Interdisciplinarity: Risks and Opportunities for Navigating a Business History Career

In the past decade interdisciplinarity became a fashionable buzzword in academic research and education. Business history is a discipline that employs interdisciplinary approaches naturally. Does the rise of interdisciplinarity then mean a unique opportunity for business history and business historians?  The virtues of interdisciplinarity and claims that interdisciplinary research will continue to grow in importance attracted considerable attention, yet the challenges interdisciplinarity poses to early career researchers is less often discussed.  What are the mayor challenges and opportunities that interdisciplinarity brings to early career academics?  Which pitfalls are to be avoided?  How to “fashion” a business history research when applying for an academic position or looking for a publisher?

This workshop will be an opportunity to learn about interdisciplinary research as well as discuss navigating early career in business history.  A panel of experienced historians will offer their perspectives on the opportunities and challenges associated with doing business history in history departments and business schools.  They will discuss the impacts of the perceived rising importance of interdisciplinarity on academic hiring and strategies for making business history an attractive background for getting an academic position.  To receive maximum benefit from the workshop participants are encouraged to prepare specific questions for discussion in relation to interdisciplinarity and business history careers.  For further information email Karolina Hutkova (k.hutkova@lse.ac.uk).

Panelists

Stephanie Decker, Aston Business School

Pierre-Yves Donzé, Osaka University

Natalya Vinokurova, University of Pennsylvania