SUMMARY

• X-Culture Research Conference (a.k.a Paper Development Xackathon) over five weeks between the AIB and AOM conferences.
• Organized as a conference, so you can apply for funding from your university.
• X-Culture provides the data and support.
• Researchers intensively work on developing research papers during the five weeks in July-August, including optional face-to-face meetings in Miami and/or Seattle
• Researchers go home with a paper idea, a co-author(s), initial results, and first the first very rough paper draft.
• Registration cost $1350. This covers lodging during the Xackathon AND AOM in Seattle, WA, (8 nights), including breakfast and lunch, a welcome dinner, the social program, and conference materials.
  • Note: Online-only participation $150; Xackathon-only registration $600 (includes lodging and meals only August 2-4, but not during the AOM conference August 5-9)

BACKGROUND

X-Culture is collecting huge amounts of data. We are tracking over 2,000 variables: longitudinal, multi-level, multi-source, multi-method. Just about anything related to international teams and virtual collaboration – we measure it.

We have dozens of papers in development based on the data, but there are many more good publications hidden in our database.

Traditionally, the researchers have been working alone or in small co-author teams. They would collect (or buy) their own data, analyze them, and write papers. This model is very limited. A person can have only so many ideas and has only so many hours a day to write papers based on those data.

As a result, most data sets are never fully utilized. Many great discoveries remain undiscovered.

X-Culture does things differently.

We are happy to share our data with researchers interested in developing and publishing high-quality research papers based on the data.

To aid them in this effort, we are organizing our annual X-Culture Research Conference, which is basically a writing retreat or research hackathon, or as we call it “Xackathon”.

THE X-CULTURE RESEARCH CONFERENCE (XACKATHON) IN A NUTSHELL

• X-Culture data are made available.
• Researchers interested in international HR/OB come to the conference,
• intensively brainstorm ideas for papers based on the data,
• get feedback on the ideas,
• select the most promising ones,
• present and critique them,
• debate research designs and share suggestions,
• form co-author teams,
• run preliminary tests,
• finalize the story to be told in the paper,
• put together a very rough first draft,
• During the Xackathon in Seattle, teams will present their preliminary results. This will allow the team to get more feedback and suggestions from the other conference participants,
• all while devoting enough time for socializing and forming strong personal and professional connections,
• go home with a paper underway, co-author(s), initial results, and main points.
• Then spend the next few months finishing up the paper in time for the AIB or AOM conference, and then to a journal shortly after.

GOAL

• A fully a developed paper idea(s) and the first draft;
• Co-authors, fully acquainted professionally and personally;
• Completed initial tests and results;
• Honest feedback and suggestions for further improvement;
• A detailed plan, to finish up the paper and submit it shortly after the meeting.

THE APPLICATION/SELECTION PROCESS

• Application, May 15, 2022
  • Including
    • Name, contacts, and affiliation
    • An abstract (100-300 words) of a recent study that illustrates your research stream. You will be asked to give a short presentation of this study on the first day of the X-Culture Research Conference so that other attendees can better understand what you are working on and assess you as a potential co-author.
    • An abstract (100-300 words) outlining one unique idea that can be tested (and eventually published) using the X-Culture data (details and codebooks here).
      Please review the list of the variables and experimental conditions in the X-Culture Database and the list of already published and ongoing studies based on the data.

      You will be asked to give a short presentation of this proposed study on the first day of the event. This will be your second conference paper presentation.

      You will not have to pursue this particular study. Your presentation will be used to boost the initial brainstorming of possible studies, but the ideas are expected to evolve and the hackathon participants interact, exchange their ideas, and start working with the data.

      * Please review the list of ongoing research projects here. It will give you a good overview of what kind of work is already being done or could be done using X-Culture data.

• Acceptance to be confirmed by May 20, 2022
  • Abstracts will be reviewed
  • Best contributions will be accepted
• Registration by May 25
  • • Online-only registration: $150
    • Xackathon-only registration (online + onsite in Seattle 3 days): $600
    • All-inclusive registration (online + onsite in Seattle 9 days): $1,375

REGISTRATION FEE

To make the event more productive and allow the participants to spend all their time on paper development and professional networking, the Research Conference is organized as an “all-inclusive” event, extended through the AOM conference.

The online-only registration fee ($150) includes:

• Online participation in all sessions
• Full data access and full research and technical support

The Xackathon-only registration fee ($600) additionally includes:

• 3 nights of lodging (individual rooms in dormitories in Seattle, WA) just during the Xackathon
• 3 breakfasts and 2 lunches
• 1 welcome dinner

The all-inclusive registration fee ($1,375) additionally includes:

• 8 nights of lodging (separate rooms in dormitories in Seattle, WA, close to the AOM conference venues) during the Xackathon AND the AOM conference
• 8 breakfasts and 7 lunches
• 1 welcome dinner
• Social activities and sightseeing

Please note, AOM conference hotels cost around $200/$300 per night. The all-inclusive Xackathon registration option provides a cheaper lodging for 8 nights at nearby dormitories plus meals. So if you plan to attend AOM, the all-inclusive option, which provides you with the cheaper on-campus lodging and meals, than staying at the conference hotels.

Please note, the fees listed above are our best estimates based on the quotes received from two universities near the AOM site. We are still waiting for two more quotes and will finalize the registration fees within a few days.

PROGRAM:

Pre-event (online/hybrid):

• Online/Hybrid Meeting 1: Meet and Greet
  Sunday, July 5 (date/time to be confirmed once the AIB schedule is finalized)
  • Meet and greet
  • Review of the available data and research projects in progress
  • Brainstorming research paper ideas
  • Identify groups and discuss potential data needed
  • Those attending the AIB conference plan to meet face-to-face in Miami and join the session as a group

• Online/Hybrid Meeting 2: Exchange of Initial Paper Ideas
  Monday, July 6 (date/time to be confirmed once the AIB schedule is finalized)
  • Exchange and discussion of initial research paper ideas
  • Literature review
  • Review data further and develop a potential model
  • Select “finalist” paper ideas
  • Confirm research groups/co-author teams
  • Those attending the AIB conference plan to meet face-to-face in Miami and join the session as a group

• GVT Collaboration: Further Exchange of Research Paper Ideas
  Tuesday, July 7 – August 1
  • Work in research groups formed during Meetings 1 and 2 with virtual live meetings as needed

Event (face-to-face/hybrid)

• Day 1, Tuesday, August 2
  • Arrival
  • Welcome Dinner

• Day 2, Wednesday, August 3
  • Breakfast
  • Session 1: Presentation of initial findings
    • Present latest findings, receive feedback
    • Collective brainstorming of challenges discovered so far (theory, methods, findings)
  • Lunch
  • Session 2: Further data analysis
    • Continue working on data analysis
    • Get clarification (on data and statistical tests)
  • Dinner: Socializing and informal discussion

• Day 3, Thursday, August 4
  • Breakfast
  • Session 7: Results
    • Present the latest results, receive feedback
    • Collective brainstorming of challenges and solutions
  • Working Lunch

• • • Review of progress
    • Most promising paper award ceremony

• Days 4-8 (August 5-9)
  • Those staying with the group in the dormitories will continue the discussions and paper development during optional joint breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and between the AOM sessions as schedule permits.

LODGING

Due to both cost, convenience and the opportunity to further shape our X-Culture community, we have made arrangements to house in a well-equipped dorm at a nearby university. This cost is included in your registration fee. We are now in negotiations with several universities within walking or short driving distance from the AOM site and will be finalizing our choice within a few days.

FUNDING

You can apply for funding from your university, the event is organized as a conference:

• The application requires a submission of a paper/abstract of your research ideas that you would like to pursue using the X-Culture data;
• The submission will be peer-reviewed;
• The accept/reject decisions will be made based on the peer-reviews of your submission;
• You will be asked to present your work on the first day of the conference (study proposal, your submission) and then again on the second (study outline, developed at the conference) and on the last day (final version of the study, developed at the conference);
• The study proposals will be included in the conference proceedings and published at the conference web page.

 icon-question-circle QUESTIONS:

Dr. Wendy Farrell
icon-phone 623-810-5096
icon-envelope-o Wendy.Farrell@x-culture.education

Past X-Culture Research Xackathons:

• 2021, Online Research Xackathon, July 10-25
• 2019, Research Xackathon at the University of Calgary, Canada
• 2019, Research Xackathon at the University of Southern Denmark
• 2018, Research Xachathon at the University of Wisconsin at LaCrosse, USA
• 2018, Research Xachathon at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, USA
• 2018, Research Xachathon at the University of Macerata, Italy
• 2017, Research Xachathon Pilot at the Johnson & Wales University, Miami, USA
• Report after testing three different Research Xackahon formats in 2018