Webinar: 'When Optimal Isn't Optimal' set for April 16

The campus community and members of the public are invited to a free webinar at noon Thursday, April 16, titled "When Optimal Isn't Optimal."

This webinar is part of the Engineering and Operations Management Lunch and Learn Webinar Series.

Industrial engineering, project management, risk mitigation, quality control - these and other valuable disciplines all seek to design and fine tune how we do business, produce products, and serve important defense and other goals. 

We learn how to bring projects in on time, implement just-in-time supply chain management, identify early signs of manufacturing or logistical problems, and in general optimize how things get done. But what if disruptive technologies have created conditions in which optimizing is not only not optimal, it can actually create serious, unrecognized problems?

This webinar will discuss how and why we should be on the lookout for such second order effects, and what we can do to mitigate them.

The webinar will feature Robin Burk, part time instructor in the M.S. Operations Management program. From her days writing code in Silicon Valley, to her leadership in tech-based companies doing business globally, to her support for a brand new scientific/analytic discipline, Burk has been on the cutting-edge of tech-driven change. Her industry career spanned defense/national security and commercial customers in the U.S. and in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East in roles ranging from software engineer through project, program, and executive leadership.  

During the launch of the public Internet the books she lead-authored on key technologies were translated into multiple languages including Japanese, French, and Hindi English.  After the attacks of 9/11, she taught in two departments at The United States Military Academy, West Point, for more than seven years, grew a nascent research grant program that attracted leading scientists to the new discipline of complex networked systems at the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, and served as the Chief Scientist for Decision Analytics at a major R&D organization addressing complex decisions for national security and commercial sectors.

The webinar will begin at noon. Registration is required at this link.

To learn more about the webinar series, visit this link.