ABOUT THE CONFERENCE
The 9th version of this Conference aims to make new connections across different scholarly fields that employ a practice theory perspective. It aims to advance our understanding of entrepreneurship-as-practice, foster network ties, facilitate collaborative writing relationships, and build a strong community of practice scholars.
This year we will focus on the intersection of entrepreneurship-as-practice with other practice approaches in management and organization scholarly community, and the broader contribution this can make to our approaches to and understanding of entrepreneurship and practice.
The conference includes keynote speakers, round table discussions, parallel presentations, a popular Paper Development Workshop, and many opportunities to get to know one another.
Confirmed keynote speakers for the conference include Richard Whittington (Saïd Business School, University of Oxford), Sarah Jack (Lancaster University), Sara Dodd (University of Strathclyde), Allison Hui (Lancaster University), Elizabeth Shove (Lancaster University), and William Gartner (Babson College)– all promising to expand the discussion of how practice theories can provide new theoretical and methodological insights to the field of entrepreneurship.
The 9th version of this Conference will take place in-person only University of Leeds, UK.
BACKGROUND
The practice tradition (also known as practice-based studies, the practice approach or the practice lens) forefronts the notion that practices and their connections are fundamental to all social phenomena (Rouse, 2006; T. Schatzki, Knorr-Cetina, & Savigny, 2001). For entrepreneurship it means that people “perform” ventures, startups and firms on an everyday basis through materially accomplished and ordered practices (Chalmers & Shaw, 2017; Hill,2018; Johannisson, 2011; Vincent & Pagan, 2019). This is to say that descriptions and explanations of entrepreneurship—such as, recognizing, evaluating and exploiting opportunities—are incomplete without the ‘alternate’ description and explanation of how entrepreneurial life is actually lived in and through practices (Gross, Carson, & Jones, 2014; Keating, Geiger, & Mcloughlin, 2013). The term ‘practice’, therefore, does not refer to an ‘empty’ conceptual category of ‘what entrepreneurs think and do’ (Sklaveniti & Steyaert, 2019), but encompasses the meaning-making, identity-forming and order-producing interactions (Chia &Holt, 2006; Nicolini, 2009) enacted by multiple entrepreneurial practitioners and situated in specific (historical) conditions. Therefore, practice theories orient entrepreneurship scholars to take seriously the practices of entrepreneuring as they unfold and are experienced in real-time rather than as they are remembered. Simply put, practice scholars are concerned with the ‘nitty-gritty’ work of entrepreneuring—all the meetings, the talking, the selling, the form-filling and the number-crunching by which opportunities actually get enacted (Matthews, Chalmers, & Fraser, 2018; Whittington, 1996).
For background and information on EaP literature, prior conferences, media and other pertinent materials, please go to: https://www.entrepreneurshipaspractice.com.
The Conference aims at educating interested scholars as well as helps to develop empirical and conceptual papers regarding the ‘practice turn’ taking place in entrepreneurship studies. Building on the first (February 2016 at VU Amsterdam), second (February 2017 at University College Dublin Quinn School of Business), third (April 2018 at Linnaeus University), fourth (April2019 at Nantes Business School), fifth and sixth (virtual events), seventh (April 2022 at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam), and eighth (Leuphana University) Entrepreneurship-as-Practice (EaP) conferences, this conference will be held at University of Leeds.
FURTHER INFORMATION
Location:
This year we are holding the EAP conference event, including accommodations and meals (excluding the gala dinner) at Weetwood Hall Estate (https://weetwood.co.uk/). Weetwood Hall Estate is a beautiful four-star hotel in Leeds, nearby the University campus. It is set within nine acres of beautiful woodlands and gardens and built around a 17th Century Jacobean Manor House. The hotel is steeped in rich history with parts of the property dating back as far as 1540.
Confirmed speakers:
We are happy to announce a wonderful group of scholars including, including Richard Whittington (Saïd Business School, University of Oxford), Sarah Jack (Lancaster University), Sara Dodd (University of Strathclyde), Allison Hui (Lancaster University), Elizabeth Shove (Lancaster University), and William Gartner (Babson College)– along with the organizing team (Orla Byrne (University College Dublin), Richard Tunstall (University of Leeds), Bruce Teague (Florida Gulf Coast University) and Neil Thompson (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)
How to join:
There are three routes for you to join the Conference:
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Submit paper to Paper Development Workshop. We welcome submission to our popular PDW sessions. The abstract is due 19th January. Upon acceptance, please notify if you plan to join. Early bird registration and final registration deadline see below. Deadline of the full paper is March 14th, 2024.
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Submit abstract to Emerging paper parallel presentation sessions. The presentation sessions gives scholars an opportunity to give and receive feedback on developing ideas or ongoing work, but are not yet ready to develop a full paper for the PDW. Early bird registration and final registration deadline see below. Deadline for the abstracts is March 8th, 2024.
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No paper, no problem. We welcome scholars of all levels, who have an interest in EAP. The conference includes many opportunities to learn from keynote speakers, have roundtable discussions, and network with EAP scholars. You can also participate as an audience in the presentations and give feedback to PDW papers. We will have special breakfast mentoring sessions for PhDs and early career scholars. See registration deadlines below.
Key Dates:
January 1st, 2024 General registration opens
January 19th, 2024 Abstract submission deadline for PDW
January 26th, 2024 Notification of acceptance to PDW
February 3rd, 2024 Early-bird registration deadline
March 8th, 2024 Abstract submission to presentation session deadline
March 9th, 2024 Notification of acceptance to presentation session
March 9th, 2024 Registration deadline (All participants)
March 14th, 2024 Full paper submission deadline (those accepted to PDW)
April 3 – 5th, 2024 Conference Dates
Conference Costs:
This year we are pleased to offer an all-inclusive rate! This includes three-night accommodation, all meals, including a gala dinner and demonstration at the Royal Armouries Museum (https://royalarmouries.org) + registration fee for £610 early bird rate, £660 full rate. Travel is not included.
There are plans for discount prices for PhDs.
Travel options:
Air:
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Leeds-Bradford International Airport has daily flights from Amsterdam Schipol
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Manchester Airport Train Station to Leeds (Direct) – 56 miles – 1 hour and 10 minutes
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Airport and is 10 minutes by taxi (4.5 miles from conference hotel).
Train
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London King’s Cross Station to Leeds (Direct) 200 miles – 2 hours 20 minutes
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Edinburgh to Leeds (Direct) 223 miles – 3 hours (train)
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Manchester Airport Train Station to Leeds (Direct) – 56 miles – 1 hour and 10 minutes
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Leeds train station is 10 minutes by taxi to the conference hotel.
Registration:
To be announced 1st January 2024
Questions:
TBA