By Sarah Stephen

There has been some amount of debate over how academic research papers are never read (or, at the least, not cited, as summarised here and here). I do not intend to go down this rabbit warren except to comment that this is a great tragedy. From my days as a life scientist, I remember how important research often remained within the confines of a lab (or a discipline), even though the findings of these research projects could have had wide-reaching impact (for e.g., as new medicines or improved technology). I found the same after I moved to the social sciences: published (and also unpublished) academic research often stays within the boundaries of a subdiscipline.

Indeed, the intended audience of most (if not all) research papers are other scholars within the same field who can use it to build/extend theory or to test theory. However, academic research, particularly in the domain of business and society, has the potential to offer key nuggets of gold for multiple stakeholders. This is particularly so in today’s context where societal and environmental challenges are rising and the role of businesses in these issues is hotly debated. But, as is often with the case of gold that remains buried deep beneath layers of rock or under riverbeds, research insights are buried in jargon, detail, and theory.

Mission of the BAS blog

Highlighting these nuggets of gold to the wider community of researchers, practitioners, and the general public is the stated aim of the Business & Society blog and one that is assiduously followed. In addition to this, we hope to provide a platform for discussing current events (e.g., on the shift of SDG salience) and redirecting academic research into addressing such topics (e.g., Q&A on the upcoming special issue on contributions of business to refugee crisis).

Our 2020 activities

With this aim in mind, the BAS blog published 63 articles in 2020. 39 of these are either general commentaries (e.g., the response to democratising work) or invited commentaries by authors who published in Business & Society, mainly in the print issues of 2020. As a response to the co-editors’ call on business and society research in times of the  pandemic, the blog also published 24 articles encompassing the three broad themes as delineated in their editorial. In general, each article published in the BAS blog underwent 1-6 rounds of revisions, as well as a final review by two pairs of eyes from the editorial team. Even then, as an editor, my aim has been to ensure that it is the voice of the author(s) that is heard- and not mine (nor that of the journal’s editors).

A glimpse into our journey

Behind the scenes, I benefitted from a lot of support. The Editors of Business & Society supported me closely, especially Jose-Carlos Garcia Rosell and Frank de Bakker, both of whom have had to deal with a flurry of emails from me (for JC, it was often multiple emails on a daily basis). The blog’s 2020 revival received much motivation from Andy Crane, with Colin Higgins and Hari Bapuji providing strong support. It is a privilege to work alongside such a motivated team, who dedicate so much time and effort, especially considering that such activities are part of our service to the academic community. And, I am pleased to convey that the national library has indexed the blog with the ISSN 2673-6888. This means that other libraries around the world will be archiving the content- and, more importantly, the articles can be accessed by a vast audience, can be cited in publications, and can live up to the potential of having substantial impact.

Even though most of us are stuck indoors now (and considering responsible tourism), there is a strong travel element in my journey with the BAS blog. It started on a sunny day in Lausanne, then assumed a vague form at a balmy evening in Boston, and eventually materialised when viewing the countryside from the upper decks of trains running between Lausanne and St Gallen. Articles were edited (& even posted) when visiting Austria and Canada, until the arrival of the SARS-CoV-2. The lack of travel did not prevent me (and, I hope, also the readers of this website) from travelling in theoretical terrains- from the contestation in stakeholder theory to the shortcomings of corporate social responsibility.  Nor did it prevent from being engrossed in empirical studies- from mining corporations in Australia to corporate lobbying in the US & European Union. Nor even in time travel- from understanding the historical diffusion of CSR to the current responses to the Modern Slavery Legislation to the visionary call for turning the serious issues of our times into a successful Grand Transition.

The terrains ahead…

Even though I cannot predict future (certainly not about travel, and, there’s no trip to Philadelphia!), I can divulge that the blog’s pipeline is packed with even more interesting insights in 2021. Most of these are from the journal’s current research papers, but we shall also be going to the past. Even if that sneak-peek hasn’t piqued your curiosity, I warmly invite you to continue perusing the wealth of information generated via the new studies – and, if you so feel inspired, to consider writing for us.