7th WU Symposium on International Business Communication
LANGUAGE(S) AND LANGUAGE PRACTICES IN BUSINESS AND THE ECONOMY
October 23-25, 2014
WU Vienna
Despite a "linguistic turn" in economics, management and organisation studies, it has been observed that "[c]ompanies deal with language issues every day, they cope, the world continues to turn. How they do so, however, remains largely absent from the literature." (Maclean 2006: 1377). In increasingly multilingual and multicultural societies, the same could be said to apply to questions of language and language practices in a range of different institutional contexts beyond multinational companies. This symposium aims to contribute to filling this gap. Thus, we provide a forum for dialogue between scholars in management, economics and sociology and linguists working on issues connected to language(s) and language practices in institutions and society. Presentations encompass a range of possible issues, including but not limited to:
- language use and the creation of economic reality
- language as a (hidden) economic variable
- language policy and planning in institutions
- language education and education policies
- language needs and language competences in organisations
- language, diversity and identity in the workplace
- multiculturalism, multilingualism and migration
Program
Program (pdf)
Thursday, 23 October
Building AD, Meeting Room AD.0.114
| 15:30 - 16:00 | Welcome & Registration |
| 16:00 - 16:15 | Opening |
| 16:15 - 17:00 | W. Ötsch (Kepler University Linz): How images and metaphors affect the economy: examples from the 18th century to present day Neo-liberalism Abstract |
| 17:00 - 18:30 | Plenary discussion: G. Grund, W. Ötsch, R. Pirker, R. Rathmayr |
| 18:30 | Reception |
Friday, 24 October
Building AD, Meeting Room AD.0.114
| 09:30 - 10:10 | Welcome & Registration |
| 10:10 - 10:50 | R. Göke (WU Vienna): France - the new sick man of Europe. Metaphors and metonymies in media discourse about the economic crisis Abstract |
| 10:50 - 11:30 | S. Jaworska (University of Reading): Why did no one notice it? The discourse of ignorance in the British media reporting on the global financial crisis 2009-2011 Abstract |
| 11:30 - 11:50 | Coffee |
| 11:50 - 12:30 | V. Efremov (Herzen State Pedagogical University): Economic crisis through the lens of political discourse Abstract |
| 12:30 - 13:10 | R. Backhouse & V. Halsmayer (University of Birmingham, University of Vienna): Mathematics and the language of economics Abstract Slides |
| 13:10 - 14:30 | Lunch |
| 14:30 - 15:30 | Guided campus tour |
| 15:30 - 16:10 | S. Lesk (WU Vienna): The role of human resource management in language policies of multilingual SMEs Abstract |
| 16:10 - 16:50 | T. Garstenauer (WU Vienna): Foreign language use and language management in company locations in Russia Abstract |
| 16:50 - 17:30 | E. Barakos (WU Vienna): Language policy as social and discursive practice - a critical examination Abstract |
| 18:30 | Dinner |
Saturday, 25 October
Learning Centre LC, Clubroom LC.1.300
| 10:00 - 10:40 | F. Fahlbusch (University of Mainz): The good name as an asset: The communicative dimension of company names Abstract Slides |
| 10:40 - 11:20 | H. Wochele (University of Jena/WU Vienna): Hello! Money: Strategies applied by European banks to brand their financial products (current accounts) Abstract |
| 11:20 - 12:00 | A. Rocci (University of Lugano): The role of requests of confirmation of inference in earnings conference calls Abstract |
| 12:00 - 13:00 | Lunch |
| 13:00 - 13:40 | C. Williams (Cardiff University): Language strategies, institutional competence and the limits of regulatory provisions Abstract Slides |
| 13:40 - 14:20 | A. Hechtl (WU Vienna): Russian as a lingua franca in Central Asian business communication Abstract |
| 14:20 - 15:00 | R. Piekkari (Aalto University): Taking language seriously: The Multinational Corporation as a Multilingual Corporation Abstract Slides |
| 15:00 - 15:15 | Closing Remarks & Summing-up |
Organizers:
Thomas S. Rankin (Institute for English Business Communication)
Fiorenza Fischer (Institute for Romance Languages)
Tatiana Stadler (Institute or Slavic Languages)
Elisabeth Peters (Department for Foreign Language Business Communication)