Submission Guidelines

86th Annual International Conference

           October 18 to 23, 2021           

Conference Participation:

Any interested person may submit a business communications-related topic, register for, and attend the ABC annual conference. All presenters, including virtual presenters must register for the conference.  Members receive a discount at the annual conference and with continuous membership, their approved and accepted submission title is archived in the member profile.  The full submission is archived if the member is the submitter and maintains ongoing membership. Guest members do not receive ABC member discounts nor archived submission details.

ABC REQUESTS ONLY ONE SUBMISSION naming you as presenter or co-presenter, except you may also submit to How Do You Teach Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion?, My Favorite Assignment, or Posters and to the GABC tracks.

Before submitting a proposal that includes other presenters, secure permission to include them in your submission.  Inform them that they need to register for, attend, and present at the conference should the submission be approved. Please do not include anyone as a co-presenter who has not expressly agreed to be part of your submission and who will not register and attend the conference as your co-presenter. Such individuals can be listed as co-authors. Co-authors have contributed to the intellectual property being submitted, but they are not expected to present. 

Presenters must be either an "Organization Member" or "Organization Guest."  A presenter or co-presenter can create a free Organization Guest account (no member benefits) by visiting the ABC membership page at  https://tinyurl.com/yaznm64k.   Please establish the “Organization Member” or “Organization Guest” account prior to submission to keep all presenters in the communication loop.  A guest account can be created and later turned into a membership account; find the steps here. Contact abcoffice@businesscommunication.org for assistance. 

Once approval notices have been sent, the submitter will be asked to “accept” the approved status within two weeks of the emailed notice by logging in to the submitter’s profile/My Presentations. Approval notices will be sent to the submitter, any co-presenters and any co-authors near mid-July.  You can also check submission status by visiting your ABC profile and going to My Presentations.

SAMPLES

Your rigorous adherence to the submission process helps us continually improve the conference experience for all.  Proposals are reviewed and approved or declined based on all the submission details. 

Click here for an example of a strong submission.

Click here for a sample submission form.

On the submission form, submitter is asked to indicate:

“I understand the criteria below are being used in the evaluation and selection process.”

  • Defines theme
  • Describes purpose
  • Describes goals
  • Describes methodology
  • Describes outcomes
  • Proposal's extended abstract text is between 750-1000 words.  (Word count does not include reference listing.)
  • Abstract describes presentation to attract attendees in 60-words or less and is written in 3rd person
  • Besides How Do You Teach Diversity?, My Favorite Assignment, or Posters, ABC REQUESTS ONLY ONE SUBMISSION naming you as presenter or co-presenter. Did you limit submissions?
  • You and all co-presenters (if any) agree to register and present at this conference.

Selection of a particular “Track” does not influence the selection process, but along with “Focus” helps us best schedule your presentation.

We hope you will permit ABC to publish your extended abstract in the Conference Proceedings (ISSN 2472-0658.) The submitter is asked to respond "yes" or "no" to:

"I grant the Association for Business Communication permission to display my extended abstract (proposal) publicly. Should I choose to revoke this permission, I understand I may do so by contacting abcoffice@businesscommunication.org or another such contact as directed by the Association for Business Communication."

Session Types:  

Regular Presentation (20 minutes) -  A regular presentation (20 minutes) that will be grouped with other presentations.  (Proposals with one or two presenters should be submitted as Regular Presentation.)

Group Panel (60 minutes)  - Three or more speakers on one topic.  Depending upon panel size and conference needs, a presentation may be grouped by conference chairs with another presentation.

 

Poster Session:

Presenters may enjoy this opportunity to discuss their research in a one-on-one interactive experience with their audience in a more informal setting. With about 20 minutes of presentation time, posters can reach a broad audience and offer a rich opportunity for discussion and feedback.  As with regular and group sessions, we will list the poster title and description in the conference program.  Check the website in early July for poster preparation tips.

 

Workshop:   (Closed)

Workshops should be 2- to 3-hour, highly interactive, themed events that do not fit into the regular program. Participants should leave with a new approach to teaching, researching, or consulting in the realm of business communication that they can immediately implement. Examples of possible workshops include creating a scholarship of teaching and learning research project, understanding emotional Intelligence and designing appropriate assignments, working with international writers, and developing a stable assessment plan for a business communication course/program. Proposals on thematic topics are most welcome.  Indicate in your submission the proposed workshop length.

Research Roundtable:

If you are beginning a new project or have one in progress, and are interested in discussing a new method or theory and how it might apply to your research, or only getting feedback on an idea, submit a proposal to be part of the 60 to 80-minute research roundtable, with 6-10 minutes presentation time.

Lightning Roundtable:

Look for Calls and submission instructions for How Do You Teach Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion?, offered by Jacquelyn Lowman, and My Favorite Assignment with Joel Whalen.

Propose a new lightning round with your own 6 or 7 (or more) designated presenters, sharing a fast-paced, informative presentation. Propose your own theme, or choose one of these topics:

  • Social media in the teaching of business communication
  • Innovative research methods for business communication
  • New theoretical approaches to teaching/studying business communication 
  • Multicultural approaches to teaching business communication
  • Intercultural approaches to studying business communication

Want to Submit in Spanish?  Click here to learn more about submitting in Spanish.


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SUBMISSIONS CLOSED (EXCEPT SPONSORED SESSIONS)

If you use a screen-reader and need assistance, contact abcoffice@businesscommunication.org