All programmes > Decision and Risk Analysis in Operations Management

Decision and Risk Analysis in Operations Management (B-KUL-D0I88A)

6 ECTSEnglish39 First termCannot be taken as part of an examination contract
Matuschke Jannik
OC Handelsingenieur en Handelsingenieur in de beleidsinformatica FEB Campus Leuven

Aims

At the end of the course, the student is able to

- model real-word situations involving conflicting interests by choosing appropriate game-theoretic models.

- model real-world situations involving uncertainty by choosing appropriate robust or stochastic optimization models.

- understand the necessary trade-offs that arise in the aforementioned models and their solution concepts.

- apply different optimization techniques to solve robust and stochastic optimization problems and to compute equilibria for game-theoretic models.

- interpret the solutions output by those algorithms in the context of the real-world situation.

- understand the capabilities and limitations of different algorithms for solving robust/stochastic optimization problems and for computing equilibria in game-theoretic models.

- develop new models and algorithms for resolving planning problems involving conflicting interests and/or uncertainty.

Previous knowledge

At the beginning of this course, students are familiar with:

- basic optimization techniques as offered in a bachelor-level operations research course (linear/integer programming, shortest paths, network flows)

- basics concepts of probability theory and statistics (random variables, mean, variance, probability density funtions)

For the group homework, it is useful to have knowledge in a programming language (e.g., Python) and/or usage of a mixed integer programming solver and an appropriate modeling language (e.g., CPLEX + LINDO).

Is included in these courses of study

Activities

6 ects. Decision and Risk Analysis in Operations Management (B-KUL-D0I88a)

6 ECTSEnglishFormat: Lecture39 First term
Matuschke Jannik
OC Handelsingenieur en Handelsingenieur in de beleidsinformatica FEB Campus Leuven

Content

Decision makers, both in business and society, often face situations in which decision have to be made in the face of uncertain data, conflicting goals, or agents with selfish interests that are not under their control. In this course, we will study modern, quantitative methods for deriving and justifying decisions in such situations. In particular, this course provides an introduction to optimization under uncertainty (robust/stochastic), multicriteria optimization, and game theory/mechanism design. The corresponding models and algorithms will be discussed and analyzed in depth, guided by appropriate example cases. Additional homework exercises will allow the students to further practice the application of these methods.

Course material

  • All necessary course material will be distributed via Toledo.
  • The following textbook contains additional background information for some parts of the course:
    Wayne L. Winston. Operations Research: Applications and Algorithms. Duxbury Press, 2004.

Format: more information

The different models and concepts of the course are introduced to the students in class. They are discussed with the students based on appropriate example cases.

Two types of additional exercises are provided via Toledo:

- theory exercises for individual self-study,

- case-based group assignments for training the practial application of the methods.

Evaluation

Evaluation: Decision and Risk Analysis in Operations Management (B-KUL-D2i88a)

Type : Partial or continuous assessment with (final) exam during the examination period
Description of evaluation : Written, Paper/Project, Self assessment/Peer assessment
Type of questions : Open questions
Learning material : List of formulas, Calculator

Explanation


Evaluation caracteristics

The evaluation includes

- homework assignments,

- a written final exam.

 

Homework assignments will be completed by teams of students.

Students are allowed to bring self-prepared notes on four A4 pages (two double-sided sheets) to the exam.

Students need to bring their own calculator to the exam.

 

Determination final result

If a student achieves a score of less than 10/20 in the final exam, the final grade of that student is determined entirely by their score in the final exam.

If a student achieves a score of at least 10/20 in the final exam, the final grade of that student is determined by the maximum of the following two numbers:

1. the grade corresponding to the score in the final exam,

2. the grade corresponding to the weighted combination of the score in the final exam (80%) and the homework (20%).

Information about retaking exams

Only the written final exam is repeated at the second examination opportunity. The score for the homework is carried over from the first examination opportunity. Apart from this, the features of the evaluation and determination of grades are identical to those of the first examination opportunity, as described in the tab 'Explanation'.