I-WIL - VII International Conference of Work and Family

Dear friends and colleagues,

It is a great pleasure to invite you to the VII International Conference of Work and Family. The Conference will be held in Barcelona, Spain and it is organized by the IESE Women in Leadership of IESE Business School.

The International Center for Work and Family founded an academic forum in 2005 –the International Conference of Work and Family- to create a vision and to build theory, with special attention to the cross-cultural dimension and the application of theory in an organizational context. Speakers for the last conferences included: Ellen Kossek (Purdue University), Tammy Allen (University of South Florida), Stephen Sweet (Ithaca College), Tim Hall (Boston University), Brad Harrington (Boston College), Marcie Pitt-Catsouphes (Boston College), Nancy Rothbard (Wharton) and Lisa Leslie (NYU Stern) among others.

The seventh bi-annual International Conference of Work & Family aims to focus on the (new) ideal workers, as well as on their needs, desires and new forms of flexibility.

In the seventies, Coser defined the Greedy Institutions as those institutions who asked their members for an “exclusive and undivided loyalty”. These institutions assumed that the “ideal worker” was the one who devoted long hours to their jobs with no family interference. In some sense, this image of “ideal worker” still exists, but empirical evidence seems to suggest that far from being positive for the organizations, having old “ideal workers” may have a negative impact on the 21st Century Organizations. Moreover, recent technological, social and demographic changes have reshaped the way people work and the way families organized themselves. In a situation like that, where more employees ask for a real work-family balance/integration, it is timely and relevant to examine the “new ideal worker”, and to understand how companies adapt to this new situation. Can we define a (new) ideal worker? If yes, are there cultural differences? Do companies offer new programs and policies for the (new) ideal worker? What role does technology play?

The Conference will take place in July 3rd and 4th at IESE Campus in Barcelona.

If you are interested in participating, please submit a 800 word short-paper by March 1, 2017 through the electronic system available in this site. We will notify acceptance by April 1, 2017. We expect that those whose paper are accepted will submit them by May 15, 2017. We especially encourage theoretical and innovative empirical papers, as well as quantitative and qualitative analyses.

Please note that PhD students have a special discount on the conference fee.

IESE is a dynamic community of scholars and practitioners that will welcome you to Barcelona, a traditional and welcoming Mediterranean city. It is a privileged city, with a great number of tourist attractions and a friendly atmosphere that will offer conference participants and their families plenty of opportunities to enjoy their stay here over and above the academic program we are preparing for you.

We are looking forward to welcoming you at IESE, in Barcelona!

Prof. Ph.D Nuria Chinchilla
Director
IESE Women in Leadership
IESE Business School

Prof. Ph.D Mireia Las Heras
Academic Director
IESE Women in Leadership
IESE Business School