Operations management deals with approaching day-to-day as well as strategic business issues systematically. Project management deals with planning, organizing, motivating, and controlling resources to achieve specific goals.

The Operations and Project Management group in the University of Bedfordshire Business School has expertise in analysing the design, control and improvement of operations, projects, logistics and supply chain management issues.

Members of the group are active in exploring the interfaces with the fields of information systems, knowledge management and environmental sustainability. This group has expertise in working both in manufacturing and service contexts.

Research Themes

Operations and Supply Chain Management

The underlying objective is to help organisations and individuals to improve their operational and supply chain performance around the following research themes.

• Operational and performance assessment of firm performance
• Impact of new technologies (e-commerce, RFID, etc.) on operations management and performance of Firms
• Building and managing sustainable supply chains
• Supplier base optimization
• Service quality studies
• Logistics management
• Reverse logistics issues
• Environmental sustainability and Social responsibility issues in OSCM
• Applications of operational research models (linear programming, data envelopment analysis, analytic hierarchy process, etc.) in industry
• Components of operations strategy and influence of firm performance

Project Management

The group has interests in IT, Construction and Business Project Management. Research areas, in both in public and private sectors, include:

• the use of project management tools and techniques;
• the project manager's soft skills;
• virtual project teams and
• project management maturity models

The Group's research activity informs teaching on the APM Accredited MSc Project Management course and project management units on related courses.

Project Management Collaboration

• 2011 APM Accreditation of MSc Project Management course
• 2010 Hosted HEA BMAF Project Management SIG Network Event – Teaching Project Management

The group is committed to undertaking high quality and innovative research and members of the Group are keen to develop leading research in the area, disseminate research outcomes across academic and practitioner communities, and to facilitate excellence in teaching of the subject.

Aims

The group aims to:

• conduct theoretical and empirical research on issues related to the use and development of operations and project management in organisations;
• facilitate and support other related research activities;
• share knowledge and exchange ideas amongst internal staff and with external partners
• disseminate research findings and project outcomes
• serve as focal point for developing and extending research collaborations with external academic institutions

We are interested in cooperating with academic and professional bodies on various research and practical initiatives, so please get in touch with us.