自從轉行進入工業工程(Industrial Engineering)，嘴邊耳邊常常都掛著OR, OR...(OR: Operations Research)。但是人家問起，什麼是OR，我也不知道要怎麼回答。無法讓一般人了解自己究竟是在做什麼，這樣感覺很差，好像混混噩噩的，自己都不知道自己在做什麼。
不過，最近看到由INFORMS製作的一本小冊子，大約十二頁而已，就給OR作了不錯的介紹。本來想翻成中文 ，記在這裡，但想說自己功力不夠，有多名詞，又不知道中文恰當的翻法(像OR的中文是什麼?作業研究?運籌學?)，所以決定還是照原文記下好了。
OPERATIONS RESEARCH: THE SECRET OF BETTER DECISION MAKING IN A COMPLEX WORLD
Now there's a practical alternative to seat-of-the-pants decision making. Executives in every kind of organization are using operations research (O.R.) to unlock the value in their data, model complex systems, and make better decisions with less risk. Whether O.R. is used to inform high-level strategy or improve day-to-day operations, the results speak for themselves: Insight into difficult problems. Improved processes, productivity, and performance. Millions in cost savings and increased revenues. More profitable pricing. Greater market share. Higher quality. Superior ROI. Better asset utilization....
WHAT IS OPERATIONS RESEARCH?
In a nutshell, operations research is the discipline of applying advanced analytical methods to help make better decisions
By using techniques such as mathematical modeling to analyze complex situations, operations research gives executives the power to make more effective decisions and build more productive system based on: more complete data, consideration of all available options, careful predictions of outcomes and estimates of risk, and the latest decision tools and techniques.
To achieve these results, O.R. professional draw upon the latest analytical technologies, including:
- Simulation - Giving you the ability to try out approaches and test ideas for improvement
- Optimization - Narrowing your choices to the very best when there are virtually innumerable feasible options and comparing them is difficult.
- Probability and statistics - Helping you measure risk, mine data to find valuable connections and insights, test conclusions, and make reliable forecasts.
WHAT OPERATIONS RESEARCH CAN DO FOR YOU?
Organizations and the world in which they operate continue to become more complex. Huge numbers of choices and relentless time and margin pressures make the decisions you face more daunting and more difficult. Meanwhile, new enterprise applications and software are generating massive amounts of data - and it can seem like an overwhelming task to turn that data in to insight and answers.
But all that data and the availability of more and cheaper computing power are creating an important opportunity for decision makers, one O.R. is ideally designed to help you take advantage of. O.R. professionals thrive on challenges that involve large numbers of variables, complex systems, and significant risks.
5 signs you could benefit from operations research
- You face complex decisions.
- You're having problems with processes.
- You're troubled by risk.
- Your organization is not making the most of its data.
- You need to beat stiff competition.
如果想看本手冊的全文，或是更進一步了解Operations Research，請到www.scienceofbetter.org
推~
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