MIT System Design and Management (SDM) has named Ayako Yukawa the winner of the SDM Best Thesis Award for 2024. Her thesis, titled “Architecting Absorptive Capacity: Systems Framework for Open Innovation in Japanese Enterprises,” focuses on the ability of Japanese organizations to use external knowledge and developed a framework for understanding that capacity and making choices to maximize it.
Ayako, a 2024 graduate of SDM, is a principal deputy director for the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) in Tokyo, Japan. Ayako noted that her work at METI directly influenced her thesis. “During my eight years in government service, I observed that while Japan has tremendous technological capabilities, we often struggle to translate these capabilities into solutions for pressing social challenges,” she said. “My experience at METI helped me understand that this challenge isn’t just about technology – it’s about creating systems and policies that enable better collaboration between different stakeholders in society. However, my time at MIT SDM also significantly shaped my understanding. This firsthand experience of collaborative innovation in action provided me with valuable insights that complemented my government experience and enriched my research perspective.”
All SDM students complete a research thesis as the final stage of their Master of Science degree, guided by an MIT faculty advisor. Students explore their own topic, engaged in the MIT ecosystem while conducting independent research. The thesis is a chance to leverage and synthesize the skills developed through the SDM integrated core as well as depth and elective courses in engineering and management. Ayako said that applying the systems approach to her chosen topic was challenging but rewarding, and that both engineering and management perspectives were useful in the research process. “The engineering mindset helped me break down the complex system into analyzable components step by step, while the management perspective enabled me to understand the organizational and strategic implications,” she said.
To determine the winner of this award, theses that received top grades were reviewed by a panel of faculty. The works were rated on quality of research, presentation and writing, impact on the field, inclusion of engineering and management, and demonstration of mastery of SDM’s learning objectives. Other finalists for this year’s award included Anup Sreekumar, Hanna Won, and Zhao Zhang.
Bryan Moser, the advisor for this thesis, noted that Yukawa’s contribution to the literature is impressive and the work also connects to useful outcomes. She was “always prepared, willing to be challenged and to explore unexpected pathways,” he said.
The winning thesis is available on DSpace, MIT’s digital repository for research.
