How a Co-Major in Technology and Innovation Management Can Enhance Your Degree

What can a TIM co-major or minor do for you? Below are some potential career paths that a TIM student can take, depending on the major that is being combined. Our flexible and customizable program helps students within and outside of LeBow to be well-prepared for the challenges and opportunities brought about by new technologies, maximizing the value of their degrees.

Below is a list of each business major and how it can be enhanced by a TIM co-major.

Accounting

Technological advances in computing, data processing, and the emergence of artificial intelligence have fundamentally changed the roles of and expectations from present-day accounting professionals. They are expected to create qualitatively rich insights for the enterprise as a whole instead of merely carrying out repetitive functions. The auditing function, in particular, is changed radically with the emergence of new technologies. Moreover, job demand for accounting professionals in Tech- and IT-organizations is also on the rise. The TIM Co-major specifically helps accounting students in developing a fine-grained understanding of how the technological landscape of business is rapidly impacting all aspects of business operations both internal to organization and in its interfaces with external stakeholders. Along with the four core TIM courses, electives such as MIS 262, OPM 341, and FIN 325 are representative courses that a student can take to realize the intended benefits.

Finance

The financial services industry has been transformed in the internet era with the current progression of Web 2.0 technologies such as cloud-based services, artificial intelligence, blockchains, cryptocurrencies etc. For example, the emerging fintech industry is one of the fastest growing industries on the landscape. The skill set required for finance professionals in the coming years will not be the same as it was before. Besides developing core knowledge and skills in financial products and services, graduates will also be expected to have a deep understanding of how technology plays an integral role in the development and marketing of financial services and systems. Electives such as FIN 325, 335 and 338 when combined with the TIM core courses can provide a strong foundation to students majoring in finance for harnessing the power of technological innovation in the fast-growing fintech space.

Marketing

The TIM Co-major can be a strategic career asset to a student majoring in marketing. First, most new products and services these days have a strong technological component. In industries ranging from fast-moving consumer goods, home appliances, telecommunication, media and mass communications, banking and financial sector, to healthcare sector, marketing professionals are being increasingly challenged to combine emerging technologies to the entire spectrum of the product and service lifecycle. Second, the new product and service development process in organizations is being altered by the use of advanced collaboration technologies and data-management systems. In this vibrant and fast-changing context, the TIM Co-major is designed to provide marketing majors with the adequate knowledge and skills to combine technology with all aspects of new product and service development and effective marketing, sales, distribution, and customer experience management. The TIM course curriculum offers several courses in marketing, supply chain management, and service operations management that when combined with the core technology management courses can prepare a student majoring in marketing for a sound career trajectory.

Management Information Systems (MIS)

These are some of the most exciting times for MIS professionals and the rate of technological change in areas such as communications, data management, processing, storage, and security, business decision-making etc. are calling for a new breed of MIS professionals who can think and act strategically to harness the promise of emerging innovations. The TIM Co-major is designed to enable an MIS student think strategically about technology and analyze current and future trends to have a more important say in the overall direction of a company’s growth and in the development and management of its products, services, and operations. While MIS in itself provides a student with a rich grounding in understanding and managing data, the TIM Co-major can provide the student a framework to generate rich strategic and operational insights from the data within the broader context of the company and the industry. The TIM course curriculum offers a number of courses in MIS, marketing, operations management that can be effectively combined with the TIM core courses to provide such an opportunity for aspiring MIS professionals.

Operations and Supply Chain Management (OSCM)

The rapid progress in technology has already changed— and will continue to change—processes in sourcing, procurement, distribution within and across companies, all of which are areas falling within operations and supply chain management. For example, the prevalence of mobile and wireless technology has led to profound changes throughout the logistics and transportation sectors. At the same time, AI systems will eventually replace human labors in certain areas and functions. Keeping up with new capabilities can be difficult for companies, but also creates new opportunities for aspiring young professionals who are interested in having a career in operations and supply chain management. The TIM Co-major and its rigorous and flexible curriculum will help OSCM students better understand how technology may impact all areas of operations and supply chain management.

Legal Studies

Managing intellectual properties (IP) is one of the most critical challenges that companies across the globe are facing in the current era of fast-paced technological change and innovation. A student majoring in legal studies who wants to advance into a career in IP management or IP-based entrepreneurship needs to not only master related laws but also have a deep understanding of technology management and skills in projecting technological and innovation trajectories into the future. The TIM Co-major and its curriculum of diverse courses can offer students majoring in legal studies a powerful set of canons, methodologies, and competencies in applying current legal frameworks to emergent technological developments.

Sport Management

Technological innovation has not only changed the way people interact with sports but also transformed how sports are managed and delivered. Sports teams and organizations are using new technology to improve the fan experience, player safety, and better dissect their strengths and weaknesses. For example, virtual reality is being used to help improve player performance and give fans a better viewing experience. Smart helmets and equipment are developed to better detect the collision and absorb the impact. New trends are constantly developing in audience engagement and tickets distribution owing to the ubiquity of social media and digital platforms. The TIM Co-major and its diverse course offering will prepare students for current and future technological changes, becoming professionals who can harness the power of technology in the ever-changing landscape of the sports industry.

Business and Engineering (B&E)

For B&E students who want to maximize their dual advantage, the TIM Minor is a natural choice. The four TIM core courses equip students with strategic insights and keen understanding of how the increasing blurred industry boundaries may disrupt established routines and processes in existing companies, and how future engineers in various industries may prepare themselves for the new business landscape that are reshaped by technological convergence. Students will also learn how they can better bridge the technical side of a business (e.g., R&D team) with other parts of the organization such as the marketing team or the management team. The strategic acumen delivered through the TIM program is applicable to virtually any area of engineering, because the analytical capability and soft skills embedded in all TIM core courses and suggested electives are highly transferrable and generalizable. Thus, any B&E student can practically benefit from the TIM Minor, regardless of the engineering concentration that one takes.