When the Mack Center became the Mack Institute in 2013, thanks to a major gift from William and Phyllis Mack, our name wasn’t the only thing to change. We received a mandate to expand the institute’s reach as the central hub of an extensive learning network, connecting researchers, business leaders,…Read More
Mack Institute News
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Our longtime corporate partners at Teradata are frequent and enthusiastic participants at our yearly conferences. One attendee, Monica Mullen, recently shared her key takeaways from our recent Fall Conference. Her post originally appeared in the company’s Industry Experts blog. I had the pleasure of talking with Mr. J. David Power…Read More
Cultivating Growth and Disrupting Proactively
Mack Institute events don’t typically include references to farming techniques, but the Fall Conference 2013 was a rare exception. In this video summary of his presentation, Takeshi Yamaguchi describes how Nissan’s approach to advanced technical development resembles the cultivation of an orchard. Instead of a linear approach, Nissan achieves successful…Read More
The Mack Mission
The following is an excerpt from an article in the Wharton Magazine’s Winter 2014 issue. Text by Ken Stier, illustrations by Harry Campbell. When NASA had its R&D budget slashed, it came to its partner, the Mack Institute, to assist it in crowdsourcing many of its most pressing problems. Solutions…Read More
John Paul MacDuffie on Converging Industries
What happens when two industries with fundamentally different clockspeeds converge within a single product? In a recent Knowledge@Wharton article, Program on Vehicle and Mobility Innovation Director John Paul MacDuffie discusses the challenges of integrating IT-based technology, such as computer-based collision avoidance systems, into automobiles. MacDuffie highlights the tight integration of…Read More
How Consumers Get Left Out of Big Data
Guest post by Ryan McConville, Mack Institute MBA Research Fellow, Wharton Executive MBA For students interested in exploring early stage business technologies, the Mack Institute is the perfect partner. Other Wharton outlets, such as the Business Plan Competition, might focus on ideas that are ready to market today; the Mack…Read More
Developing a Commercial Exoskeleton, Starting with the Team
The Mack Institute is excited to host the Y-Prize Spring Kick-off on Monday, January 27 at 6:00 P.M. in Huntsman Hall 340. Attendees will hear from keynote speakers Elizabeth Beattie and Nick McGill, two members of the team that created the Titan Arm—an upper-body exoskeleton that increases the wearer’s ability…Read More
J.D. Power III’s Impact on the Auto Industry
How J.D. Power III Transformed the Auto Industry Through the collection of consumer feedback on cars, J.D. “Dave” Power III revolutionized the automobile industry in 1968. In this Knowledge@Wharton interview conducted by PVMI director John Paul MacDuffie, Power discusses the founding and early years of his firm, J.D. Power and…Read More
India as a Global Player in Innovation and R&D
Saikat Chaudhuri on the globalization of innovation and what that means for R&D in India. India has not traditionally been a significant hub of research and development, but winds of change are blowing. Saikat Chaudhuri discusses the factors contributing to the shift in this interview at a recent conference at…Read More
Turning Established Firms Back into Start-Ups
How do big companies avoid inertia, stay nimble, and maintain their leading edge? “Intrapreneurship” is one answer: it’s the practice of empowering teams to adopt a start-up mentality and focus on entrepreneurial, innovative ideas from within the company. It’s also a way to hold on to creative thinkers, satisfying their…Read More
Saikat Chaudhuri on the Future of Facebook
Mack Institute Executive Director Saikat Chaudhuri was recently quoted in a Knowledge@Wharton article that analyzes Facebook’s future challenges in the transforming social media market. Chaudhuri focuses on ad usage, expressing his viewpoint that Facebook should take advantage of its potential to appeal to advertisers. He also suggests that Facebook adapt additional…Read More
Reflections on the 2013 PVMI Researchers Meeting and Fall Conference
In addition to hosting the 2013 Fall Conference with the Program on Vehicle and Mobility Innovation (PVMI), the Mack Institute also held a PVMI Researchers Meeting on November 21, 2013. Both events focused on the theme of disruptive technologies and value migration. In this guest blog post, PVMI veteran Dan Whitney of…Read More
Paul Schoemaker’s visit to South Africa to discuss Nelson Mandela’s legacy
Nelson Mandela’s life story has long since become a legend, one that transcends borders, race, language, or culture. His leadership truly belongs to the world. Paul J. H. Schoemaker, Research Director of the Mack Institute visited South Africa this year, to meet with government and business leaders to discuss Nelson…Read More
A Glimpse into the Future through Integration and Innovation
The Mack Institute hosted its annual Fall Conference on November 22, 2013 with the Program on Vehicle and Mobility Innovation (PVMI) on the topic of “When Disruptive Technologies Meet Integrated Systems: Who Captures the Value?” This guest post by three PVMI researchers summarizes key takeaways from the conference, including the…Read More
Meet Saikat Chaudhuri, Executive Director of the Mack Institute
A profile of Mack Institute Executive Director and Adjunct Associate Professor of Management Saikat Chaudhuri was recently featured in PaGalGuy’s MBA Abroad Channel. In the interview, Chaudhuri describes his involvement with the Mack Institute and how he hopes to expand the Institute’s reach through the addition of new programs and…Read More
When Disruptive Technologies Meet Integrated Systems
Knowing when to hold and when to fold isn’t just for poker players. When applied to new technology, that insight into knowing when to embrace the next new thing and when to let it pass has been known to make or break careers and entire companies. Think Kodak, an iconic…Read More
Innovating for Impact and Making Philanthropy Profitable
The Wharton Social Impact Club, one of several student-run organizations and events that is sponsored by the Mack Institute, hosted the Wharton Social Impact Conference at The Wharton School on November 15. In this guest blog post originally published in the Huffington Post, conference co-chair Shenin Singh shares how she…Read More
The Mack Institute Teams with PVMI for First-ever Joint Conference, Featuring J.D. “Dave” Power III
The Mack Institute for Innovation Management at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania will host its annual Fall Conference in Philadelphia on November 22, 2013 on the topic of “When Disruptive Technologies Meet Integrated Systems: Who Captures the Value?” This event is the Mack Institute’s first joint conference…Read More
Call for Applicants: 2014 Emerging Scholars Workshop
The application period for the 2014 Emerging Scholars Workshop is now open. Since 2012, the Mack Institute has hosted this week-long program that gathers twenty scholars per year (from second-year doctoral students to recent PhD awardees) with a common interest in strategic management. In this guest blog post, 2013 attendee…Read More
Saikat Chaudhuri on US Airways-American Airlines Merger Deadlock
A recent Philadelphia Inquirer article cites Mack Institute Executive Director Saikat Chaudhuri as an authority regarding the mounting pressure on the U.S. Justice Department to approve the US Airways-American Airlines merger. In the article, Chaudhuri compares the circumstances surrounding this ongoing antitrust case with those of a similar contested acquisition from January.…Read More