Center for Technology and Innovation Management (CTIM)

CTIM was launched in 2001 as a National Science Foundation (NSF) Industry University Cooperative Research Center with the impetus of Industry. It focuses on the management of technology—strategy and the design and application of tools, models and teaching, to enhance attention and capacity in an increasingly complex and volatile operating world. CTIM has evolved a related course module and a series of interactive and dynamic teaching simulations are already in test use at multiple schools as well as in corporate training. A growing emphasis is on Wicked Innovation and a related cross-disciplinary, industry-academic working group with associated targeted forums has been established. Included is attention to the identification and development of key new skills required by such challenges.

Project examples include: emergence and convergence of science-based technologies; research on standards and their strategic management; the growing role and management challenge of service innovation; sustainability and sustainable innovation; health, water and energy innovation and their nexus. Related organizational and teaching/preparation challenges and cross-disciplinary demands, including the needed interplay between technology and social sciences are also addressed. Other examples are: A benchmarking study for a firm debating the challenges of open innovation; work with a major manufacturer to refine strategy for monitoring and influencing evolution of industry standards and regulations; an internal assessment of issues and potential for improvements in business process outsourcing for an IT firm; and, implementation of Applied Knowledge Centers linking academia and industry in an Electronic Library environment.

While based in the Buffett Center and university-wide, CTIM is housed in the Kellogg School of Management and its Director, Michael Radnor is a senior Kellogg faculty member.

For more information, contact Michael Radnor (m-radnor@kellogg.northwestern.edu) or Jeffrey Strauss (j-strauss@northwestern.edu).