An experiential approach to preparing students for leadership in managing technology

We describe an experiential approach to preparing students for leadership in managing technology. The course titled "New Product Design & Business Development" combines intensive project work with classroom education to help students generalize from their own projects to a wider universe of product design and business development phenomena. The course is organized as a technology consulting operations with students as members of consulting teams, sponsoring companies as clients and member of the faculty as the senior partners. The course puts together up to six teams of graduate students from management and engineering who work with faculty from multiple disciplines on projects sponsored by individual companies. The year-long format provides an opportunity for students to gain hands-on experience in a product and business development project. Students also complete a series of assignments designed to encourage reflection and learning from these experiences that can be generalized. In addition to their own projects, students participate continuously in constructive critiques of others' projects; and in presentations, case discussions and workshops that help them learn about the product arid business development process itself. Students, faculty and company sponsors find the course productive and consistent with its objectives.