October 2009

Dr. Michael Rappa will moderate a panel discussion on Analytics at the 2nd Annual Internet Summit to be held on November 4-5 at the Raleigh Convention Center. The Summit is a showcase for forward thinking and thought leadership on topics related to the Internet economy and Web-oriented technologies such as social media, real-time, cloud, online advertising, search, blogs, mobile, e-commerce, usability, video, design and other best practices. Read the rest of this entry »

The Institute welcomes once again noted entrepreneur Atul Jain for a special guest lecture. Mr. Jain’s talk, entitled “The Road to Success,” will focus on his experience over two decades starting-up companies on both coasts. The talk will be held on Friday, October 23 from 2:00-5:00 PM in Engineering Building I, Room 1005 on NC State University’s Centennial Campus (space is limited; please RSVP at 513-1613).

Mr. Jain founded TEOCO (The Employee Owned Company) in 1994 with a dream of building a successful business model, not just a successful business. His goal was to build a company that did not compromise its values.  TEOCO’s corporate culture is its biggest asset.  Mr. Jain has created numerous mechanisms for employee-owners of TEOCO to participate in the decision-making process, encouraging and coaching them to act as owners along the way. Read the rest of this entry »

The Analytics Practicum is a core component of the MSA curriculum that gives students an opportunity to work in teams on challenging projects with real-world data sponsored by industry. The Institute is pleased to announce our project sponsors for 2009-10 include:

• Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina — is a leader in delivering innovative health care products, services and information to more than 3.7 million members.
• CA — is a $4 billion provider of enterprise IT management based in Islandia, New York.
• Constellation Energy — is a $20 billion supplier of energy products and services to electric and natural gas customers and headquartered in Baltimore.
• Deluxe Corporation — based in Minnesota, Deluxe is a $1.5 billion financial products and services company that serves 4 million small businesses and financial institutions.
• Hallmark Cards — a privately held greetings card company based in Kansas City, Missouri, with revenues of $4.4 billion and 16,000 employees worldwide.
• IBM Corporation — the global leader in computer systems and services with $98.8 billion in revenue and 386,000 employees worldwide.
• Lulu Enterprises — an entrepreneurial Raleigh-based company that enables authors to publish works and connect with readers.
• Railinc — is the largest source of real-time railroad data, headquartered in Cary, NC, and a wholly owned, for-profit subsidiary of the Association of American Railroads.

The practicum runs throughout the fall and spring semesters and serves as an integrative experience for the entire MSA curriculum. The practicum includes specialized instructional elements to develop teamwork, project management, data cleaning and handling, communication, and presentation skills. The practicum culminates each year in April with a written report and presentations to the sponsors.

The Organizing Committee of the Nineteenth International World Wide Web Conference (WWW2010) welcomes the participation of researchers from around the world to submit original and pioneering research related to the Web for presentation and discussion next April in Raleigh, North Carolina. Read the rest of this entry »

The Institute’s Industry Advisory Board (IAB) held its second meeting of 2009 today on Centennial Campus at the Park Alumni Center. The meeting included a series of presentations and feedback discussions focused on the MSA curriculum. The IAB includes nearly 40 companies from across the country representing a broad cross-section of industries. The Board’s input plays an instrumental role in keeping the MSA curriculum relevant and on the cutting edge.