2nd International Virtual Research Conference on Contemporary Business Trends and Technology
October 21-22, 2020
The 2nd International Virtual Research Conference on Contemporary Business Trends and Technology (CBTT) was hosted by Jinnah University for Women (JUW) Karachi and American College of Dubai in collaboration with the Association of Management Development Institutions in Pakistan (AMDIP), Emerald Publishing and Mesal Consulting. In the context of business and management education and practices, the two-day conference focused on the situation caused by Covid-19, the contemporary needs analysis in the pandemic situation, and the role that innovative technologies can play in addressing these concerns through academic research. The conference aimed at promoting the research culture in Pakistan. The mode of execution of the conference was virtual using the Zoom platform, and services were provided by Jinnah Women University.
On October 21, Dr Dilshad Zafar, Dean Faculty of Business Administration, Jinnah University for Women, Karachi, opened the conference with her welcome address. The keynote speeches were delivered by two esteemed speakers. Dr Leonie Hallo, Associate Professor, University of Adelaide, Australia and a Co-Director of the Complex Systems Innovation and Entrepreneurship Lab (CSIEL), delivered the first keynote speech on the title “Emotion and Intuition in leadership: Can women make a difference?”. The second keynote speech was titled “Analyzing Usage of Mobile Shopping Apps as Sustainable Marketing Channel-Post COVID-19” and given by Dr Yasir Ali Soomro, Assistant Professor in the Department of Marketing, King Abdul Aziz University (KAU) Saudi Arabia.
As a response to the call for papers, research articles were received by universities across Pakistan. International papers were received from Russia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. All the articles were peer-reviewed by experts of respective fields, and keeping in view the time and technology constraints 30 papers were selected for presentation at the conference. These papers were presented in eight parallel sessions, and in each session, the chair provided feedback to authors and facilitated healthy discussion on the papers.
Research Sessions were chaired by Dr Anji Ben Hamed, Assistant Professor and Director MBA Program Ahlia University, Bahrain, Mr Yousuf Ibnul Hasan Islamic Finance Consultant, Program Consultant & Director Islamic Economics, Finance and Banking at London School for Business Entrepreneurship, UK, Dr Muhammad Ali, Assistant Professor, Editor, Pakistan Business Review, Institute of Business Management, Karachi, Dr Riaz Ahmed Mangi Professor Shah Abdul Latif University, Sindh, Dr Faryal Salman, Associate Professor DOW University of Health Sciences, Karachi, Dr Muhammad Jawad, Head of Department, Lahore Business School, University of Lahore, Lahore, Dr Saghir Pervez Ghauri Associate Professor Jinnah University for Women, and Dr Syed Imran Zaman Assistant Professor Jinnah University for Women, Karachi,
In a dedicated session, a representative of emerald publishing highlighted the different services Emerald offered for research scholars, teachers and students. Participants appreciated the partnership and facilitation of Emerald Publishing.
Three post Conference Workshops (PCW) were organized for research scholars to enhance their research and publication understanding. Dr Rab Nawaz Lodhi Associate Professor University of Central Punjab, Pakistan, conducted the workshop on Case Study Research, Dr. Zubair Ali Shahid Research Consultant MESAL Consulting, Pakistan and Associate Professor Muhammad Ali Jinnah University (MAJU), Islamabad, discussed “Why does Chain Need Belt and Road Initiative? Importance and Complexity”, and Mr. Syed Muhammad Fahim, Assistant Professor Department of Marketing Institute of Business Management-CBM conducted a workshop on “Data Analysis in PLS-SEM via Smart PLS”.
The conference provided a platform for multi-disciplinary discussion and debates on the diverse suitable ways for all organizations to sustain and compete in the national and international markets.