2027 AJBS Conference
June 26, 2027 – Kuala Lumpur
Submission Deadline: January 18, 2027
The Association of Japanese Business Studies (AJBS) will hold its 39th Annual Meeting in cooperation with the Academy of International Business (AIB) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The combined conference will take place from June 26th through June 30th, 2027. The AJBS conference will be held on June 26. The AIB conference will be held from June 26 to June 30. The Program Chair for this year’s AJBS conference is Vesa Peltokorpi from Hiroshima University, Japan.
About AJBS: From its origins as an informal network in 1982, AJBS was officially organized and held its first conference at the Wharton Business School in January 1987. Currently, AJBS holds annual conferences in collaboration with AIB throughout the world, providing an opportunity for discussion of current developments and research on various business, public policy, and teaching issues related to Japan. AJBS welcomes scholars, students, and practitioners from all disciplinary backgrounds who are interested in Japan-related business issues. Papers submitted for presentation at the AJBS conference undergo a double-blind peer-review process. Accepted papers are considered for publication in the social citation index journal, Asian Business & Management (ABM).
Why should you participate in both (AJBS and AIB) conferences? With one trip, you can attend both prestigious professional meetings in international business and an intimate conference that focuses specifically on Japanese business issues. The AJBS conference also provides additional opportunities for journal publication and best paper awards, as detailed below.
Submission types: AJBS welcomes both academic papers and panel proposals. All submissions need to be written in English. Earlier-stage papers may be submitted for inclusion in interactive sessions. Later-stage, fully developed papers should be submitted for competitive sessions. Please note that final assignment to interactive or competitive sessions depends on reviewer inputs and other considerations.
Authors may submit papers to either or both AJBS and AIB conferences. AJBS will consider submissions that have already been presented elsewhere but not published in a journal or book. Authors are encouraged to consider submitting a paper tailored to the specialized audience at the AJBS conference and a modified version appropriate for a wider audience at AIB. As we have done in past years, we also plan to have one session run by AJBS at the AIB conference.
Submission Deadline: Monday, January 18, 2027. Please submit your paper or panel proposal via the AJBS online submission system (the submission system will be available in November 2026). Papers will undergo double-blind review, and authors will be notified of the conference paper selection by late March 2027.
Please note that ALL SUBMISSIONS:
Must be written in English.
Must follow the JIBS Style Guide (http://www.palgrave-journals.com/jibs/style_guide.html)
We kindly ask you to upload your paper in MS Word or PDF format (if MS Word or PDF format is not available, please use a basic text format that can be easily converted to MS Word format).
Submissions must be on letter paper (8.5″ x 11″ or 216mm x 279mm), with double-spaced text, a font type 11 or 12-point Times New Roman, and be left-aligned.
Research Paper
Papers must have no author-identifying information: None of the pages (not even the first page) should list any author information. Also, the File Properties for the documents should be cleaned to remove identifying information.
All paper submissions must be fewer than 12,000 words, inclusive of all materials, including tables, figures, appendices, and references. Papers exceeding these limits will be returned to the authors.
Should include the paper’s title and an abstract, between 150-200 words.
Conference paper applies to the submission types: competitive and interactive. Note that a paper submitted as competitive or interactive may end up in a different session because of the reviewer inputs and other considerations, such as a lack of space on the program or lack of fit with existing sessions.
Panel proposals are also welcomed. Panels should focus on topics relevant to Japanese business. Topics concerning what the rest of the world can learn from Japanese business are also encouraged. The panelists must have relevant expertise or background to inform the proposed topic. Panel proposals should include the names and affiliations of all panelists, a brief biography of each panelist, a description of the purpose of the panel, and an overview of the topics to be addressed. Panel proposals will not undergo blind review.
Panel proposals should be no more than 6,000 words, including all materials, and must be submitted by the panel chair. In addition, each proposal must include the following:
A Cover Page that includes the panel’s title, name/affiliation/contact information for all participants, and their roles in the panel (please identify the chair, discussants (if any), and the panelists).
An Abstract (150-200 words) summarizing the panel (for Conference Proceedings).
Description of the purpose of the panel
A detailed overview of the main issues/topics addressed or arguments to be made in the panel.
Please also note that only panelists who plan to appear in person at the conference should be listed in the panel proposal.
Conference Registration: Conference registration will be handled through the AIB website, and registration for both AIB and AJBS can be completed at the same time. Membership in both AIB and AJBS is required. AJBS membership includes a one-year subscription to Asian Business & Management.
Asian Business & Management: In 2003, AJBS established a partnership with the journal Asian Business & Management (ABM), published by Palgrave Macmillan in the U.K. As in recent years, the editor of ABM, together with the AJBS conference committee, will select several papers from this year’s conference program to be considered for publication in ABM.
Palgrave Macmillan – AJBS Best Paper Award: Palgrave Macmillan sponsors a Best Paper Award at the annual AJBS meetings. The Best Paper Committee will review the finalist papers and select the winning paper.
Information on Kuala Lumpur, the meeting venue, and the AIB conference is available at https://www.aib.world/2027-annual-meeting/
For questions regarding conference papers and submissions, please contact Vesa Peltokorpi (vesa@hiroshima-u.ac.jp). For questions or comments regarding AJBS or conference registration, please contact AJBS.org@gmail.com or the AJBS President, Derek Lehmberg (lehmberg@fc.ritsumei.ac.jp).