• Skip to Content

Kelley School of Business Indiana University
  • Programs
    • Undergraduate
    • Full-Time +Flex MBA
    • Kelley Direct Online MBA
    • Online Master's Degrees & Certificates
    • +Kelley
    • 3/2 MBA
    • MS in Accounting with Data and Analytics
    • MS in Finance
    • MS in Healthcare Management
    • MS in Information Systems
    • MS in Management
    • PhD
    • Executive Education
    • Indianapolis Programs
    • International Programs
  • Faculty & Research
    • Research & Publications
    • Faculty Directory
    • Departments & Majors
    • Centers & Institutes
    • Courses
  • Recruiters & Corporate Relations
    • Graduate Career Services
    • Undergraduate Career Services
    • Indianapolis Career Services
    • Alumni Career Resources
    • Corporate & Foundation Relations
    • Indianapolis Corporate & Foundation Relations
  • Alumni
    • Who We Are
    • Get Involved
    • Career & Professional Development
    • Awards
    • Alumni Legacies
    • Events
    • Giving
    • Contact Us
  • About Us
    • Dean's Welcome
    • Administration
    • Kelley Women
    • School Profile
    • History
    • Visit Bloomington
    • Visit Kelley Indianapolis
    • Contact
    • Directory
    • Social Media Directory
    • Rankings
  • More
    • Centers & Institutes
    • Directory
    • News & Events
    • Give
    • Kelley Store
Full-Time +Flex MBA
  • Why Kelley?
    • MBA Curriculum & Experience
    • Leadership
    • Value
    • Rankings
    • Alumni
  • Admissions
    • Process & Timeline
    • Tuition, Financial Aid & Scholarships
    • International MBA Applicants
    • Meet Us
    • Class Profile
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Contact the MBA Admissions Team
    • Admitted Student Information
  • Academics
    • Majors & Minors
    • Certificate Programs
    • Joint Degrees
    • Experiential Learning
    • Global Experiences
    • Faculty
    • Code of Conduct
  • Academies
    • Business Marketing
    • Business Operations and Innovation Academy
    • Capital Markets
    • Consulting
    • Consumer Marketing
    • Strategic Finance
    • PLUS Life Sciences
    • Entrepreneurial Innovation
    • Leadership
  • Careers
    • Me, Inc.
    • International Students
    • Statistics
    • Companies, Networking & Opportunities
  • Life at Kelley
    • Clubs & Organizations
    • Diversity
    • LGBTQ+
    • Military
    • Partners & Families
    • Students of Color
    • Women
  • Login
  • Apply
  • Request Info
  • Meet Us
  1. Home
  2. Programs
  3. Full-Time +Flex MBA
  4. Academies
  5. Business Operations and Innovation Academy

Business Operations and Innovation Academy: Feel the pulse of global business

An effective supply chain delivers products and services in a way that creates the greatest sustainable value for a business. A digital enterprise is an organization that uses technology to innovate business models, engage with customers, and optimize operational efficiency. Together, they solve challenging and critical business problems for most industries around the world.

In the Business Operations and Innovation Academy, you'll build your understanding of the complex issues that influence supply chains—from globalization and risk management to big data. You'll talk with front-line leaders about how they apply emerging technology trends to innovate and stay competitive. We get to know you and your interests so we can cater the program to provide the experiences you need.

Alumni of the Academy and students discuss the real-world and networking experiences that enable students to launch careers in this field.

Description of the video:

Jay Buente:
I'm a career switcher from professional baseball. I came into Kelley with no business experience and I decided to choose the Supply Chain Academy.

Natalie Curts:
I was working a lot in marketing business development with Chinese factories and it was just really chaotic. And so that really led me to wanting to come to get my MBA at Kelley, really to answer these questions that I had about what is good management and how can we really make the most out of the factories.

Dan Carroll:
We work hard to help students get the jobs they're looking for. We do that with a very student-centric approach, get to know the students, get to know what they're interested in. After that, we try to cater the program to meet their needs so that they get a rich experience in areas that interest them.

Dan Carroll:
Our second years are very, very supportive of our first years. And I think that's truly different of our Academy. The Student Association will organize happy hours and networking sessions. They'll organize student treks where the students can go and visit companies that they're interested in.

Jay Buente:
The first semester, they bring in speakers and they bring in industry experts where we're able to do hands-on exercises and activities.

Bill Matheson:
The Transportation Executive Board is really a collection of professionals that are in the supply chain industry that have all graduated from Indiana University Kelley School of Business, and have an allegiance to the school, but also an allegiance to the industry.

Tom Williams:
This will provide value to the students at Kelley. It's a great networking opportunity. We're going to provide good funding.

Bill Matheson:
The Executive Board's goal is to be able to seek out students that are interested in Supply Chain and engage them in internships and also learning opportunities through special projects while they're here at school.

Eric Starks:
We are really excited about the Transportation Board, because we can bring to students a lot of real-world experience. Because we're not just talking about putting people in and saying, "They stay middle management." That's not what we're looking at. We're looking at trying to develop leaders out there. We want to know who that next CEO is going to be.

Dan Carroll:
Some of the best companies in the world come to help interact with our students and to help our students understand how those processes work out in the industry. In the second semester we have an eight week action learning event or a project where we take a real project at a company and we will put a team of four students that are generally interested in that topic to work for that company to solve that problem.

Jay Buente:
They immerse you into the content and the details right away. You really gain immediate exposure to all the possibilities within that industry.

Dan Carroll:
We'll take a week and we'll go to some of the best manufacturers in the world.

Natalie Curts:
We were able to see the factory, hear from the CEO, talk to him a little bit. And during that interaction, I sort of said to him, "Hey, this is really interesting what you guys are doing here. You're a really lean environment. And I can appreciate that. Because the places I'd worked in China, they're just not." And the CEO turned to me and really just said like, "Hey, can you speak Mandarin?" And I said, "Yes, I can!" So then he said, "Oh, if that's the case, I have a job for you tomorrow!" And so it was won entirely because of the Academy that I was able to get this amazing internship opportunity.

Dan Carroll:
So our recruiters are telling us that the quality and depth of the experience here is unmatched in some of the other schools that they recruit.

Jay Buente:
I actually ended up getting an internship early in November because of the Supply Chain Academy, because I was able to gather a lot of information and knowledge. And those in combination allowed me to go into my internship with a lot of confidence and ultimately land a full-time position.

Is a career in supply chain management for you?

During your Academy experience, you will become familiar with leading practices in supply chain and operations and the impact of emerging technologies. You will:

  • Meet with leading companies such as Amazon, Dick's Sporting Goods, GE Haier, Home Depot, Subaru, and Whirlpool to hear from executives and tour manufacturing facilities
  • Apply methods, models, and analytical tools of supply chain management to a corporate-sponsored project in preparation for your summer internship
  • Learn from front-line problem-solvers and thought leaders in supply chain management, technological innovation, and business analytics
  • Receive ongoing mentoring from the Academy directors, a career coach, second-year students, and alumni

Career outcomes

Students in the Business Operations and Innovation Academy have secured internships and full-time positions with companies such as Amazon, CVS Health, Deloitte, EY, FedEx, GE Appliances, Intel, Johnson & Johnson, Procter & Gamble, United Airlines, and Whirlpool. Kelley MBA graduates pursue careers across the US and abroad. View our employment statistics.

Learn about the Academy and careers in supply chain management and digital enterprise

Title slide of a webinarGain insights about the Academy and careers in supply chain management and emerging technologies from Academy leaders, alumni, and a student.

View webinar

Learn how to prepare for tech-related business roles

A slide presented during a webinar

Gain insights for careers in the tech sector from a Kelley MBA student, alumni, and staff.

View webinar

Questions? Contact us.

Julia A Kalish

Business Operations and Innovation Academy Director
jakalish@iu.edu

More opportunities to build your career

Check out the student-led Data and Operations Club, to get a deeper understanding of operations, decision science, and supply chain management. The club's executive team works closely with the Business Operations and Innovation Academy directors when developing programs. You’ll develop corporate relationships through guest lectures, plant tours, and workshops, participate in interview preparation and mentoring, and build your network and friendships during social and teambuilding events, tutoring, and projects.

Our partners

  • Kelley Transportation Executive Board
  • ODT Connect

 

Social media

  • Facebook for the Kelley School of Business Full-Time MBA Program
  • Twitter for the Kelley School of Business
  • Linkedin for the Kelley School of Business Full-Time MBA Program
  • Blog for the Kelley School of Business Full-Time MBA Program
  • Instagram for the Kelley School of Business Full-Time MBA Program
  • Youtube for the Kelley School of Business Full-Time MBA Program
  • Accessibility
  • College Scorecard
  • Privacy Notice
  • Copyright © 2025 The Trustees of Indiana University