Research, Ideation and Prototyping | MBA Mock Class This Saturday

Interdisciplinary Product Development (IPD) course is a year-long curriculum offers a unique learning environment in which UIC students in business, design and engineering partner with corporate sponsors to generate new product innovation for the partner and a real-world educational experience for students. Through cross-functional teaming, conducting and applying customer research, and developing a product from concept to first-stage prototyping, students replicate the early stages of developing a new product in an organizational environment.

UIC Liautaud will host an exciting IPD mock class for prospective students this Saturday where you can experience for yourself what makes our IPD program so unique. Professor Jelena Spanjol will introduce UIC’s Interdisciplinary Product Development Program through this special called titled “Research, Ideation and Prototyping.” The mock class will take place at the UIC Innovation Center, a collaboration, education and incubation center embedded in the University of Illinois at Chicago. The Innovation Center initiates programs and participates in activities that bridge research and education with industry.

Innovation Incubator President and 2012 C2V winner, Kristen Perhach, and recent MBA alum, Dominic Blank, will also speak about their time with UIC Liautaud to prospective students during the session. If you are looking to pursue UIC Liautaud as a destination of choice for your graduate studies, this is a class experience you don’t want to miss.

Register now for the IPD Mock Class: 

This Saturday, January 26, from 9:30-11:30am
UIC Innovation Center, 1240 West Harrison (near Racine), Chicago
Space is limited in this IPD class session, so be sure to register today by clicking here to secure your spot. You do not want to miss this class!

Jelena Spanjol, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of Marketing in the UIC Department of Managerial Studies in the College of Business Administration. Her areas of interest are innovation, new product development, marketing strategy, managerial/consumer decision-making, and consumer goal striving. Read more about her accomplishments on LinkedIn or view her published works on Google Scholar.

What was your most interesting research project?

While I am passionate about all of my research projects, a current investigation into medication consumption in patients with chronic diseases has been particularly enlightening. Patients experience tension between establishing and following routines for taking medications and the dynamism of their everyday life. My aim is to develop an instrument allowing healthcare personnel to identify this tension and provide support to patients.

What was the last book you read for fun?

I usually have several books sitting on my nightstand that I am reading concurrently, typically in three languages. The books I have currently going are David Mitchell’s “Cloud Atlas” and Charles Duhigg’s “The Power of Habit” (English), re-reading Thomas Mann’s “Buddenbrooks” (German), and Gordana Kuić’s “Legenda o Luni Levi” (Serbian). I recently finished Bill Bryson’s “At Home: A Short History of Private Life” – it was very enjoyable, with a multitude of fascinating tidbits (from finding out where expressions such as “in the limelight” and “room and board” come from, and discovering that the ice trade was America’s first globally dominant industry).

What advice do you have for students?

Be proactive and take advantage of all that UIC and Chicago have to offer. One example is reaching out to faculty to understand what a particular course will cover and when the optimal time for taking that course is. We (i.e., faculty) are always happy to engage with our students and provide information, guidance, and support. Don’t forget all the knowledge that can be accessed at UIC and across Chicago via events, seminars, meetings, etc.

What is your favorite memory from being a student?

When I was an undergraduate student at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, I loved spending time in the library stacks (I worked at the library as well). I had come from Switzerland, where college towns don’t exist and being at one of the largest libraries in the world, it was such an exhilarating privilege to wander through the often deserted and dusty rows of books and discover unexpected gems on the shelves.

What is your main goal as a professor?

To encourage students to engage in critical thinking and have passion in their academic and professional pursuits; and to generate insights through research that enhance consumer well being and company value creation.

Courses:

• Marketing Management (MKTG 560)
• Interdisciplinary Product Development (MKTG 577 / MKTG 578)
• Product Development and Planning (MKTG 574)
• International Marketing (MKTG 572)
• PhD Seminar: Marketing Strategy (MKTG 594)
• PhD Seminar: Perspectives on Innovation (MKTG 594)