Operations
Solving Operational Problems Is the Real Engine of CarMax’s Success
CarMax revolutionized the used car market by implementing a fixed-price retail model. But co-founder Austin Ligon ’80 says the company’s financial success came from developing efficient back-end operations through a long-term focus on process improvement.
In Estimating COVID-19 Infection Risk, Frequency of an Activity Is Key
With proper precautions, the risk of a day at work, a ride on the bus, or a workout at the gym may be acceptable, write Yale SOM’s Arthur J. Swersey and his co-authors. But that risk compounds dramatically when an activity is repeated day after day.
Study: Controlling COVID-19 Outbreaks in Residential Colleges Requires Frequent Testing
Using a computer model, the researchers found that weekly testing will keep outbreaks under control under relatively optimistic scenarios, but that testing every three days would be more reliable.
Buying and Selling Steel as the Global Supply Chain Frays
Bill Hutton ’83 describes how a U.S. manufacturer is adapting to pandemic lockdowns and seesawing supply and demand across a global supply chain.
New Outbreaks of Coronavirus Can Be Halted with Isolation Measures, According to Study
Yale SOM’s Edward Kaplan used early reports out of Wuhan to evaluate the likely effectiveness of common tactics, such as isolation of patients and quarantine, in keeping the disease from spreading in new regions.
How Machine Learning Can Find Extremists on Social Media
Yale SOM's Tauhid Zaman investigated how artificial intelligence could assist efforts to detect and suspend extremist accounts, before they are used to recruit members and spread propaganda.
A Decision Analysis Approach Points to Better Diagnosis of Prostate Cancer
A new study led by Yale SOM’s Arthur J. Swersey, using decision analysis techniques, finds that increasing the number of biopsy needles and using probability modeling to analyze the results can help prevent unnecessary treatment while identifying dangerous cancers.
Three Questions: Prof. Vahideh Manshadi on Improving Kidney Donation
This month, the Trump administration announced a series of steps to overhaul the kidney transplant system. We asked operations expert Vahideh Manshadi if the changes could make a difference for patients.
Kidney Exchange Registries Should Collaborate to Save More Lives
Yale SOM’s Vahideh Manshadi and her co-authors examined the methodology of kidney exchange registries, and found that registries can find more matches if they collaborate to build a unified database.
Why Hidden Populations Are So Hard to Count
Yale researchers Edward Kaplan and Jonathan Feinstein explain how widely accepted estimates have greatly undercounted the number of undocumented immigrants in the United States.
Could Better Predictions Improve End-of-Life Care?
A statistical tool that predicts when patients with advanced cancer are likely to die could help promote patient welfare by transferring more people from aggressive interventions to hospice care.
