Wedad J. Elmaghraby

Title

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Dean’s Chair of Operations Management, Robert H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland

Education

  • Ph.D., Industrial Engineering and Operations Research, UC Berkeley, 1998
  • M.S., Industrial Engineering and Operations Research, UC Berkeley, 1995
  • B.S., Operations Research and Industrial Engineering, Cornell University, 1992
  • B.A. Economics, Cornell University, 1992

Professional Experience

  • Senior Associate Dean for Faculty, August 2023–Present
  • Chair of Decision, Operations and Information Technology Department, May 2021–August 2023
  • Director of Deloitte Initiative in Artificial Intelligence and Learning, 2021-2023
  • ADVANCE Professor 2019-2021
  • Co-director of Smith Analytics Consortium, 2018-2023
  • Professor, R. H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland, July 2017–2021
  • Associate Professor, Smith School of Business, University of Maryland, July 2008–2016
  • Assistant Professor, Smith School of Business, University of Maryland, September 2005–2008
  • Assistant Professor, Industrial and Systems Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2000-2005
  • Assistant Professor, Operations Management, Stern School of Business, 1998-2000

Selected INFORMS and Related Activities (Member since 1998)

  • Auctions and Market Design Section Board Officer (2024-2025 voting, 2026-2027 nonvoting)
  • INFORMS Finance Committee (2023)
  • President-Elect, President and Past President, M&SOM Society (July 2017–July 2020)
  • INFORMS Subdivision Liaison for M&SOM Society (2016–2017)
  • President, Behavioral Operations Management Society (Fall 2014–Fall 2016)
  • VP of Meetings, M&SOM Society (2015-2016)
  • President, POMS College for Human Behavior in OM (2014-2015)
  • VP, INFORMS Behavioral Operations Management Society (2012-2014)
  • VP, POMS College for Human Behavior in OM (2013-2015)
  • VP of Meetings, M&SOM Society (2008-2009)
  • VP of Conferences, Forum for Women in OR/MS (2004-2006)
  • Secretary/Treasurer, INFORMS Energy and Natural Resource (ENRE) Subdivision (September 2000-2002)

Selected Professional Honors and Awards

  • 2024 Curt Grimm PhD Mentor Award
  • 2022-2023 ALP Fellow
  • 2021 MSOM Distinguished Service Award
  • 2016 INFORMS Volunteer Service Award (Distinguished level)
  • 2014 M&SOM Meritorious Service Award
  • 2008 Management Science Service Award

Selected Publications

More details here: https://www.rhsmith.umd.edu/directory/wedad-j-elmaghraby

My research interests are at the interface of operations management, economics and behavioral decision-making.

Candidate Statement

Thank you for the opportunity to tell you about myself, my path, my actions and what I value. I am an engineer with a business mindset. I place tremendous value on industry connections, am committed to furthering educational goals and appreciate INFORMS’ global stakeholder base.

If honored to serve as president, I will strengthen INFORMS by increasing the visibility and impact of operations research (O.R.) in solving real-world problems. Central to this is interdisciplinary and global collaboration: no single discipline, location or professional track (academic, industry, government) holds the silver bullet for today’s global challenges. We must foster strong connections to stay at the forefront of technological advancements and their O.R. applications. As we pursue this, we must ensure continued education and workforce development opportunities to prepare future O.R. professionals and offer lifelong learning, connections and networking for members worldwide.

I hold the Dean’s Chair of Operations Management at the R. H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland. I have been a faculty member in both engineering (Industrial and Systems Engineering at Georgia Tech) and business schools (Stern School of Business at NYU and R. H. Smith School at UMD) for 25 years. My collaborations with faculty across economics, marketing, information systems, statistics, public policy and engineering reflect a strong appreciation for industry applications and interdisciplinary work. My work spans healthcare, energy, procurement, online market design, pricing and sustainability.

My collaboration with companies and scholars worldwide have proven the impact our community can have if we broaden our lens of value. Teaching engagements with universities in Southeast Asia, Asia, the Middle East and Europe highlight the need to maintain strong global connections and meet each region’s entrepreneurial and diverse landscape.

I served as co-director of the Smith Analytics Consortium (SAC) and founder/director of the Deloitte Initiative in Artificial Intelligence and Learning (DIAL) at Smith. Both initiatives brought faculty and students together with leading practitioners. The goal was to enable practitioners to inform research and teaching in key areas such as Trustworthy AI, AI and Social Inequity, Healthcare Analytics and Global Supply Chain Risk, while preparing students for analytics-oriented jobs. Additionally, these initiatives helped companies assess big data and AI opportunities and facilitate cutting-edge analytics and technology dissemination.

Within INFORMS, I have served as president of both the MSOM Society and Behavioral Operations Management Society, VP of Conferences for WORMS, Secretary/Treasurer of the ENRE subdivision and a member of the INFORMS Finance Committee, as well as a subdivision liaison. I have also served as a judge for prestigious award committees, including the Lanchester Prize, as well as chair of the George B. Dantzig Dissertation Award. Through these engagements, I have gained a deep appreciation for our stakeholders’ priorities, diverse activities and the importance of evolving to meet members’ changing needs. As MSOM President, I initiated the first Society Climate Survey to assess how we could improve engagement and foster belonging for all members.

For more information, please visit: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wedad-elmaghraby-3965914/