We are pioneers of possibility
Global challenges are changing business and society in unpredictable ways and with accelerating speed. Clearly, it’s no longer business as usual, and the future depends on leaders who have the skills, agility, and creativity to anticipate disruptive events and forge new paths. The Disruption Lab is here to cultivate those leaders.
Here, students, faculty, and partners engage to explore disruptive forces and use a bold, imaginative approach to advance new ideas. We’re combining a disruptive thinking framework and early exposure to emerging technologies to solve tomorrow’s problems.
With the support of founding partner Ernst & Young LLP (EY US), we present students with a transformational opportunity to think differently and challenge the status quo. EY’s purpose—to build a better working world – is evident in the importance they place on succeeding through disruption, making them natural partners.
We accelerate the learning curve.
Disruptive forces such as emerging technology, social activism, political instability, health outbreaks, and natural disasters all threaten the viability of businesses and turn the status quo on its head. Business leaders must not only prepare for disruption, but also develop innovative ways of thinking to succeed through rapid change.
We offer students early opportunities to explore breakthrough technologies, such as artificial intelligence, virtual reality, augmented reality, blockchain, and more. Through Lab projects, students collaborate in interdisciplinary teams to deliver a viable product that has future application, adding an entrepreneurial dimension to their learning.
Solving tomorrow's problems today
The Lab gives companies a chance to tap into some of the brightest minds the University of Illinois has to offer as well as teach those students about the challenges and opportunities for disruption in their own industries.
Connecting industry partners with innovative student minds and new ways of thinking allows participating organizations the opportunity to share their expertise with students and, perhaps in the process, gain a new perspective on the forces disrupting their industries.
Research that brings business and technology together
The wealth of information available today has fundamentally changed our world. Our dedication to research and our outstanding Disruption Lab Fellows uniquely position us to pioneer leading-edge breakthroughs in business education and teach our students to develop fresh ideas to solve important societal challenges.
It’s how we expand the research enterprise and connect the campus and the business communities to create new entrepreneurial opportunities. It’s how our Disruption Lab makes a difference for students—and for business.
Disruption Lab Leadership
Robert Brunner, Gies College of Business - Chief Disruption Officer
Dan Cermak, School of Information Sciences - Fellow
Josh Herbold, Gies College of Business - Fellow
Jamie Nelson, Center for Innovation and Technology in Learning - Fellow
