Are you working on an experiment exploring entrepreneurship, business productivity, innovation, the science of science, or related topics? We would like to hear your research at IGL’s Winter Research Meeting on 21 November at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. With the deadline for abstract submission fast approaching, we have compiled a list of reasons why you should not miss our event.
1. Opportunity to present to an expert audience
While large conferences are great for gauging whether your topic is of general interest, more specialised field conferences tend to facilitate deep-dive discussions that can really improve the details of your paper. If presenting at general conferences resembles convincing a journal editor that your research is relevant, then field conferences are like interactions with reviewers - often quite literally (as the people in the room in all likelihood will at some point review one of your papers), except typically a lot friendlier in tone...
Based on past events, we expect a unique mix of experts on randomised experiments, as well as entrepreneurship, innovation, management practices and meta-science. So join us if you are looking for suggestions for your literature section, feedback on your trial design, ideas for mechanisms that could explain your results - and an opportunity to talk to your potential reviewers and meet your future co-authors.
2. Plenty of feedback ensured by design
We always plan our research meetings to maximise useful feedback for our presenters. This is why we invite discussants who read presenters’ papers prior to the conference and provide detailed comments after their talk. (Are you interested in participating in our conference as a discussant? Do get in touch!) Moreover, there are no parallel sessions, so every participant can attend and comment on all talks. And we leave time for questions: in fact, the total time allocated to the discussion and Q&A is the same as the length of each talk!
3. We welcome research in all stages of completion
There is nothing more annoying than receiving the perfect, most insightful suggestion for improving your intervention or increasing take-up of your programme - after the trial has been completed. We also believe that we can learn a lot from smart, creative designs, even if the results are not yet all in... Our event provides a unique opportunity for researchers to present design-stage or ongoing trials as well as finished papers.
4. We don’t discriminate against null results
We prioritise interesting questions and good design over “positive” findings, not just in rhetoric, but also in practice. In previous research meetings we have given the floor to presenters who tested promising interventions yet found no support in the data that these interventions changed behaviour. Rather than confining your null results to the file drawer, submit them to our research meeting - but be prepared to answer questions about the minimum detectable effect size in your study…
5. We can help communicate your research more broadly
Academic researchers often struggle with making their findings accessible to a broader audience. Recognising this challenge, one of IGL’s missions is to disseminate state-of-the-art new research to policy makers, practitioners and the general public through our series of blogs, our newsletter, and our new magazine, Experimental: Stories from the Innovation Growth Lab. Presenting at our meeting is a great way to ensure that you will be featured in our publications.
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For even more inspiration, you can read about past editions of the Winter Research Meeting here:
- Five blogtacular takeaways from the IGL Winter Research Meeting in 2018
- New experiments are shaping the way we think about innovation, entrepreneurship and growth
- Reflections on the IGL Research Meeting