Insegnamento a.a. 2025-2026

20895 - INNOVATION IN THE DATA ECONOMY

Department of Management and Technology


Class timetable
Exam timetable

Course taught in English
Go to class group/s: 8 - 9 - 10
MM (5 credits - II sem. - OB  |  SECS-P/08)
Course Director:
PAOLA CILLO

Classes: 8 (II sem.) - 9 (II sem.) - 10 (II sem.)
Instructors:
Class 8: MARGHERITA CAPRARA, Class 9: PAOLA CILLO, Class 10: PAOLA CILLO


Suggested background knowledge

It is suggested that the student is knowledgeable about the fundamentals of Business Administration, Economics, and in particular Marketing. Moreover, it is suggested and assumed that students are familiar with Organizational Design, Accounting, Operations and Technology and Innovation Management.

Mission & Content Summary

MISSION

Despite the relevance innovation has for organizational market success, few companies master their ability to identify, create, and exploit opportunities for innovation on a systematic basis. Innovating requires taking a current reality and transforming it into some new, desirable future. Why are some organizations routinely more innovative than others? What capabilities must be developed? These issues are explored in this course. The course provides a set of integrated frameworks and tools to effectively design and manage the decision making processes, operating routines, and mind-sets required for innovation. It provides the conceptual tools to understand the nature and characteristics of different types of innovation, as well as practical insights on how to design and manage a new product development process.

CONTENT SUMMARY

I Part: Offering innovation and market innovation, basics of new product development process:

  • The quest for growth.
  • Offering vs. Market innovation. 
  • White Space Analysis

II Part: Opportunities identification and concept generation; Design thinking: What is?; Concept generation; Design thinking: What if?:

  • User-oriented techniques.
  • What is? design thinking tools. 
  • Concept generation.
  • What if? design thinking tools.

III Part: Concept and Product Testing:

  • Concept evaluation.
  • Product testing. 
  • Market testing. 

IV Part: Launch Strategy:

  • Positioning map
  • Brand audience analysis

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILO)

KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING

At the end of the course student will be able to...
  • Describe the fundamental theoretical framework as well as tools and methodologies to go from idea to market.
  • Be familiar with the concepts used within the Marketing function and in particular in Product Management or in research and development for new product initiatives.
  • Interact with specialists in functions such as R&D, accounting and finance, operations, human resources, and new product management.

APPLYING KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING

At the end of the course student will be able to...
  • Set up the activities to develop a concept test, identify the appropriate methodologies to test the concepts, go about market sizing, and design a launch management system.
  • Expose and define her ideas in an exchange with other persons with other backgrounds and mind-set and exhibit the ability to work effectively in group projects.

Teaching methods

  • Guest speaker's talks (in class or in distance)
  • Collaborative Works / Assignments
  • Interaction/Gamification

DETAILS

  • Lecture and discussions are used for instructor-based presentations. Students are provided with definitions and concepts in each course module, plus relevant examples.
  • Videos may be incorporated into some class sessions to illustrate major points presented.
  • In order to achieve the objectives of the course, we devote the substantial part of our class time to the analysis and discussion of case studies.
  • Group assignments are essential to the student’s learning experience.
  • Lectures are given to elaborate on key theoretical models and frameworks or to reinforce crucial concepts.

Assessment methods

  Continuous assessment Partial exams General exam
  • Written individual exam (traditional/online)
     x
  • Collaborative Works / Assignment (report, exercise, presentation, project work etc.)
 x    
  • Active class participation (virtual, attendance)
 x    

ATTENDING STUDENTS

Final evaluation is based on class participation, a class assignment, and an individual written exam.

Students who regularly and continuously participate in all course activities will be considered attending.


NOT ATTENDING STUDENTS

Individual written exam.


Teaching materials


ATTENDING STUDENTS

 

  • Cases
  • Articles.
  • Personal class notes.
  • Personal case preparation material.
  • Jupyter Notebooks.

NOT ATTENDING STUDENTS

  • M. CRAWFORD, A. DI BENEDETTO, New Products Management, McGraw-Hill, International Edition, most current edition (all chapters).
  • J. Liedtka, T. Ogilvie & R. Brozenske. The Designing for Growth Field Book: A Step-by-Step Project Guide. Columbia University Press, New York, New York (all chapters).
Last change 19/11/2025 14:02