Professor-Researcher-Scientist

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In a world that increasingly values specialization, I am proud to have considerable expertise in both the academic and business worlds - and a record of building bridges between each, strengthened by technological innovation, an entrepreneurial spirit and the development of valuable human relationships.

Throughout my professional life I have forged dual careers tempered by a desire to help people solve real-world problems. I've never been one to rely on textbooks. To me, most textbooks are outdated the moment they are cracked open. I prefer to teach through inspiration. I find it extremely gratifying to kindle within my students new ideas, and then fan the flames that transform these students and ideas into roaring fires of innovation.

I received bachelors and masters degrees from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and my PhD from Iowa State University. I came to the University of Nebraska at Omaha College of Information Science & Technology (IS&T) during the fall of 2001, from Austin, Texas, where I had served as a tenured professor and head of operations research group at the College of Engineering at the University of Texas, and held distinguished visiting professor positions at Texas A&M University and the University of Texas business school.

I currently serve as a Distinguished Research Fellow at the College of Information Science & Technology, which is a facet of The University of Nebraska's Peter Kiewit Institute. I am very proud of one of my most recent creations, the Bachelor of Science degree in IT Innovation.

Omaha is home to the campus of Gallup University, where thousands of executives from around the world come each year to study under the auspices of the Gallup Organization. In 2005, I was appointed as a Gallup Senior Scientist (http://www.gallup.com/corporate/19318/Gallup-Senior-Scientists.aspx) for my work in data visualization. Gallup has for many years hosted data visualization classes and seminars that I have created, taught and organized.

Recognition of my academic efforts include being named the Nebraska Professor of the Year in 2007 by the Applied Information Management Institute (www.aiminstitute.org), and being honored the same year at the International Engineering Management Conference as a pioneer of technology entrepreneurship in Austin. (http://lifelong.engr.utexas.edu/iemc2007/wagner.cfm)