Media Coverage

The U.S. Air Force and the Walt Disney Company were presented the INFORMS Prize on April 3. INFORMS a more than 12,000 member strong organization that promotes “best practices and advances in operations research, management science, and analytics” bases its awardees on their dedication to research pioneering. In this case, it was USAF’s Studies, Analysis and Assessments directorate which was recognized. 

Members of the Air Force Studies, Analysis and Assessments directorate joined leaders of the Walt Disney Company as co-awardees of the INFORMS Prize at a gala in Las Vegas, Nevada, April 3, 2017, for their pioneering and enduring integration of operations research and analytics programs. The award is given each year by The Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS). The goal of operations research, according to the INFORMS mission statement, is to turn complex challenges into substantial opportunities by transforming data into information, and information into insights for making better decisions and improving results. 

As the Trump administration prepares to invest hundreds of billions in its infrastructure networks, Anna Nagurney, INFORMS Fellow and professor at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, shares how operations research can help identify where those investments will have the most impact.

With researchers estimating that 150,000 data analytics professionals are needed to fill roles in Canada, York University will help to address the talent shortage when it launches its big data analytics program this September. Facilitated as a part-time offering through York’s School of Continuing Studies, the big data analytics program is comprised of two certificates — the certificate in big data analytics and the certificate in advanced data science and predictive analytics. The certificate in advanced data science and predictive analytics, which launches in winter 2018, delves into data organization for analysis and advanced methods and analytics for those looking to pursue the INFORMS Certified Analytics Professional (CAP®) designation, the premier global professional certification for analytics practitioners. 

A new INFORMS journal of Marketing Science study explores the hidden risks of businesses face when combining price discounts with large charity donations.