Biography

Jesse Bockstedt is a doctoral candidate in the Information and Decision Sciences department at the Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota. He holds a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He also holds a Master of Science in mechanical engineering with an emphasis in design and manufacturing and a minor in industrial engineering from the University of Minnesota. He has published in the International Journal of Electronic Commerce and has presented his research at the 2005 and 2006 Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, the 2005 INFORMS Conference of Information Systems and Technology, and the 2005 Digital Technology Center Intelligent Storage Workshop. Jesse has taught two semesters of the undergraduate course IDS 4203 which covers IT infrastructure and web application programming with ASP.NET.”

Background: “After finishing my Bachelor’s degree, I worked as a management and IT consultant with Accenture. At Accenture, I worked with companies in the telecommunications industry to improve business processes and the information systems that support them. My master’s degree focused on design engineering where I had a chance to work with local companies on a new product development project related to the application of information technology in medical devices and health care.”

Research Interests: “As an information systems researcher, I'm primarily interested in understanding how emerging information technologies have an impact on products, markets, and consumers. Information technology is constantly evolving, and I hope to develop analytical models to represent its evolution and provide tools for managers engaged in new product development in the information age. New forms of products, such as digital information goods, are enabled by information technology and provide new experiences for consumers. I also hope to understand how consumer needs and preferences change as information technologies and products evolve.”

Current Research Projects: “I am currently exploring two streams of research related to my interests. First I am working with Professors Adomavicius, Kauffman, and Gupta to develop an ecosystem model of technology evolution. We use an ecological perspective to represent the many interdependent relationships between technological artifacts, firms and consumers. We hope to develop a set of technology forecasting tools that will allow firms to make better decisions about technology investment and new technology development. Second, I am working with Professor Riggins to explore the design of digital information goods, primarily entertainment or ‘culture information goods’. Information technology has had a significant impact on the entertainment industry in recent years. New forms of distribution have been introduced as well as new forms of information goods themselves. We hope to develop policy recommendations for designing, marketing, and selling information goods.”

General Impressions: “I am very impressed with the doctoral program in Information and Decision Sciences for many reasons. First, the breadth and diversity of faculty research provides students the opportunity to explore all the facets of information systems research. Second, the faculty members here are very approachable and always willing to listen to your ideas. As long as you take the initiative, any one of the faculty members will provide support and advice on your research. Third, the MISRC gives us a great view of industry and opportunities for research grounded in the real world. Finally, I like snow and for that, there’s no place better than Minnesota!”