Research Interests
- Design and creativity in innovation management (Watch here my TEDx talk along with a knowledge article for a preview on this line of research)
- Innovating with AI
- Creative spaces
- Social networks in innovative organizations
- On-line reviews in operations management
- Architecture of complex products
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Refereed journal articles
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- Sosa, M., S. Eppinger, M. Pich, D. McKendrick, S. Stout. 2002. Factors that influence technical communication in distributed product development: an empirical study in the telecommunications industry. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 49(1): 45-58.
- Sosa, M., S. Eppinger, C. Rowles. 2003. Identifying modular and integrative systems and their impact on design team interactions. ASME Journal of Mechanical Design, 125(2): 240-252.
- Sosa, M., S. Eppinger, C. Rowles. 2004. The misalignment of product architecture and organizational structure in complex product development. Management Science, 50(12): 1674-1689.
- Sosa, M., S. Eppinger, C. Rowles. 2007. A network approach to define modularity of components in complex products. ASME Journal of Mechanical Design, 129(11): 1118-1129.
- Sosa, M. 2008. A structured approach to predicting and managing technical interactions in software development. Research in Engineering Design, 19(1): 47-70.
- Sosa, M. 2011. Where do creative interactions come from? The role of tie content and social networks. Organization Science, 22(1):1-21 (lead article).
- Sosa, M., J. Mihm, and T. Browning. 2011. Degree Distribution and Quality in Complex Engineered Systems. ASME Journal of Mechanical Design, 133(10): 101008:1-15.
- Sosa, M., J. Mihm, and T. Browning. 2013. Linking Cyclicality and Product Quality. Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 15(3): 473–491.
- Sosa, M., F. Marle. 2013. Assembling creative teams in new product development using creative team familiarity. ASME Journal of Mechanical Design 135(8): 081009:1-13.
- Sosa, M. 2014. Realizing the need for rework: From task interdependence to social networks. Production and Operations Management 23 (8): 1312–1331.
- Sosa, M., M. Gargiulo, C. Rowles. 2015. Can informal communication networks disrupt coordination in new product development projects? Organization Science 26(4): 1059–1078.
- Gargiulo, M. and M. Sosa. 2016. Common third parties and coordination disruptions
in new product development organizations. Journal of Product Innovation Management 33(2): 132-140. (Special issue on social networks in new product development) - Chan, T. H., J. Mihm, M. Sosa. 2018. On styles in product design: An analysis of US design patents. Management Science 64(3): 1230-1249. (Winner of 2015 POMS College of Product Innovation and Technology Management’s Best Student Paper Award)
- Liu, H., J. Mihm, and M. Sosa. 2018. Where do stars come from? The role of star versus non-star collaborators in creative settings. Organization Science 29(6): 989-1236. (Published in the Best Paper Proceedings of the 2013 Academy of Management Meeting. Finalist for TIM Division’s Best Student Paper Award)
- Chan, T. H., J. Mihm, M. Sosa. 2020. Revisiting the role of collaboration in creating breakthrough inventions. Manufacturing & Service Operations Management, in press. (Finalist for 2018 INFORMS TIMES Best Working Paper Award. Featured in Harvard Business Review’s Idea Watch March-April 2020).
- Cho, H., M. Sosa, S. Hasija. 2022. Reading between the stars: Understanding the effects of online customer reviews on product demand. Manufacturing & Service Operations Management (in press).
- Lee, S. and M. Sosa. 2026. Spaces for Creativity: Unconventional Spaces and Divergent Thinking. Management Science 72(1): 1072-1094. Featured on LinkedIn by Management Science and as INFORMS TIMES paper of the month in May 2025.
- Carrera, C., Martínez-de-Albéniz, V. and M. Sosa. 2026. The Bright Side of Lower Quality: Evidence from Restaurant Exploration. Management Science 72(5): 3847-3864.
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Working papers
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19. Sosa, M. and M. Maoret. 2026. Close to Me: The Interplay of Intraorganizational Social Networks and Physical Proximity on Dyadic Collaboration Effectiveness. INSEADWorking paper.
20. Cho, H., S. Hasija, and M. Sosa. 2019. How important is design for the automobile value chain? INSEAD Working paper. Accepted for presentation at the Academy of Management conference 2016 and MSOM conference 2018. (Dormant).
21. Sosa, M., H. Park, R. Basole. 2017. Bicentric diagrams: A novel approach to manage design changes of interdependent components in complex systems. INSEAD Working paper 2017/47/TOM. (Dormant).
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Research in progress
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22. Spaces for Creativity 2.0: Unconventional Spaces and Creative Collaboration (with S. Lee and E. Huang). Research design completed. Experiments in progress.
23. Idea Abandonment (with T. Chan and K. Sheng). Research design, data collection, and analysis in progress.
24. Idea Evaluation with AI (with T. Evgeniou). Research design, data collection, and analysis in progress.
25. Managing the Feedback Loop: Congestion, Triage, and Responsiveness in Healthcare Operations (with Y. Zheng and M. Freeman). Research design completed. Data analysis in progress.
26. Survival in restaurant networks (with C. Carrera). Data collection completed. Further analysis in progress.
27. Creative Experiments (with J. Mihm and J. Wooten). Research design completed. Digital game design for experiments in progress.
28. Architectural Decisions and Organizational Culture (with C. Galunic and S. Winter). Literature review and research design in progress.
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Managerial journal and book chapters
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29. Sosa, M., S. Eppinger, C. Rowles. 2007. Are your engineers talking to one another when they should? Harvard Business Review (November).
30. Sosa, M., J. Mihm. 2007. Organization design for new product development. In C. Loch and S. Kavadias (eds.), Handbook of New Product Development Research.
31. Sosa, M. 2009. Coordination networks in product development. In P. Kleindorfer and Y. Wind (eds.), The Network Challenge.
32. Sosa, M. 2012. Organization and domain mapping examples based on Pratt & Whitney jet engine design. In T. Browning and S. Eppinger (eds.), Applications and Methods of Design Structure Matrix (DSM).
33. Browning, T., J. Mihm, and M. Sosa. 2015. Using hubs and cyclicality to relate software architecture and quality. CrossTalk July/August: 27-31.
34. Sosa, M. 2018. The value of good design: How design can boost social impact and business results. IESE Insight 37 (2): 24-31. Special issue on Transformation Through Design Thinking (Also published in IESE Business Magazine Fall 2018)
35. Chan T., J. Mihm, M. Sosa. 2019. When Individuals Are More Innovative Than Teams Harvard Business Review (online)
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Papers on refereed conference proceedings
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36. Chan, T. H., J. Mihm, M. Sosa. 2012. A structured approach to identifying styles in design. Proceedings of the 24th ASME Design Theory and Methodology Conference.
37. Sosa, M., M. Danilovic. 2009. A structured approach to re-organize for creativity. Proceedings of the International Conference on Engineering Design (ICED’09).
38. Sosa, M., T. Browning, J. Mihm. 2007. Studying the dynamics of software architectures. Proceedings of the 19th ASME Design Theory and Methodology Conference. (“Best Paper” award nomination)
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Selected INSEAD Knowledge posts and Webinars
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“Webinar: Spaces for Creativity” (with Rory Brett), February 2026
“Collaboration Requires Proximity – But It Doesn’t Have to Be Physical”, June 2024
“Do Unconventional Workspaces Promote Creativity?”, Nov 2022
“How Online Product Reviews Affect Market Share”, June 2021
“Webinar: Creative Collaboration” (with Richa Menke), INSEAD Lifelong Webinar (March 2021)
“Reconceiving Innovation for Covid-19”, September 2020
“The kinds of Collaboration That Lead to Successful Innovation”, article and podcast interview, December 2019
“Why Should You Work with a Creative Star” (J. Mihm & H. Liu), March 2019
“How Organizations Can Cultivate Innovation Catalysts”, January 2019
“A Matchmaker for Public-Private Partnerships”, April 2018
“Three Essential Elements of Customer Co-Creation”, October 2016 (includes video)
“Becoming an Innovation Catalyst”, September 2016
“The Science Behind Great Product Design”, June 2016
“Design, Business & Brand: How Creativity Becomes Innovation”, July 2015
“An Innovation Reinvention for Incumbents”, May 15, 2015.
“The Innovative Organisation: Learning From Design Firms”, February 2015
“Assembling a Creative Team”, June 2013
“Picturing the art of business”, July 2011 (includes video featuring the INSEAD-ArtCenter collaboration)
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Selected media references
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- “How to unlock creativity in the workplace”, The Economist, January 14th 2023 (p. 66)
- “Commentary: Creative work spaces will likely change in Singapore’s post-pandemic offices” Channel News Asia (CNA), Oct 2021. Also appeared in CNA Luxury.
- “Creating innovation cultures”, IEDP Developing Leaders, February 2017.
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Editorial work
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Co-chair of TIE SIG Day at MSOM Conference (July 2026)
Associate Editor for Management Science (since February 2024)
Associate Editor for Manufacturing & Service Operations Management (since January 2021)
Senior editor for the New Product Development department of POM (2010-2025)
Contact
Manuel Sosa
Professor of Technology and Operations Management
Director of the Heinrich and Esther Baumann-Steiner Fund for Creativity and Business
Director of the creativity-business learning platform
Director of the INSEAD-ArtCenter Collaboration
INSEAD Europe Campus
Boulevard de Constance (Office: PMLS 0.14)
Fontainebleau 77305 France
Email: [email protected]
Assistant: Samyra Ouedraogo
Email: [email protected]