Careers launch. Businesses accelerate.

Supercharge your organization’s future with the IU K+M Collective—a business solutions consultancy powered by top student strategists who conduct consulting work with the guidance of renowned faculty. Access strategic, next-generation solutions from the partnership between Indiana University’s top-ranked Kelley School of Business and The Media School.

K+M Collective is more than a consulting firm; it’s a launchpad for student talent and a catalyst for your organization’s success.

Need business solutions?

Be among the first organizations to work with IU K+M Collective’s student strategists.

Partner with K+M

in Marketing
Kelley School of Business
U.S. News & World Report, 2026

Overall Best Undergraduate Business Programs
Kelley School of Business
U.S. News & World Report, 2026

Organizations gain innovative solutions. Students gain professional experience.

IU K+M Collective offers Kelley and Media School students resume-boosting experiential learning opportunities researching and delivering marketing consulting projects. This first-of-its-kind collaborative initiative is designed for immediate impact—for clients and students.

Organizations gain:

Bold new ideas: Harness next-generation thinking, unburdened by industry routine.
Immediate results: Accelerate success through custom research, strategy, marketing, and communications—delivered by student strategists under expert guidance.
Cross-disciplinary strength: Experience the power of business and marketing expertise combined with media creativity.

Students gain:

Impact: Paid, professional consulting experiences that prepare our students to contribute to an organization on day one of their professional career
Collaboration: Opportunities to work across disciplines and develop leadership skills
Mentorship: Guidance from recognized faculty and consulting professionals
Career jumpstart: Consultancy experiences that prepare students to lead

K+M in the news

Kelley and Media schools form IU K+M Collective, a consulting firm providing students with experiential learning

Operating as a functioning consulting firm, the IU K+M Collective will enable students from the Kelley and Media schools to collaborate with faculty and combine classroom learning with professional experience.

Consulting before Graduation? IU’s Kelley and Media Schools are making it happen

From Poets&Quants:

The K+M Collective represents the best of what higher education can offer: hands-on experience, interdisciplinary learning, and real-world impact.

Students: Become tomorrow's consultants

IU K+M Collective offers students paid consultancy experience delivering real-world business and media solutions.

Before engaging with clients, you'll complete a four-seminar series designed to build key competencies in consulting, teamwork, professional communication, and strategic influence—preparing you for client engagements and collaborative work environments.

Student applications are currently closed and will reopen in the spring semester.

“Together, Kelley and The Media School will provide research, strategic marketing, communications, and other goal-accelerating resources to advance the success of client organizations, while providing critical experiential learning for our students. In turn, this will strengthen students’ career-readiness and competitiveness in jobs after graduation.”

Pat HopkinsDean, Kelley School of Business

“By combining what students value most about our individual schools—Kelley’s top-ranked marketing department and The Media School’s hands-on creative approach to learning—the IU K+M Collective offers a unique interdisciplinary experience that is greater than the sum of its parts. This collaboration will prepare IU students to work and lead in an evolving media landscape.”

David TolchinskyDean, The Media School

“Initiatives like the K+M Collective reflect our ongoing commitment to expanding experiential learning opportunities for students. They add another exciting way for students to apply what they're learning in meaningful, real-world contexts.”

Rahul ShrivastavProvost, IU Bloomington

Founder and executive director

Nancy E. Paton

npaton@iu.edu
812-855-5297

A teaching professor of marketing at Kelley and the former IU vice president and chief communications and marketing officer, Nancy Paton is a nationally recognized brand architect and strategist.

Paton was previously chief communications and marketing executive at the University of Florida and the University at Buffalo. At IU, she launched an inaugural, award-winning university-wide marketing and communications strategy.

“Organizations do well by doing good—investing in next-generation talent and achieving business goals. Our teams create custom solutions, jump-start careers, and accelerate business growth.”

Meet the IU Kelley School of Business faculty

Meet the IU Media School faculty