The second Strathclyde 'Middle East Marketing Academia Meets Practice' Roundtable Workshop took place in Dubai, UAE, on 19 May 2012, gathering representatives from most of the country's major academic institutions and practitioners from a wide range of industries. The concept of this workshop, organised by Dr Catherine Demangeot (Department of Marketing and International Division), is to address two commonly-shared concerns: that the Middle East context holds specific challenges and opportunities for marketing practice and research, and that academics and practitioners 'need to talk more'.
Fifty participants took part in one of four tracks, identifying the main critical issues in each of these areas before reporting to the whole group in a plenary session. The four tracks were: the sustainability of marketing; Islamic marketing and its relationship to other forms of marketing; listening to social media; and malls – culture, consumption and service-scapes.
Participation this year more than doubled compared to the first workshop last year, which led to the suggestion that the Workshop evolve into a conference and/or takes place more frequently. In the meantime, participants are now connected via an online network and collaboration platform, and are continuing the conversations initiated during the workshop.