Updates on the 2026 SIOP Annual Conference

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Plans for the 2026 SIOP Annual Conference are coming to fruition. One of the most important parts of a scientific meeting such as ours is the creation of a program covering peer-reviewed science and practical insights. The Program Committee has begun creating the program for the New Orleans conference. The Call for Proposals was launched this summer with an October 8, 2025, deadline for submitting proposals. A total of 1,259 proposals were received, a healthy number consistent with recent years (1,230 for the 2023 conference in Boston, 1,466 for 2024 in Chicago, and 1,368 for 2025 in Denver).

The Program Trio (consisting of the Past Program Chair, Program Chair, and Program Chair-in-Training) and SIOP staff have made several changes in the past 2 years to the submission process. We are now in our second year of using a new program system for submitting proposals, conducting peer reviews, and scheduling sessions. The system worked well, with only a few issues submitting proposals. Most were due to forgotten passwords1 and slow uploads of proposal files due to high traffic on the system just before the deadline. Submitters were automatically signed up to be peer reviewers for the conference (although they had the option of opting out due to unavailability). This, along with a separate reviewer sign-up for nonsubmitters, led to a healthy pool of reviewers. In total, 1,091 individuals signed up. The number of content areas for proposals was also reduced, and the content areas were broadened.

The new system, automatic enrollment of submitters as reviewers, and the shorter list of content areas allowed the Program Trio to improve the assignment of proposals to reviewers. The new system used an algorithm to assign submissions to reviewers. The algorithm matched the reviewers to proposals based on the content areas a proposal covered and the content areas reviewers indicated they had expertise in. All proposals were assigned to at least one reviewer (oftentimes more) with expertise in the content area. During the sign-up process, prospective reviewers are asked several questions to gauge their expertise in conducting peer reviews (e.g., whether they have served on an editorial board). Responses to these questions are used to identify expert reviewers. Most proposals have one or more expert reviewers. The number of student reviewers assigned to each proposal is limited to one. Each proposal was assigned to three to five reviewers, and most reviewers were assigned five submissions. Reviewers were assigned their proposals on October 22 with a November 14 deadline.

After the deadline, the SIOP Program Trio determines whether any proposals did not receive enough reviews (due to, for example, reviewers failing to provide reviews). Those proposals are then assigned to emergency reviewers. In December, the Program Trio uses the reviews obtained to make acceptance/rejection decisions and build the program. The Program Trio will use the new program system to create a balanced program that better curates content areas by room location, date, and time. Acceptance and rejection notifications will be sent to submitters in early January.

In addition to managing the peer-reviewed portion of the SIOP program, the Program Committee also manages a small number of invited sessions organized by several subcommittees that then invite speakers and facilitators. Any SIOP attendee can attend these sessions. The Special Sessions Subcommittee (led by Liana Kreamer) is planning sessions on exploring in- versus extra-role behavior through film, revenge at work, why employees in toxic workplaces remain in their positions, well-being fatigue, and boundary issues for remote and hybrid workers. The Communities of Interest (COI) Subcommittee (led by Michelle Martin-Raugh) is organizing 12 COIs, covering topics such as using artificial intelligence in assessment development and scoring, artificial intelligence gone wrong, balancing privacy and people analytics, invisible labor at work, and dealing with employee strain amid workplace stressors, among others. The Competitions and Awards Subcommittee (led by Mariel Reynolds) will facilitate seven sessions featuring some of the winners of the 2025 SIOP Awards (see the SIOP Salutes brochure for a sneak peek of some of the presentations at https://www.siop.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/2025_SIOP_Salutes.pdf) and the 2026 Dunnette Prize. These sessions are a great way to hear about cutting-edge advances in the field and to meet and learn from SIOP members being recognized for their achievements. The 2026 SIOP Machine Learning Competition and the Student Consulting Challenge will also take place this year and will be featured in two sessions. In addition, the SIOP Executive Board (EB) and Alliance for Organizational Psychology (AOP) are planning invited sessions. The EB is planning sessions on the ethical use of artificial intelligence in practice settings, equal employment opportunity experts’ thoughts on artificial intelligence in the workplace, the shifting higher education landscape, and a practitioner needs workshop. The AOP is planning sessions on decent work, worker well-being research (in collaboration with the Society for Organizational Health Psychology), and designing human–artificial intelligence collaboration.

The Conference Committee has also been hard at work planning for the conference, which will take place from April 30 to May 2 in New Orleans. This is SIOP’s third trip to New Orleans. The first New Orleans conference was in 2000, the second in 2009. The 2009 conference included the signing ceremony for the AOP, which has continued to today and will sponsor several invited sessions at the 2026 conference (as mentioned above).2 SIOP attendees also provided volunteer services in response to Hurricane Katrina and made over a school library. Both previous New Orleans conferences were held in hotels; this will be SIOP’s first gathering at a convention center in New Orleans.

In addition to the main program of symposia, practitioner forums, panel discussions, and posters, there will be a full schedule of more in–depth events. On Wednesday, April 29, Preconference Workshops offer 10 half-day sessions providing an opportunity to get in-depth presentations by leading experts on important current issues. The Research Community Forums are where people with similar interests can interact to share knowledge, explore new ideas, and enhance collaboration. SIOP’s Consortia are tailored to help you connect with other I-Os as you explore the different stages of professional and career development. Friday Seminars (Friday, May 1) are an interactive dive into the latest I-O psychology topics where you can learn from leading scholars and practitioners in the field. Both the workshops and Friday Seminars offer CE credit.

The conference won’t be all work. The Welcome Reception after the Opening Plenary is a place to reconnect with old friends or meet some new ones. SIOP’s Got Talent and an Art Exhibition will allow you to showcase your artistic skills. Or check out Networking for Introverts to get tips on building your professional network. Finally, close out your conference at our New Orlean-themed Closing Reception.

We’re working hard to make the 41^st Annual SIOP Conference in New Orleans the best ever. We hope to see you there!

Notes

1  The Program Committee and SIOP staff are pursuing the use of a single sign-on for future years, which would allow SIOP members to automatically be signed into the submission site after logging into siop.org.

2  Julia Haas, the chair of the Conference Committee for AOP, provided the following description of the AOP for any readers who are unfamiliar with it:

AOP is a federation of global industrial, work, and organizational psychology associations. Established in 2009 by Division 1 of the IAAP, SIOP, and EAWOP, AOP has since expanded to include C-SIOP, SBPOT, and APS. AOP’s special conference sessions are designed to showcase globally relevant topics, bring together contributors with international perspectives, and explore high-interest themes that resonate across cultures and professional communities. These sessions highlight emerging trends and shared challenges facing I-O psychologists worldwide.