Business Innovation Hub

The first major construction project for the Isenberg School of Management since the Alfond addition in 2002 began in September 2016 and completed in January 2019.  We've paired two outstanding architects, Boston-based Goody Clancy and Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), to complete a renovation and addition to the Isenberg building.  The design team worked within the UMass Amherst master plan to create an exciting new visual identity and complement the Fine Arts Center and Haigis Mall. 

The entire building has been thoughtfully designed around how people move through the space. The architects conducted hundreds of interviews with students, faculty, and staff to determine the best way to meet their needs. They determined that many "collision spaces" would enable human interation, discussion and collaboration. The three floors had to be thoughtfully connected with the original Isenberg building to create a seamless flow of people and ideas. 

The opening of the Business Innovation Hub (BIH) is a critical turning point in getting the tools we need to become one of the top public business schools in the nation and it enables us to create greater opportunities for our students. The BIH provides the space we desperately need. Our undergraduate program alone has grown to 3,700 students today from 2,650 ten years ago, and these facilities will allow us to foster the next generation of business leaders.

Career advising is an increasing vital part of the business school experience.  Graduates who have a head start when it comes to networking, interviewing and internships have a distinct advantage at the starting line of their careers, and the BIH includes more interview rooms as well as new space for career advisors and networking events. 

Key Features:

• $62 million project to ADD 70,000 SQ. FT. (gross) of classrooms, labs, student-facing spaces, and faculty offices, to the school's existing facilities.

• BRINGS TOGETHER all Isenberg departments and offices.

• An exciting NEW VISUAL IDENTITY to anchor the school's community.

• 5,000 sq. ft. (gross) learning commons that DOUBLES AS AN EVENT CENTER.

• Flexible DESIGN FOR GROWTH to accommodate executive-in-residence programs and experiential learning spaces.

• IMPROVED FACILITIES for Chase Career Center.

• New fundraising campaign underway for alumni and friends to create more OPPORTUNITIES FOR STUDENT SUCCESS.

• A courtyard at the center of the learning commons provides a UNIQUE OUTDOOR GATHERING SPACE.

• SIGNIFICANT ARCHITECTURAL COMPONENT connects the Hub to the existing Isenberg building.