Robert J. Thomas is an Emeritus Professor of Marketing at Georgetown University, where he has also been Senior Associate Dean, Director of Executive Programs, Associate Dean for Graduate Business Programs, Director of the MBA Program, Founder and Dean of the School of Continuing Studies, Founder and Executive Director of the Center for Professional Development and Innovation, Co-Founder of the Executive Masters in Leadership, and Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Georgetown Institute for Consumer Research. In addition, he was instrumental in the development and launch of several master’s programs at Georgetown and in the McDonough School of Business, including the MS in Business Analytics, the MS in Environment and Business Sustainability, the MS in Global Real Assets, and the MS in Environment and International Affairs.
At Georgetown, he taught courses in Strategic Market Segmentation, Strategic Marketing Planning, New Product Development and Forecasting, Practicum in Consumer Analytics, and Marketing Analysis and Customer Strategy. Bob has over 50 publications in the areas of new product development, market segmentation, organizational buying behavior, business-to-business marketing, and forecasting. His latest book is Finding Wisdom in Brand Tragedies: Managing Threats to Brand Equity. His book, New Product Development, was a featured selection of the Fortune Book Club and his book New Product Success Stories: Lessons From Leading Innovators has been published in several languages.
He served on editorial boards and was an active member in numerous academic associations. He has designed and taught executive education seminars in the U.S. and several countries,and has consulted with over 60 organizations in a wide variety of industries and cultures, including both B2B and B2C products and services. He has provided expert testimony on demand for new technologies for the Federal Communications Commission, the U.S. Postal Rate Commission, and the International Trade Commission. He received his doctorate in Business and Applied Economics with a focus on marketing from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.