Time had but effaced his image when the show began : A reflection on the academic career of Slawomir Magala

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to outline the background and the plot of the academic career of Slawomir Magala, particularly from the point of view represented by the author who had co-created significant international conference on critical theory and the sciences of management which triggered off the critical management studies in the British and subsequently global academic research networks. Design/methodology/approach – The content of the research is based on a mixture of a historical account of a conference on the Frankfurt school of social research, observations and participatory observations, qualitative content analysis and a bibliographical case study. Findings – The long-term effects of an international networking event are hard to predict and almost never respect the academic borders and gate keepers. Research limitations/implications – This paper is a very personal point of view. Practical implications – This paper is a case study of academic school emergence. Social implications – This paper is a case study of social and political relevance of managerial research. Originality/value – The unique selling point of this paper is that it is based on a critical event in uncritical sciences.