Faculty & Staff

I enjoy teaching at WPI because students bring a lot of energy and enthusiasm to their learning; I am also inspired by their optimism. My teaching also reflects topics that motivate me:  detailed process design in our Industrial Engineering program, exploring the implications of operational excellence in our graduate programs, and advancing health care systems. My research explores the impact of lean improvement methods in healthcare settings, as well as applying work systems and modeling approaches to design more effective healthcare delivery processes. I am also interested in the ...

The application of Industrial Engineering and mathematical knowledge has always been a rewarding challenge for me. I draw on a variety of Industrial Engineering techniques including optimization and simulation. My research has included evaluating anti-human trafficking efforts, computationally characterizing episodes of care from health insurance claim records, and examining the impact of physician incentives on patient outcomes, as well as research related to mental health, patient flow and practice guidelines.   In 2020-2021 I was a Fulbright Scholar at the Ukrainian Catholic ...

My research agenda takes advantage of my educational background. The first area of research is supply chain networks equilibrium. In this research stream, I model supply chain networks to understand the interactions of agents who act in their own self-interest and their impact to business and society. A broad class of research question in this area is motivated by the interaction between supply chain networks and sustainable and responsible decision-making. The focus in my second area of research is on Blockchain technology contributions in the supply chain networks. Blockchain, as a new ...

Joseph Sarkis is a Professor of Management within Worcester Polytechnic Institute's Business School. He previously served as a faculty member at Clark University and the University of Texas at Arlington. His teaching and research interests are in the fields of environmental sustainability, operations and supply chain management. He is the author or co-author of over 600 publications. His research is widely cited and he earned the designation of highly cited researcher for nine years from 2016-2025 from Thomson-Reuters/Clarivate Analytics (Web-of-Science). He has also been noted as the ...

I am interested in manufacturing and industrial engineering. My main interests lie at the intersection of manufacturing processes and the financial aspect of the business that relates to these processes. I see my mission as enabling students to become leaders in a business environment and helping them extract value from the processes that drive the organization. We do this by using tools like axiomatic design and Lean Six Sigma methods. I like to frame the lectures in such a way that the students picture themselves in the field, supporting or leading members of the organizations and having an ...

I am Professor of Operations and Industrial Engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), with courtesy appointments in Mathematical Sciences, Data Science, and Computer Science. I hold a Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from the University of Pittsburgh. My objective is to use science and technology to assist real human need by improving systems that serve vulnerable peoples, such as refugees and asylum seekers, survivors of human trafficking, and children in the foster care system.I believe that the convergence of novel analytical technologies and open-source software can create ...

Joe Zhu is Professor of Operations Analytics in the Business School, Worcester Polytechnic Institute. He is an internationally recognized expert in methods of performance evaluation and benchmarking using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), and his research interests are in the areas of operations and business analytics, productivity modeling, and performance evaluation and benchmarking. He has published and co-edited several books focusing on performance evaluation and benchmarking using DEA and developed the DEAFrontier software. With more than more than 130 journal articles, books, and ...

Michael F. Ahern is an Adjunct Instructor for WPI’s Business School. He regularly teaches BUS2080 Data Analysis for Decision Making.  Mike has also taught WPI’s graduate Operations Risk Management course and developed and taught customized professional development courses on power industry reliability assurance and cyber-security. Further, Mike has developed and delivered IEEE Power and Energy Society Webinars like: “Green Energy and the Electric Delivery System: Opportunities for Energy Efficiency”.  He was a regular guest lecturer on energy topics at Yale University, has presented to the New ...

I enjoy teaching an interrelated series of topics that combine current industrial methodologies with the basics from academic study that form the foundations for commercial practice.  The WPI classes give me an opportunity to share, mentor and steward students through simulated and practical problems, guiding them to plausible and realistic solutions.My research interests include; product, process and system design, with the integration of; innovation, development, selling and customer support. I am a consultant to high tech industries addressing both technology insertion and business ...

Dr. Monat teaches courses in Risk Management and Decision Analysis, Systems Thinking, System Optimization, and Business Practices. He has both management and teaching experience in the medical device, separations, food & beverage, business consulting, and environmental industries, having served as President of Harvard Clinical Technology, President and Founder of Business Growth Specialists, Inc., as Sr. Vice-President of Pall Corporation, and in a variety of executive positions for Koch Membrane Systems, Inc. He has taught at WPI since 2004.Dr. Monat’s current research interests include ...