The Ghoshal Conference

The Sumantra Ghoshal Strategy Conference on Managerially Relevant Research

Upcoming: May 29th and May 30th 2026

Submissions are now closed.

The Sumantra Ghoshal Strategy Conference highlights research that is both academically rigorous and of great relevance to practicing managers. Every year, we bring together academics from all over the world to present and exchange ideas on research that not only meets the highest standards of academic rigour but it’s also rich in insights for practitioners, managers, consultants and policy makers.

We will be hosting the 18th edition of our Sumantra Ghoshal Conference in London on 29–30 May 2026, with the conference dinner taking place the evening of Friday, 29th May at the historic Draper’s Livery Hall in the heart of the City of London.

Attendance at the conference is by invitation only. If you wish to join our community of scholars interested in managerial relevance and attend the conference, we would be happy to receive your request for an invitation (space permitting). Please contact us here:

ghoshalconference@london.edu

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2026 Conference Programme
(Subject to Change)

Highlights Ghoshal Conference 2025

Biography
Sumantra Ghoshal

Sumantra Ghoshal was a Professor of Strategic and International Management at the London Business School. He died in 2004, aged 55.

In his research and teaching, Sumantra epitomized a scholar who combines rigor and relevance. By the time of his death, he had published 15 papers in top academic journals (e.g., Academy of Management Journal; Strategic Management Journal) and various other papers in high-profile outlets (e.g., Journal of International Business Studies; Journal of Management Studies), amassing approximately 50,000 citations. Concurrently, he published 11 magazine articles in the Harvard Business Review, authored numerous case studies, and published 11 business books, several of which became global bestsellers (e.g., Managing Across Borders; The Individualized Corporation).

Sumantra conducted academic research on the same topic as his managerial publications. Earlier in his career, he focused on global organisations. In his later work, he critiqued management theory (see, for instance, this posthumously published article), with the ultimate aim of transforming and humanising large organisations (see, for instance, this talk).

The Guardian wrote about Sumantra, in his obituary: “It was this combination of empathy and extreme intelligence - laced with a strong dose of humour - that made him such a formidable and attractive performer. A wonderful teacher as well as researcher (provided collaborators could put up with a lot of walking about and smoke-filled rooms), he could make complex ideas available with equal fluency to management scholars or a roomful of chief executives, handling theory with flair and practice with rigour.” The Economist wrote: “He married the theoretical and the pragmatic in a way that is rare in the world of management literature… Management literature has lost a prolific and creative writer”.

Sumantra obtained doctorate degrees from Harvard and from MIT, he chaired the Supervisory Board of Duncan-Goenka, a major diversified company in India, and served on the Boards of Mahindra-British Telecom, Swiss Re at Rüschlikon, and the Lufthansa School of Business. He was a fellow of the Academy of Management and the Academy of International Business, served on the Committee of Overseers of the Harvard Business School, and was the Founding Dean of the Indian School of Business.