Rob Austin
Professor, Information Systems
Expertise: Simulations, Design, Digital Transformation, Innovation, Learning Innovation, Technology Management, Information Technology, Cybersecurity

Rob Austin is a Professor of Innovation and Information Systems, and an affiliated faculty member at Harvard Medical School and Aarhus School of Business and Social Sciences. At The Ivey Academy, Rob is the Program Director of Charting the Future of Primary Care: Leadership, Teams, and Culture. He has worked extensively with corporate clients, including BP, CIBC, Citrix Systems, Hewlett Packard, IBM, LL Bean, Maersk Oil and Gas, Microsoft, Pfizer, Roche, Symantec, UPS, and the United States House of Representatives.
Rob is the author of nine books and has published widely in both academic and professional journals, such as Harvard Business Review, Information Systems Research, MIT Sloan Management Review, Organization Science, Organization Studies, and the Wall Street Journal. He also is the author of more than 50 published cases and notes, three Harvard online products, and two popular Massively Open Online Courses (MOOCs) running on the Coursera platform.
Programs
Why is innovation hard for organizations?
Explore different approaches to innovation, learn to avoid pitfalls, and tackle future challenges as an "innovation manager."
Product development and performance in volatile markets.
Evaluate new product ideas, use AI and big data to develop customer insights, and predict launch trajectories within unconventional markets.
Articles
November 5th, 2021
Neurodiversity in the workplace: Building towards inclusion
In this podcast episode, our panelists examine pioneering workplace programs, the competitive advantage of inclusion, and changing ideals of leadership through a more inclusive lens.
Read StoryAugust 5th, 2020
In the latest issue of Ivey Business Journal, innovation expert Rob Austin and The Ivey Academy's executive director, Mark Healy, discuss how the pandemic has many organizations experimenting and innovating.
Read StoryJuly 10th, 2020
Innovating in a pandemic: Is there opportunity within adversity?
Innovation expert and Ivey professor Rob Austin discusses the relationship between "jolts" and innovation, why innovation tends to be difficult for organizations during normal times, and shared examples of ways the pandemic may be driving important innovation.
Read Story