Experts gather from around the world for labor and accounting conference at UB

By Jacqueline Molik Ghosen

BUFFALO, N.Y. — The University at Buffalo School of Management hosted the fourth annual Labor and Accounting Group Conference April 18-20, bringing together leading academic researchers to discuss topics at the intersection of labor economics and accounting. 

Organizers welcomed 60 attendees from around the globe, including Singapore, the United Kingdom, Canada and across the U.S., to share current research from a quickly growing field. 

Topics included how technological investments in accounting are shaping the demand for accountants; how the current shortage in accountants is impairing efficient resource allocation; the effect of gender diversity in boards of directors on women’s employment outcomes; and the roles of expertise and teamwork on firm performance. 

Presenters and participants ranged from established leaders in accounting research at such prestigious institutions as MIT, Stanford, Cornell and University of Pennsylvania to doctoral students, giving attendees the opportunity to network and share knowledge across experience levels. 

Participants from outside the area got a taste of what the Buffalo Niagara region has to offer, including the city’s famous wings, dinner in Silo City and a trip to Niagara Falls. 

Michael Dambra, associate professor, and Brandon Szerwo, assistant professor, organized the event. Szerwo and Joshua Khavis, assistant professor, served on the program committee to select the conference’s content. All three are in the School of Management’s Accounting and Law Department.

Previously, the conference has been hosted by Stanford University, Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Texas at Dallas. 

“Bringing together distinguished scholars and emerging researchers from around the world enriches our academic communities,” says Ananth Iyer, dean of the School of Management. “It also fosters innovative solutions to pressing challenges in the field.”