Israeli Decision Scientist Teaches Operations Management

Joe Pliskin, Adjunct Professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management and Sidney Liswood Professor of Health Care Management at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel, visited HSPH in April 2017 to teach Operations Management. Operations management is concerned with evaluating the performance of operating units, understanding why they perform as they do, designing new or improved operating procedures and systems for competitive advantage, making short-run and long-run decisions that affect operations, and managing the work force. To understand the role of operations in any organization, a manager must understand process analysis, capacity analysis, types of processes, productivity analysis, and the role of operating strategy in corporate strategy. Pliskin’s course features case studies to introduce students to practical operational issues in healthcare delivery. Students learn problem oriented software for some of the scenarios taught. Pliskin returns annually in the spring to teach at HSPH, combining his visits with other collaborative endeavors at CHDS.