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With apologies for cross-posting.

An important and overarching question facing management theorists, educators, and practitioners today is the relationship between theory (scholarship) and practice. Others, such as Roger Martin (The Design of Business) have asserted that management practices are created as "business innovators" move from solving a business issue (mystery) to creating business heuristics and algorithms that can be used by managers to solve business problems. These heuristics and algorithms become "standard" management practices. Management theory focuses on the creation of prescriptions for solving mysteries (Design Thinking) and moving solutions through the knowledge funnel to create management practices. Others might argue that management theory is the result of social scientists observing practicing managers. Some might argue that management theory does not provide prescription for the practice of management. This Professional Development Workshop (PDW) is the continuation of a line of research from prior Academy of Management Conferences and Meetings. It will build on several very successfully PDWs: 1) Translating Scholarship into Practice: How can the Results of Scholarship be Translated into Action by Practitioners? that was conducted at the 2014 AOM Conference, 2) Translating Scholarship into Practice: Using the World Café Technique to explore the gap between scholars and practitioners? that was conducted at the 2015 AOM Conference, 3) Translating Scholarship Into Practice: Which Comes First: Theory or Practice? Scholarship into Practice that was conducted at the 2016 AOM Conference, and 4) Translating Scholarship into Practice: Further Reflections on the Future of Management Theory and Practice that was conducted at the 2017 AOM Conference.

Participants will discuss the results of several previous Academy of Management Professional Development Workshop conducted by the organizers. They will be given the opportunity to reflect on this previous work. Participants will frame and reframe the theory- practice discussion with a table host for about 30 minutes. Participants will work in small teams to create an Oval Map that frames the possible options, issues, and goals for resolving or dissolving the theory-practice gap. At the end of the allotted time period, each participant will move to a new table, with a new table host, and an Oval Map created by a previous team. Table hosts will provide each new team of participants with a short review of the work accomplished by the prior teams and ask each new team to build on this prior work. Several results are expected through the use of the modified Action-Oriented Strategy Mapping technique: (1) help to explore assumptions, unresolved issues and sticking points related to the gap between theory and practice; (2) foster innovative ideas and suggestions; (3) learn and share people's ideas; (4) provide an interactive platform for participants to engage and share the ideas; (5) build a sense of community, participation and ownership; (6) start a two- way dialogue between scholars and practitioners; (7) create and grow internal networks for continued conversation between scholars and practitioners; and, (8) offer a professional development experience in the use of this modified Action-Oriented Strategy Mapping technique. The results of this exercise will be put together in a working paper and shared with participants at the next Academy of Management conference which will ultimately lead toward a reflective activity at the Academy of Management Conference in 2019. Academics and practitioners will help to provide validation of past results.

Organizer: Melanie P. Cohen, Institute for Creative Management.org 

Organizer: Geoffery Seaver, National Defense U. 
Presenter: Krzysztof Dembek, U. of Melbourne 
Presenter: Stefan Krummaker, Queen Mary U. of London 
Participant: Amitabh Anand, Professional 
Participant: Christof Backhaus, Aston Business School 
Participant: Dharm Prakash Sharma Bhawuk, U. of Hawaii at Manoa 
Participant: Dan Bumblauskas, U. of Northern Iowa 
Participant: Nicole M. Coomber, U. of Maryland 
Participant: Robert B. Davison, U. of Kansas 
Participant: Vaughn P. Donovan, - 
Participant: Luis Flores, Northern Illinois U. 
Participant: Kathryn Goldman Schuyler, Alliant Intl U. / Coherent Change 
Participant: Usha C.V. Haley, Wichita State U. 
Participant: Gigi Johnson, UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music 
Participant: Rob Koonce, Creighton U. 
Participant: Ted London, U. of Michigan 
Participant: Farley Simon Nobre, Federal U. of Parana 
Participant: Jesse E. Olsen, U. of Melbourne 
Participant: Fedor Ovchinnikov, Institute for Evolutionary Leadership 
Participant: Julie JP Palmer, Webster U. 
Participant: Tyrone Pitsis, Durham U. 
Participant: Paulo Jose Prochno, U. of Maryland 
Participant: Marian Ruderman, Center for Creative Leadership 
Participant: A Carol Rusaw, George Mason U. 
Participant: Holger Schiele, U. of Twente 
Participant: Robert M. Sheehan, U. of Maryland 

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We look forward to seeing you in Chicago.

Best, 

Melanie