Title

Integrating sustainability through application and research in a graduate OM course

Document Type

Conference Proceeding

Publication Date

4-2011

Abstract

Growing demand for knowledge and application of sustainability concepts promotes inclusion with traditional graduate operations management (OM) courses. Since there are limited case studies available integrating sustainability and OM theory/concepts, the opportunity for real-life application with private companies is ripe. The paper will describe the Go Lean and Green project at a Midwestern rural health care organization. Ten projects were conducted with a combination of process management, lean, and sustainability tools. A standardized framework for each of the student teams was created and can be leveraged for similar or related projects in a graduate setting. In addition to the experiential learning projects, students explored sustainability, lean, and environmental management topics through literature reviews. These topics were interwoven at the appropriate time in the course with the more traditional OM topics. The integrative approach of application and research will be outlined and how it can be used by others.

Publisher's Statement

© 2011 POMS. Publisher’s version of record available here.

Publication Title

Proceedings of the 2011 Production and Operations Management Society (POMS) Conference

Link to Full Text
COinS