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Assistant Professor Michael Albert teaches Quantitative Analysis courses in Darden’s MBA program, and he has joint appointments in Systems Engineering and Computer Science in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) at UVA. His research focuses on combining machine learning and algorithmic techniques to automate the design of markets. His work has appeared in leading artificial intelligence and machine learning venues such as the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI) and the International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence (IJCAI).

Prior to joining Darden in 2018, Albert received his Ph.D. in financial economics at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. He has also worked as a visiting assistant professor of finance at the Ohio State University, as a postdoctoral researcher at the Learning Agents Research Group at the University of Texas at Austin under Peter Stone, and as a postdoctoral researcher in the artificial intelligence group headed by Vincent Conitzer at Duke University.

Professor Chao teaches operations management, innovation, and new product development courses at the Darden School of Business. His research and teaching is focused on helping managers design more innovative organizations. He has helped many entrepreneurial ventures and established companies manage their innovation and new product development processes, and currently serves as an adviser or board member for numerous early-stage ventures. He is a leader in novel curriculum design, having developed a number of cross-disciplinary experiential courses at the University focused on product development and technology commercialization.

Much of Professor Chao’s research and teaching is based on fieldwork and case studies conducted at companies such as 3M, Microsoft, Whirlpool, and Lockheed Martin, among others. Research projects include work on entrepreneurial ecosystems, innovation and design contests, and R&D portfolio management. His work has been published in leading academic journals, including Production and Operations Management, Operations Research, and Management Science.

Professor Alex Cowan teaches three courses at Darden in the area of design and digital innovation: Software Design, Software Development, and Applied Innovation (in Silicon Valley). With Darden, he also created the Coursera specialization Agile Development, one of the top 15 specializations on Coursera. His Venture Design framework is widely used by practitioners and instructors as a systematic approach to developing new products and businesses.

He has delivered workshops to student and professional audiences at such venues as General Assembly, The Lean Startup Circle, Startup Weekend, SVPMA, Swissnex, UCSC, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, the UVA iLab, and Stanford’s d.school. He currently serves on four corporate boards and as an adviser to multiple startups and “intrapreneurial” ventures.

Prior to his time at Darden, Alex has been an entrepreneur (5x) and an intrapreneur (1x). Most recently, he advised and invested in Singularity Networks (acquired by Cisco in 2019).

Professor Du specializes in strategic, organizational, and intercultural communication. He holds a Ph.D. in Strategic Communication from George Mason University and an M.A. in Interpersonal and Organizational Communication from Liberty University. With over 10 years of college teaching experience, Professor Du adopts an interdisciplinary approach to foster a supportive and engaging learning environment, emphasizing ethical and effective communication tailored to audience, purpose, and context.

Prior to joining McIntire, Professor Du taught at Baylor University and Fort Hays State University, where he developed and taught various business and organizational communication courses. His research focuses on promoting inclusive organizational identity and intercultural competence, with publications in various academic journals and presentations at national conferences. Professor Du is dedicated to preparing students to excel in a globalized world through innovative teaching methods and practical, real-world applications.