Faculty - Fred Collopy

Professor, Information Systems

Ph.D., The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, 1990
B.A., Thomas More College, 1971

I received my PhD in decision sciences from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. I have done extensive research in forecasting, objective setting in organizations, time perception and visual programming. My research has been published in leading academic and practitioner journals including Management Science, the Journal of Marketing Research, the International Journal of Forecasting, the Journal of Forecasting, Chief Executive, and Interfaces.

Currently, I study the design process and use these insights to design information tools for managers. For example, I developed a system to help forecasters logically choose the best forecasting method for a given situation and to add qualitative data to the process. I designed Imager an instrument to play visuals in the way that musicians play sounds and have performed with my own jazz ensemble. I am currently designing methods to convert data into images to help analysts visualize financial information. I also conduct research in the areas of design and learning to pinpoint skills needed for leadership.

Interests

Teaching

I teach courses in systems thinking and how to manage by designing.

Research

My research is a blend of thinking and doing, of the empirical and the constructive. It is in four principal areas. For almost two decades I have been working on a basic problem in business forecasting — no single forecasting method performs well across all kinds of data and situations. That has produced an extensive program of research related to forecasting that has included work on expert systems development, assessment methodologies, statistical pattern recognition, and applications of neural networks. More recently, I have been involved in an efforts to conceptualize how to Manage by Designing, an approach to management that compliments the decision-oriented approach in wide use. My interest in design extends to the design of visualization instruments, including MIDI-based instruments that allow painters and artists to play with images in the way that musicians play sounds. Finally, I have done work related to how people use information in setting objectives and on how they perceive time when using information systems.

Selected Publications

• Collopy, F. (2010). Management Meets Design (Sept./Oct. 2010 ed., pp. pgs. 36-45). Biz Ed Magazine.
• Zhao, L., Grant, J. E., Collopy, F., Boland, Jr., R. J. (2010). Dynamic Graphical Representation of Financial Statements: A Design Inquiry and Empirical Results
• Boland, Jr., R. J., Collopy, F., Lyytinen, K. J., Yoo, Y. (2008). Managing as Designing: Lessons for Organization Leaders from the Design Practice of Frank O. Gehry (vol. 24, pp. 10-25). Cambridge, MA: Design Issues.

Presentations

• Collopy, F. Design Management Institute Webinar, "Why Design is Changing Management", Design Management Institute, Internet. (2010).
• Collopy, F. The Future of Packaging Conference, "Managing by Designing", The Future of Packaging Conference, Cleveland, OH. (2010).
• Collopy, F. APCI Design Innovation Conference, "Managing Creativity or Managing Creatively", Agence pour la Promotion de la Creation Industrielle, Paris, France. (2009).
• Collopy, F. APCI Design Innovation Conference, "Managing Creativity or Managing Creatively", APCI, Paris, France. (2009).

Academic and Professional Activities

• Committee Chair, EMBA Design Committee, 2009 - Present
• Editor, Journal Editor, International Journal of Forecasting, 2005 - Present

Awards

• Teaching Excellence Award, Weatherhead School of Management. (2008).