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This is the call for short papers of the next GEM&L conference 2017
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11th GEM&L International Workshop on Management & Language
Copenhagen, 4-5 July 2017
COPENHAGEN BUSINESS SCHOOL
Solbjerg Pl. 3,
2000 Frederiksberg, Denmark
CALL FOR PAPERS
Revisiting Multilingualism at Work:
New Perspectives in Language-Sensitive Research in International Business
Scholarly interest in the role of language in international business (IB) and organisational life has grown considerably in the past three decades in response to the many challenges faced by companies in managing their multilingual workforces. Benefitting from an increasing coverage in special issues [International Studies of Management and Organization, 2005, 3(1); Journal of World Business, 2011, 46 (3); Journal of International Business Studies, 2014, 45(5)] and tracks in IB and OS conferences, research on language-related issues has established itself as a field in its own right, distinct from intercultural studies, both as a theoretical concept and a social phenomenon affecting every aspect of international business. GEM&L has contributed to this trend for the past ten years with international workshops focusing on themes such as the link between language and social identity, the management of diversity, the impact of language on company performance and the crossing of language boundaries.
Not surprisingly, given the multifaceted nature of this field, scholars from a range of disciplines – from (socio)linguistics, social psychology, and anthropology to management and organisational studies – are engaged in language-related IB research. Among the themes that have emerged from this literature, issues stemming from the social power of language occupy a prominent place (Fairclough, 1989; Vaara et al., 2005; Hinds, Neeley and Cramton, 2014). Power dynamics have been linked to the use of a lingua franca, for example, which has been shown to have a "democratizing effect" on performance in some cases (Steyaert, Ostendorp and Gaibrois, 2011; Vaara, Tienari, Piekkari and Säntti, 2005) and dysfunctional effects in many others, particularly when speakers of the dominant language benefit from "unearned status" (Neeley and Dumas, 2016) that gives them undue control over the communication flow (Marschan-Piekkari, Welch and Welch, 1999; Feely and Harzing, 2003; Harzing and Pudelko, 2013; Neeley, 2013; Tietze, Cohen and Musson, 2003). Interestingly, researchers have found that the principle of "unearned status" also applies to the academic publishing world where non-native researchers must overcome more obstacles than native speakers to get their work published (Tietze and Dick, 2013; Tietze, 2004, Tietze forthcoming, 2017; Harzing and Feely, 2008; Harzing and Pudelko, 2013).
Some of the most innovative studies in language-sensitive IB literature address the problem of the "unequal playing field" (Schneider and Barsoux, 1997). One such topic is linguistic performance within global work settings as a hybrid process (Janssens and Steyaert, 2014). The development of concepts such as "in-between-spaces" (Chidlow, Plakoyiannaki and Welch, 2014), codemeshing (Canagarajah, 2011) and "translanguaging" (García, 2009) illustrate this trend. Studies by Langinier, Ehrhart and Barner-Rasmussen (2016), Langinier and Ehrhart (2015), Beeler and Lecomte (2015) and Steyaert, Ostendorp and Gaibrois (2011) describe hybrid practices in specific national or regional contexts while Gaibrois (2016) as well as Cohen and Kassis-Henderson (2015) address the role of mixed language use for individuals and organisations.
Exploration of the power of language users to negotiate their own language strategies (Lauring, 2008; Logemann and Piekkari, 2015) provides a promising new way of looking at language-in-use in IB. Piekkari et al. (2013) for example have put forward the idea of "language absorptive capacity" (the collective ability of the organisation to understand and absorb communication in a different language). Welch and Welch (2015) have developed the concept of language operative capacity (LOC) defined as "language-in-place, language-in-time and language-in-context". A context orientation is also evident in negotiated discursive practices or "linguascapes" (Steyaert, Ostendorp and Gaibrois, 2011). Finally, multilingual individuals actively participate in negotiated practices as they act as "boundary spanners" (Barner-Rasmussen et al., 2014), "language nodes" (Marschan-Piekkari, Welch and Welch, 1999) or "bridge individuals" (Harzing, Köster and Magner, 2011), often independently from the position they hold in the organisation.
Opportunities to explore micro issues within the organisation extend beyond issues of power and policy, of course, including topics as diverse as the relation between language skills, social identity and emotions (Klitmøller et al., 2015), linguistic ostracism (Dotan Elliaz et al., 2009), trust (Zander et al., 2013), expatriation and career prospects (Selmer and Lauring, 2015; Zhang and Peltokorpi, 2015; Piekkari, 2008). Many macro issues in international business are affected by language as shown by research on the impact of cultural and linguistic distance on cross border acquisitions (Lopez Duarte and Vidal Suarez, 2013; Cuypers et al., 2015), where "language friction" can influence cross-border alliances (Joshi and Lahiri, 2014). The role of language in knowledge transfer has also attracted the attention of language and IB scholars (Peltokorpi, 2015; Schomaker and Zaheer, 2014; Reiche, 2015).
Also, linguists and IB scholars have looked into other ways of understanding language and languages in the business world at the individual and organisational levels. IB scholars have investigated the idea of "company speak" (Logemann and Piekkari, 2015), special languages and sociolects (Tietze, Holden and Barner-Rasmussen, 2016). Linguists have explored variationism in sociolinguistics and terminology (de Vecchi, 2014), research fields which address the connection between lexical units and "company speak" through terminology, socioterminology, pragmaterminology, and specialized lexicography. They have a strong link to languages for special purposes (LSP) and translation studies, which inform the practices used by translators in international and local business contexts. From the semiotic point of view, non-verbal sign systems are being explored in studies on multimodality in business communication and terminology (de Vecchi, 2013; Tenzer and Pudelko, 2016).
This (non-exhaustive) overview of language-sensitive IB research points to the progress that has been made during the past decades but also to gaps in current research and management practices. Considering that Alvesson and Kärremann's (2000) ground-breaking article on the linguistic turn in social sciences has not led to effective multidisciplinary research, Angouri and Piekkari (forthcoming) call for more multidisciplinary language-sensitive research which brings together traditional research streams of management sciences with other relevant disciplines of social sciences. In addition, Angouri and Piekkari (ibidem) argue for a break from conceptual binaries, which artificially juxtapose categories such as MNCs and SMEs, private and public sector, mono vs multilingual. We therefore invite scholars to reflect upon ways to move the field forward.
As companies and their workforces are increasingly confronted with a multilingual reality, there are numerous opportunities for scholars to extend the boundaries of language-sensitive IB research. Areas in which the role of language has not been sufficiently explored are the process orientation in organisational studies (Cooren et al., 2014), dialogism (Bakhtin, 1981), expansive learning (Engeström, 1987), collective activity as a discursive practice (Lorino, 2014) and activity theory (Vygotsky, 1986). Semiotic analyses of IB issues such as the one conducted by Brannen (2004) in her case study of recontextualization at Disneyland France may also help to advance the field. Methodologically, furthering our understanding of language in IB contexts implies new forms of participant observation of the reality that can only be captured by immersion in the situation.
We are interested in conceptual, methodological and empirical contributions that explore new research avenues, address under-investigated topics and work with novel approaches. Interdisciplinary papers or papers from other disciplines which offer promising fresh perspectives on the study of language diversity in organizations are especially welcome. All contributions are expected to be oriented towards the future and not limit themselves to overviews of the field. This includes the possibility to be a little more audacious in style (e.g., in the form of provocative theses) than is normally the case in conference papers. The themes which may be addressed include, but are not limited to those listed below:
· Conceptually:
What conceptual "blind spots" persist in language-sensitive research in International Business and Management? How could they be addressed?
How does research on terminology and multimodality contribute to the IB field?
· Methodologically:
What are the methodological challenges of researching the role of language in IB? How could they be addressed?
What novel methodological approaches could be adopted?
What are the methodological implications of interdisciplinary research?
- Empirically:
What areas remain unexplored on the empirical research map? Why would it be important to study them?
What is the impact of language use on small and medium enterprises, new ventures, and NGOs?
How does language diversity affect small and medium enterprises, new ventures, and NGOs?
References
Alvesson, M. and Kärreman, D. (2000). Taking the linguistic turn in organizational research. Challenges, responses, consequences. The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science 36: 136-158.
Angouri, J. and Piekkari, R. (forthcoming, 2017). The dynamics of language use: Setting an agenda for studying multilingual organisations and organising. European Journal of International Management, Special Issue: "Working across Language Boundaries in International Business", 11(6).
Bakhtin, MM. (1981). The dialogic imagination. Holquist M. (Ed.), Emerson C. and Holquist M. (Trans.), University of Texas Press, Austin.
Barner-Rasmussen, W., Ehrenrooth, M., Koveshnikov, A., and Mäkelä, K. (2014). Cultural and language skills as resources for boundary spanning within the MNC. Journal of International Business Studies, 45(7): 886-905.
Beeler, B. and Lecomte, P. (2015). Common language or common ground? A negotiated language perspective. Paper presented at the 31st EGOS Colloquium, Athens, July 2-5.
Brannen, M-Y. (2004). When Mickey loses face: Recontextualisation, semantic fit, and the semiotics of foreignness. Academy of management review, 29(4): 593-616.
Canagarajah, A. S. (2011). Codemeshing in academic writing: Identifying teachable strategies of translanguaging. The Modern Language Journal, 95: 401-417.
Chidlow, A., Plakoyiannaki, E. and Welch, C. (2014). Translation in cross-language international business research: Beyond equivalence. Journal of International Business Studies, 45(5): 562-582.
Cohen, L. and Kassis-Henderson, J. (2015). Re-visiting culture and language in global management teams: Towards a multilingual turn. Paper presented at the 9th GEM&L Workshop, Helsinki, June 10-12.
Cooren, F. Vaara E., Langley, A. Tsoukas, H. (2014). Language and Communication at Work: Discourse, Narrativity, and Organizing. Oxford (United Kingdom): Oxford University Press.
Cuypers, I. R., Ertug, G., and Hennart, J. F. (2015). The effects of linguistic distance and lingua franca proficiency on the stake taken by acquirers in cross-border acquisitions. Journal of International Business Studies, 46(4): 429-442.
De Vecchi D. (2013). Perceptual Cognitive Systems of Knowledge Representation and Communication in Organisations: The New Frontiers of Terminology, in TOTH workshop: Verbal and nonverbal representation in terminology 8th November at the Danish National Research Foundation's Centre for Textile Research – CTR – University of Copenhagen: 51-65.
De Vecchi, D. (2014). Company-Speak: A Managerial Perspective on Corporate Languages Seen from the Inside. In Global Business and Organizational Excellence, 33(2): 64-74.
Dotan-Eliaz, O., Sommer, K. L. and Rubin, Y. S. (2009). Multilingual groups: Effects of linguistic ostracism on felt rejection and anger, coworker attraction, perceived team potency, and creative performance. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 31: 363-375.
Engeström, Y. (1987). Learning by Expanding: an activity-theoretical approach to developmental research. Helsinki: Orienta-Konsultit.
Fairclough, N. (1989). Language and Power. New York: Longman Inc.
Feely, A. J. and Harzing, A.-W. (2003). Language management in multinational companies. Cross Cultural Management: An International Journal, 10(2): 37‑52.
Gaibrois, C. (2016). Turning away from national languages: How hybrid forms of language use affect communication in multilingual organizations. Paper presented at the 10th GEM&L Conference, Paris, March 17-18.
García, O. (2009). Bilingual education in the 21st century: A global perspective. Wiley-Blackwell: Chichester (U.K.).
Harzing, A-W. and Feely, A. (2008). The language barrier and its implications for HQ-subsidiary relationships. Cross Cultural Management: An International Journal: 15(1).
Harzing, A-W. and Pudelko, M. (2013). Language competencies, policies and practices in multinational corporations. A comprehensive review and comparison of Anglophone, Asian, Continental European and Nordic MNC. Journal of World Business, 48(1): 87-97.
Harzing, A.W., Köster, K., and Magner, U. (2011). Babel in Business: The language barrier and its solutions in the HQ-subsidiary relationship. Journal of World Business, 46(3): 296-304.
Hinds, P. J., Neeley, T. B., and Cramton, C. D. (2014). Language as a lightning rod: Power contests, emotion regulation, and subgroup dynamics in global teams, Journal of International Business Studies, 45(5): 536-561.
Janssens, M. and Steyaert, C. (2014). Re-Considering Language within a Cosmopolitan Understanding: Toward a Multilingual Franca Approach in International Business Studies. Journal of International Business Studies, 45(5): 623-639.
Joshi, A. M., and Lahiri, N. (2014). Language friction and partner selection in cross-border R&D alliance formation. Journal of International Business Studies, 46(2): 123-152.
Klitmøller, A. and Lauring, J. (2015). When distance is good: A construal level perspective on perceptions of inclusive international language use. International Business Review, 25(1B): 276-285.
Langinier, H., Ehrhart, S. and Barner-Rasmussen, W. (2016). Translanguaging practices in multilingual business contexts: Observations from France and Finland. Paper presented at the 10th GEM&L Conference, Paris, March 17-18.
Langinier, H. and Ehrhart, S. (2015). When local meets global: Translanguaging practices in a cross-border organization. Paper presented at the 31st EGOS Colloquium, Athens, July 2-5.
Lauring, J. (2008). Rethinking Social Identity Theory in International Encounters. Language Use as a Negotiated Object for Identity Making. International Journal of Cross-cultural Management, 8(3): 343-361.
Logemann, M., and Piekkari, R. (2015). Localize or local lies? The power of language and translation in the multinational corporation. Critical perspectives on international business, 11(1): 30-53.
Lopez Duarte, C. and Vidal Suarez, M.M. (2013). Cultural distance and choice between JV and wholly owned subsidiaries. Journal of Business Research, 66: 2252-2261.
Lorino, P. (2014). From Speech Acts to Act Speeches: Collective Activity, a Discursive Process Speaking the Language of Habits. In Language and Communication at Work: Discourse, Narrativity, and Organizing, Cooren, F. Vaara E., Langley A., Tsoukas H. (Eds.), Oxford University Press, Oxford (U. K.): 95-124.
Marschan, R., Welch D. and Welch, L. (1999). In the shadow: the impact of language on structure, power and communication in the multinational. International Business Review, 8(4): 421-440.
Neeley, T. (2013). Language matters: Status loss and achieved status distinctions in global organizations. Organization Science, 24(2): 476-497.
Neeley, T.B. and Dumas T.L. (2016). Unearned Status Gain: Evidence from a Global Language Mandate. Academy of Management Journal, 59(1): 14-43.
Peltokorpi, V. (2015). Corporate Language Proficiency and Reverse Knowledge Transfer in Multinational Corporations: Interactive Effects of Communication Media Richness and Commitment to Headquarters. Journal of International Management, 21: 49-62
Piekkari, R. et al. (2013). Translation behaviour: An explanatory study within a service multinational. International Business Review, 22: 771-783.
Piekkari, R. (2008). Language and careers in multinational corporations. In International Management and Language, S. Tietze (Ed.), Routledge: USA and Canada, p. 128-137.
Reiche, B-S, Harzing, A-W. and Pudelko, M. (2015). Why and how does shared language affect subsidiary knowledge inflows? A social identity perspective. Journal of International Business Studies, 1-24. doi:10.1057/jibs.2015.3
Schneider, S.C., and Barsoux, J-L. (1997). Managing across cultures. Prentice Hall: Europe.
Schomaker, M.S. and Zaheer, S. (2014). The Role of Language in Knowledge Transfer to Geographically Dispersed Manufacturing Operations. Journal of International Management, 20(1): 55-72.
Selmer, J. and Lauring, J. (2015). Host country language ability and expatriate adjustment: the moderating effect of language difficulty. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 26(3): 401-420.
Steyaert, C., Ostendorp, A. and Gaibrois, C. (2011). Multilingual organizations as 'linguascapes': Negotiating the position of English through discursive practices. Journal of World Business, 46: 270-278.
Tenzer, H. and Pudelko, M. (2016). Media Choice in multilingual virtual teams. Journal of International Business Studies: 1-26.
Tietze, S. (forthcoming, 2017). Multilingual research, monolingual publications: management scholarship in English only? European Journal of International Management, Special Issue: Working across Language Boundaries in International Business, 11(6).
Tietze, S. (2004). Spreading the Management Gospel – in English. Language and Intercultural Communication, 4(3): 175-189.
Tietze, S., Cohen, L. and Musson, G. (2003). Understanding organizations through language. Sage: London, Thousand Oaks, New Delhi.
Tietze, S. and Dick, P. (2013). The victorious English language: hegemonic practices in the management academy. Journal of Management Inquiry, 22(1): 122-134.
Vaara, E., Tienari, J., Piekkari, R. and Säntti, R. (2005). Language and the Circuits of Power in a Merging Multinational Corporation. Journal of Management Studies, 42(3): 595–623.
Vygotsky, Lev S. (1986). Thought and language. MIT Press: Cambridge (MA).
Welch, D. and Welch, L. (2015). Developing multilingual capacity: A Challenge for the multinational enterprise. Journal of Management, DOI: 10.1080/09585192.2015.1072104
Zander, L., Zettinig, P., and Mäkelä, K. (2013). Leading global virtual teams to success. Organizational Dynamics, 42(3): 228-237.
Zhang, L.E. and Peltokorpi, V. (2015). Multifaceted effects of host country language proficiency in expatriate cross-cultural adjustments: a qualitative study in China, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, DOI: 10.1080/09585192.2015.1072104
Guidelines for authors
The short paper should indicate the key theoretical, methodological and empirical questions addressed in the paper, the conceptual field(s) informing the paper, if applicable the data set used in the paper and the major theoretical and empirical contributions of the paper. All submissions must be original and should not have been previously accepted for publication.
First page with author's name, affiliation, e-mail and postal address.
Text of the proposal: in .doc(x), anonymous, justified, 2.5 cm margins throughout.
Title: Times New Roman, bold, size 16.
Other titles: Times New Roman, bold, size 12.
Short paper (around 3000 words, excluding references) with 5 - 6 keywords. Text: Times New Roman, size 12.
Format for references:
· Austin, J. L. (1962). How to Do Things with Words. Cambridge (Mass.): Harvard University Press.
· Steyaert, C., Ostendorp, A., & Gaibrois, C. (2011). Multilingual organizations as 'linguascapes': Negotiating the position of English through discursive practices, Journal of World Business, 46(3): 270-278.
Proposals in French or in English in Word format to be uploaded on the GEM&L website, www.geml.eu by 15 February, 2017
All submissions will be subjected to a double blind competitive review process on the basis of originality, rigor and relevance with members of the Scientific Committee serving as reviewers.
No author information or other identifying information should appear anywhere in the submission.
All authors will be informed about the outcome of the review process no later than 1st April 2017
At least one author of each paper must register for the conference and present the paper.
For any information concerning the conference, please contact: scientifique@geml.eu
Schedule:
Short paper: 15 February, 2017
Notice of acceptance: 1 April, 2017
For registration information go to: www.geml.eu
Dr. Philippe Lecomte
Président du GEM&L
Professeur affilié
Toulouse Business School
p.lecomte@tbs-education.fr
skype : lecomte.p
Tél : +33 662 384 913