Thunderbird Innovation Challenge Draws on Imaginatik Research
BOSTON, MA (12 Oct, 2003) Thunderbird, The American School of International Management, has launched the Thunderbird Innovation Challenge 2003. The competition involves the top graduate business schools from around the world and is drawing on the expertise of Imaginatik Research for the evaluation and judging.
The contest has secured participation from more than 154 teams from the top 52 MBA schools in the world. The teams are vying for the prestigious title of “Most Innovative MBA Team In The World”, as well as a $US 20,000 cash top prize.
The student teams answer innovation questions from Innovation Challenge sponsors such as Dial, Pinnacle West Energy, Aramark, Reuters, and the Wall Street Journal. Questions cover a range of innovation-related topics from innovative ideas for new products, services and brands to new strategies that help maximize profits. The first round of the event will be held online from Oct. 13-19, followed by a final round with the top five schools Nov. 20 – 22 at Thunderbird’s campus in Glendale, Ariz.
Imaginatik’s CEO Mark Turrell, and Imaginatik Research’s Director of KM Research, Boris Pluskowski, have been invited to join the prestigious judging panel. “Imaginatik is at the forefront of Innovation research, and we’re proud to support the Challenge as a way of raising the profile of corporate innovation with today's graduate MBAs," said Boris Pluskowski. “Ideas may be the lifeblood of a company - the Challenge demonstrates that invention must be coupled with process and execution to deliver real value."
Participating schools have entered four- to five-person teams, the best five of which will be selected for the final round. For more information on the Innovation Challenge, visit www.innovationchallenge.net.
About Imaginatik and Imaginatik Research
Imaginatik is the long-time leader in enterprise Idea Management software, designed to elicit ideas and insights from employees and extended enterprise partners, to provide a shared collaborative space to develop ideas, and sophisticated tools to evaluate and select the top ideas for implementation. The core product is Idea Central, a web based application to collect ideas from employees and third parties. Clients include Bristol-Myers Squibb, Cadbury Schweppes, W. R. Grace, Georgia-Pacific, Hallmark Cards and Goodyear Tire & Rubber. Our software has helped these and other companies discover significant sources of additional revenue, as well as tangible cost savings, process improvements and an increased product pipeline.
Our commitment to developing the field of innovation is demonstrated through the Imaginatik Research group which is dedicated to developing the underlying theories and best practice together with academic institutions such as the London Business School and the Cass School of Business, London, as well as leading practitioners of corporate innovation.
About Thunderbird
Thunderbird is the oldest graduate management school in the United States focused solely on preparing international business leaders. Ranked among the best in world by U.S. News and World Report, Wall Street Journal and Business Week, the School’s unique curriculum is based on the principle that to do business on a global scale, executives must not only know the intricacies of business, but also understand the customs of other countries and be able to communicate with different cultures. More than 33,000 men and women in 139 different countries have graduated from Thunderbird since 1946. Thunderbird is accredited by AACSB-International Association for Management Education, the North Central Association for Colleges and Schools and the European Quality Improvement System (EQUIS). To learn more, visit: www.Thunderbird.edu
Imaginatik and Idea Central are trademarks of Imaginatik plc.
Press Contact:
press@imaginatik.com
Sales Contact:
sales@imaginatik.com