English/US
ANPAD’s 50th Anniversary: A community built on dialogue, research, and collaboration
In 2026, the Brazilian Academy of Management – ANPAD – will celebrate its 50th anniversary. Founded in 1976 by the graduate programs of the time, ANPAD has both witnessed and contributed to the transformation of management research in Brazil, becoming a meeting place for programs, researchers, students, and institutions committed to producing and disseminating knowledge.
In this second installment of our special series marking ANPAD’s 50th anniversary, we turn our attention to one of the organization’s greatest achievements: the creation of a scientific community that connects different regions of the country, fields of knowledge, research approaches, and generations of researchers.
Today, ANPAD brings together more than 2,300 active members, 110 affiliated programs and institutions, and 11 Academic Divisions. Beyond the numbers, these figures reflect a trajectory of collective effort and an enduring commitment to the quality of research and graduate education.
An organization established to strengthen Brazilian graduate education
ANPAD’s founding is directly tied to the consolidation of graduate education in Brazil. In the 1970s, program coordinators recognized the need for an entity to represent the field’s interests and foster cooperation among institutions.
“ANPAD was born as the National Association of Graduate Programs in Management” (Construindo uma Associação Científica: Trinta Anos da ANPAD, p. 24).
From its inception, ANPAD has taken on a role that remains relevant today: building bridges between programs, encouraging the exchange of experiences, and contributing to the development of scientific research in the country.
Over the years, the organization broadened its scope to include not only graduate programs but also researchers across a range of fields. This shift strengthened its capacity for coordination and cemented its position as the primary space for interaction within the field’s academic community.
A space for debate and collective construction
At 50 years old, ANPAD retains a defining trait that has accompanied it since its founding: a commitment to dialogue.
It welcomes diverse theoretical, methodological, and epistemological perspectives, fostering an environment in which academic debate is recognized as a fundamental part of knowledge construction.
This commitment to plurality has helped establish ANPAD as a standing forum for discussing the challenges facing research, teaching, and graduate education in management, accounting, and related disciplines.
Over the decades, the organization also strengthened its engagement with scientific institutions and funding agencies, broadening the field’s representation in strategic discussions about the development of Brazilian science.
A testimonial originally published in the Journal of Contemporary Administration (RAC) and reproduced in the organization’s 30th-anniversary commemorative book notes that, during the 1990s, “ANPAD took on new strategic concerns, serving as the spokesperson and main forum for the community of graduate programs in management” (RAC testimonial cited in Construindo uma Associação Científica: Trinta Anos da ANPAD, p. 75).
The strength of its leadership and institutional governance
An institution operating for five decades must be able to renew itself without losing its identity.
Throughout this process, successive boards of directors helped expand the organization’s reach, strengthen its events, professionalize its management, and establish new support mechanisms for the academic community.
Looking back on this trajectory, the 30th-anniversary commemorative book itself acknowledges the importance of this institutional development, expressing gratitude “to those who led us, serving on ANPAD’s Board of Directors so that we might today be celebrating a successful process of institutionalization” (Construindo uma Associação Científica: Trinta Anos da ANPAD, p. 19, in the preface by Prof. Carlos Osmar Bertero).
This institutional continuity allowed ANPAD to establish itself as an organization grounded in dialogue, member participation, and collective decision-making.
EnANPAD and the creation of spaces for the circulation of knowledge
Few initiatives capture ANPAD’s trajectory as well as its scientific events.
Since 1977, ANPAD Annual Meeting (EnANPAD) has become one of the leading venues for presenting and discussing Brazilian scientific output in management. Over the years, thousands of researchers have taken part in the meeting, sharing research findings, debating ideas, and building collaborative networks.
The event’s growth has mirrored the expansion of the academic community. The 30th-anniversary book documents how the Annual Meetings became central venues for disseminating research produced in graduate programs.
Another important milestone was the creation of the Doctoral Consortium, first held in 2001, immediately before the 25th EnANPAD. In subsequent years, it became established as an activity dedicated to integration and the exchange of ideas among doctoral students (Construindo uma Associação Científica: Trinta Anos da ANPAD, p. 106).
In the following decades, ANPAD also expanded its venues for debate through thematic and sector-specific events, now represented by the meetings of the Academic Divisions. This development made it possible to deepen discussions within specific fields and to strengthen research communities across the country.
Connecting fields, programs, and regions
One of ANPAD’s most significant contributions to Brazilian science has been its ability to connect people and institutions.
Over the years, the organization has kept pace with the expansion of graduate programs, the emergence of new research agendas, the founding of scientific journals, the strengthening of academic events, and the development of initiatives to improve training quality and scientific output.
The creation of the Academic Divisions marked another step in this process of integration. This model enabled the organization of the field’s growing thematic diversity and expanded researcher participation in shaping the organization’s activities.
Today, this network connects seasoned researchers, early-career faculty, master’s and doctoral students, and practitioners interested in understanding and addressing the challenges facing organizations and society.
Looking ahead to the next 50 years 
Celebrating ANPAD’s 50th anniversary means recognizing a trajectory shaped by many hands.
It means recognizing the work of the boards of directors who have led the organization over time, the affiliated programs that helped strengthen Brazilian graduate education, the academic divisions that expanded spaces for debate, and the thousands of researchers who have contributed to building the fields of management, accounting, and related areas.
Reaching this historic milestone, ANPAD reaffirms its mission to promote high standards of teaching and research quality and to represent graduate management education in Brazil.
More than a celebration of the past, this 50th anniversary is an invitation to look toward the future: to strengthen science, broaden dialogue among diverse perspectives, and continue building, collectively, the next chapters of Brazilian research.
For those wishing to learn more about this history, the book Construindo uma Associação Científica: Trinta Anos da ANPAD brings together stories, testimonials, and milestones that helped establish the organization as one of the country’s leading hubs for research and graduate education. It documents key moments from ANPAD’s first 30 years and illustrates how collaboration among programs, researchers, and institutions was essential to building the academic community we know today.
Throughout 2026, the Brazilian Academy of Management – ANPAD will continue to share special content on its history, institutional milestones, and the people who have contributed to this trajectory. The celebrations do not stop here: additional initiatives are being prepared to mark this historic moment and highlight the organization’s contribution to Brazilian science over five decades.
Follow ANPAD’s channels and join the 50th-anniversary celebrations. There are still many stories to revisit, achievements to recognize, and new developments to discover throughout this commemorative year.