Faculty Innovation Grant awarded to Gurram Gopal, Ph.D to provide workshops, career guidance and research highlights
Career Services is pleased to announce that Gurram Gopal, Ph.D., Industry Professor, Information Technology and Management has been awarded a Faculty Innovation Grant for the 2016-2017 academic year.
The purpose of this grant program is to provide funding to faculty for activities directly related to the career and professional development of Illinois Institute of Technology students and/or the expansion of Illinois Tech's employer network.
The grant is awarded to Gurram Gopal to provide the following activities:
1. A professional INTM Research Accomplishments e-brochure/bulletin to develop and distribute to manufacturing and supply chain/logistics professionals during June, August, and December. This brochure will highlight special projects completed by students at the end of Spring, Summer, and Fall terms. Print copies will also be made and distributed to INTM visitors.
2. A “Careers in Industry” event with industry and advisory board members presenting within each of three focus areas- Manufacturing, Supply Chain Management, and Industrial Facilities.
3. Workshops on Lean, Six Sigma, and Agile Supply Chain.
Objectives
The Industrial Technology and Management Department had 183 students enrolled in Spring 2017, of whom the majority are international graduate students. These graduating students want to work in the United States following their graduation and gain industry experience. It has been extremely challenging to prepare the students and find opportunities for them.
This grant activities are targeted for specific outcomes.
1. A unique aspect of our graduate program is Special Projects. Our IIT Europe students complete a 6 credit Master’s Special Project, and some are of publication quality. If prospective employers could see the depth and breadth of analytical work done by our graduate students they would be more aware of the talent and employability of our graduates.
2. A number of our advisory board members have expressed interest in taking a more active role in student internships. The “Careers in Industry” events will invite industry professionals from each of our three primary specialization areas/associations (from companies in which currently no INTM graduates are employed) for guest lectures on careers and career preparation. This event will also connect professionals to our program. This event will allow for speakers to audit our classes and share a classroom experience with students.
3. Lean, Six Sigma and Agile implementation skills are being required by many employers. We currently do not have courses in this area. An experienced industry professional would conduct a workshop for students on these principles and train them in these skills.
These professionals would also train students to develop their consulting skills, which students are demanding. One of my former students, Jordi Saperas, Business Analytics Engineer Sr. Consultant at Allstate fits the profile many of our current students aim to develop. He lectured to my class, which my students found very beneficial. Furthermore, the Professional Master candidates within the Department of Chemistry also expressed interest in a course on this topic, and these workshops provide a foundation upon which to build such a course.
While these activities are INTM-focused, they have the potential to benefit SAT as a whole due to the fact that many firms are seeking IT-skilled SMEs in Industrial Technology and Operations.
