The 2025 Journal of Product Innovation Management (JPIM) Annual Research Forum seeks submissions from innovators, scholars, and industry professionals regarding new product and service development and innovation management. The JPIM Research Forum is powered by the Product Development and Management Association (PDMA) and will offer networking opportunities with scholars, practitioners, the JPIM’s Editorial Team, and the PDMA community.

• Submission Deadline: April 15, 2025
• Notification to Authors (Acceptance/Rejection decisions): July 15, 2025
• 2025 Submission website: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=2025-jpim-rf
• Conference: 2025 JPIM Research Forum powered by PDMA
• Conference Dates: 13-14 September, 2025
• Conference Location: Marriott Marquis Chicago, Chicago, USA
• Conference Website: https://www.pdma.org/page/annual-jpim-research-forum

Submission Guidelines

All papers must be original and not simultaneously submitted to another journal or conference. The following paper categories are welcome:

• Full Papers: Submissions of fully developed papers should be 15 - 20 pages, double-spaced, 12-point font, excluding tables, figures, appendices, and references. These papers will be presented in formal sessions and be considered for the best overall conference and best doctoral paper awards. They will also be considered for a special section in the Journal of Product Innovation Management devoted to the research forum.
• Extended Abstracts:  Submissions of extended abstracts should be 5 – 6 pages, double-spaced, 12-point font, excluding tables, figures, appendices, and references. These papers will be presented in formal sessions.
• Developmental Papers: Submissions are works-in-progress that should be 8-10 pages, double-spaced, 12-point font, excluding tables, figures, appendices and references. These papers will be discussed in roundtables for feedback from the JPIM editorial team, leading NPD and innovation scholars, and other conference participants.
• Special Session Proposals: We welcome proposals for special topic/panel sessions. Emerging topics on innovation in times of dynamic change and global challenges are particularly welcomed. A proposal, no more than 3 pages, double-spaced, 12-point font, should include:
  • Session title
  • Presenter names and affiliations
  • Brief description of the session focus, its relevance and importance to product innovation and management

• Selection of special topics/ panel sessions will be limited and based on relevance and quality of the topic proposed. We encourage the submission of new topics that are important for advancing the field of new product development and innovation management.

Please adhere to the following submission guidelines:

• Upload a single anonymized PDF file with NO author information to the conference site on Easy Chair
• Include an abstract of no more than 150 words
• Format in one-inch (2.5 cm) margins, double-spaced, 12-point font
• Structure the contents as follows:
  • Title
  • Abstract
  • Main text
  • Figures, tables, and references

All submissions will be peer-reviewed. Authors are welcome to submit multiple papers. However, paper presentations may be simultaneously scheduled, so each accepted submission must have a designated in-person presenter.

At least one author of accepted papers must register for the conference by the date indication in the acceptance notification or risk removal of the paper from the conference program.

Publication Opportunity:

The Journal of Product Innovation Management (Wiley) will devote a special section to full papers presented at the JPIM Research Forum. Authors of selected papers presented at the JPIM Research Forum will be invited to submit to this special section. Such submissions will follow the standard double-blind review process of regular submissions to the journal.

Conference Awards:

The 2025 JPIM Research Forum offers the following awards to full paper submissions only presented at the conference:

• Best Conference Paper
• Best Doctoral Student Paper (doctoral student is the first or sole author and must be the presenter)

List of Tracks

• Conference Tracks and Track Chairs:

  1. Innovation Strategy and New Paradigms

  This track invites papers exploring various facets of innovation strategy. Special focus is on strategic drivers, organizational transformation, and outcomes. Potential topics include the impacts on innovation by: agility and ambidexterity, board diversity, non-market strategies (such as corporate political activities), gender, language and linguistic differences, national cultural distance, and organizational culture differences. We seek research studies that offer actionable insights for navigating uncertainty and creating value for for- and non-profit organizations in developed and emerging markets.

  Track Chairs: Shlomo Tarba (University of Birmingham, UK); Alok Saboo (Georgia State University, USA); Ofra Bazel Shoham (Temple University, USA)

  2. New Product and Service Development

  This track explores the complex and multidisciplinary processes involved in the ideation, conceptualization, development, and launch of new products and services. Encompassing a broad range of fields—including marketing, management, entrepreneurship, engineering, computer science, and business/customer analytics—key themes highlight cutting-edge strategies, tools, methodologies and emerging transformative initiatives driving successful development. 

  Track Chairs: Janell Townsend (Oakland University, USA); M. Berk Talay (University of Massachusetts-Lowell, USA)

  3. Consumer and User Innovation and Adoption

  This track invites papers on the dynamic interplay between consumers, users, and the innovation and adoption process. Potential topics include crowdsourcing / crowdfunding for innovation, co-creation and collaboration, consumer creativity, mechanisms for engaging users as innovators in innovation activities, behavioral and social factors in adoption, and the influence of social media and networks on innovation diffusion in the Age of AI. Empirical works using various methodologies are welcome.

  Track Chairs: Subin Im (University of Tennessee Chattanooga, USA); Oguz Acar (King's College London, UK)

  4. Open Innovation and Innovation Ecosystems

  This track calls for papers on open innovation and innovation ecosystems as a distributed or system-based innovation process or networks, based on managed resource and knowledge sharing across organizational boundaries, including partners from the larger business and social communities. Example topics include alliances, networks, user-generated content, online communities, and outsourcing product development. 

  Track Chairs: Michael Stanko (North Carolina State University, USA); Anna S. Cui (University of Illinois Chicago, USA)

  5. Responsible Innovation

  This track explores responsible innovation as a unique phenomenon and a framework for shaping new product development (NPD). It invites contributions on integrating principles like ethics, sustainability, and societal impact into NPD while advancing the broader understanding of responsible innovation as a distinct and multidimensional field of study.

  Track Chairs: Sebastian Gurtner (Bern University of Applied Sciences, Switzerland); Tania Bucic (University of New South Wales, Australia); Jiyao Chen (Oregon State University, USA)

  6. Innovation in the Era of Artificial Intelligence

  This track focuses on pioneering product innovation driven by artificial intelligence (AI). Key topics include AI orientation, generative AI, AI-enhanced firm performance, and AI-driven product development, among others. Submit your research to advance the understanding and application of AI in achieving competitive innovation.

  Track Chairs: Prabirendra Chatterjee (Cardiff Business School, UK); Frank T. Piller (RWTH Aachen University, Germany)

  7. Digital Innovation

  Digital innovation utilizes digital technologies and strategies to create new products, services, processes, and business models. As we transition from Industry 4.0 to Industry 5.0, digital transformation and its enabling technologies may affect innovation management in many ways. This track invites submissions on digital transformation, such as e-commerce disruption, digital payment systems, fintech solutions, smart home technology, and collaborative platforms.

  Track Chairs: BJ Allen (Birmingham & Young University, USA); Nobuyuki Fukawa (Missouri University of Science and Technology, USA)

  8. Design Thinking and Design Innovation

  This track explores design principles, design theories, and impact of design thinking and design innovation across diverse domains. It invites research on creative problem-solving, human-centered design, co-creation, and interdisciplinary approaches with managerial implications to drive transformative solutions in organization and society. Contributions addressing theoretical advancements, practical applications, and case studies in innovation driven by design are welcome.

  Track Chairs: Ravi Chitturi (Lehigh University, USA); Wei Liu (King's College London, UK)

  9. International Strategies for Innovation Across Markets and Industries

  This track examines how firms innovate across diverse markets and industries worldwide, addressing adaptation versus standardization strategies, institutional dynamics, and megatrends. We welcome qualitative and quantitative studies on opportunities, challenges, and advancements shaping new product and service development, business models, and innovation in varying global contexts.

  Track Chairs: Billur Akdeniz (University of New Hampshire, USA); Francisco-José Molina Castillo (University of Murcia, Spain)

  10. Innovation in the Circular Economy

  Circular economy involves sharing, leasing, reusing, repairing, refurbishing and recycling existing materials and products as long as possible. This track invites papers on innovations in the circular economy that address the challenges and strategies to promote the successful development and adoption of circular innovations for a more sustainable and inclusive future. Example topics are business models, strategic alliances, capabilities, factors, and technology in circular innovation.

  Track Chairs: Nadine Gurtner (Bern University of Applied Sciences, Switzerland); Marcelo de la Cruz (LMU Munich, Germany)    

  11. Design Orientation as an Organizational Commitment to Innovation

  Design has evolved into a comprehensive set of practices, mindsets, and capabilities that inform a broader organizational culture and orientation (Verganti et al., 2021). Adopting an organization-wide focus on design requires a fundamental metamorphosis. Many big questions exist. What are the perspectives and theories that offer insight – is it problem-solving or sense-making or …?  We focus on “design orientation” where it drives organizational innovation and transformation “...changing existing situations into preferred ones” (Simon, 1969).

  Track Chairs: Scott Swan (Track Chairs: Scott Swan (William & Mary, USA); Charles Noble (University of Tennessee Knoxville, USA)); Charles Noble (University of Tennessee Knoxville, USA)

  12. Future Making

  In times of heightened uncertainty and complexity, organizations face mounting challenges in anticipating plausible futures and proactively designing more desirable ones for society. This track calls for research exploring formal or informal practices, tools, options, and possibilities to envision alternative scenarios and drive innovations that prioritize the well-being of people and communities.

  Track Chairs: Claudio Dell' Era (Politecnico Milano, Italy); Stefano Magistretti (Politecnico Milano, Italy)

  13. Technology-Enabled Global Innovation/Collaboration

  We are seeking submissions from innovators, scholars, and industry professionals who are at the forefront of leveraging cutting-edge technologies to transform global collaboration and innovation practices. We welcome submissions exploring how emerging technologies are breaking down geographical barriers, fostering cross-cultural creativity, and accelerating product development across borders. Ideal submissions will offer practical insights, real-world case studies, and forward-thinking strategies that demonstrate the impact of these technologies on distributed team management, virtual collaboration, and international product development.

  Track Chairs: Goksel Yalcinkaya (University of New Hampshire, USA); Sengun Yeniyurt (Rutgers University, USA)

  14. Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Higher Education

  This track focuses on how innovation and entrepreneurship are conceptualized and delivered in higher education. We encourage submissions on curriculum development and novel pedagogical approaches that further the innovation and entrepreneurship teaching research agenda. Papers should include research to advance the education of innovation and entrepreneurship. Qualitative and quantitative research methods are equally welcome.

  Track Chairs: Angela Paladeno (University of Melbourne, Australia); Kanika Meshram (University of Melbourne, Australia).

Conference Co-Chairs

• Yazhen (Sophie) Xiao, Portland State University, USA

• Destan Kandemir, Georgia State University, USA

• Cheryl Nakata, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, USA

Conference Location 

• Marriott Marquis Chicago, Chicago, USA

Contact

• All questions about submissions should be emailed to the respective track chair for your submissions. Questions about the JPIM RF in general should be directed to the conference co-chairs (see above).