In Conversation with the Program Chair Dr. Md. Mamun Habib
BRAC Business School (BBS), BRAC University, Bangladesh is going to organize the 1st International Conference on Business and Management (ICBM 2017) on September 21-22, 2017 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The conference aims to provide a forum for academics, researchers and practitioners to exchange ideas and to discuss about recent developments in the field of Business and Management, like management software such as Elite Dynamics holiday park software which seems to be taking over the industry.
The two day International Conference will be held in Hotel Westin and it will be inaugurated by Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, KCMG, Founder, BRAC and Chairman, Board of Trustees, BRAC University.
The conference includes Honorary General Chair Prof. Dr. Syed Saad Andaleeb, Vice-Chancellor, BRAC University and the General Chair is Prof. Dr. Iftekhar Ghani Chowdhury, Dean, BRAC Business School. It is led by Program Chair, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Md. Mamun Habib, BRAC Business School. A panel of Senior Professors is in the advisory board.
Bangladesh Brand Forum (BBF) had a conversation with Dr. Md. Mamun Habib, the Program Chair of ICBM 2017, sharing his remarks on the upcoming event and Business and Management Research scene in Bangladesh. Dr. Habib, an accomplished researcher, published more than 85 publications, including 14 books. He is the Editor-in-Chief of Scopus indexed journal, International Journal of Supply Chain Management (IJSCM) which is published from the UK. He was actively involved with the organizing of various international conferences and he delivered keynote speeches in more than 25 international conferences.
BBF: You have been associated with organizing a number of international conferences. How timely, do you think, the initiative ICBM for Bangladesh is?
Dr. Habib: The idea of the Conference was conceived when I was in Malaysia back in January, 2016. After I joined BRAC Business School, the idea started to take concrete shape with support and inspiration of our honorable Vice-Chancellor. Consequently, the Conference Secretariat was formed in November 2016 with a team of proactive faculty members.
Let me clarify a clear scenario of international conferences; the theme of the international conference is to promote networking among the academics and the practitioners. In the USA, more than 50% of participants consist of practitioners, whereas in developed countries in Asia like Singapore the number is lower than 50% and in India less than 20%. However, international conferences are not held very often in Bangladesh. In this conference, we expect a considerable number (about 20%) of participants will be practitioners.
BBF: What is the current situation in Bangladesh regarding Business and Management Research practices?
Dr. Habib: In Bangladesh, conferences which can act as a platform for Academics and Corporate Practitioners/Professionals are rarely held. Moreover, very few international participants attend and the students only get a limited platform to exchange ideas and gain knowledge. Also the conferences cover very few tracks. However, ICBM 2017 will cover all the tracks in business and management that are –
- Accounting
- Banking
- Economics
- Education
- Entrepreneurship
- Finance
- Governance and Development
- Human Resource Management
- Halal Management
- Management Information Systems
- Marketing Management
- Operations Management
- Supply Chain Management
Private Universities are taking some initiatives; however, these are few and far between due to budget constraints. In this regard, BRAC University is doing a great job and it is also managing its budget in a fruitful manner with the co-operation of potential sponsors.
BBF: How is the enthusiasm among researchers and participants, both local and international?
Dr. Habib: The response has been tremendous so far. Though we don’t have a large number of Ph.D. scholars, nevertheless, the keynote speakers for ICBM 2017 include renowned Professors from National University of Singapore, Malaysian University of Science and Technology and Chiang Mai University, Thailand. So far about 250 abstracts, out of which, about 150 are full papers have been received from authors of various countries.
It’s noted that many corporates are also participating in ICBM in Industry Talk, Academia-Industry Discussion, while sponsoring the event as well.
BBF: What are some of the value additions we can expect from this conference?
Dr. Habib: Some of the unique characteristics or differentiating factors of ICBM 2017 are:
– “Industry Talk” that would be delivered by the top executives
– “Academia-Industry Discussion”
– Globally reputed academic scholars involved as technical committee member
– Google analytics to analyze ICBM 2017 website visitors in order to make informed decision
– Online submission & feedback system through ICBM online system
– Double blind peer review process
– Conference proceedings consist of ISBN 978-984-34-2360-3
The first day includes a discussion session between prominent corporate leaders and university top executives regarding job placements, current expectations from top executives, basis of collaborations between industry and academia, consultancy programs and research & developments, etc.
BBF: What are some of the future plans of BRAC Business School regarding ICBM?
Dr. Habib: BRAC Business School has plans to organize this International Conference on Business and Management on an annual basis. Extended version of the selected papers would be published in peer-reviewed and Scopus indexed journals.
Finally, the organizers and the participants are looking forward to completing a very successful International Conference.
