PHD: Management Engineering, Politecnico di Milano.

Master of Science: Management Engineering, Politecnico di Milano.

The research activities focus on the human side of innovation, investigating how innovators develop new frames for innovation. The theoretical background of the research reflects a shift from a diagnostic (Lewin, 1947) to a dialogic approach to innovation and change (Bushe and Marshak, 2014) and embraces the philosophy of the American Pragmatist (Dewey, 1958; James, 1909), seeing innovation as ongoing and emergent through experience and interaction. Building on this theoretical positioning, the research conducted has followed two main streams. The first research stream began by examining the core framing processes innovators experience when confronted with novel scenarios. The second stream of research draws inspiration from design leaders and design practices to inform a novel form of leadership—one that supports individuals in framing reality and navigating the complexity and uncertainty of contemporary organizational contexts.

Besides the core research line, the research activities have even followed a side research project at the intersection between the human side of innovation and the influence of emerging technologies. Research on this stream has explored innovation activities in a hybrid environment. With the rise of AI, particularly generative AI, the research has been extended to investigate this technology's potential for supporting humans in innovation activities.

Patrucco, A., Bellis, P.,Trabucchi, D., Buganza, T. (2024). Behavioral Biases and Cognitive Pitfalls: Navigating Resource Orchestration in Supplier-Partnered Innovation Projects. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management

Bellis, P., Verganti, R., Zasa, F.P. (2025) Who drives the creation of a novel vision? The role of individual insights and the ability of “letting go”. Journal of Business Research

Artusi, F., Bellis, P., Verganti, R. (2024) When products speak differently: giving new language to established products. Creativity and Innovation Management, 34(2),297-311.

Trabucchi, D., Bellis, P., Buganza, T., Canterino, F., Shani, A. B. R., Verganti, R., & Press, J. (2024). Leading impactful research: applying platform thinking to drive collaborative inquiry in the innovation field. European Journal of Innovation Management, 27(9), 408-436.

[Editorial] Bellis, P., Magnusson, M., Nilsson, S., & Samuelsson, M. (2024). Accelerating Innovation: Capabilities and Systems Beyond Organizational Boundaries. Research-Technology Management, 67(4), 9-13.

Bellis, P., Cunial, M., Trabucchi, D. (2024) Mastering hybrid worlds through Digital Leadership: the role of agility in fostering innovation. Business Horizons, 67(4), 369-380.

Bellis, P., Magnanini, S., & Verganti, R. (2023). Dialogue for strategy implementation: how framing processes enable the evolution of new opportunities. Journal of Knowledge Management, 28(11), 1-32.

Bellis, P., Buganza, T., & Verganti, R. (2023). What kind of intimacy is meaningful to you? How intimate interactions foster individuals' sensemaking of innovation. Creativity and Innovation Management, 32(3), 407-424

Bellis, P., Verganti, R., & Trabucchi, D. (2022). Let's move on! How pair collaboration activates resilience toward innovation crises. European Management Journal. 42(2), 186-199.

Trabucchi, D., Buganza, T., Bellis, P., Magnanini, S., Press, J., Verganti, R., & Zasa, F. P. (2022). Story-making to nurture change: creating a journey to make transformation happen. Journal of Knowledge Management, 26(11), 427-460.

Bellis, P., Trabucchi, D., Buganza, T., & Verganti, R. (2022). How do human relationships change in the digital environment after COVID-19 pandemic? The road towards agility. European Journal of Innovation Management, 25(6), 821-849.

Zasa, F. P., Verganti, R., & Bellis, P. (2022). Innovator or collaborator? A cognitive network perspective to vision formation. European Journal of Innovation Management, 25(6), 567-588.

Bellis, P., Verganti, R. (2020). Pairs In Innovation: How Working In Pairs Helps Organisations To Move Into A New Shared Direction. International Journal of Innovation Management, 24(03), 2050072.

Bellis, P., Verganti, R. (2020). Pairs as pivots of innovation: how collaborative sensemaking benefits from innovating in twos. Innovation: Organization & Management, 23(3),375-399.

Trabucchi, D., Bellis, P., Di Marco, D., Buganza, T., & Verganti, R. (2020). Attitude vs involvement: a systematic literature review at the intersection between engagement and innovation. European Journal of Innovation Management, 24(5), 1730-1762

[Book] Press, J., Bellis, P., Buganza, T., Magnanini, S., Trabucchi, D., Shani, A. B. R., ... & Zasa, F. P. (2021). IDeaLs (innovation and design as leadership): Transformation in the digital era. Emerald group publishing.

[Book] Buganza, T., Bellis, P., Magnanini, S., Press, J., Shani, A. R. B., Trabucchi, D., ... & Zasa, F. P. (2022). Storymaking and organizational transformation: how the co-creation of narratives engages people for innovation and transformation. Taylor & Francis.

Winner of the “Mariano Corso Best Practical Implications Award” by CINET – Continuous Innovation Network 2024.

Article Title: Understanding how AI is Transforming the Front-End of Innovation

Co-Authors: Giulia Palombi, Francesca Bellesia

Winner and Principal Investigator of “Premio Francesco Galati - Misure di sostegno ai soci giovani AiIG” by Associazione Italiana Ingegneria Gestionale (AiIG). Through which she won a monetary sum of 5.000 Euros for the research project “AI2: Augmenting (the Human Side of) Innovation through Artificial Intelligence”.

Research Team: Dott. Francesca Bellesia and Dott. Giulia Palombi.

1. Director of the Exectutive Master Inmanagement Polimi GSOM
2. Director of the Observatory Design Thinking for Business
3. Membro dell'Editorial Board del Creativity and Innovation Management Journal
4. Reviewer per le seguenti riviste scientifiche: Journal of Product Innovation Management, R&D Management, Industry and Innovation, Creativity and Innovation Management, Journal of Knowledge Management, Management Decision, Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies, IEEE - Transactions on Engineering Management, European Management Journal, Management and Organization Review, Research Technology Management, European Journal of Innovation Management, Journal of Business-to-Business Marketing, International Journal of Innovation Management , Journal of Industrial and Business Economics, Innovation: Organization and Management, International Journal of Innovation and Technology Management