Financial communication has been studied by a variety of disciplines in the past decades, including communication research (e.g, Laskin, 2011; Hoffmann, 2023; Palmieri, 2009; Strauss, 2019; etc.), accounting (e.g., Jack et al., 2013), applied linguistics/discourse studies (e.g., Whitehouse et al. 2018; Rocci et al., 2015), education (e.g., Silgoner et al., 2015), law, and others.

Even within these disciplines, the topic of financial communication is researched from a range of perspectives and approaches. For example, in communication research, financial communication is considered a form of strategic communication, but also understood as a function of public relations practice.

In practice, financial communication is usually situated within the communication department, the investor relations department, or is integrated across both. Additional departments like accounting and finance, legal, or sustainability contribute substantially to financial disclosures and other financial communication outputs to enable information transmission within the legally mandatory and possible. Scholarly approaches to financial communication have so far mostly taken formal and functional approaches, analyzing, e.g., professional field, practices, etc., and valuation effects. Additionally, some exceptions investigated strategic concepts, such as narratives or storytelling, in relation to financial communication. Hence, both the practice and study of financial communication are not only intra-, inter-, and transdisciplinary but also scattered across disciplines.

With this conference, we try to establish a network by bringing scholars with a multitude of perspectives and approaches vis-à-vis financial communication together, to promote the exchange within and across disciplines, and foster the collaboration between academia and practice. Looking forward to keynote speeches, oral presentations, workshops, and practitioner panels, we welcome the participation of researchers and practitioners from various disciplines interested in financial communication.

The 2025 Interdisciplinary Conference on Financial Communication Research will be held from July 14th to 16th, 2025. It will be hosted by the Department of Business Communication at WU Vienna University of Economics and Business in Vienna, Austria.

The conference focuses on bridging the diverse perspectives within the intra-, inter-, and transdisciplinary research field of financial communication. It aims to encourage a dynamic dialogue between different disciplines within academia and practice, enrich a collective understanding of the field, and stimulate innovative interdisciplinary research approaches by offering space for the convergence of ideas and expertise. Therefore, the objectives of the conference are:

• The first objective of this conference is to discuss the study of financial communication. In particular, we aim to explore ways in which content-based, instrument-focused, and management-oriented approaches can be combined to develop a strategic perspective to financial communication, accounting for textual-rhetorical, instrumental, and the organizational dynamics. This could include, among other things:

  • Looking at discourse-rhetorical dynamics from a strategic perspective, going beyond the analysis of the ‘language of finance’ in a particular corpus or the context-insensitive detection of textual signals to predict stock market events by deploying, e.g., rigorous discourse/rhetorical-analytic methods or communication methods.

  • Explaining crucial strategic dynamics related to value creation, trust, reputation, identity, and culture.

  • Analyzing the impact of strategic communication on financial market events.

  • Formulating recommendations for more effective, sound, and ethical financial communication strategies. Developing such a strategic and con-textualized perspective to financial discourse is crucial to build an integrated, unitary and holistic understanding of the financial communication/investor relation function, not limited to the management of communicative relations and processes.

• The second objective of the conference is to advance the theorizing of financial communication. At present, there is no comprehensive theory of financial communication. Is such an integrated theoretical perspective desirable, or even possible? Can social science, management, and discourse-rhetorical approaches be bridged to build a unitary perspective?

• The third objective of this conference is to highlight distinct methodological approaches to the study of financial communication, to identify synergies between distinct approaches, explore opportunities for mixed-methods approaches, and discuss common challenges in the study of financial communication (such as confidentiality, access to elite audiences, limited sample sizes, ethnography, etc.).

• Lastly, the conference aims to foster the inter- and transdisciplinary community of researchers and practitioners working at the intersection of financial communication and investor relations, bringing together theoretical, methodological, and practical perspectives from a variety of disciplines and practices.

In the spirit of continuing the rich dialogue and scholarly exchange from the Interdisciplinary Conference on Financial Communication Research, we intend to publish an edited handbook expanding upon the innovative research presented at the conference. This edited volume seeks to consolidate and extend the theoretical and practical insights generated by the conference, providing a lasting contribution to the field of financial communication and investor relations.

Selected conference participants will be invited to develop their research papers into comprehensive book chapters, incorporating rigorous analysis, illustrative case studies, and actionable recommendations. To bridge the gap between theory and practice, every chapter will include a case study that illuminates and expands upon the theoretical arguments presented in their conference papers. The case studies should provide a nuanced understanding of real-world challenges and opportunities in financial communication, demonstrating the practical relevance and applicability of the research findings.

We plan on scheduling a chapter development workshop during the conference for those interested and invited to contribute a chapter to this edited volume. We welcome chapter proposals on a wide range of topics related to financial communication and investor relations, reflecting the diversity of research presented at the conference. These may include but are not limited to:

• Corporate disclosure and transparency

• Investor relations strategies and tactics

• The role of social media in financial communication

• Crisis communication and reputation management

• Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reporting

• The impact of regulation on financial communication

• Cross-cultural and international perspectives

• Technological innovations such as AI or VR

• Decentralized approaches to finance and investments

For the 2025 Interdisciplinary Conference on Financial Communication Research, we invite submissions that align with the conference goals mentioned above. We accept submissions from all disciplines.

We welcome extended abstracts with no more than 1,000 words, including references, that can include the following:

• Title: A clear and concise title that reflects the core focus of the research.

• Introduction: A brief overview of the research topic, highlighting its relevance and significance to the field of financial communication.

• Theoretical Framework: A description of the theoretical lens or framework guiding the research, outlining its key concepts and propositions.

• Methodology: A concise explanation of the research methods employed, including data collection and analysis techniques.

• (Preliminary) Findings: A summary of the key findings, highlighting their novelty and potential impact. Research that is still in progress at the time of the submission must be completed by the time of the conference.

• Discussion: A critical analysis of the findings, discussing their implications for theory, practice, and future research.

• Case Study (Optional): A brief overview of a potential case study that could be used to illustrate the practical relevance of the research.

• Conclusion: A summary of the main points and a restatement of the re-search's contribution to the field.

Submissions should be prepared in 12-point font, double-spaced, with 1” margins on all sides.

Please make sure to submit your abstract stripped of any identifying information, such as author names or affiliations.

Extended abstracts (or any other version of them, such as full papers) must not have been previously submitted or presented at other conferences or publishers. All submissions will undergo a double-blind peer review process. Submissions not following the submission guidelines will not be reviewed.

The submission platform opens on December 1st, 2024. All abstracts should be submitted by January 31st, 2025, 11:59 p.m. CET online via ConfTool.

Please find more information for the conference on our website. If you have further questions, you can contact us via email at fincomm2025@wu.ac.at

Registration Fee Includes

• Scientific program

• Welcome reception and get-together

• Coffee Breaks

• Lunches

• January 31, 2025: Deadline for abstracts

• March 02, 2025: Feedback/decisions on acceptance of abstracts

• March 02, 2025: Registration begins

• March 02, 2025: Preliminary program is published

• May 30, 2025: Registration ends

• July 14, 2025: Conference begins

Organizing Committee

• Julia Della Mea, WU Vienna University of Economics and Business

• Laura Hackl, WU Vienna University of Economics and Business

• Elisabeth Peters, WU Vienna University of Economics and Business

• Elisabeth Rubak, WU Vienna University of Economics and Business

• Jens Seiffert-Brockmann, WU Vienna University of Economics and Business

Scientific Committee

• Sandra Binder-Tietz, Leipzig University

• Christian Hoffmann, Leipzig University

• Alexander Laskin, Quinnipiac University

• Rudi Palmieri, University of Liverpool

• Andrea Rocci, Università della Svizzera italiana

• Nadine Strauß, University Zurich

• Marlies Whitehouse, Zurich University of Applied Sciences