University of Notre Dame Idea Center

Bryan Ritchie, Ph.D., M.B.A. is vice president and associate provost for innovation at the University of Notre Dame. In this role, Ritchie leads the University’s new IDEA Center initiative and coordinates the University’s innovation, commercialization and entrepreneurship programs. 

Ritchie’s wide range of business and academic experience spans entrepreneurial startups, large corporate management, consulting, technology transfer and academic teaching and leadership. An expert in venture startup, value creation, and organizational execution, he has helped many enterprises, large and small, create and execute on their highest strategic initiatives.

Ritchie is a serial entrepreneur who has formed several information technology companies. He has held management positions in or consulted for numerous other information technology companies including Century Software, Dayna Communications, IBM, Novell, IOMEGA, Seagate, Megahertz, and 3Com. His work with these companies focused on executing new product development initiatives, such as groundbreaking product launches of wireless computing adaptors (Dayna), mobile video (3Com/Megahertz), removable storage (IOMEGA), multi-media networking (Novell), and cross-platform communications (Century Software).

Ritchie also combined his private sector experience with academic work. As a professor of political economy at Michigan State University for 11 years and associate vice president for research commercialization at the University of Utah for five, Ritchie is a thought and execution leader on innovation, entrepreneurship, technological development, skills education and training, and social capital. He has authored books and articles on relationship economics, sustainable growth, and technological upgrading, all of which have influenced our knowledge about the decisions and processes behind high-growth enterprises. He is a widely renowned teacher and is the recipient of many awards and grants.

Dr. Ritchie has effectively provided leadership and community building to connect work among academics, business and government leaders, and student/community entrepreneurs.

Ritchie received an M.B.A. from the Marriott School at Brigham Young University, a Ph.D. from Emory University and a B.A. from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.