Shillong, Jan. 28: IIM Shillong hosted the 4th edition of the International Marketing Conference (iMarC IV), an event that has established itself as a confluence of the brightest minds in marketing academia and industry. Held under the theme “Bridging the Gap Between Marketing Theory and Practice: Infusion, Inclusion, and Integration,” the four-day conference brought together global experts to address cutting-edge marketing challenges and innovations.
The Best Paper Awards, recognizing exceptional research contributions were awarded as follows:
Mayank Nagpal (IIM Bangalore) for From Words to Metric: Measuring Digitalization from Corporate Reports. Sidharth Ramsinghaney (Twilio, United States) for Breaking the Scale Barrier: AI-Driven Customer Engagement Insights from Organizations Processing 12.1 Trillion Interactions. Alokparna Das (IIM Indore) for The Influence of Pricing over Product Classification:
Exploring the Hedonic-Utilitarian Continuum. Supported by the State Bank of India, Sunway Business School, Sunway University as the Knowledge Partner, and the IIMS Journal of Management Science as the Publication Partner, iMarC IV welcomed over 150 participants from across five countries, including the USA, Australia, Cameroon, Nepal and so on. With 219 submissions comprising 21 full papers and 198 abstracts, the event showcased 154 expertly curated documents, organized into thematic tracks that explored the ever-evolving marketing landscape.
While welcoming the participants, Prof. Bidyut Jyoti Gogoi, Conference e Chair said that,t the two-day conference should bring in include deliberations on theory and practice. At the same time, a thematiProf. Basav Roychowdhury, the dean of research at IIM Shillong, delivered an overview of the iMarCiMarC IV
The conference witnessed thought-provoking insights on Customer-Centric Marketing: Lessons from Industry and Academics by the esteemed panelist Shri Jagannath A.L., Director of Thoughtworks, and Shri Himanshu Shekhar Mishra, Senior Journalist at NDTV, moderated by Prof Pratap Chandra Mandal Luminaries from the global academic community delivered keynote addresses. Prof. Gerard and Dr. Christine Farias (Texas Tech University) discussed existential crises in business, while Dr. Subhadip Roy (IIM Ahmedabad) focused on qualitative research design. Prof. Dipayan Biswas (University of Florida) shared insights on publishing in top-tier journals, Dr. Sanjit Roy (Edith Cowan University) explored AI in relationship marketing, and Dr. Bipul Kumar (IIM Indore) examined the societal impact of marketing.
In total, iMarC IV featured 25 technical sessions, robust panel discussions, and unparalleled networking opportunities, bridging the gap between academic theories and real-world marketing applications.
