Carlson Analytics Lab Faculty & Staff

Expert Guidance

Carlson Analytics Lab projects are supervised by Carlson School faculty and professional staff. Professors from the Information & Decision Sciences department serve as faculty advisors to student teams, providing expertise on analytics approaches and techniques. Professional staff guide students on best practices related to project management, problem solving, and communication.

Ravi Bapna

Academic Director

Ravi Bapna supervises student teams working on Lab projects, ensuring that approaches are sound, and that client needs are met. Professor Bapna holds the Curtis L. Carlson Chair in Business Analytics and Information Systems. He previously served as Associate Dean for Executive Education at the Carlson School.

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De Liu

MS in Business Analytics Program Director

Professor Liu directs the MS in Business Analytics program, home of the Carlson Analytics Lab. He is also a Professor and 3M Fellow in Business Analytics in the Information and Decision Sciences department.

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Lee Thomas

Director, Communications & Programming

Lee coaches students on effective communication strategies for analytics work. He also teaches information design in the University of Minnesota's graduate programs in technical communication.

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Melodie Bard

Director, Operations & Student Services

Melodie connects with companies to develop and scope analytics project proposals. She also works with student teams executing the work.

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Patrick Smith

Director, Business Development

Patrick connects with companies to discuss their analytics project needs and develop project proposals. He also works with student teams executing the work.

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Faculty Mentors

Award-winning faculty members from the Information & Decision Sciences Department (and other departments) serve as mentors to Carlson Analytics Lab teams. Faculty guide student work and vet the results to ensure robust outcomes for clients. The Carlson School's Information & Decision Sciences Department is consistently ranked among the top five in the country for management information systems education.