Mark Karasek

Mark Karasek is a Clinical Associate Professor at the Technology Entrepreneur Center (TEC) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He holds a B.S. in Engineering Mechanics from UIUC, an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering (Fatigue and Fracture of Materials) from UIUC, and a Ph.D. in Polymer Science from Penn State University. His career spans over 20 years in innovation leadership, product development, and startup strategy.

• Former roles include Executive Vice President of Engineering and Chief Technology Officer at The Chamberlain Group (retired in 2019).
• Adjunct Faculty Member at Northwestern University’s McCormick School of Engineering (teaching innovation management and lean design).
• Strategic Technical Advisor at Crescend Technologies.

Research interests focus on translating technical innovation into market-ready solutions, startup strategy, and lean design methodologies. He teaches courses such as Foundations of Innovation, From Idea to Enterprise, and Organizing for Innovation.

• Active in the Chicago startup community as a board member of mHUB Chicago.
• Completed NSF I-Corps Program training in 2019.