December 1999
More than just an Internship
By Martin L. Puterman
| This is a regular column sponsored by INFORMED, the INFORMS Forum on Education. Contact Armann Ingolfsson at armann.ingolfsson@ualberta.ca |
"Many of our new hires believe they can come in and run the organization; but they don't have the technical skills to solve our real problems."
This statement echoed sentiment at the recent meeting of UBC's Centre for Operations Excellence (COE) Advisory Board. In contrast, COE Advisory Board members noted that students from the new COE Masters of Science program brought business, analytical and problem-solving skills to their organizations that other programs did not provide. I believe that the COE provides an excellent model for mutually beneficial university-industry interaction.
The COE MSc. program (outlined in the diagram) offers an alternative graduate educational path for students seeking a more specialized program than an MBA with less technical rigor than a Ph.D. This practically oriented 16-month program provides students with financial support, in depth training in OR/MS and extensive hands-on project experience. It is targeted at mathematically oriented students with degrees in business, computer science, engineering or mathematics. Graduates have established companies, become internal consultants and gone on for Ph.D.s.
The applied methods courses provide technical skills in OR/MS, information systems and other areas of business. Most courses last for six weeks to provide students with increased flexibility and breadth. Also, we have modified several Ph.D. courses so that the first six weeks are accessible to MSc. students. The Analysis of Best Practices course studies a wide range of successful applications of OR/MS methodology drawn from Interfaces and COE experience.
The Consulting Practices course plays a key role in the program through its in-depth study of consulting methods, trends and issues. It emphasizes written and verbal communications, meeting and group skills and project management. Students interact with consultants and executives, and visit partner facilities. The course also provides a forum to discuss the challenges students face as they embark on their projects. The course final report is the project plan, complete with time line and milestones.
The industrial project provides the primary focus for all student activities. Between September and April, students spend a day a week acquainting themselves with the company environment and its operations problems. They work under guidance of faculty, post-doctoral fellows, COE professional staff and business leaders to ensure a well-formulated and successful project. Between May and September, they work full time on their project. In contrast to standard "internships," students have their projects clearly developed and planned prior to their full-time effort. The project culminates with a final report that fulfills MSc. thesis requirements.
The COE MSc. program is more than just courses and a project. Students work in a highly professional environment with support from project, communications and computer systems managers. MSc. students further enhance their career prospects through their immersion in a corporate environment and boardroom meetings with senior executives.
Project success hinges on the skill of our project management team. A project manager works closely with each project team to ensure that projects follow timelines and all impediments, such as data problems, are addressed in a timely fashion.
Close links to industry through the Partners for Operations Excellence (POE) ensure the program's success. Partners participate in the educational process by providing speakers, projects and sustained financial support. In Partner Roundtables and Advisory Board meetings, business leaders discuss current practices, identify common problems and provide strategic and operational guidance. The relationship between the COE and its partners requires that each assume ownership, as well as responsibility for the program's success. To ensure this commitment we require corporate sponsorship at the vice president level.
POE members consist of Canadian Airlines (CAI), Phillips, Hager and North Investment Management (PH&N), Telus and the Workers Compensation Board of BC (WCB). Current projects include a review and redesign of CAI's meal provisioning system, an investigation of Y2K risk and call center scheduling at PH&N, crew scheduling and network optimization for Telus, and health care provider assessment and risk management for WCB.
What is necessary for the success of such a program? I believe that you need strong leadership from a senior academic, a shared vision between academics and industrial partners, professional management of projects and business interactions, strong support from your academic institution, some early project successes, managed growth and outstanding students. Challenges include sustaining faculty involvement, establishing long-term industrial commitments and generating publishable research from project activities.
What have the benefits been? The COE has raised the profile of the MS/OR group within our faculty. It has reinvigorated our graduate courses, generated challenging research questions and attracted outstanding students. Moreover, it has provided an incredibly stimulating and enjoyable work environment.
More information on the COE is available at http://coe.ubc.ca.
Martin L. Puterman is director, Centre for Operations Excellence, and associate dean, Applied Research and Outreach, Faculty of Commerce, University of British Columbia.
OR/MS Today copyright © 1999 by the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences. All rights reserved.
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