"This initiative is an example of one of MIT's great strengths, bringing people from industry and academia together to make a positive impact on some of the world's greatest challenges."
Professor Ian Waitz, Dean of the MIT Engineering School.
"The Alliance will enhance the collaboration between faculty of the two schools, leading to innovative solutions to real-world engineering and business problems."
Professor David C Schmittlein, Dean of the MIT Sloan School of Management.
Research themes
The alliance advisory board, co-chaired by Narendra Mulani and David Simchi-Levi, Professor of Engineering Systems at MIT, selected six ideas for the first round of projects, focused on the themes of big data or decision science:
Through our collaboration with Accenture we believe we can make important progress in creating new knowledge and in tackling some of the many data challenges faced by organizations today.
David Simchi-Levi, Professor of Engineering Systems, MIT 
Organizations are recognizing the need to develop analytic capabilities that turn data into actionable insights in order to attain a competitive edge and growth. Our alliance with one of the world’s most prestigious research institutes will help our clients solve complex global business problems they are facing globally and across all industries.
Narendra Mulani, Senior Managing Director, Accenture Analytics