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Operations and Information Management

About the Program

The Department of Operations and Information Management offers PhD programs in two areas: information systems and operations management. Both programs are designed to prepare individuals for careers in research and teaching at the university level.

Core Areas of Research

Student research is supported by faculty with expertise in the following areas:

Health care operations management

Auction and competitive bidding

Supply chain management

E-business strategy

Behavioral operations management

IT-enabled business transformation

Service operations management

Lean work organizations

Operations strategy

Market efficiency

Product development

Process design

Sustainability

Process improvement

Online consumer behavior

Academic Requirements

All students must meet the general PhD requirements of both the UW–Madison Graduate School and the Wisconsin School of Business. Ideal candidates for our program possess a strong academic background, especially in analytical and quantitative fields. While many students have completed master’s degrees or an MBA program, these are not required.

Program Coursework

With guidance from an advisor, each PhD student completes customized coursework to fulfill the requirement of 32 credits. This coursework includes classes in both research methodology and in your major area.

Research Methodology

Students complete a minimum of four courses (12 credits). While required to develop basic research background in multiple research areas, most students ultimately specialize in the research area and methodology that best suits their skills and research interests. Research courses can be drawn from inside or outside the Wisconsin School of Business. Research coursework may be used to fulfill the requirements for the major and minor program.

Major Area of Interest

Students work with their advisor to choose a major area of interest. If you enter the PhD program with a master’s degree in your major area, you may complete the required coursework in two years. Students without a relevant master’s degree may take an additional semester to complete the required coursework.

Before becoming a dissertator, PhD students must complete 32 credits of coursework and pass a preliminary exam, which includes two parts: a written exam and an oral presentation of an original research paper.

Faculty Research Interests

Yash Babar

Yash Babar

Research interests:

  • Sharing Economy
  • Socioeconomic Impacts of Information Systems
  • Social Media & Online Communities
  • Information Systems for Behavioral Change
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Bob Batt

Robert Batt

Research interests:

  • Health care operations management and emergency department operations
  • Empirical methods
  • Service operations
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Hessam Bavafa

Hessam Bavafa

Research interests:

  • Health care operations
  • Econometric analysis
  • Stochastic modeling
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Greg DeCroix

Gregory DeCroix

Research interests:

  • Contracts
  • Distribution systems
  • Incentives
  • Process management
  • Production planning and inventory theory
  • Supply chain management
  • Sustainable development and business
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Qinglai He

Qinglai He

Research interests:

  • User-generated Content Creativity
  • Human-bot Collaboration in Platform Regulation
  • Online Learning & Goal-directed Platforms
  • Political Discussion & Polarization
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Sung Kim

Sung Kim

Research interests:

  • Electronic commerce
  • Information technology
  • Online marketing
  • Philosophical and methodological issues
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Allen Li

Zhuoxin (Allen) Li

Research interests

  • Digital platforms
  • Digital value chains
  • E-commerce and online markets
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Xiaoyang Long

Xiaoyang Long

Research interests:

  • Behavioral operations
  • Interface between marketing and operations
  • Supply chain management
  • New product development
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Nicholas Petruzzi

Nicholas Petruzzi

Research interests:

  • Operations and supply chain management
  • Supply chain risk and uncertainty management
  • Pricing and revenue management
  • Socially responsible operations management
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Enno Siemsen

Enno Siemsen

Research interests:

  • Decision-making
  • Forecasting
  • New product development
  • Operations and technology management
  • Project management
  • Quality improvement
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Jordan Tong

Jordan Tong

Research interests:

  • Supply chain management
  • Behavioral operations management
  • Managerial judgment and decision-making
  • Inventory management
  • Forecasting
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Connect With Current Students

We encourage you to contact our doctoral students in management and human resources to hear their perspectives on the Wisconsin PhD Program.

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See Our Placement Results

Graduates of our PhD specialization in management and human resources have accepted tenure-track positions at top research universities.

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Contact us

Hessam Bavafa

Hessam Bavafa

Associate Professor
Operations and Information Management