Operations Analytics and Optimization Consultancy
Timeline
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January 11, 2021Experience start
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February 27, 2021Midway Check-In
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April 10, 2021Experience end
Timeline
-
January 11, 2021Experience start
-
February 27, 2021Midway Check-In
Meeting between students and organization to ensure that progress is on track halfway through completion. (This is a meeting to maintain the course trajectory and answer any additional questions, not a meeting to impart new data).
-
April 10, 2021Experience end
Experience scope
Categories
Data analysis Operations Project managementSkills
operations research data optimization operations management strategy simulationIs your organization facing an operational challenge? In this project, upper-year Schulich students will address a problem of your choosing, and perform a quantitative analysis to develop actionable recommendations that will improve efficiency and service quality. The focus is on a prescriptive approach; using mathematical and computational techniques to model and gain insight on processes/situations that have not yet arisen.
Learners
The final project deliverables include:
- A 10-page business report (all mathematical/computational details are provided in an appendix).
- A 15-minute presentation (10-minute summary and 5-minute Q&A), which industry partners can attend in person or via Skype.
Project timeline
-
January 11, 2021Experience start
-
February 27, 2021Midway Check-In
-
April 10, 2021Experience end
Timeline
-
January 11, 2021Experience start
-
February 27, 2021Midway Check-In
Meeting between students and organization to ensure that progress is on track halfway through completion. (This is a meeting to maintain the course trajectory and answer any additional questions, not a meeting to impart new data).
-
April 10, 2021Experience end
Project Examples
Requirements
Starting this January, teams of 4-5 student-consultants from the Schulich School of Business will spend 60 hours per team working to improve your operational processes and service delivery.
Through applying quantitative research methodologies, mathematical concepts, and computational tools, students will identify areas where your processes can be improved or your operations streamlined.
Using Microsoft Excel and the Python programming language, they will analyze your organizational data and provide managerial insight on how you can increase productivity, improve efficiency, lower costs, and deliver a consistently better quality product or service.
Past Projects include:
- A cost comparison between current staffing practices and several new policies for The 10 Spot, a franchise of beauty bars in Toronto.
- A systematic scheduling solution that fairly assigns students to academic cohorts while ensuring institutional requirements are upheld.
- An analysis of potential rural bus routes and stop locations for the Municipality of Chatham-Kent and surrounding counties.
Students will use various tools and processes including, but not limited to:
- Mathematical Optimization (e.g., linear and nonlinear programming, stochastic optimization).
- Computer simulations (Monte Carlo and discrete-event).
Project proposals must answer the following questions to be considered for inclusion in this course:
- What problems/opportunities would you like student teams to address through this project? Please be specific.
- What are the benefits of this project to your organization/customers? Please describe the desired recommendations.
- What organizational data set(s) will you be providing to student teams? Please describe the format and the volume.
Possible areas of focus for this project include, but are not limited to:
- Transportation and Routing
- Inventory Management
- Aggregate Planning
- Asset Allocation and Insurance
- Supply Chain Management
- Employee Scheduling
- Targeted Advertising
- Energy Management
- Risk Management
- Process Analysis
- Revenue Management
- Policy Evaluation
- Optimal Stopping
- Appointment Scheduling
- Financial Management
- Inventory Modeling
- Production Planning
Additional company criteria
Companies must answer the following questions to submit a match request to this experience:
Attend final student presentations in person or virtually.
Be available for a quick phone call with the professor to initiate your relationship and confirm your scope is an appropriate fit for the course.
Provide a detailed data set or in-depth case analysis for the students to work with prior to the start of the winter semester (i.e., January 14th, 2021)
Provide the instructor with your feedback on the final reports and presentations by April 16th, 2021.
Be available for 1-3 brief meetings with the students during the semester to review their progress and provide feedback and direction.
Provide a dedicated contact who is available to answer student questions throughout the project.
Provide an overview of the area/problem you want students to focus on over the course of the assignment to kick off the project.
Timeline
-
January 11, 2021Experience start
-
February 27, 2021Midway Check-In
-
April 10, 2021Experience end
Timeline
-
January 11, 2021Experience start
-
February 27, 2021Midway Check-In
Meeting between students and organization to ensure that progress is on track halfway through completion. (This is a meeting to maintain the course trajectory and answer any additional questions, not a meeting to impart new data).
-
April 10, 2021Experience end