MIT Sloan MOT Thesis Thursdays How to Make the Very Most of Your MIT Sloan Master’s Thesis Opportunity v 1.5

Making the Most of Your Thesis Opportunity The Main Integrative Project throughout Year Pick a compelling research theme Advance your Career Interests –Reinforce Professional Strengths –Networking & Personal Visibility –Personal Exploration & Even Reinvention Short & Long Term Professional Aspiration

How weave the pieces together? Case study on firm or industry of greatest interest Aligning projects in classes with Thesis Interviews on your class field trips MIT $50K participation …

Example Theses I Sustainable Entrepreneurship –Amir Hasson w/ Pentland & Thurow Neural Network Applications –Vishal Mehta w/ Gupta Technology Waves in NTT –Masa Kawashima w/ Weil & Fine Trust in Mobile Commerce –Damien Balsan w/ Weil RFID in Supply Chain –Jen Pararas w/ Brynjolfsson Biotech Business Strategies –Sudhir Borgonha w/ Murray Open Architecture Spacecraft –Robert Caffrey w/ Henderson & Crawley Advanced Tech for the Coast Guard –Ken Marien w/ Utterback

Example Theses II Singapore’s Urban Dynamics –Bernard Nee w/ Sterman HP’s IT Outsourcing –Carl Beckett & Waqas Khan w/ Bitran Knowledge Management in Banking –Kazu Yamagata w/ Burton Mass Customization –Joe Pine w/ Utterback Pharmaceutical Technology Acquistion Strategies –Hiroya Muranishi w/ Roberts Organic Chemicals as Disruptive Technologies –Naoki Obi w/ Jacobson & Utterback Wireless Value Chain Evolution –Dave Munsinger w/ Utterback & Weil

Brainstorming Topics Start with end in mind, e.g. –Seeking a job in X industry –Deep understanding of some sector –Working with a particular Professor Aspire towards N-for-one …

n-for-1: Seek Extreme Leverage Recruitment – what’s your next job? Network building – who should you know? Idea seeking – what’s best opportunity? Boosting creativity – what’s most worth doing? Personal reinvention – where imagine self? Drill-down on some topic – always wanted to … Publication – propaganda & reputation

Pitching Your Topic Self-presentation & refinement Float it by everyone in conversational way Various levels of detail and abstraction “ I’m interested in looking at how X does Y…” For example… –Disruptive Wireless Technology –Business Implications of the Semantic Web –Neuromedical Imaging Technology Roadmapping

Time is Short Summer & Early Fall – Investigate Potential Topics & Advisors October / November – Proposal & Advisor Winter & Early Spring – Data, Literature Review, Interviews Spring – Progress Reports, Drafts May – Finale!

Types of Theses Independent Project (w/ Advisor) –Industry / Strategic / Competitive Analysis –Company Business Plan –Case or Historical Study –Model Development & Testing –Product Roll-out Analysis –Problem Analysis –Hypothesis Testing –Technology Assessment –Policy Study –… Structured Thesis

Structured Theses Faculty provides framework for project & contacts / sponsors Aligns personal goals with larger faculty research agenda Professors –Bitran – eBusiness & Supply Chains –Burton – Tech Venture Observatory, Talent Dynamics –Fine – Technology Roadmapping, Value Chain Dynamics Potential publications –e.g. Fabozzi, Fine & Cusumano

Example Sloan Faculty Strengths Global Development International Mgt Global Value Chains, TechMaps Entrepreneurial Policy Effective Leadership Financial Engineering, Management Business Dynamics Tech-Biz Ventures Transformative Innovations Virtual Customer Tech Strategy Finance, Accounting, & Economics Manag’nt Sci, Functional Disciplines Behavioral & Policy Science Strat & Org’ns MIT Sloan Matrix Classic MIT Sloan Disciplinary Strengths Unifying Strategic Themes Venture Finance Innovation Global Leadership

Faculty Interests at Various Levels of Systems Analysis Economy Sector Firm Group Individual Geography Market/Tech Organization Theme Idea Technology Roadmapping Technology & Entrepreneurial Strategy Virtual Customer Initiative Emerging Technology Ventures Global Development Venture Capital Decision Psychology Creative Communities, Social Networks Business Dynamics

Clusters of Interests At Various Levels of Analysis… Economy Sector Firm Group Individual Geography Market/Tech Organization Theme Idea Technology Roadmap Technology Venture Observatory OpenSource Initiative Virtual Customer Initiative Emerging Tech-Biz Live Cases

Technology Roadmapping Professor Charlie Fine, TA Joost Bonsen Fall 2002 This seminar will explore the purposes and development of Technology Roadmaps for systematically mapping out possible development paths for various technological domains and the industries that build on them. Data of importance for such roadmaps include rates of innovation, key bottlenecks, physical limitations, improvement trendlines, corporate intent, and value chain and industry evolutionary paths. The course will build on ongoing work on the MIT Communications Technology Roadmap project, but will explore other domains selected from Nanotechnology, Bio-informatics, Geno/Proteino/Celleomics, Neurotechnology, Imaging & Diagnostics, etc. Thesis and Special Project opportunities will be offered. (An example Masters Research Seminar)

International Development Amir Hasson, MOT 2002 MediaLab Asia connection via Developmental Entrepreneurship Class Global E-Lab Case MIT $50K entry Thesis Employment!

Faculty Interests: Further Possibilities Economy Sector Firm Group Individual Geography Market/Tech Organization Theme Idea Technology Roadmap Technology Venture Observatory OpenSource Initiative Virtual Customer Initiative Emerging Tech-Biz Live Cases Global Development Observatory Venture Capital Observatory Creative Communities Observatory Decision Neuropsychology Lab Social Network Observatory

5 Strategic MIT Technology Thrusts 1.Information Technologies = Ever more sophisticated computation & communication, leveraging mind & media. 2.Biomedical Technologies = Medical engineering, perfecting the health & life sciences. 3.Tiny Technologies = Investigating and fabricating ever smaller systems, at scales from micro thru nano 4.Complex Systems = Large scale, socio-political & econo-technological systems. 5.Developmental Innovations = Appropriate and leapfrog technologies for tackling challenges in developing & emerging regions

Mapping Sloan Faculty to MIT’s Emerging Strategic Tech Sectors Info TechBio TechTiny TechComplex Systems Develop’t Innovations Strategy MTIE Org/HR Finance Marketing Operat’ns Prod Dev

Mapping Faculty in Disciplines to Phases of Venture Development Strategy MTIE Org/HR Finance Marketing Operat’ns Prod Dev IdeationInventionIncorporationInvestmentsSalesProfitabilityEscalation

Big Themes Tech Roadmapping Developmental Innovation Disruptive Technologies Cross-National Comparisons Corporate Venturing …

Practical Tips Write thesis over time, incremental escalation Recruit or hire some editor Think carefully about readers Write a one-pager and a one-paragraph version ASAP, iterate Beware of confidentiality & data access time constraints

Best Practices Network Building -- Be in touch with people important to your future Career Connection -- Intimately relevant to career Access -- Research gives you access to people you wouldn’t otherwise get to Prototyping – repeat question testing, on classmates, faculty, friends Tangible Deliverable – build your portfolio Get Access by seeking answers to really interesting questions, to you and them! Broad Links – go beyond those you already know, beyond your company, for example Know your Interests but be flexible in your approach Faculty as Method Experts not necessarily industry experts

Aspire towards Publications Mick Bass with Professor Clay Christenson in IEEE Spectrum Various students with Professors Ed Roberts, Cusumano, Fine, et al Books, e.g. Joe Pine’s Mass Customization

How to attract industry & faculty interest? What questions appeal to them? Is there an intersection? Does it reinforce a traditional interest or stretch them in an interesting new direction? Faculty interests vs knowledge – you educate each other

Potential Advisors Burton Fine Weill Bitran Murray Locke Johnson Shoar De Figueiredo Cusumano Utterback Hauser Urban Thurow Sterman Hunter Olive Short Pentland Von Hippel Allen Go to the MIT Sloan Expertise Guide!

Seeking Students & Alums with Both Depth & Breadth Depth Breadth Deep Shallow NarrowWide I –. T “T” Individuals

Unifying Sloan Themes Transformative Innovations, Emerging Hard & Soft Technologies, Disruptive Challenges Global Business Strategy, International Development Effective Organizations, Entre- & Intra- preneurial Leadership Technology Entrepreneurship & Strategy Dynamics Dynamic, Networked Organizations Developmental Innovations, MicroFinance Innovation Global Leadership