Dr. Karlene CousinsChair & Professor Information Systems & Business Analytics at Florida Intl UniversityJudge
Profile
Dr. Karlene Cousins is Chair and Professor of Information Systems and Business Analytics at Florida International University’s College of Business, where she also serves as the College’s Artificial Intelligence Integration Sponsor. In this role, she leads strategic efforts to integrate AI across business education, research, and industry engagement.
An attorney, technology strategist, and experienced academic leader, Dr. Cousins brings extensive expertise in evaluating technology innovation, business impact, and responsible adoption. Her professional experience spans the financial services, manufacturing, aviation, healthcare, and professional services sectors, including a tenure at Deloitte. She is also a frequent judge for the Miami Herald Business Plan Challenge.
Dr. Cousins is the founding director of the ATOM Think Tank, an experiential learning program that connects students with industry partners to address real-world technology and business challenges. She previously served as Director of FIU’s Master of Science in Information Systems program and founded ITWomen NextGen, an initiative designed to expand opportunities for women pursuing technology careers.
Her research examines how emerging technologies—including artificial intelligence, mobile payments, blockchain, and cryptocurrency—affect organizations, financial ecosystems, and society. She received an Outstanding Research Award from Emerald Publishing and was recognized by Legacy Magazine as one of South Florida’s top Black educators. She currently serves as a Senior Editor of Production and Operations Management and an Associate Editor of the European Journal of Information Systems.
Dr. Cousins holds a Ph.D. in Computer Information Systems from Georgia State University and a J.D. from Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. She also earned a B.Sc. in Computer Science and Physics and an M.Sc. in Computer Information Systems from The University of the West Indies, Jamaica.