KnowIT

W. P. Carey welcomes two clinical professors to the IS department

Clinical professors bring real-world industry experience to academia and are depended on to keep the department up to date on the most current trends and practices.

By Jenny Keeler

2022-09-19

This year, the W. P. Carey School of Business welcomed two new clinical professors to the Department of Information Systems (IS).

"Our two clinical professors bring a plethora of teaching and service experiences to ASU and will help strengthen and help us expand our degree and non-degree programs," says Pei-yu Chen, the IS department chair.

Here's a look at the life experiences and interests of the newest clinical professors.

Nitin Walia

Question: What's your new role with W. P. Carey?

Answer: I am joining as a clinical professor in the Department of Information Systems. In my first year, my primary focus will be to understand the strategic direction and culture at W. P. Carey, enabling me to become an effective teacher and a good fit within the department.

Q: What are you most excited about in this new role?

A: I am excited to be back in the classroom, working alongside students, challenging them with the subject matter, and celebrating their success.

Outside the classroom, I feel privileged to be part of the innovative and prestigious Department of Information Systems and to collaborate with the faculty members at W. P. Carey.

Additionally, coming from a private liberal arts university, I am eager to experience all the offerings of a large public university, be it in art, culture, diversity, symphony, or sports.

Q: What are the best aspects of working with students?

A: I will primarily be involved in lecturing and teaching students. I have found interacting with students an intellectually stimulating experience, and I put forward my best efforts to offer a similar experience in return. I love the raw energy students bring to the classroom, and it's an exhilarating moment for me when they start making connections between real-world scenarios and what they are learning.

Q: Where were you before coming to W. P. Carey?

A: Before joining W. P. Carey, I taught at Ashland University in Ohio. I was at Ashland University for 12 years as an assistant professor, associate professor, and program director.

Q: Where are you from originally?

A: That's an interesting question! For most of my adult life, I have lived in the Midwest — Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Ohio. However, I was born in Chandigarh, India, also known as "the city beautiful."

An interesting fact about me is that when I lived in Detroit, the Pistons won the NBA championship, and when I lived in Cleveland, the Cavs won. So I'm hoping my winning streak will also continue with the Suns.

Q: What do you like to do outside of work?

A: My wife, kids, and I are into Disney and science fiction. So our dinner conversation revolves around Disney, Avengers, and Star Wars characters and shows. I also love to travel. This summer, I visited India, Sweden, and Florida (Mickey was calling!).

Since moving to Arizona, I have been exploring various hiking places and appreciating the beautiful and diverse landscape of the Southwest.

Q: What would you do if someone gave you $40 million to solve a problem on our planet?

A: If someone gave me $40 million, I would set up a student loan fund. Students would get an interest-free, 0% loan for paying their college tuition.

Q: What are you currently reading?

A: I am currently reading two books. The first one is "The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World," which shares various experiences of the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. The second book I am co-reading with my 11-year-old son, "Ancient World History," has us in the Egyptian pharaohs chapter.

Joseph Cazier

Q: What is your new role with W. P. Carey?

A: I am a clinical professor in the Department of Information Systems. My focus will be on teaching our students, especially regarding analytics.

Q: What are you most looking forward to in this new role?

A: I am excited to engage with our ambition and diverse student body and do what I can to help them succeed.

Q: What do you enjoy most about working with students?

A: Of course, my primary role is teaching. However, what I enjoy most about working with students is being around their energy, creativity, and drive to do good in the world and to work to help them reach their potential.

Q: Where were you before coming to W. P. Carey? Doing what?

A: I was previously at Appalachian State University, where I served as a named tenured full professor, associate dean, executive director of the Center for Analytics Research and Education, and the UNC Faculty Fellow for Technology and Innovation.

I retired from there this year to return home near family, especially my grandchildren!

Q: Where are you from originally?

A: I grew up and lived most of my life near the mountain region of the U.S. Returning to ASU is coming home to me!

Q: What do you like to do outside of work?

A: I love reading, writing, traveling, walking, cycling, and hiking. I have also spent significant time helping organizations use data to save bees.

Q: What would you do if someone gave you $40 million to solve a problem on our planet?

A: Most people know bees are essential but don't often know how important they are. I would build a repository to gather the world's data on bees, birds, bats, and all pollinators and harmonize that data so a team could analyze it. I would focus on pollinators because they are essential to our food supply. It's about hunger and economic opportunity and understanding and managing our natural world better. It's always been fascinating to me the role technology can play in the natural world. My interest in beekeeping combines my passion for the natural world, technology, and helping people.

Q: What do you enjoy most about your profession?

A: I believe in action research, or impactful research, to tie teaching and research to things that make the world a better place, especially furthering things similar to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals.

Q: What books are you currently reading?

A: I'm always reading; I read more than 50 books a year. Some of my most recent reads are:

• "Factfulness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong about the World — and Why Things Are Better Than You Think," by Hans Rosling
• "Zen and the Art of Saving the Planet," by Thich That Hanh
• "Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain," by John Ratey
• "Superforecasting: The Art and Science of Prediction," by Philip Tetlock and Dan Gardner
• "The Introvert's Edge: How the Quiet and Shy Can Outsell Anyone," by Matthew Pollard

Information Systems Faculty