Tracks
The Analytics Ecosystem
Analytics projects have many moving pieces beyond the models themselves. In this track, we discuss infrastructure, data delivery, data governance, and the rest of the analytics tools and technology stack which support data projects. By using the right kinds of tools and technologies, we can help analytics projects be more reliable and successful. During this track, industry leaders will explain how engineering, architecture, and data delivery through visualization or other applications complement the models that drive decisions. This track provides a robust survey of the analytics ecosystem.
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Mastering Data Visualization: Insights through Visual Storytelling
Speaker: Armonie Boucharens, MarriottBeyond AI Models: Unleashing the Power of Data Quality for AI Effectiveness
Speaker: Annabella Kadavanich, SeimensOrchestrating Data to Drive Action and Value
Speaker: Bernie Pruss, Cloud Data ConsultingMaking Ends Meet: Aligning Compute, Storage and Delivery to Match Your Use Case
Speaker: Richard Rymer, Arrow ElectronicsDocumentation, Git, and Project Management: Navigating Pain Points in Analytics
Panelist: Armonie Boucharens, Marriott
Panelist: Annabella Kadavanich, Seimens
Panelist: Bernie Pruss, Cloud Data Consulting
Panelist: Richard Rymer, Arrow Electronics
Panelist: Oluwaseun (Seun) Ogunmodede, The MITRE Corporation
Analytics Leadership
Analytics leaders present best practices for guiding organizations of varying sizes in a constantly evolving analytics ecosystem. The Analytics Leadership track was formed to bring together leaders of analytics efforts and analytics organizations to discuss: How to build a world class analytics team for your company/organization. How to define, solve, deliver, and communicate an analytics solution. What an analytics leader must do to succeed within an organization and to help the organization/company succeed.
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Leading in Analytics: The Seven Critical Tasks for Executives to Master in the Age of Big Data
Speaker: Joseph Cazier, CAP, Arizona State University
The Model Made Me Do It – Ethical ORMS in a Data-driven World
Speaker: Julie Ivy, University of MichiganThe Quintessential AI challenge: Operationalizing AI Responsibly
Speaker: Ramayya Krishnan, Carnegie Mellon UniversityLeveraging Your Organization’s Analytics Capabilities to Support Strategic Growth and Operations Effectiveness in an Age of Artificial Intelligence and Analytics
Speaker: Norm Reitter, Sawatch OutliersBeyond Algorithms: Building a Brand That Elevates Your Analytics Team
Speaker: Evan Wimpey, Elder Research
Analytics Process
Treating analytics as a process leads to better outcomes and is reflected in the 7 Domains of the Certified Analytics Professional (CAP) Job Task Analysis. The blend of hard technical skills and soft interpersonal skills is often critical to achieve sustainable impact for the organization.
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The Challenges of Digital Modernization in the US Defense Sector
Speaker: Patricia Angle, University of OklahomaWinning the Right to Deploy AI
Speaker: Joshua Mabry, Bain & CoDemystifying Analytics People Leadership: A Guide to Help You Attract and Retain Analysts Who Create Value for your Business
Speaker: Melissa Perry, Peloton InteractiveBuilding Enterprise Grade Solutions with Generative AI
Speaker: John Thomas, Tata Consultancy Services
Business Administration
In the age of digital technology, internal operations within organizations have come a long way. From transitioning from paper to computer systems to using those system for more detailed analysis to furthering the analysis with machine learning and artificial intelligence; the Human Resources, Marketing, Accounting, and Finance functions have come a long way. Industry leaders will talk about the new age in which organizations are making data-driven decisions using analytical modeling and decisions science approaches to further internal operations.
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Reinventing the Office of the CFO with Data and Technology
Speaker: Ece Ceren Izgi, AWS“What You Can Not Measure, You Can Not Improve” Testing and Measurement at Google Ads Business
Speaker: Maher Lahmar, GoogleLeveraging Data Science Techniques for Marketing Science Applications
Speaker: Neil Nanisetty, MarketBridgeData-Driven Dynamics: Transforming Financial Services through Analytics
Speaker: Priya Sarathy, Wheel Data StrategiesInvestigating Coast Guard Investigators: A Discrete-Event Simulation Approach
Speaker: Lieutenant Commander Jack B. Smith, U.S. Coast Guard
Decision Analytics
Decisions are at the foundation of every business application and traditional decision analysis provides a formalized approach to making optimal choices under conditions of uncertainty. To ensure that decisions are made with all the relevant information and options available, decision analytics is the next phase of artificial intelligence – using advanced tools and machines to find patterns in historical data to predict what will likely happen again and enabling optimal decisions, in real-world, dynamic environments under different sources of uncertainty. This track is intended to bring together practitioners, researchers, and leaders who are working to further decision analytics, sharing new tools, techniques, and technologies.
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Better Decision-Making with Explainable AI Models
Speaker: Matt Bezdek, Elder ResearchMaking Decisions About Decision-making: Analytics Practitioners & Their Role in Meta-decision Making
Speaker: Cara Dienes, The Walt Disney CompanyMilitary Readiness Modeling: An Actionable Framework
Speaker: Connor McLemore, CANAImproving Decision Making Across the Factory Lifecycle with Simulation
Speaker: Leo Moran, KalypsoCreating a Guide to Identify Patients Who May Leave an Emergency Department Without Being Seen: A Machine Learning Approach
Speaker: Peter Vanberkel, Dalhousie University
Edelman Competition
Finalists will compete for the top prize in this “Super Bowl” of O.R. practice, showcasing analytics projects that had major impacts on their client organizations.
The Franz Edelman Award Competition attests to the contributions of operations research and analytics in both the profit and nonprofit sectors. Since its inception, cumulative benefits from Edelman finalist projects has topped the $400 billion mark. Edelman finalist teams have improved organizational efficiency, increased profits, brought better products to consumers, helped foster peace negotiations, and saved lives. The purpose of the Franz Edelman Competition is to bring forward, recognize, and reward outstanding examples of operations research, management science, and advanced analytics in practice in the world.
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McDonald’s China. McDonald’s, globally renowned, with 40,000+ outlets, aims to double its nearly 5,000 stores in China by 2026. Collaborating with New HAVI and Optimization Analytics, it’s optimizing the supply chain using sophisticated OR tools, saving $63.75 million in annual investment costs and $8.9 million in transportation costs. This ensures efficient product delivery to sustain growth and aligns with sustainability goals.
Molslinjen. Halfspace and Molslinjen have partnered to develop and operate a successful forecasting and revenue management toolbox for data-driven operation of ferries in Denmark, rolled out operationally since 2020. This has resulted in $2.6-3.2M yearly savings and been a significant contributor to a 3% reduction in fuel costs and emissions. This toolbox relies on the latest advances in machine learning for forecasting and ORMS approaches to revenue management. The potential for generalizing to the global ferry industry is significant, with an impact on both revenues and ESG criteria.
ALDI SÜD Germany. Using data-driven techniques, proprietary software, and collective intelligence, we have reshaped our company strategy into a unified pathway for managing a key product area with annual revenues > €3 billion in Germany. This strategy has enhanced our competitiveness, boosted profitability, and reestablished our leading position in the discount market. It led to significant cost savings, improved employee and customer satisfaction, and reduced waste in the strategic area of special buys.
American Airlines. Developed in-house at American, The Hub Efficiency Analytics Tool (HEAT) optimizes data about weather, how full our flights are, customer connections, and gate availability, as well as any air traffic control or crew constraints. Then, an advanced optimization algorithm weighs this data and shifts arrivals and departures around at the hub in a matter of a few minutes. Since its initial deployment last year, HEAT has been used over 100 times during summer months at the airline’s largest hubs and prevented nearly 1,000 flight cancellations across our network.
Transvision. In the Netherlands 450,000 elderly and disabled citizens are eligible for subsidized taxi rides executed by Transvision. The day-to-day planning of 3,000 to 15,000 long-distance rides used to be a complex and daunting task split over dozens of subcontractors. CQM and Geodan developed an analytics solution that combines the rides. Starting January 2020, we increased punctuality and reduced ride times, resulting in 50 percent improvement in passenger satisfaction. Furthermore, already up to now we saved 75 million driving kilometers or 7,500 metric tons of CO2 emissions.
Tata Steel Limited. A real-time optimization solution for a continuous annealing furnace of Tata Steel India producing automotive grade steel has been developed using Model Predictive Control methodology and in collaboration with Indian Institute of Technology Bombay. This has transformed the plant operation by switching over from decades old manual control practice to automated optimal control. Systematic adoption of the solution has brought financial benefits to the tune of 0.28 million dollars per annum on account of fuel cost savings apart from improving the quality of product through better controllability.
Game Theory & Strategy
Game theory is used to help produce the ideal decision given a set of constraints and the potential actions of other participants in the “game.” Some games have two parties with similar goals that are close to zero sum (such as sports) where some can involve more parties with the idea of multiple parties coming out ahead (business deals and international trade). This track has applications ranging from determining whether to enter a new market, creating an advertising strategy, or deciding whether to “Go for 2” in the fourth quarter of a football game. This track will go through different scenarios in which analytics enhances game theory and strategic decision-making.
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The Power of Analytics in Sports Business
Speaker: Max Clark, Miami HEAT and 601 AnalyticsSports Analytics, Front and Center: How Broadcasts are Incorporating Advanced Tools into our Dialogue and How You Can Too
Speaker: Edward Egros, Sports Analytics ExpertAddressing Value Drain in Dealmaking: How Game Theory Can Help
Speaker: Paul Papayoanou, Decision FrameworksGame-Theoretic Analytics and Applications of Defensive Cyber Deception
Speaker: Quanyan Zhu, New York UniversityGame on: Test Your Board Game Strategies
Game Leader: Emily Velez, The Home Depot
Implementing Analytics
Practical applications of new concepts and technologies being implemented within a range of business use cases.
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Credit Modeling, Microfinance, and Improving the Lives of Families in the Developing World
Speaker: Aric LaBarr, North Carolina State UniversityAssortment Optimization at Walmart: Business Requirements and Optimization Challenges
Speaker: Khosro Pichka, WalmartPuckboard: Optimization of USAF Crew Schedules
Speaker: Michael Snyder, MIT Lincoln LaboratoryWhy We Should KISS More In Healthcare
Speaker: Stefania Sokolowski, Memorial Sloan KetteringSamsung Uses Data-driven Approach to Manage Work-In-Process of Bottlenecks in Semiconductor Manufacturing Operations
Speaker: Gwangjae Yu, Samsung Electronics
INFORMS Prizes & Special Sessions
INFORMS grants several prestigious Institute-wide prizes and awards for meritorious achievement each year. This track will feature presentations for the Wagner Prize, INFORMS Prize, and UPS George D. Smith Prize winner. Innovative Applications in Analytics Award (IAAA) finalists will also present. Special sessions may include presentations hosted by our Certified Analytics Professional (CAP®) Program and Women in OR/MS.
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Amplify Your Voice: Mastering Communication Habits for More Impact and Influence
Speaker: Marisa Wheeling Ciesluk, MWC Leadership
An Overview of the Certified Analytics Professional (CAP) Program
Speaker: Shaun Doheney, CAP, Amazon Web Services (AWS)Certified Analytics Professional Exam (CAP) Practice Exam Question Session
Speaker: Shaun Doheney, CAP, Amazon Web Services (AWS)Innovative Applications in Analytics Award (IAAA)
IAAA FinalistsMaster Modeler Competition 2024 Academic & Practitioner Winners
Academia Winners: Sindhoora Prakash and Yuki Kathuria, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Industry Winner:Luis Daniel Guerrero Gomez, IDATA GLOBALPanel – Inclusive Workplaces: What Do They (or Should They) Look Like for the Analytics & ORMS Industry?
Moderator: Elena Gerstmann, INFORMS
Panelists: Shannon Browning, Haskell; Afi Harrington, U.S. Food & Drug Administration; Emmy Smith, AWS; Nick Ulmer, CANA; Bill Christian, PaygevityPanel – Veterans in Analytics: Bridging Perspectives for Success
Moderator: Nick Ulmer, CAP, CANA
Panelists: Warren Hearnes, formerly Best Buy; Jen Walston, Disney Decision Science & Integration; Andy Garrick, JDSAT, Inc.Public Affairs & Advocacy in the Analytics Landscape
Speaker: Jeff Cohen, INFORMS
Speaker: Ashley Smith, INFORMS
Logistics
Practical applications of analytics within complex logistics use cases to improve effectiveness and efficiency.
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LoadMax – 3D Freight Loading Optimization
Speaker: James Bode, Johnson & JohnsonRe-Inventing Demand Forecasting Using Causal AI
Speaker: Puneet Gupta, Cisco SystemsIntegrating Technician Scheduling: A Microsoft VBA Approach
Speaker: Francesca Koron, Durst Image TechnologyMaking AI-Powered Forecasts Useful to Supply Chains
Speaker: Polly Mitchell-Guthrie, KinaxisFrom Theory to Practice: Bringing Generative AI Products to the Energy Industry
Speaker: Akash Sharma, Enverus
Machine Learning & AI
The Machine Learning & AI track explores the transformative power of ML and AI in various industries. In an era where data-driven decision-making reigns supreme, machine learning and artificial intelligence technologies have become pivotal. Industries are leveraging these innovations to enhance efficiency, accuracy, and insight across a spectrum of applications.
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On the Adversarial Robustness of Benjamini-Hochberg
Speaker: Louis Chen, Naval Postgraduate SchoolAI and BI – Working in Tandem
Speaker: Jimmy Ledbetter, QuisitiveLeveraging Large Language Models in Analytics Practice: Opportunities, Challenges and Best Practices
Speaker: Segev Wasserkrug, IBM ResearchImbalanced Data Problems, Methods, and Applications
Speaker: Lili Zhang, Hewlett Packard EnterpriseGenerative AI’s Enduring Significance to Analytics and Data Science
Speaker: Zhiwei Zhu, Purdue University
Predictive Analytics
Predictive methods continue to yield practical business benefit, in use cases involving improved predictions of system or customer behavior, or combined with optimization methods to prescribe high-impact actions. Talks in this track showcase the decisions framed, analytics applied and results obtained.
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Mining Qualitative Data for Insights: Using machine learning to build an NLP model for workplace design using open-ended survey comments
Speaker: Jessica Pearson, GenslerEnhanced Association Rules Mining in Predictive Maintenance
Speaker: Prateek Shrivastava, CumminsiMPOWER: Innovating Misinformation Analysis with AI and Semi-Supervised Machine Learning
Speaker: Mark Zais, Integration Innovation Inc (i3)Incorporating Artificial Intelligence into Marketing: Whether, When, What and How
Speaker: Wei Zhang, Iowa State University
Soft Skills
An often overlooked aspect of successful implementation, critical soft skills can make or break a project’s ability to create real organizational impact.
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Soft Skills for Data Scientists: Mastering the Art of Human Algorithms
Speaker: John-Eric Bonilla, California Franchise Tax BoardKnow Your Place! Cultural Trips and Traps in Applied Modeling
Speaker: Michael Gorman, University of DaytonCommunication Skills for Succeeding in Analytics
Speaker: D Terry Rawls, Strategic Transitions GroupMindful Organizing as a Determinant of Collective Forecasting Performance
Speaker: Efrain Rosemberg, MicrosoftHow to Lose Control of Your Project in 10 Easy Steps
Nancy Zupick, Arena Simulation
Supply Chain
Supply chain leaders discuss a rapidly transforming ecosystem shaped by a proliferation of data applications for management, logistics, and resiliency. The AI revolution is pushing rapid application of affiliated emerging concepts and technologies across supply chain and logistics. Decision support tools and machine learning technologies are disrupting business and driving new policies, products, services, and channels to increase revenue. During this track, industry leaders will share how they are delivering practical AI solutions to maximize efficiency and minimize business disruption.
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What Drives Value in the Value Chain?
Speaker: Lora Cecere, Supply Chain Insights LLCApplication of Advanced Analytics and AI in the Sourcing Supply Chain
Speaker: Gary Godding, Intel CorporationAI for Operations—Without Language or Images
Speaker: George Runger, Arizona State UniversityA Factory Approach to Generating an ROI Stream with AI in Supply Chain
Speaker: Lalit Wadhwa, EncoraSupply Chain Optimization at Chevron
Speaker: Reece Wooten, Chevron
Supply Chain Analytics
Practical applications of new concepts and technologies being implemented within supply chain analytics programs to maximize efficiencies while minimizing business disruptions.
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A Gentle Path Towards Stochastic Optimization for Strategic Capacity Management in the Medical Devices Industry
Speaker: Braulio Brunaud, Johnson & JohnsonMulti-objective Multi Solve Semiconductor Manufacturing Capacity Planning in Front End Operations
Speaker: Vikas Garg, Micron TechnologySignificant Impact to a Manufacturing Firm Bottom Line via Spend Analytics
Speaker: Sanjay Gupta, Imbed BiosciencesA Comprehensive Approach to Safety Stock Optimization in E-Commerce
Speaker: Joshua Hale, ChewyIntegrating LNG Value Chain via Mixed-Integer Planning and Scheduling Optimization
Speaker: Cheng Seong Khor, Petronas Digital
Technology Showcases
Technology Showcases from participating exhibitors are 50-minute, theater-style sessions that provide educational information and case studies on relevant analytics concepts using their products and services.