Academic Sessions

Megatrends in the global economy (Sergio Rebelo)
Globalization and rapid advancements in technology have dramatically reshaped economies in recent years. This session looks at the impact of these megatrends on business and society. We will explore how globalization and automation are affecting income inequality and consumer behavior; how changes in population demographics are impacting brand loyalty, labor costs, and government spending; and how artificial intelligence is expected to transform jobs, profitability, and value creation.

Creating market value (Alexander Chernev)
A company’s market success is determined by its ability to create superior value for its customers in a way that also benefits its collaborators and stakeholders. Yet, companies often focus much of their attention and efforts on tactical decisions, often overlooking the strategic aspect of the value-creation process. In this lecture, we discuss the key principles of creating market value and the alternative strategies used by firms to gain a competitive advantage in the market.

The business of happiness (Sergio Rebelo and Alexander Chernev)
What makes people happy? Drawing upon the positive-psychology literature, this session unpacks the drivers of happiness and explores their implications for workplaces and business offerings. We explore how to design work environments that make your employees happy and how to create products and services that bring joy and delight to your customers.

Design for innovation (Celine Abecassis-Moedas)
Innovation is an ongoing challenge for organizations, many of which struggle to find the right approach. This session outlines three different ways to design for innovation, based on the principles of design thinking, design-driven innovation, and design management. We use a range of case studies to better understand strategies for effectively managing innovation design.

Data analytics for managers (Miguel Matos)
Data and analytics can bring tremendous value to organizations – but it’s not always clear how to unlock that value. This session explores the applications of data and analytics from multiple angles. We discuss how companies can use big data for competitive advantage and examine how predictive and prescriptive analytics can drive beger decision-making. We also explore how to combine data, predictions and experimentation to unleash value for organizations.