fiona Murray
Sloan School of Management
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
fmurray@mit.edu

Ray Reagans
Sloan School of Management
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
rreagans@mit.edu

Lori Rosenkopf
The Wharton School
University of Pennsylvania
rosenkopf@wharton.upenn.edu

Knowledge creation and knowledge transfer processes have been studied by scholars across the fields of economics, sociology, and management. Regardless of field, researchers have adopted either an "organizational" or an "individual" perspective with respect to the creation and transfer of knowledge, and these two research streams appear to be evolving autonomously from each other. Despite this divide, these two "invisible colleges" emphasize complementary theoretical arguments and often produce related research findings. Our aim is to highlight points of intersection and convergence among research in these areas to develop a more integrated, multi-level perspective on knowledge transfer and creation.

An Organizational View: Scholars who have adopted an "organization focus" have established that the ability to create and share knowledge is critical for a host of organizational processes and outcomes that contribute to superior organizational performance, such as improvements in learning rates, technological innovation, and new product development. In addition to documenting how effective knowledge creation and transfer contribute to organizational performance, organization-focused scholars have identified a number of factors and dynamics that contribute to the successful creation and transfer of knowledge. In particular, researchers have documented the importance of factors that represent properties of knowledge (such as tacitness), properties of the units involved in the creation and transfer process (such as status), or properties of the relationships between units (such as indirect ties).

An Individual View: Scholars who have taken a more "individual focus" have considered similar research topics, but have focused on a more limited set of organizational features and have primarily considered the importance of these factors on individual productivity. In particular, research in this tradition has established how different rewards and incentives, such as peer recognition or the opportunity to commercialize knowledge, shape the direction and intensity of the knowledge creation process and also affect the likelihood that an individual will share what he or she has discovered. Scholars have documented how the mix of rewards and incentives vary across different organizational and institutional contexts, the effect this mix can have on knowledge created, the kind of knowledge (novel or incremental) that gets created, and the extent to which this knowledge will be openly shared. Finally, research in this tradition reminds us that individuals are not homogeneous, as they respond to rewards and incentives differently, and how they respond affects where they are best suited to work.

Bridging the Gap: The time has come for a more comprehensive and systematic approach to the study of knowledge creation and transfer, and we believe that this can be best achieved by providing scholars in the different traditions with an opportunity to openly discuss and debate research questions that seem to be relevant for both traditions. The following questions are meant to illustrate the kind of questions we hope to address in more detail at OSWCXIX, and we hope that you are willing to join us.

• Knowledge creation and transfer can be studied from several levels of analysis – individuals, teams, organizations, projects, communities, and fields. How and when are findings applicable across these levels, and what factors constrain this translation?
• Which demographic factors enable participation or lead to exclusion from the knowledge creation and transfer process?
• How do variations in the representation of knowledge itself shape what people search for and discover, what they use, and ultimately what they learn and are willing to share? What determines these variations in knowledge representations? How do individual representations aggregate to higher-level ones?
• How do institutional contexts, organizational configurations, and network structures affect knowledge creation and transfer among organizations and individuals?
• What are new sources of knowledge, and how do they shape knowledge creation and transfer?
• How should our research methods evolve to handle the exponentially growing data available through new knowledge applications?

In the tradition of OSWC, we invite 2- to 3-page proposals for plenary panels and interactive poster papers on the theme of the conference. If you are interested in attending OSWCXIX but not as a participant in the program please submit a statement expressing your desire to participate and describing your interest in the topics addressed above. The application deadline for proposals or individual applications to attend is November 4, 2012. 

As has been the case in the past, much of the plenary program is created from proposals and suggestions received from scholars wishing to participate in OSWC. Most authors will be invited to join another highly acclaimed OSWC tradition—the open-ended evening-long (7–10pm) Interactive Poster Sessions accompanied with finger food, wine, soft drinks, and desserts. Historically, 50% of the OSWC attendee roster is reserved for participants new to the conference. Invitations to attend will be extended by the program committee for OSWCXIX, Fiona Murray, Ray Reagans, and Lori Rosenkopf.

Applications

The application deadline for proposals or individual applications to attend is November 4, 2012. Panel proposals, posters, and statements of interest in participation should be submitted via e-mail to Fiona Murray, Ray Reagans, and Lori Rosenkopf care of Annie Weiss (anniew@mit.edu). Please limit all submissions to 2–3 pages.

 Conference Registration

Please go to our online registration site or submit the  OSWCXIX registration PDF to register. Register by January 4, 2013, to take advantage of early-bird registration savings.

Have a question regarding registration? Write to  meetings@informs.org.

Registration Rates

Note: Full-time students must attach a faculty certification to attend. Please fax to +1-443-757-3515.

Cancellation Policy

Cancellation by January 18, 2013: Refund less a $50 processing fee.
Cancellation after January 18, 2013: No refunds available.

 Hotel Accommodations

Sheraton Steamboat Resort
2220 Village Inn Court
Steamboat Springs, CO
Call 1-800-848-8877 or click here to reserve a room

Room Rate: Standard View Room, $289 single/double occupancy, plus 11.65% tax and $20 resort fee.

The resort fee covers high-speed Internet, local and 800 calls, shuttle service to downtown, self-parking, and ski/bike/golf storage. Children ages 17 and under stay free with an adult. Additional adults in the same room will be charged $25 per night. Thirty days before arrival, the hotel will charge your credit card for the full amount of the stay. Reservations are unchangeable after the 30-day cut-off, and this payment is non-refundable.