The SMS 43rd Annual Conference was held on September 30 – October 3 in Toronto, Canada. The conference had 1,290 registrants, setting a new record for the highest number of registrations for an in-person annual conference.
The conference Call for Proposals theme, “Aligning Strategy, Corporate Governance, and Resource Allocation in Turbulent Environments”, developed by Program Chairs Susan Black, Susan Christoffersen, Andreas Schotter, and Alain Verbeke, was answered by an impressive 1,548 proposal submissions. The conference Competitive Program featured 113 Paper, 48 Common Ground, and 20 Panel sessions. Additionally, the SMS Interest Groups & Communities hosted 12 Workshops and 37 topical IG&C panel sessions.
There were five Plenary Sessions featuring speakers from academic, business, and consulting backgrounds that further explored the thematic tripod of strategy, governance, and resource allocation. The Plenary program included a fireside chat-style panel on boundary-spanning with the President of 3M Canada and Director of Business Development for New Zealand Trade and Enterprise; a discussion of Corporate Strategies for Non-renewable Energy Sources by top executives from companies such as Cenovus Energy and Equinor; duel presentations from two business leaders to explore the role of story-building to change organizational culture; a welcome address and distinguished panel on Strategies for Navigating Turbulent Environments featuring David Teece, as well as a session in which Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Susan Black led a panel of respected leaders on Executing Strategy in a VUCA, Net-Zero Woke World.
The conference featured four evening receptions with the Welcome Reception on Saturday night, Socials hosted by the SMS IG&Cs on Sunday evening, the Monday Night Event held offsite at Chefs Hall, and a closing reception on Tuesday after conference sessions ended. Several hosted networking luncheons were held during the conference lunch hour. These included the 5th Annual Women’s Networking Social, the New Members/First-time Attendees meet-and-greet, the “Mee the Fellows” networking lunch, and the PhD Student Circle LIVE lunch discussion tables.
Awards and Honors recipients were announced and celebrated throughout the conference. Attendees toasted the SMS Award and journal prize winners who were honored in a short ceremony that kicked off the Welcome Reception. The Conference Paper Prizes were announced, and awardees presented with certificates, by the Conference Program Chairs during the first plenary session on Sunday afternoon. The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Susan Black during another plenary session.