Summer Business Strategist - 2026 MBA Internship

Applications for this position will be accepted until January 4, 2026 at 11 p.m.; candidates should expect to hear back by mid-January regarding first-round interviews, to be conducted before the end of the month.

Summer Business Strategist

IA Collaborative is seeking a Summer Business Strategist to join the Business Strategy practice for 10 weeks in Summer 2026. This individual will play a key role in shaping client engagements by applying an analytical, strategic, and operational view to assess market opportunities, define business concepts, and convey compelling market entry strategies for executive audiences.

As a Summer Business Strategist you will:

• Own market/industry assessments using secondary and primary research on markets, trends, and competitors.

• Provide a business lens in the user research and synthesis process, contributing to innovation insights, business concept designs, and strategic/operational analysis.

• Develop market entry strategies, partner/acquisition recommendations, and go-to-market strategies for new products and services.

• Apply a strong analytical skill set to help structure analytical approaches and lead analysis ranging from market sizing to profit model design.

• Develop product roadmaps, define product KPIs and OKRs, and conduct agile product development for digital products.

• Partner with clients and IA team members throughout an engagement, including helping to design and facilitate client workshops.

• Build your interdisciplinary design and strategy skills serving on versatile and diverse project teams.

• Perform additional job duties as assigned (may require travel for consecutive days, if necessary and with respect to current CDC health guidelines)

• Know the Business of the Business: Act as a steward of IA Collaborative’s overall business by exploring future possibilities for the organization including new offerings and capabilities, talent acquisition, thought leadership, and other business growth-oriented activities.

Required qualifications include:

• Minimum level education: currently within the first or second year in MBA or applicable master’s program

• At least two to three years of experience within business strategy, management consulting, innovation roles, or experience in developing new products, services, and go to market strategies.

• Direct business strategy experience, ideally including: business growth strategies, market assessments and sizing, business/operational model analysis and design, and/or roadmap development.

• Demonstrated analytical and/or financial modeling skills.

• Product strategy experience is an added benefit, ideally including: digital product development, product pricing, product KPI and OKR definition, roadmapping, go-to-market strategy development or agile product development

• Comfort working in cross-functional teams and working on ambiguous problems.

• Exceptional written and oral communication skills.

• Clear interest in design and user-centered design philosophy.

• Ability to participate in activities as needed in-office at our Chicago HQ for the duration of the internship

Preferred qualifications include:

• Ability to travel consecutive days

• Experience with building and deploying AI tools within organizations or commercially.

In the application or as part of the hiring process, candidates may be asked to submit work samples. These should be anonymized as needed to protect current employer and/or client confidentiality agreements.

We expect that the 2026 summer internship program will take place between ~06/08/26 - 08/14/26. Availability will be confirmed with candidates prior to finalizing program details and schedule. Want to learn more about the renowned internship experience at IA Collaborative? Hear firsthand from previous interns.

About the Business Strategy Team

Business strategists at IA Collaborative work at the intersection of design and business; turning bold ideas into measurable business impact through competitive analysis, strategy creation, business model innovation, and prototype and pilot development. Working closely with our research and design strategy team, we prototype new business model elements in context to assess their viability and de-risk new ventures.

Our team members have traditional strategy and consulting backgrounds but understand the business value of design and approach every new engagement through the lens of human-centered design innovation. We are creative strategists, structured thinkers, and clear communicators who collaborate across multiple disciplines to provide the viability lens for design innovation efforts.

Why IA Collaborative

At IA, you’ll practice your craft in a whole new context. You’ll be a part of designing the future of human experience as you transform your client’s business, empower communities and create a positive and lasting impact on the world.

IA’s comprehensive benefits package includes medical, dental, vision, retirement savings benefits, profit-sharing programs, and a suite of family benefits including paid time off for the birth of a child, medical leave, caregiver leave, wellness check-in days, flexible spending accounts for dependent care, health expenses and childcare, 529 college savings planning and contribution, flexible work arrangements, and employer-paid life insurance and disability.

IA Collaborative Work Model

IA Collaborative leverages a hybrid work model, with Chicagoland-area team members working from our downtown headquarters three days per week (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) with additional in-office days as needed.

Both onsite and in-field work is required for all team members. We are typically in the field once or twice a month, for two to three consecutive days, conducting research or meeting with clients.

Work Authorization

All applicants must be authorized to work in the United States; IA Collaborative will not sponsor applicants for employment visas.

About IA Collaborative:

IA Collaborative is a global design and innovation consultancy focused on leading the forefront of behavioral insight, applied AI, and business innovation. We partner with the world’s most ambitious organizations to realize new growth, accelerate cultures of innovation, and create breakthrough products, platforms, and experiences. Our teams lead from insight to action – designing experiences that enhance lives, building collaborative intelligence that reinvents how we work, and launching offerings that impact the future of human experience.

IA is on the national and global stage speaking about the business value of design. Featured by Fast Company as one of the country’s preeminent design thinkers and nominated by the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum as a “Design Visionary,” IA’s leadership and work has been profiled by prominent business publications and has received multiple design accolades, including Best Design North America and Best UX Design in Fast Company’s Innovation by Design Awards; the SXSW Business Design Award; and multiple honors in the Red Dot International, International Design Excellence Awards (IDSA), the GOOD DESIGN Awards, and the iF World Design Awards. IA Collaborative works with the world’s most successful brands, including FedEx, Allstate, Airbnb, Fidelity, Apple, Johnson & Johnson, Nike, Lilly, and Audi.

At IA Collaborative, we are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. We believe that welcoming a diverse variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills to our organization contributes to a thriving culture, a vibrant community, and breakthrough work. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristics protected by federal, state, or local law.

For more information about IA Collaborative, visit iacollaborative.com and LinkedIn,

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