MS in Engineering & Technology Innovation Management
Carnegie Mellon’s MS in ETIM degree program is cultivating next-generation, innovation leaders. It’s here that engineers and scientists are developing the specialized business skills, frameworks and technical acuity necessary to creating value, and ultimately capturing value from innovative technologies. Join an exceptional multi-disciplinary group of peers and professors who will help you shape the future.
Innovation is the combination of technology and commercialization to deliver new or improved products or services. Corporations utilize innovation to establish a competitive advantage and to differentiate in the marketplace.
- Phillip Yu, PhD, Executive Director
Lead Smart
Frameworks for Success
A problem well defined is a problem well on its way to being solved. In Carnegie Mellon’s ETIM program you’ll learn how strategic business and technology frameworks are used to respond to challenges, incubate ideas and commercialize them. You’ll develop the skills to recognize, assess and leverage the innovation ecosystems that tech businesses operate within today.
Lead Forward
Pathways to Success
Using ETIM Career Tracks, we’ll help you tailor your learning to your individual career objectives and leverage the strength of Carnegie Mellon University’s full academic ecosystem.
Career Tracks
ETIM graduates are working on global assignments in diverse industries.
Consulting & Professional Services
Meet a Few of Our Alums
Analytics
Hope Dohner ‘17
As a people analyst at Google, I work on recruiting, headcount planning, and management. Every day, I use the cross-functional communication skills I developed in the MS in ETIM program to work with my fellow analysts, program managers, and business leaders. I also lean heavily on what I learned in the ETIM product management and UI prototyping classes to build tools and reporting for the business. Because I love working with all kinds of people to solve ambiguous problems, I didn't want my career to take a strictly technical engineering path. The MS in ETIM program aligned with my goals and enabled me to seamlessly transition the focus of my work life from being purely technical to a broader one that combines both engineering and business.
View Hope's LinkedIn profile
R&D Technology Management
Jonathan Dyer, ‘19
As the lead of the Responsible AI Technical Initiative at Northrop Grumman I leverage skills I learned in ETIM daily. I use the presentation skills I gained in the prototyping course to lead demonstrations of our capabilities. I also use the knowledge I gained in the strategy course as I help Northrop bring an architectural innovation to market, leveraging our deep customer knowledge to become a leader in the space. Also, as a Dual ETIM degree student, I had the ability to take classes in Machine Learning and data science that were integral to me taking my current position. I would not be in the position I am today if it weren’t for the multi-disciplinary education I received in ETIM.
View Jonathan's LinkedIn profile
Consulting
Aishwarya Ramachandran, ‘15
As Technology Senior Consultant at Deloitte Consulting, I deliver solutions that drive transformation, improve productivity and streamline business operations for our clients. I use the skills I honed through the MS in ETIM program coursework every day in my line of work, especially with Deloitte Catalyst on the AI incubation hub. ETIM faculty sharpened my technical skillset while broadening my knowledge with new subjects. I was drawn to the MS in ETIM program because of its focus on creating practical applications for the latest technology trends. As a consultant, I use this experience to resolve client issues in efficient and innovative ways.
View Aishwarya's LinkedIn profile
Entrepreneurship
Pablo Santaeufemia, ‘15
As CEO & Cofounder of Bridge for Billions, a for-profit social enterprise that serves as a digital ecosystem for entrepreneurship, I connect early-stage entrepreneurs to global growth opportunities. The initiation spark for this enterprise began as a part of a project for a MS in ETIM course, Design & Impact for Humanitarian Impact, which I then carried through each subsequent project course in the ETIM program – ultimately graduating as a CEO. I came to this program as an engineer with problem-solving skills, but I wanted learn how to put them into practice. Through the MS in ETIM program, I was able to take my three passions – international development, engineering and social entrepreneurship – and combine them to shape my career.
View Pablo's LinkedIn profile
Product Management
Julie Deng, ‘21
As a Senior Product Manager in Amazon Music ML & Personalization team, I work with engineering, science, and product teams across the organization to understand customer preferences and build a more engaging streaming experience by bringing personalization everywhere to everyone. I find knowledge I gained in business strategy and entrepreneurship classes from the ETIM program particularly helpful for me to be successful in my role. The wide selection of elective courses from negotiation and public speaking to leadership and lean startup also have helped me gain critical skills to achieve my long-term goal as an entrepreneur.
View Julie's LinkedIn profileChampions of Innovation
Our Faculty
Whether they’ve made their mark in industry or academia or both, each of our faculty are uniquely qualified to help you take your game to a much higher next level.
Jared Cohon
University Professor, Civil & Environmental Engineering, Engineering & Public Policy
President Emeritus
Our Partners
For over a decade and a half we’ve developed relationships with some of the most innovative enterprises on the planet. And we’re eager to develop more.
A great example is our partnership with EY. Together we've grown unique programs including Corporate Venturing, Capstone Projects, Day-One Ready Projects and EY Internships. Learn More About our EY Partnership
Our partnership with Carnegie Mellon University – with every collaborative sponsorship and graduating class – contributes brainpower and creative solutions that we need to stay on the leading edge of change.
- Martin J. Fiore, US East Region Tax Managing Partner
Ernst & Young LLP
Jimmy Williams, PhD
Executive Director and Distinguished Service Professor
In my career, I’ve led business strategy development, operations, and technology and innovation management at the Boeing Company, Alcoa and Pall Corporation. In my roles, I’ve used my knowledge of tech and innovation trends to devise strategy that adheres to company goals and ensures competitive market share. Innovation Management is about fully understanding how to leverage the process through both business and technology models concurrently. I bring this knowledge to the classes that I teach: both MS in ETIM seminar courses. I teach my students to ask three critical questions. How much innovation does your goal require? Where should you focus innovation? What types of innovation are needed? At the end of the day, it’s about innovating technical methods to meet practical business needs. I want each of my MS in ETIM students to leave the program understanding that the key to success is to lead boldly and passionately.
Phillip Yu, PhD
Executive Director and Associate Teaching Professor
Phillip Yu is the Executive Director and Associate Teaching Professor for the Master’s Engineering and Public Policy Programs. Phil was formerly employed at PPG Industries Inc. (Pittsburgh, PA.) where he served in multiple roles over his 30 year career. As Director for Corporate Science and Technology Initiatives and Operations, he was responsible for managing innovation, technology strategy, new product development, external partnerships, securing government funding, leading the global analytical labs, and workforce development. His teams’ achievements have included impactful new product sales, grants from government agencies, and a variety of cost savings initiatives. Over the span of his career his teams commercialized optical switching devices for eyewear, Trivex® lens material, select HiGard® optical coatings, OLED emitting materials, and energy management coatings. He is named in 8 patents and has authored 10 professional publications. Contributions have also included strategic roadmapping, technology scouting methodologies, sustainable external funding strategies, a scalable digital strategy for the R&D function, unification of the global analytical labs, establishing university partnerships, open innovation strategies, and procurement approaches for raw material cost savings.
Phillip served on industrial advisory boards for universities to assist in presenting macro-trends’ challenges and opportunities to faculty and staff. He had also participated on various panels for the Department of Energy (DoE) Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy (EERE) and national labs, reviewing how new material technologies can address energy challenges for the nation. Finally, he has been a peer reviewer for the DoE EERE Building Technologies Office and the National Science Foundation Accelerating Innovative Research Program with the goal to accelerate promising breakthrough technologies to commercialization.
Joseph Brence
Professor, ETIM
Joseph is an energetic innovator and leader with a demonstrated track record of excellence, specifically focusing on strategies to transform the delivery of healthcare. Joseph is currently employed by MedBridge, as the head of clinical strategy. Prior to this role, he lead innovation, strategy, and education within the Allegheny Health Network. Joseph has founded several start-ups in the healthcare education and cryptocurrency markets. Joseph is also a faculty member at NYU, as a course lead for entrepreneurship, strategic management and information technology.
Jim Berardone
Professor, ETIM
Creating successful digital products is my passion. Since the start of my career, I’ve led teams in starting and growing 17 B2B product lines for five startups and three multinational corporations. In my course, Customer-Centric Product Management for Technological Innovations, I teach students how to identify and describe important customer problems, conceive innovative product solutions and build compelling value propositions for them. My goal is to impart these skills in each of my students and develop their confidence in using them to lead future product innovations.
David Charlton
Professor, ETIM
In my 30 years of product commercialization at a Fortune 500 company I’ve managed teams of all sizes from all over the world. I’ve also chaired committees and sub-committees for various US Standards bodies, testified in Congress, state governments and the FCC on matters involving technical innovation, hold numerous patents, and bought and sold large pools of intellectual property. My experience has taught me one thing: innovation is a very human endeavor, requiring a deep understanding of their motivations both as individuals and as organizations.
This is the knowledge I bring to my class – Managing Research, Development and Innovation. Ultimately, I want my students to know how to interpret the executive guidance underlying a specific business strategy and improve their ability to translate business strategy into specific technical positions. Their understanding of this enhances their value to any organization they join and sets them apart from other candidates for hire.
Mark DeSantis
Professor, ETIM
As a serial tech entrepreneur, I’ve spent over two decades immersed in the practice, policy and management of innovation. I’m cofounder of a quant hedge fund and have managed venture-backed companies that work with energy trading, online tutoring, AI for assessing infrastructure and more. I’ve also served the White House Office of Science and Technology as a Senior Policy Analyst.
Experience has taught me that a major challenge to innovating is anticipating what is going to make a difference. It requires that we constantly listen to the people whose lives will be impacted by it. This is the knowledge I bring to my class – Tech Startup: Tools and Techniques and Market Discovery. My students learn to place potential customers’ needs ahead of particular technologies or solutions, and that the key to making a difference in the world is to approach every innovation challenge with great humility.
Melissa Murphy
Distinguished Service Professor of Marketing
Innovative, forward-thinking and solution-focused, Melissa Murphy is a nationally-recognized and award-winning brand and communications leader committed to building and transforming brands and organizations.
Melissa is a Distinguished Service Professor of Marketing and Corporate Entrepreneurship at the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University, teaching both graduate and undergraduate courses in Integrated Marketing Communications, New Product Development, Launching New Products, Product and Brand Management and Brand Strategy. She is also active in programs with the Swartz Center of Entrepreneurship, including the Corporate Start- Up Lab, which showcases how entrepreneurial innovation methodologies can be successful in larger corporations.
As a seasoned corporate executive, Melissa’s vast experience boasts an impressive list of companies and campaigns with worldwide recognition, including: StarKist, Del Monte Foods, and Heinz. Throughout the years, she has impressively fashioned numerous award-winning branding and social media campaigns; championed employee management and communications to build brands internally and improve morale and employee satisfaction; managed numerous industry and company crises and issues; spearheaded communications efforts for a myriad of corporate initiatives, including restructurings and change management, earnings and M&A; facilitated planning sessions for business, marketing and communications strategies, as well as conducted off-site meetings for clients; fostered corporate giving policies; implemented community outreach programs; and has served on several non-profit boards.
President of her own consulting firm, Melissa works with a variety of clients to solve their communications and branding needs. She also spreads her knowledge through various speaking engagements, speaking on topics such as Creating and Growing Your Personal Brand, Leading Successful Company Turn-Around Efforts, Branding from the Inside Out, Effectively Managing Company Crises, Managing Change, and The First 90 Days for A New Leader.
Jason O’Connor
Professor, ETIM
Jason O’Connor is a Senior Research Scientist in the Engineering and Public Policy department. Since joining Carnegie Mellon full-time, he has worked on the Energy Storage demonstration project of the National Network for Critical Technology Assessment program with Professor Kate Whitefoot. His research interests are at the intersection of the economics of innovation and industrial organization. Jason has taught in the ETIM program since 2018. Prior to his current position he was a staff Economist at the Federal Trade Commission and a Research Scientist at the Medicaid Research Center at the University of Pittsburgh.
Mike Verti
Professor, ETIM
Michael is an instructor and practitioner on the art of innovation. He has a passion for R&D strategy with 20 years of experience in industry and consulting focused on delivering solutions from idea to commercialization. At Kennametal Inc., Michael was responsible for cultivating adjacent and white space R&D opportunities as a key member of the Innovation Ventures Group. He led product development at New Pig Corporation and introduced human-centered design and lean-startup approaches to new product development. Recently, Michael has worked at both Deloitte Consulting and Accenture to help organizations improve their innovation effectiveness and more successfully bring new solutions to market. Michael holds multiple patents and has published several peer-reviewed papers on innovation. He holds an MBA from Penn State University and a BS in chemistry from UC Berkeley.
Bob Wasson
Professor, ETIM
My technical background enhances my ability to see profit and viability in investment opportunities. I’ve used data-driven analysis to make financial and business assessments at companies like Alco, Chevron and the Continental Group, Inc. Through my career, I’ve learned that innovation management is about fully understanding the financial potential regarding new and exciting innovations – ranging from simple incremental product innovations to new technology platforms that offer the opportunity for revolutionary growth. In my class, Finance for Innovation Management, students are introduced to the conventional accounting and finance methods of determining the value of innovations to both the organization that they’re a part of, as well as the investment community. In my other class, Decision-Making Methods for Innovation Management, students examine the decision-making process and complex methodologies like decision analysis and real option theory that are used for making business choices with respect to more revolutionary technologies. I want students to leave my classroom understanding that data-driven decision-making is vital to making thorough and reliable business assessments.