George Day

George Day
  • Geoffrey T. Boisi Professor Emeritus

Contact Information

  • office Address:

    767 Jon M. Huntsman Hall
    3730 Walnut Street
    University of Pennsylvania
    Philadelphia, PA 19104

Research Interests: Competitive strategies in global markets, Innovation and organic growth, Marketing management, Strategy formulation processes and evaluations.

Links: CV

Overview

George S. Day is the Geoffrey T. Boisi Professor Emeritus at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.  He founded the Mack Institute for Innovation Management at the Wharton School, where he is presently Faculty Emeritus in Residence. He was previously the Executive Director of the Marketing Science Institute where he is currently an Academic Trustee.

He has consulted with many corporations such as General Electric, IBM, Metropolitan Life, Unilever, E.I. DuPont de Nemours, W.L. Gore and Associates, Coca-Cola, Boeing, LG Corp., Best Buy, Merck, Johnson & Johnson, and Medtronic.  He is the past chairman of the American Marketing Association and has served on 14 Boards of Directors including, at the present, the Free Library of Philadelphia, and the Zoological Society of Philadelphia. He is the co-chair of the Ag Sustainability Center of the Sonoma County Winegrowers.

Dr. Day has authored 23 books and 160 professional articles in the areas of marketing innovation and strategic management, including: Advanced Introduction to Marketing Strategy, 2022, Innovate to Grow: Gaining and Sustaining a Growth Advantage, 2025, Strategy from the Outside-In: Profiting from Customer Value (with Christine Moorman) 2010, Innovation Prowess:  Leadership Strategies for Accelerating Growth, 2013, and See Sooner/Act Faster: How Vigilant Leaders Navigate Digital Turbulence (with Paul Schoemaker) 2019.

He has won ten best articles award and one best book award, and two of his articles were among the top 25 most influential articles in marketing science in the past 25 years. His publications have been cited more than 70,000 times, ranking him in the top one percent of published academics. He was honored with the Charles Coolidge Parlin Award in 1994, the Paul D. Converse Award in 1996, the Sheth Foundation award in 2003, and the Mahajan Award for career contributions to strategy in 2001. In 2004, he received the AMA/Irwin/McGraw-Hill Distinguished Marketing Educator Award.  In 2015 he was selected as one of eleven “Legends in Marketing,” and in 2017 he was awarded the William L. Wilkie, “Marketing for a Better World” award. In 2020 he was awarded the Sheth Medal, a bi-annual award for exceptional contributions to marketing scholarship and practice.

September 2026

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Research

Teaching

All Courses

  • MKTG7770 - Marketing Strategy

    This course views marketing as both a general management responsibility and an orientation of an organization that helps one to create, capture and sustain customer value. The focus is on the business unit and its network of channels, customer relationships, and alliances. Specifically, the course attempts to help develop knowledge and skills in the application of advanced marketing frameworks, concepts, and methods for making strategic choices at the business level.

  • MKTG8990 - Independent Study

    A student contemplating an independent study project must first find a faculty member who agrees to supervise and approve the student's written proposal as an independent study (MKTG 899). If a student wishes the proposed work to be used to meet the ASP requirement, he/she should then submit the approved proposal to the MBA adviser who will determine if it is an appropriate substitute. Such substitutions will only be approved prior to the beginning of the semester.

Awards and Honors

  • William L. Wilkie “Marketing for a Better World” Award, 2017
  • Selected as one of the eleven Legends in Marketing, 2015
  • AMA/Berry Prize for the Best Book on Marketing, 2012 Description

    Winner (with Christine Moorman) for Strategy from the Outside-In (McGraw-Hill 2010)

  • IBM Award for Best Article published in the Journal of Service Research, 2007 Description

    "The Path to Customer Centricity" with Denise Shah, Roland Rust, A. Parasuraman and Richard Staelin.

  • Robert D. Buzzell Marketing Science Institute Best Paper Award, 2007 Description

    Award for Aligning the Organization with the Market (MSI Report 05-110).

  • JM/Sheth Foundation Award, 2004 Description

    For the best article published in the Journal of Marketing that has made a long term contribution to the field of Marketing

  • AMA/McGraw-Hill Irwin Distinguished Marketing Educator, 2004 Description

    AMA/McGraw-Hill Irwin Distinguished Marketing Educator

  • Erskine Fellow, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand, 2002 Description

    Erskine Fellow, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand

  • Vijay Mahajan Award, 2001 Description

    For career contributions to marketing strategy, awarded by the American Marketing Association

  • Excellence in Teaching Award, 1998 Description

    From the Wharton Graduate Association

  • Finalist, Anvil Award, 1992 Description

    For teaching excellence at The Wharton School, 1992, 1997, 1998

  • Honored with the establishment of the George S. Day Doctoral Dissertation Award, 1997 Description

    For research on interfunctional issues

  • Paul D. Converse Award, 1996 Description

    For outstanding contributions to the development of the science of
    marketing, awarded by the American Marketing Association.

  • Marketing Science Institute Award, 1995 Description

    For best working paper “The Capabilities of Market-Driven Organizations”

  • Top 20 articles that have most affected the practice of marketing science, 1994 Description

    INFORMS Society for Marketing Science picked my article "The Capabilities of Market-Driven Organizations" which appeared in the Journal of Marketing in 1994 as one of the Top 20 articles that have most affected the practice of marketing science.

  • Charles Coolidge Parlin Award, 1994 Description

    In recognition of outstanding contributions to marketing and marketing education

  • Harold H. Maynard Award, 1994 Description

    For most significant contribution to marketing theory and thought for the article “The Capabilities of Market-Driven Organizations.” This article was also the runner-up for the Alpha Kappa Psi Foundation Award.

  • Master of Arts (Honorary), University of Pennsylvania, 1992
  • Harold H. Maynard Award, 1989 Description

    For most significant contribution to marketing theory and thought, Jointly with Mary Lambkin for article on “Evolutionary Processes in Competitive Markets: Beyond the Life Cycle.”

  • Runner-up for Alpha Kappa Psi Award, 1980 Description

    In 1980 and 1988

  • Alpha Kappa Psi Foundation Award, 1988 Description

    For most significant contribution to marketing practice, Jointly with Robin Wensley for article on “Assessing Advantage: A Framework for Diagnosing Competitive Superiority.”

  • Recognition Award for 10 years of contributions to management education in the General Electric Company, 1988
  • Hewlett-Packard Award, 1987 Description

    For outstanding contributions to the use of computers in the field
    of business education

  • Runner-up for Alpha Kappa Psi Award, 1980 Description

    For ACustomer-Oriented Approaches to Identifying Product Markets,” with Allan D. Shocker and Ray Srivastava

  • Runner-up for Harold H. Maynard Award, 1980
  • Alpha Kappa Psi Foundation Award, 1978 Description

    For most significant contribution to marketing practice, 1978, for article on “Diagnosing the Product Portfolio”

  • Sheth Medal for exceptional contributions to marketing scholarship and practice, 1970
  • Beta Gamma Sigma Dissertation prize, 1969 Description

    With publication of Buyer Attitudes and Brand Choice Behavior in 1970 by Free Press

  • Ford Foundation Dissertation Research Award, Columbia University, 1966
  • Ford Foundation Doctoral Study Awards, Columbia University, 1964-1965 Description

    1964 and 1965

  • Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Merit Award, University of Western Ontario, 1960

In the News

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In the News

Four Steps for Staying Ahead of Fintech Turbulence

Banks are facing a new era of digital transformation. In this article, Wharton’s George Day and co-author Cassie Solomon explain how a traditional finance firm has embraced the evolution of fintech and thrived. …Read More

Knowledge at Wharton - 7/11/2023
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Wharton Magazine

Under Bill’s Oversight

Let us introduce you to the new chairman of the Wharton Board of Overseers.

Wharton Magazine - 07/29/2013