Each submission must have a full-time faculty member as the Primary Investigator (PI) or advisor, and teams are welcome to include their students. We invite research across social science and related disciplines, including management, economics, sociology, and psychology.

Applicants should submit a concise proposal that clearly outlines the proposed research, approach, and expected contributions. The proposal should be 2-5 pages. 

The proposal should include the following numbered sections:

• Proposal title

• Abstract (a concise summary of the proposal)

• Research goals and problem statement

• Description of the proposed work (data and methods), expected outcomes and results

• Discussion of how the research relates to prior work and impacts future studies on remote and distributed work

• Proposed timeline and workplan, including key deliverables and milestones

• A clearly stated total amount of funding requested and a brief outline indicating how the funds will be used. Individual project funding is capped at $15,000. 

Formatting requirements:

• Double spaced, 11-point font, 1-inch margins, Times New Roman, PDF format

• CVs and/or brief bios of the author(s) can be submitted as attachments (optional)

Important: This is a blind review process. Please ensure any identifying details (e.g., author and institution names) are removed from the submitted proposal.

Proposals will be evaluated based on:

• Relevance to the research priorities outlined in this call for paper

• Novelty of the approach, method, or design

• Potential to generate actionable, decision-relevant insights

• Team expertise and capacity to successfully carry out the project

• Clarity and overall quality of the proposal

• The distribution and trend of remote and distributed work arrangement across industries, occupations, and firm types

• A comprehensive assessment of the durability of remote and distributed work as a structural transformation in work organisation in post-pandemic times

• The role of technology (e.g., AI, collaboration tools, algorithmic monitoring) in shaping the job design, adoption and control of remote work

• The evolving role of the physical office as organisations rethink physical space, collaboration, and culture

• Adaptation of management practices, organisational design, and performance measurement in distributed environments

• Structural shifts in firm boundaries, including the growing use of new employment arrangements (e.g., contractors, gig workers, and globally distributed talents)

• The adoption of technologies (e.g., AI, automation, digital twins) in enabling remote and distributed work by reshaping skill demands and task structures in human-AI collaboration

• The implications of algorithmic management for worker agency, trust and performance

• The governance of workplace technologies, including data privacy, surveillance, and the regulatory frameworks, and their consequences for workers and firms in distributed settings

• Effects of remote and hybrid work on individual and team productivity across different task and occupational types

• Mechanisms and consequences for organisational innovation, including team collaboration, knowledge sharing, and creative outputs

• Measurement challenges and emerging approaches to evaluating performance in distributed settings

• Effects of remote work on worker well-being, including job satisfaction, isolation, engagement, well-being, and burnout

• Effects on retention, career progression, and skill development

• Variation in outcomes across demographic groups, occupations, income levels, and career stages

• How do firms management coordination and collaboration frictions (e.g., asynchronous communication, time zone misalignment and cultural and social distance) 

• The effects of virtual collaboration on creativity, knowledge transfer, and organisational learning in distributed teams

• Leadership practices in remote and hybrid teams, and the implications for worker inclusion, accountability, and performance

• Effects on hiring practices, talent pool composition, and geographic mobility of skilled workers

• Effects on wage dynamics, bargaining power and compensation strategies in remote labour markets

• Competition among regions for remote talents and consequences on local development

• Increasing worker wages by reducing employer market power in local labour markets

• The impact of remote and distributed work on regional economies, including mid-sized cities, small towns and non-coastal metros

• Implications for urban agglomeration, housing markets, commuting patterns, and the density of local commercial activity

• Implications for economic development strategies and location-based policy

• Helping distressed places, such as some rural areas,  if remote workers choose those places as residential location

• Socioeconomic, occupational, and infrastructural determinants of access to remote work, including the digital divide

• Heterogenous experiences and impact of remote work across gender, caregiving roles, disability status, and socioeconomic background

• Whether remote work reduces or reinforces structural inequality in individual career outcomes and labour markets