The 15th Annual Symposium on Human Factors/Ergonomics in Organizational Design and Management (ODAM)

Conference Theme: Innovating for the Future: Human-Centered Organizational Design
in the Age of Emerging Technologies and Evolving Work

Welcome to the 15th International Symposium on Human Factors & Ergonomics in Organizational Design and Management (ODAM 2026)

We are delighted to invite you to the 15th ODAM Symposium, an innovative, dual-location international event designed to facilitate the dissemination and exchange of scientific studies, methodologies, and experiences among researchers and practitioners, all of which contribute to designing practical solutions and fostering a deeper, more comprehensive theoretical understanding of challenges and problems in the ODAM field. A Special Issue of Ergonomics is being planned.  Full proceeding papers will be considered for submitting a manuscript for the special issue in Ergonomics.

A Global, Two-Campus Experience

We’re reimagining what it means to host a truly global symposium. Given the current administration policies in the U.S., we are proposing a unique international conference format. ODAM 2026 will feature an innovative two-campus format, bringing participants together in-person and uniting perspectives from across the world for deeper collaboration and impact. 

Our goal is to provide in-person concurrent and parallel sessions at both the University of Connecticut (UConn) U.S., and the Technical University of Denmark (DTU), Denmark campuses. We are planning to design the symposium format to allow for international colleagues to join virtually together from their respective campus location to present, discuss, and engage live across countries.

What to Expect

· Joint Core Sessions: Shared keynote presentations and discussions during overlapping core hours between U.S. Eastern and Danish time zones, enabling live, interactive participation across sites.

· Parallel Local Sessions: Dedicated sessions before and after the core joint times for in-person engagement, networking, and collaboration at each campus.

· Hybrid Interaction: Opportunities for presenters and attendees at both locations to connect and exchange ideas through integrated technologies.

Further details on the program, schedule, and registration will be announced soon. Participants will register using the ODAM 2026 website and indicating which campus they will be attending. 

The ODAM symposium is organized on behalf of the International Ergonomics Association (IEA) ODAM Technical Committee, the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (HFES) Macroergonomics Technical Group, and support from the Department of Psychological Sciences at UConn and the Technical University of Denmark.  

In closing, it is our pleasure to invite you to participate in the ODAM symposium, which will serve as a thriving international forum for the dissemination and exchange of scientific and practitioner-oriented information on organizational design and management.

Join Our Email List
Join Our LinkedIn Group

Important Dates:

· Call for Proposals Still Open!
· Final Call Closes: January 31, 2026 at 11:59 PM EST
· Upon Acceptance, Final Conference Proceedings Papers Due: May 1, 2026
· Early bird registration closes: May 8, 2026
· Final Program: May 2026

Suggested conference topics can include, but are not limited to, the following:
• Participatory ergonomics
• Management of complex sociotechnical systems
• Management in dynamic systems and during societal change
• Innovation, work content and work organization
• Organizational and psychosocial work environment, organizational structure
• Work organization, work relations, family interface
• Cross cultural perspectives and applications in organizational design
• Occupational health, stress and well-being
• Macroergonomic design and methods
• Quality improvement: methods and findings
• Competitive advances of better work organizations
• Organizational culture and values
• Macroergonomics in healthcare systems
• Macroergonomics Design and Methodology
• Design of information technology systems and organizational change
• Training systems and organizational learning
• Total Worker Health®
• Community ergonomics
• Informal work
• Collaboration and teaming
• Managing conflicts, strategies, and protecting vulnerable populations
• Sociotechnical systems, emergent digital technologies, and Artificial Intelligence
• Macroergonomics Issues and Artificial Intelligence
• Safety in sociotechnical systems and accident investigation
• Sustainability, Design and Comfort
• Creating, designing, and managing inclusive workplaces 
• Healthy Workplaces: Design and work organization
• Remote and hybrid work 
• New ways of working and social and environmental impacts
• Management and work evaluation
• Role of management in changing workplaces
• Home environment/work-life balance
• Implementation and design for impact
• Organizational change and management

Conference Chairs:
Michelle Robertson, PhD, CPE
Christine Ipsen, PhD
 

Organizing Committee Members:
Theresa Parker, M.S.
Hanna Barton, PhD
James Hughes, M.S. 

For Programmatic Questions, Please Contact:  
Theresa Parker
theresa.parker@uconn.edu