Research on psychological contracts has enhanced our understanding of the unwritten expectations and mutual obligations that shape the employment relationship.

Today, the world of work is evolving rapidly. Advances in technology and the wide-scale implementation of AI in the workplace, globalization, and the continued rise of gig, hybrid, and remote work are transforming not only how people work, but the nature of work relationships themselves. As a result, the relevance of psychological contracts is no longer confined to traditional employment but increasingly extends beyond organizational boundaries to include workers with different relationships to organizations (e.g., freelancers, subcontractors, and volunteers) as well as broader sets of stakeholders (e.g., family and communities) within and beyond work organizations. Indeed, there is an emergence of a psychological contract literature that exists outside of employment settings (e.g., organizations and customers, travel agencies and tourists, doctors and patients). Such relational dynamics may or may not be explicitly framed as psychological contracts, yet nonetheless they may inform psychological contract theorizing and practical impact.

In this changing landscape, questions of ethics, inclusion, and collective wellbeing are becoming central. How are psychological contracts negotiated and maintained in more fluid and less formalized contexts? How do diversity, equity, and inclusion shape reciprocity in these relationships? What responsibilities do organizations and institutions hold in supporting not only individuals, but broader communities? We suggest the following themes but also welcome submissions focused on other questions and investigations related to psychological contracts.

Ethics, Care, and Responsible Contracting

• How can an ethics-of-care perspective enrich our understanding of psychological contract formation, fulfillment, breach, and repair?
• What role do ethics-centered HR systems and practices play in shaping psychological contract fulfillment, and how do they influence employee behaviors such as knowledge sharing, knowledge hiding, citizenship, and innovation?
• How do employees respond when they perceive a gap between an organization's espoused ethical values and its enacted obligations — and when does this lead to perceptions of psychological contract breach?

Inclusion, Fairness and Belonging in the Psychological Contract

• In what ways do people's cultural backgrounds and social identities shape the content of their psychological contracts and their responses to breach and repair efforts?
• How can organizations design psychological contracts that are genuinely inclusive, and what HR practices support the development of high-quality contracts across diverse employee populations?
• How do diversity-related psychological contract breaches — for example, unmet expectations around equitable treatment, belonging, or voice — affect employee outcomes such as turnover intention, engagement, and identity?

Collective, Relational, and Societal Dimensions of the Psychological Contract

• How do psychological contracts intersect with broader societal and community wellbeing — and what collective obligations, if any, do organizations hold beyond their direct workforce?
• What does it mean for a work group or professional community to hold a psychological contract, and how do shared perceptions of breach within teams amplify or buffer individual-level responses to unmet obligations?
• What steps can all forms of stakeholders take to ensure sustainable exchange relationships over time?

This small group conference will provide a forum for invigorating debate and the exchange of ideas. We invite extended abstract submissions that will explore these and related questions to advance the study of psychological contracts in and beyond employment. We welcome empirical and conceptual papers, interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary research, quantitative, qualitative, or mixed-method approaches.

Submission Deadline:          December 1, 2026

Date of Conference:              April 5-6, 2027

Venue:                                    Auckland University of Technology (AUT), Auckland, New Zealand

* Note: Virtual attendance will be available although we emphasize that sessions will follow the host time zone: New Zealand Standard Time (NZST).

Monday 5^th April in Auckland (NZST) is Sunday 4^th April for most other countries.

9am NZST is the previous day 5pm EDT or 11pm CEST.  We will endeavor to schedule virtual participants for times that suit their time zone, but please appreciate this constraint.

Meeting Format

This small group conference will take place over two days (April 5^th and 6^th 2027) at the Auckland University of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand. The program will include a keynote speaker, traditional paper presentations, digital poster presentations, virtual paper presentations, an incubator session, a collaborative output session, and plentiful networking opportunities.

More information in the attached file.

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We welcome conceptual, qualitative, quantitative and mixed-methods research addressing topics including:
• Scaling as an organizational transformation process
• Leadership, organizational design and human capital
• Business model innovation, digital transformation and AI
• Entrepreneurial ecosystems and external enablers
• Family business and SME scaling
• International scaling
• Sustainable growth, resilience and persistent high performance

Submission deadline: 3 November 2026 (submission window opens two weeks prior).

The Special Issue is edited by Afsaneh Bagheri, Vanessa Bretas, Christian Felzensztein, Justin Jansen, and Simon Raby.

We encourage colleagues working in entrepreneurship, strategic management, innovation, small business, family business and international business to consider submitting their work.

See pdf for more detail.

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Social, ecological, and economic sustainability, as a grand societal goal, necessitates cross-sectoral coordination among diverse actors, including firms, NGOs, governments, and local communities (Bansal & Song, 2017). The IONs in which firms and other organizations participate form the relational fabric through which sustainability strategies can be designed, implemented, and scaled (Albino et al., 2012; Parmigiani & Rivera-Santos, 2011; Helfen et al., 2018; Sydow et al., 2022). These relationships are governed through combinations of formal structures (contracts, rules, standards) and informal mechanisms (trust, shared norms, and relational learning), both of which are essential for enabling collaboration on sustainability challenges that are often long-term, uncertain, and systemic (Dacin et al., 2007; Schaltegger et al., 2016; Windsperger, 2013).

Emerging research underscores the pivotal role of ION governance in advancing sustainability objectives, particularly where complex, cross-boundary coordination of more often than not multiple types of organizations is required (Blomberg et al., 2023; Schöggl et al., 2024). Different governance forms—such as participant-governed, lead-organization, or network administrative models—vary in suitability based on levels of trust, consensus, and the need for centralized coordination (Provan & Kenis, 2008; Van Den Oord et al., 2023). These structures influence decision-making authority, accountability systems, and the distribution of sustainability-related risks and benefits. Effective governance in these networks involves developing capabilities such as mutual adjustment, shared information systems, and cross-organizational routines, which together enhance collective environmental action (Wegner & Verschoore, 2022).
Firms can co-create sustainability value through inter-organizational trust, joint sense-making, and knowledge sharing (Dyer & Singh, 1998; Suchek & Franco, 2024). High-trust networks enable deeper collaboration, as seen in circular economy initiatives and regenerative practices, while weak ties often facilitate eco-innovation by exposing firms to diverse sustainability logics (Uzzi, 2018; Vurro et al., 2009). Governance is especially critical in global supply networks (Dimitropoulos et al., 2023), where formal controls like certification must be complemented by relational mechanisms to manage institutional and cultural diversity (Jell-Ojobor & Raha, 2022; Kano, 2018).

As IONs increasingly pursue complex sustainability goals, digital technologies can shape how collaboration unfolds (Zhou et al., 2024). The rise of digital ecosystems, platform-based coordination, and data-driven decision-making requires IONs to adapt their structures, processes, and roles to remain resilient and effective. Accordingly, the interplay between digitalization and ION governance is becoming a critical factor in enabling sustainability transitions.

Amid this shift from the productivity-focused Industry 4.0 paradigm to the more sustainability-oriented Industry 5.0 (Luo & Zahra, 2023), digital transformation can serve as both an enabler and a disruptor of sustainability efforts. Technologies such as AI, big data analytics, IoT, and blockchain offer powerful tools for reducing emissions, increasing supply chain transparency, and advancing circular economy models
(Jell-Ojobor et al., 2025; Zhou et al., 2024).

While digital transformation has received significant attention in the literature, less is known about how digital tools are integrated—or resisted—within multi-actor governance structures aimed at delivering environmental, social, and economic value. Digitalization presents governance challenges for IONs, including decentralized coordination due to a high level of standardization and blurred accountability
-Ojobor & Kramer, 2022; Lumineau et al., 2021). At the same time, it
opens up new forms of inter-organizational collaboration, including cooperation among competitors pursuing shared sustainability goals (He et al., 2020; Windsperger et al., 2025).

Effective ION governance is therefore essential to navigate competing logics, manage power asymmetries, and respond to evolving institutional demands (Pitelis & Runde, 2017; Smith & Lewis, 2011). Yet, despite growing interest, research on how digital transformation influences ION governance and sustainability outcomes remains limited.
This Special Issueamong loosely connected actors (Jellt explore how IONs are governed in pursuit of sustainability and how these governance mechanisms adapt under the pressures of digital transformation.

We welcome both theoretical and empirical papers that can make a strong contribution and address, but are not limited to, the following research questions:
• What existing or emerging theoretical perspectives can best explain IONs whose governance structures are shaped by sustainability imperatives?
• How do existing inter-organizational relations influence the governance and effectiveness of sustainability-oriented networks?
• What governance designs effectively mitigate power asymmetries and promote equitable value distribution in cross-sector sustainability partnerships?
• What role does meta-governance (e.g., orchestration by third parties or institutional intermediaries)
play in aligning fragmented sustainability efforts across diverse IONs?
• Which combinations of formal and informal governance mechanisms are most effective in fostering learning, innovation, and sustainability outcomes across IONs?
• In what ways do trust, reciprocity, and shared values contribute to the resilience and performance of sustainability-focused collaborations?
• How do varying sustainability logics and orientations among network partners influence governance choices and network-level outcomes?
• How do tensions between economic competitiveness and collective sustainability goals manifest and get managed within digitally enabled IONs?
• How do dynamic capabilities support firms in reconfiguring inter-organizational relations in general and IONs in particular in response to evolving sustainability goals and environmental complexity?
• How do inter-organizational governance mechanisms evolve in response to shifting or drifting sustainability agendas, regulatory landscapes, or socio-political pressures?
• In what ways can digital technologies (e.g., blockchain, AI, IoT) enhance transparency,
coordination, and sustainability performance within inter-organizational governance frameworks?
• How does digital transformation reshape governance mechanisms—such as control, monitoring, and more trust-based relationship management—across vertical, horizontal, or concentric dimensions of sustainability-oriented networks? Who benefits, and who may be disadvantaged in digitally transformed IONs?
• What governance risks and unintended consequences does digital transformation pose for sustainability-focused IONs?
• How can inter-organizational governance structures enable or accelerate circular economy transitions within supply chains and broader ecosystems?
• How do cultural and institutional differences across countries shape the governance of transnational sustainability-oriented IONs?
• What roles do external institutions (e.g., governments, NGOs, consumers) play in shaping the governance and legitimacy of IONs pursuing sustainability objectives?
• What metrics or evaluative frameworks are most effective for assessing governance quality and sustainability performance in complex inter-organizational ecosystems?

2. Submission Process
Submission of papers should take place from 15 August 2026 to 30 September 2026. Manuscripts should be prepared following EMR’s author guidelines and submitted via the online system. To ensure that all manuscripts are correctly identified for consideration for this SI, authors must select SI: “Governance of Inter-organizational Networks for Sustainability in the Digital Era” when they reach the “Article Type” step in the submission process. All submitted manuscripts will be subject to EMR’s double blind review process. Submitting for the SI does not preclude submitting a paper for any other conference.
Questions about the Special Issue may be directed to the guest editors Dr. Maria Jell-Ojobor (maria.jellojobor@johncabot.edu) and Dr. Aveed Raha (aveed.raha@univie.ac.at).

3. Guest Editors
The guest editorial team brings substantial research expertise in the thematic areas addressed by the Special Issue. They possess valuable experience as reviewers and have previously served as editors for special issues in leading journals such as the European Journal of International Management, Industrial Marketing Management, Managerial and Decision Economics, Organization Studies, Project Management Journal, and Regional Studies. In addition, they have published several books on network economics and management. The team also plays a key role in the academic community as founding members and organizers of prominent international conferences, including ISOF and EMNet.

Maria Jell-Ojobor (maria.jellojobor@johncabot.edu) is an Associate Professor of International Business at Frank J. Guarini School of Business at John Cabot University in Rome, Italy. Her research focuses on network governance, strategy, and internationalization.

Aveed Raha (aveed.raha@univie.ac.at) is a senior lecturer and research associate at the Faculty of Business, Economics and Statistics at the University of Vienna, Austria. His research centers on corporate sustainability and business ethics, with a particular focus on their application within the context of international business.

Jörg Sydow (joerg.sydow@fu-berlin.de) is a Professor of Management and was Chair for Inter-firm Cooperation at the School of Business & Economics of Freie Universität Berlin, Germany. His research focuses on the governance and practices of interorganizational networks as well as on those of temporary organizing.

Josef Windsperger (josef.windsperger@univie.ac.at) is Professor of International Business at the Faculty of Business, Economics and Statistics at the University of Vienna, Austria. His main research fields are economics and management of networks, theory of the firm, and international market entry.

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