Mini-Tracks

21 – 23 March 2024

 “The best way to predict the future is to create it.” – Abraham Lincoln

Mini Track Chair:

  • Giani GRĂDINARU, The Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Romania

  • Adriana DAVIDESCU, The Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Romania

The explosion of Big Data and the rapid advancements in AI have revolutionized how businesses process information and make decisions. Making swift conclusions based on observed patterns is tempting in such a data-rich environment. Still, the age-old challenge of differentiating between causation and correlation becomes even more critical. Without a clear understanding of causality, organizations might misinterpret data, leading to misinformed strategies and missed opportunities in innovation management. Conversely, by accurately identifying causal relationships within vast datasets, companies can anticipate market shifts, tailor their products or services more effectively, and drive transformative innovations. In the intricate dance of data-driven decision-making, grasping the nuances of causality ensures that organizations are not merely reacting to data but strategically harnessing it to spearhead meaningful and sustainable change. 

The next wave of Big Data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) will focus on extracting deep structure from observed systems. Built upon the rapid development of existing data and AI technologies, topics such as multi-level evolving knowledge graphs, causal reasoning, and explanation-based modelling will result in solutions far more efficient than those currently possible. 

The main topics covered by the hereby call for papers are related to:

  • Establishing causality vs. Correlation in Big Data

  • Machine Learning for Causal Inference: Techniques and Challenges

  • Counterfactual Reasoning in AI: Predicting Outcomes in Innovation Scenarios

  • The Role of Causality in Predictive Analytics: Enhancing Innovation Strategy Formulation

  • Instrumental Variables in Big Data: A Tool for Causal Insights in Market Innovations

  • AI-driven Causal Modeling for Decision-making in R&D Investments

  • Temporal Causality Analysis in Time-Series Data: Predicting Technological Trends and Innovations

  • Granger Causality in the Age of AI: Analyzing Lagging Innovations in Markets

  • Structural Causal Models in AI: Building Transparent and Reliable Innovation Forecasts

  • Causality in Complex Systems: Network Effects and Innovations in the Digital Era

  • Big Data Causality Challenges: From Confounding Variables to Missing Data in Innovation Research

  • Scalable Probabilistic Reasoning: Causal Inferences in Big Data-Driven Innovation Ecosystems

  • Causality in the Construction of Evolving Knowledge Graphs: Implications for Predictive Innovation Strategies

  • New perspectives in the lifecycle management of the innovation ecosystem

Giani Gradinaru is a Full Professor at the Department of Statistics and Econometrics of the Bucharest University of Economic Studies Romania and senior researcher at the Institute of National Economy, Romania Academy. His general area of expertise is quantitative models, focusing on environmental statistics, economy-environment interdependence, bioeconomy, circular economy, green digital transformation, energy efficiency and sustainable smart urban development. The relevant scientific contributions were realized through: the foundation of the Romanian environmental statistical system; statistical information system for environmental impact assessment; synthetic ecosystem risk index, public platform for the dissemination of environmental information at the level of the entire society, platform for the quantification of ecosystem services on the Romania territory, solutions for Romania regarding the manifestation of the rebound effect, support for the development of the circular economy in Romania. He carried out a constant activity in the management of research projects. He was selected as an expert evaluator in the following project programs: UEFISCDI, PNRR SmartLab projects, UEFISCDI – completed projects, PNIII – Human Resources Program, PNII – Partnership Program, PNII – Program Ideas, Department of Economic Research BUES.

Adriana AnaMaria Davidescu is a Full Professor at the Department of Statistics and Econometrics, Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Romania. She is the Head of the Data Science Research Lab, specialising in applications for business and economics, and a senior researcher at the Department of Labour Market Policies of the National Scientific Research Institute for Labour and Social Protection. With over 17 years of experience in socio-economic research, she has been deeply involved in various analytical pursuits.For over 17 years, she has delved into informality issues at both national and international levels. She has led various national research projects and served as a senior expert for the European Commission, specifically for the European Platform that addresses Undeclared Work. Prof. Davidescu possesses extensive expertise in the evaluation of public projects and programs. Her prowess in project team management is evident, having coordinated more than 14 national projects and played a pivotal role as a senior expert in over 50 national and international endeavours. She has showcased her expertise in counterfactual methods during the assessment process, especially in empirically testing causal chains in interventions related to the Operational Program Competitiveness 2014-2020 Evaluation Plan, the Human Capital Operational Program 2014-2020 Evaluation, and the Partnership Agreement Evaluation Plan. She held the esteemed position of a modelling key expert. She served as the team leader for the Operational Program Competitiveness 2014-2020 Evaluation Plan, focusing on evaluating POC interventions in research, development, and innovation. Additionally, she was a senior modelling expert, instrumental in assessing the impact of interventions for both the Human Capital Operational Program 2014-2020 Evaluation Plan and the Partnership Agreement Evaluation Plan, with an emphasis on economic, social, and territorial cohesion.

Publication Opportunities:

The conference is organized by Society for Business Excellence and Faculty of Business Administration in Foreign Languages on the 21-23 of March 2024 at The Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Faculty of Business Administration in Foreign Languages (FABIZ) in partnership with the Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Economics (EAM) and the Faculty of International Economic Relations (REI). 

The papers accepted at ICBE 2024 will be published in the conference proceedings, subject to author registration, payment, and presentation. The papers will be published in the Conference Proceedings volume under the German Publishing House De Gruyter and they will be indexed in EBSCO, Proquest, ExLibris, OCLC, Google Scholar, Microsoft Academic, CELDES, CNPIE, Naviga, and will be submitted to Thomson Reuters ISI Web of Science (WOS) Conference Proceedings Citation Index (https://content.sciendo.com/view/journals/picbe/picbe-overview.xml

The last 7 editions of the Proceedings of the ICBE volumes have been indexed in ISI Web of Science.

Submitted papers will be also considered for publishing under Springer Proceedings in Business and Economics, series indexed by Scopus and ISI. Here you can access the last the edition published following ICBE2022:  https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-19886-1  

In addition, the best three Papers (Best paper Award Management&Marketing) will be published in the international journal Management & Marketing. Challenges for the Knowledge Society by De Gruyter Open, indexed in Web of Science- Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI), Scopus, Proquest, Cabell’s Directory and more than 20 other international databases (www.degruyter.com/view/j/mmcks).

A selection of the submitted papers will be published, subject to review, in the Romanian Journal of Economic Forecasting (https://ipe.ro/rjef.htm).

Submission Details

Submission of full paper due for review January 15th 2024
Notification of paper acceptance (incl. requests for changes) February 15th 2024
Final paper due (with changes implemented) March 1st 2024
Final Author registration date March 5th 2024

Registration and payment*

EARLY BIRD – by December 1st 2023
Academics 220 euro 1100 lei
Student (Ph.D. or Post-doc) 175 euro 875 lei
REGULAR – by February 1st 2024
Academics 250 euro 1250 lei
Student (Ph.D. or Post-doc) 200 euro 1000 lei

 

LATER – by March 10th 2024
Academics 400 euro 2000 lei
Student (Ph.D. or Post-doc) 350 euro 1750 lei
  • SUPPLEMENTARY PAPER = 150 euro / 750 lei
  • The conference fee includes one conference attendance, publication, conference folder and acces to the online events during the conference.

*Please be aware that a late payment involves the possibility not to be present in the printed version of the materials (agenda, booklet).

Do you have any questions?

Do not hesitate to contact us!