Our First 3-Day Conference: SIOP 2008 in San Francisco

SIOP made history at this year’s conference with our first 3-day conference. A number of significant changes were made to the conference and program, so we all held our collective breath to see how it turned out. By all accounts, the 2008 SIOP conference in San Francisco was a tremendous success. An on-site survey revealed very positive comments about the new conference and program format.

The conference was certainly far-reaching and diverse. We had 4,069 conference registrants (second in attendance only to last year’s record breaking turnout in New York). These attendees came from 44 countries outside of the U.S. Attendees had the opportunity to enjoy a mix of over 250 invited and peer-reviewed sessions, 650 posters, and 14 community of interest sessions that covered a great span of content areas.

If you were there, or even if you missed it, here’s a quick review of some of the key things that happened at the conference.

Wednesday

Suzanne Tsacoumis’s Workshop Committee put together a fabulous lineup of 15 workshops that were attended by more than 400 members. After the workshops, shrimp were enjoyed by all!

Jessica Bagger and Mark Frame hosted our 3rd Annual Junior Faculty Consortium, where new faculty members heard from some of the leaders in our field.

Ken Yusko and Suzanne Hawes put together another terrific panel for the Lee Hakel Industrial-Organizational Psychology Doctoral Consortium.

Dan Sachau developed and organized our second Master’s Student Consortium, which was enthusiastically received by 64 students currently enrolled in master’s programs.

Steven Rogelberg and Miguel Quiñones hosted a warm welcome reception for attendees who were new to the SIOP conference, complete with several rounds of speed networking.

More than 30 of our members enjoyed a tour of Levis Strauss.

Thursday

S. Douglas Pugh kicked off the conference bright and early at 8:00 a.m. with the start of the plenary session. Award Committee Chair Wendy Boswell announced 15 awards, grants, and scholarships received by our members, and Fellowship Chair George Hollenbeck announced our new SIOP Fellows. Next, Paul Thayer (a man who needs no introduction) gave us an update on the state of the SIOP Foundation. After Gary Latham’s introduction, which featured the Georgia State Alumni Choir and a sing-a-long with all attendees, Lois Tetrick presented her presidential address (which will be available in video format on the SIOP Web site). After the presidential address, Gary Latham announced the winners of this year’s elections: Tammy Allen, secretary; Suzanne Tsacoumis, member-at-large; and Kurt Kraiger, president. Steven Rogelberg closed the plenary session with an overview of the major changes made to the program format and the special program features of the San Francisco conference.

Thursday saw the debut of our new conference theme tracks. The first theme track, chaired by Peter Chen, was on individual–organizational health. It was a cutting-edge collection of engaging talks.

The International Affairs Committee hosted the International Members’ Reception.

The Committee on Ethnic Minority Affairs held its annual meeting and reception.

For the third year we highlighted the top-rated posters, S. Rains Wallace Award winner, and Flanagan award winners during the Friday evening all-conference evening reception.

Friday

Friday saw the Leading Edge track on innovation and the Leading Edge evening reception.

Lisa Penney and her Friday Seminar Committee hosted four well-received and well-attended sessions.

The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Committee and Allies meeting and reception were held on Friday. This year LGBT had a special silent auction during its evening reception for which all proceeds will be used to establish an LGBT Emerging Issues fund through the SIOP Foundation.

In the spirit of shared and collective governance, a track of governance and committee sessions occurred including a town hall meeting.

Paul Ekman and Jac Fitz-Enz gave incredible invited addresses.

Saturday

At 7:00 a.m., 213 members participated in this year’s Fun Run, once again hosted by Paul Sackett, Pat Sackett, and Kevin Williams. Bravo to Paul, Pat, and Kevin for getting that many people out of bed at such an hour following our Friday evening festivities.

The Saturday theme track, chaired by John Scott, took place. It covered the state of I-O education. The sessions were well attended, engaging, and impactful.

The conference culminated in the first-ever closing plenary session. Dr. Anthony Rucci gave an extremely interesting address about the core purpose of I-O psychology and the role of human dignity in organizational success. At the end of the plenary, Lois Tetrick passed the gavel to our incoming president Gary Latham who then announced his theme for next year’s conference, evidence-based management.

Immediately following the closing plenary, we enjoyed a California wine-tasting extravaganza with numerous wineries represented. Sipping a delicious variety of wine, listening to a terrific jazz combo, and tasting delectable treats such as sushi, brie puffs, and lamb was truly an event to remember and a great way to end an extraordinary conference.

Throughout the Conference

Thanks to Mindy Bergman and Larissa Linton, the Placement Center served 288 job seekers and 69 employers (several with multiple positions).

More than 100 student volunteers (a record number), coordinated by Joerg Dietz, made sure the conference ran smoothly by helping with many behind-the-scenes tasks including conference bag stuffing, sign deployment, registration, and the like.

Dave Nershi and the Administrative Office staff did their usual terrific job of keeping the conference on time, on track, and loads of fun.

Thanks to James LeBreton and his committee for helping to coordinate a record number of CE granting sessions.

Remember, if there’s a session you missed because there was just too much to do, check out the SIOP Web site. There, you will find streaming audio versions of the conference sessions and a video of Lois’s presidential address.

See you in New Orleans!