Resoundingly Human

In this episode we will explore three different applications of O.R. and analytics in sports, from basketball, to baseball, and beyond! Joining me for this episode are Sheldon Jacobson of the University of Illinois to discuss NCAA March Madness basketball brackets, Michael Trick of Carnegie Mellon University to give insight in to Major League Baseball game scheduling, and Walt DeGrange of CANA Advisors and past chairman of the INFORMS SpORTS Section to discuss current and developing applications of O.R. and analytics in sports.

In this episode we will learn how O.R. and analytics are helping the men and women of law enforcement and the corrections systems, from improving the health of prison inmates, to simplifying the assignment of inmates to the appropriate prison, to helping New York city police men and women better predict and respond to crime. Joining us for this episode are Tamas Terlaky, president of Optamo and professor at Lehigh University, Mohammad Shahabsafa, chief operating officer at Optamo and Anshul Asharama, Chief Information Officer at Optamo, who share their INFORMS Wagner prize award winning research on improving inmate scheduling for the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections. In addition, we will hear from Alex Cholas-Wood, former Director of Analytics for the NYPD and Evan Levine, Assistant Commissioner of Data Analytics at the Office of Crime Control Strategies with the NYPD, who have created a new system called Patternizr to aid the NYPD in identifying and predicting crime patterns. Finally, we are joined by Turgay Ayer of the Georgia Institute of Technology, who will discuss his research to identify a protocol for treatment that could significantly reduce the number of Hepatitis C infected prisoners.

In this episode we will hear from the new INFORMS president Ramayya Krishnan who will share some insight on what exciting things are in store for INFORMS in the coming year, Shane Henderson and David Shmoys of Cornell University on their INFORMS Wagner Prize winning research on bike share programs, and Alina Sorescu of Texas A&M university whose research takes a deep dive into the ups and downs of the financial stock market over a period of nearly 200 years.

In this episode, I am joined by a very special guest, Santa Claus, who called into the podcast all the way from the North Pole to share the role that O.R. and analytics plan in his annual journey to deliver toys around the world. In addition, you will hear from the INFORMS volunteers and the nonprofit leadership of the INFORMS Pro Bono Analytics projects for the Baltimore Teacher Supply Swap and Young Audiences: Arts for Learning of New Jersey and Eastern Pennsylvania, who share how O.R. and analytics helped these organizations better serve their communities.

This is the second of two special podcasts produced this month, both recorded during the INFORMS 2018 Annual Meeting. We will be speaking to a number of INFORMS member who are presenting during the meeting on topics that highlight the ways O.R. and analytics are being used to save lives, save money and solve problems. In this episode, we will be discussing how O.R. and analytics are providing valuable insight into some of the most complex problems facing our world today, including improving aviation security precheck procedures, protecting the security of elections in the U.S., and increasing the success rates of kidney transplants in underserved populations.

This month, we will be producing two special podcasts, both recorded during the INFORMS 2018 Annual Meeting. We will be speaking to a number of INFORMS member who are presenting during the meeting on topics that highlight the ways O.R. and analytics are being used to save lives, save money and solve problems. In this episode, we will be discussing how O.R. and analytics are providing valuable insight into some of the most complex problems facing our world today, from calculating the number of undocumented immigrants in the U.S., to using drones to  provide healthcare to patients with chronic illness in rural settings, to  helping improve outcomes for human trafficking victims. 

In this episode, we will be taking a sneak peek at our upcoming Annual Meeting, and some of the exciting topics and sessions that will be covered, as well as diving into some of INFORMS' unique programs and efforts. Joining us for this episode are James Cochran of the University of Alabama to discuss the newly published INFORMS Analytics Body of Knowledge; Carrie Beam of the University of Arkansas to introduce an exciting new competition, Freestyle O.R. Supreme, that will debut at this year’s Annual Meeting; and Alan Briggs from Data Robot, to share the impact of the Certified Analytics Professional certification on his career path.

In this episode, we explore three unique ways that operations research and analytics are being used to save lives, save money, and solve problems. Our guests include John Dickerson of the University of Maryland and Tuomas Sandholm of Carnegie Mellon University whose research on improving kidney exchange success could significantly improve the number of successful kidney transplants; Eva Lee of the Georgia Institute of Technology whose research in pediatric heart surgery has unexpectedly provided new insight to help fight America’s opioid epidemic; and Tallys Yunes of the Miami Business School who has some very valuable insight that can help all the fantasy football fans out there use O.R. to improve their lineups.

INFORMS is very excited to share the launch of our brand new podcast series, Resoundingly Human, which is dedicated to bringing O.R. and analytics to life by highlighting the incredible contributions of our members who are using O.R. and analytics to save lives, save money, and solve problems. Our first episode features members of INFORMS leadership to explore different ways that INFORMS is helping to spread the word on the important role that O.R. and analytics play in our everyday lives. Our guests in this episode include the 2018 INFORMS president Nicholas Hall, Brian Denton, who served as the 2017 president, and the Director of public affairs and marketing for INFORMS, Jeff Cohen. Each will provide special insight into INFORMS current objectives and goals, as well as new initiatives and a look ahead to next steps.

Welcome to the latest episode of Resoundingly Human, the podcast brought to you by INFORMS, the leading association for professionals and students who apply science, math, technology, and analytics to make smarter decisions for a better world.  I’m your host Ashley Kilgore and thank you for joining me for the next episode in a special series highlighting the 2024 Franz Edelman Award finalist teams! The Franz Edelman Award is presented each year to an organization that has made a transformative contribution to society, all with the power of advanced analytics. In the leadup to the 2024 INFORMS Analytics Conference in sunny Orlando this April, we’ll be highlighting the incredible contributions of this year’s finalists. The winner will be announced at the conference, during the Edelman Gala.   Today, I have the pleasure of speaking with representatives of the Edelman Award finalist team from American Airlines to share some special insight into their project, which utilizes optimization and AI techniques to develop industry-leading technology called HEAT, which is short for Hub Efficiency Analytics Tool, that helps the airline more effectively manage irregular operations during severe weather.

Welcome to the latest episode of Resoundingly Human, the podcast brought to you by INFORMS, the leading association for professionals and students who apply science, math, technology, and analytics to make smarter decisions for a better world.  I’m your host Ashley K. and thank you for joining me for the next episode in a special series highlighting the 2024 Franz Edelman Award finalist teams! The Franz Edelman Award is presented each year to an organization that has made a transformative contribution to society, all with the power of advanced analytics. In the leadup to the 2024 INFORMS Analytics Conference in sunny Orlando this April, we’ll be highlighting the incredible contributions of this year’s finalists. The winner will be announced at the conference, during the Edelman Gala.  Today, I have the pleasure of speaking with representatives of the Edelman Award finalist team from Transvision to share some special insight into their project, which developed an analytics solution to improve mobility for elderly and disabled citizens in the Netherlands.

With the 2024 INFORMS Analytics Conference in Orlando, FL, now just weeks away on April 14-16, here at INFORMS we are looking forward to welcoming more than 700 leading analytics professionals and industry experts for opportunities to connect, network, and celebrate excellence in the field.  Joining me for a special behind the scenes look at one of this year’s conference sessions is keynote speaker Colonel Kristin Saling, Acting Director, Innovation Directorate, United States Army Recruiting Command, who has been introducing analytics, automation, and transformational business processes into Army human resources for years.  She is an Army operations research and systems analyst with experience as an assistant professor at the United States Military Academy at West Point. She has led modernization programs at US Indo-Pacific Command, Headquarters Department of the Army, and is currently with Army Recruiting Command.

My guest today is going to help us explore the fun side of data analytics. Evan Wimpey is not only an analytics professional with Elder Research but is also a stand-up comedian! After spending years analyzing data and delivering statistical models, Evan realized that humor is often the most effective way to make dry or technical topics more accessible ... and more fun! Now in addition to his analytics day job, he performs data science comedy at conferences and events around the world, to include the upcoming 2024 INFORMS Analytics Conference, April 14-16 in Orlando, FL.

We’re in the countdown to the 2024 INFORMS Analytics Conference, in Orlando, FL, April 14-16, when more than 700 leading analytics professionals and industry experts will come together to discover new solutions to business problems, connect and network, and celebrate excellence in the field.  Joining me to give a sneak peek of this year’s conference is Tom Koulopoulos, the INFORMS Roundtable-sponsored keynote speaker. Tom is an author, futurist, and leader who serves as chairman and founder of Delphi Group, a 30-year-old Boston-based think tank named one of the fastest growing private companies by Inc. Magazine, and the founding partner of Acrovantage Ventures, which invests in early-stage technology startups. He is also the author of 14 books, an inventor with several patents, an Inc.com columnist, the past Executive Director of the Babson College Center for Business Innovation, the past director of Dell Innovation Lab, and a professor at Boston University. I’m excited for the opportunity to get to know Tom, explore his own professional journey, and share an exciting sneak peek at what he’ll be presenting at the upcoming conference.

Welcome back to Resoundingly Human, the podcast brought to you by INFORMS, the leading association for professionals and students who apply science, math, technology, and analytics to make smarter decisions for a better world.  I’m your host Ashley Kilgore and thank you for joining me for the next episode in a special series highlighting the 2024 Franz Edelman Award finalist teams! The Franz Edelman Award is awarded each year to an organization that has made a transformative contribution to society, all with the power of advanced analytics. In the leadup to the 2024 INFORMS Analytics Conference in sunny Orlando this April, we’ll be highlighting the incredible contributions of this year’s finalists. The winner will be announced at the conference, during the Edelman Gala.   For the next episode in this year’s Edelman finalist series, I have the pleasure of speaking with the team from McDonald’s China to share some special insight into their finalist project, which accurately forecasted and delivered on record growth in the Chinese market for McDonalds.

The Franz Edelman Award is awarded each year to an organization that has made a transformative contribution to society, all with the power of advanced analytics. In the leadup to the 2024 INFORMS Analytics Conference in sunny Orlando this April, we’ll be highlighting the incredible contributions of this year’s finalists. The winner will be announced at the conference, during the Edelman Gala.   To kick off this very special series, which just so happens to feature my favorite episodes throughout the entire year, I have the pleasure of speaking with the team from Tata Steel Limited to share some special insight into their finalist project.

Welcome to a brand-new year of Resoundingly Human, the podcast brought to you by INFORMS, the leading association for professionals and students who apply science, math, technology and analytics to solve the world’s most critical challenges. Basically, our member’s work informs smarter decisions to make our world a better place and the Resoundingly Human podcast is dedicated to sharing their amazing stories. I’m your host Ashley Kilgore and thank you for joining us as we kick of another great year of thought-provoking and inspiring content!  Joining me for our first episode of the new year is the 2024 INFORMS President Julie Swann, the A. Doug Allison Distinguished Professor and Department Head of the Edward P. Fitts Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at North Carolina State University.

As 2023 draws to a close, it’s a great time to reflect on the past year with our 2023 INFORMS President Laura Albert, professor and department chair of industrial & systems engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Welcome to the latest episode in a special series of the Resoundingly Human podcast, recorded in person at the 2023 INFORMS Annual Meeting in Phoenix. For this episode I am joined by Hamsa Balakrishnan with MIT. Hamsa is delivering the keynote session, “Advanced Air Mobility: Are We There Yet?” and she is joining me today to explore this topic.

In a special episode recorded at the 2023 INFORMS Annual Meeting in Phoenix, AZ, I have the opportunity to sit down with long time INFORMS member and professor and dean with the Culverhouse College of Business at the University of Alabama, Jim Cochran. We cover a lot of ground from adventures abroad with Visiting Scholar opportunities, to combatting urban blight and human trafficking, to increasing access to dental care and food donations for those in need, but most importantly explore the power of analytics to give back and make a difference.