Computational Intelligence in Business Analytics: Concepts, Methods, and Tools for Big Data Applications

Dr. Les Sztandera is Professor of Computer Information Systems in the School of Business Administration at Philadelphia University Kanbar College of Design, Engineering and Commerce. His research interests include data analytics and computational intelligence. He received his Doctor of Philosophy degree from the University of Toledo, Ohio, and his Master of Science from the University of Missouri. Dr. Sztandera has taught undergraduate and master’s level courses as well as doctoral seminars in computational intelligence for more than 20 years. He was a recipient of the highest and the most prestigious appointment in the U.S. Fulbright Scholars program in 2003, and served as Fulbright Distinguished Chair at the School of Business and Economics (ISEG) in Lisbon, Portugal, teaching in the MBA and Ph.D. programs there.

Currently, Dr. Sztandera is teaching innovation MBA program courses in Technical Competitive Intelligence and New Product Development, as well as being involved in multidisciplinary industrysponsored research projects as part of the new curriculum that draws on Philadelphia University’s rich history in innovation and design, and long tradition of excellence in teaching and researching integrated product development. The curriculum meets the emerging needs of industry to educate managers, industrial designers, and engineers into more accomplished practitioners in the global product development processes.

Dr. Sztandera draws on his experience in the design and delivery of innovative curricula to facilitate crafting of cross-disciplinary projects. His cross-disciplinary work in encouraging the inclusion of computational intelligence principles and competences in undergraduate education led to the National Science Foundation grant award for Philadelphia University through the Division of Undergraduate Education in 1996. Since joining Philadelphia University in 1993, Dr. Sztandera has been involved in a number of course and curricula developments. He proposed a sequence of courses coupled with laboratory assignments in which students worked on real-life problems. In 2004 he was instrumental in developing a Business Plus program for entering freshmen.

Complementary with his teaching effort, Dr. Sztandera has been involved in a variety of research activities in the field of computational intelligence. His research was funded by the U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Department of Commerce, National Science Foundation, State Supercomputer Centers, and the American Heart Association, among others. Dr. Sztandera is an eminent scholar, and has a significant publication and teaching record. He has delivered papers, seminars, and workshops, and has published extensively on computational intelligence issues, as well as served as a Chair of International Conferences in the field.