Internal OR Consulting: Effective Practice in a Changing Environment

Abstract

AboutSectionsView PDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail Go to Section HomeInterfacesVol. 30, No. 5 Internal OR Consulting: Effective Practice in a Changing EnvironmentRobert Fildes, John RanyardRobert Fildes, John RanyardPublished Online:1 Oct 2000https://doi.org/10.1287/inte.30.5.34.1638AbstractAround 1970 some 96 percent of the largest Fortune-500 companies had established OR groups. The recessions of the '70s and '80s led many to close their groups. In 1993, the UK OR Society, disturbed by further closures, funded a study to identify factors that influenced the success and survival of internal OR groups. The study team found three categories of factors: changes in the external environment, in the organization, and in the OR group's management. This research shows that to be effective, an OR group needs good consulting skills, expert project management, active marketing of its services, and responsiveness to changes in its clients' requirements and in the surrounding organizational culture. Previous Back to Top Next FiguresReferencesRelatedInformationCited byThe Value Paradox of Problem Structuring Methods2 October 2018 | Systems Research and Behavioral Science, Vol. 36, No. 4Reassessing the scope of OR practice: The Influences of Problem Structuring Methods and the Analytics MovementEuropean Journal of Operational Research, Vol. 245, No. 1Operational research and critical systems thinking—an integrated perspective21 December 2017 | Journal of the Operational Research Society, Vol. 63, No. 9Content analysis of OR job advertisements to infer required skills21 December 2017 | Journal of the Operational Research Society, Vol. 61, No. 9A profile of OR research and practice published in the Journal of the Operational Research Society21 December 2017 | Journal of the Operational Research Society, Vol. 61, No. 1Content Analysis of O.R. Job Advertisements to Infer Required SkillsSSRN Electronic Journal, Vol. 23Perspective on Decision Analysis ApplicationsInterdisciplinary Collaborative Learning: Using Decision Analysts to Enhance Undergraduate International Management Education23 July 2016 | Journal of Management Education, Vol. 28, No. 2Perspective on Decision Analysis Applications, 1990–2001Donald L. Keefer, Craig W. Kirkwood, James L. Corner, 1 March 2004 | Decision Analysis, Vol. 1, No. 1 Volume 30, Issue 5September-October 2000Pages 1-90 Article Information Metrics Information Published Online:October 01, 2000 © 2000 INFORMSCite asRobert Fildes, John Ranyard, (2000) Internal OR Consulting: Effective Practice in a Changing Environment. Interfaces 30(5):34-50. https://doi.org/10.1287/inte.30.5.34.1638 KeywordsPROFESSIONAL—OR/MS IMPLEMENTATIONORGANIZATIONAL STUDIES—EFFECTIVENESSPERFORMANCEPDF download