Paola Cillo
Associate Professor
Biography
Paola Cillo is an Associate Professor at the Department of Management and Technology at Università Bocconi and at SDA Bocconi she is Associate Dean for Research– Claudio Demattè Research Division.
She served as the Director of the Master of Science in Economics and Management of lnnovation and Technology (EMIT), at Università Bocconi (2011-2016) and as Vice Director of the Department of Management and Technology at Università Bocconi (2016-2020). She served as the Academic Coordinator for the Concentration in Luxury Business Management of the Full Time MBA Program (2017-2023). She has conducted many research projects and has worked both in executive education programs and consulting activities with some of the leading companies in the FMCG, luxury and retail, digital, and pharmaceutical industries.
Her areas of expertise include innovation in symbolic and creative industries, big data and innovation strategies and investors’ response to innovation. Currently, she is working on research projects on: innovation in luxury fashion, social data e start-up performance, and innovation and investors’ response to company innovation.
She is the author of more than 40 articles and books on marketing strategies, innovation, and new product development. Her research has been funded by public institutions and private companies in Italy and abroad and has been published in leading academic management outlets at an international level, such as Strategic Management Journal, Journal of Marketing, Research Policy, Strategic Organization, Journal of Product Innovation Management, European Management Journal, and Long Range Planning among others. She was a Visiting Professor at Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth (USA) in 2008, Visiting Assistant Professor at the Marketing Department of the Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota in 2005 and Visiting Scholar at Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania in 2000. She currently serves as an independent board member in illycaffé, Miroglio Fashion, and Generali Investment Partners SGR.
Paola earned a degree in Business Administration cum laude (1996) and a Ph.D. in Economics & Management (2001) both from Università Bocconi.
Recent Publications
- 2026
Revolutionizing consumption: Unveiling the Allure of NFTs and digital twins for sustainable luxury fashion
MASSI, M., A. VOCINO, C. PIANCATELLI, P. CILLO, A. C. PELLICELLI, "Revolutionizing consumption: Unveiling the Allure of NFTs and digital twins for sustainable luxury fashion", Journal of Business Research, 2026, vol. 202, pp. 115757 - 2025
Generative AI in innovation and marketing processes: A roadmap of research opportunities
CILLO, P., G. RUBERA, "Generative AI in innovation and marketing processes: A roadmap of research opportunities", Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 2025, vol. 53, pp. 684–701 - 2025
Grow Old with Me: The Temporal Dynamics of Founder–Market Interactions in Capturing Market Attention
CILLO, P., G. RUBERA, "Grow Old with Me: The Temporal Dynamics of Founder–Market Interactions in Capturing Market Attention", Academy of Management Journal, 2025 - 2024
Startup, rivoluzione nell'investimento
CILLO, P., G. RUBERA, "Startup, rivoluzione nell'investimento", Fortune Italia, April 2024 - 2023
Empowering Consumers Through Blockchain: NFTs as a Means to Institutionalize Consumer Roles in The Metaverse
PIANCATELLI, C., M. MASSI, P. CILLO, "Empowering Consumers Through Blockchain: NFTs as a Means to Institutionalize Consumer Roles in The Metaverse" in 2023 AMA Winter Academic Conference, 6-12 February, 2023, Nashville TN, United States of America - 2022
Whatever you want, whatever you like: How incumbents respond to changes in market information regimes
ZANELLA, P., P. CILLO, G. VERONA, "Whatever you want, whatever you like: How incumbents respond to changes in market information regimes", Strategic Management Journal, 2022, vol. 43, no. 7, pp. 1258-1286 - 2022
Innovazione e Management. Omaggio a Salvio Vicari
BERTOLI, G., S. CASTALDO, P. CILLO, G. TROILO, G. VERONA (Eds.), "Innovazione e Management. Omaggio a Salvio Vicari" - 2022, Egea, Milano, Italy - 2022
The strategic organization of innovation: State of the art and emerging challenges
CILLO, P., G. VERONA, "The strategic organization of innovation: State of the art and emerging challenges", Strategic Organization, 2022, vol. 20, no. 4, pp. 743–756 - 2022
Quando le immagini diventano un serbatoio di dati per le aziende
CILLO, P., F. GROSSETTI, G. RUBERA, "Quando le immagini diventano un serbatoio di dati per le aziende", Economia & Management, 2022, no. 4, pp. 64-68 - 2022
Knowledge and trust in data-rich business environments
BERTOLI, G., S. CASTALDO, P. CILLO, G. TROILO, G. VERONA, "Knowledge and trust in data-rich business environments", Sinergie, 2022, vol. 40, no. 1, pp. 11-14
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Grants & Honors
Excellence in Research, Università Commerciale Luigi Bocconi, 2022
Premio Eccellenza nella Ricerca, Università Commerciale Luigi Bocconi, 2018
Premio Eccellenza nella Ricerca, Università Commerciale Luigi Bocconi, 2015
Premio Eccellenza nella Ricerca, Università Commerciale Luigi Bocconi, 2013
Excellence in Research, Università Commerciale Luigi Bocconi, 2011
Excellence in Research, Università Commerciale Luigi Bocconi, 2008
Best Multimedia Case Award for “Tetra Pak: The Launch and Repositioning of Tetra Prisma Aseptic Worldwide” (coauthors: S. Vicari, L. De Luca), SDA Bocconi School of Management, 2005
Best Management Paper Award for the paper “Innovation in pret-à-porter: A longitudinal study on Vogue Italia (1984-1999)” (coauthors: R. Cappetta, A. Ponti), Economia & Management, 2003
