David Reznicek plays a key role in the Raikes School’s Design Studio program, where he brings significant industry experience into an academic setting to translate real-world challenges from industry sponsors into high-impact innovation outcomes. He works closely with industry sponsors to understand their business, uncover innovation opportunities, and shape project scope – guiding initiatives from concept through delivery.

David also mentors student teams, coaching them on agile and product development processes, helping them navigate ambiguity, stay grounded in real customer needs, and execute with discipline. His approach reflects how product development actually works in industry – balancing technical depth, business context, and the realities of delivering measurable value.

David brings over 20 years of experience from roles at John Deere and in the ag-tech startup space, where his work centered on building products, teams, and systems in complex environments. Over the course of his career, he has worked across new product development, analytics, and technology development – ranging from leadership roles in tractor and engine product programs, to building demand planning and forecasting systems, to standing up global analytics teams, to expanding connected technology platforms into new markets, to turning operational challenges into advanced data science solutions.

David holds an MBA from Indiana University, an M.S. in Data Science from Iowa State University, an M.S. in Agricultural Economics from Purdue University, and a B.S. in Agribusiness and Mathematics from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. As an alum, he values the opportunity to give back while helping students develop the skills needed to operate in real-world environments.

Outside of his work at Raikes, David enjoys road biking, hiking, and tackling hands-on projects – building, fixing, or cooking as a way to learn something new. He also maintains independent work in data science, intelligent sensing, and applied machine learning.