POM in academia: Some causes for concern

Success of production and operations management as an academic field of study is a function of the faculty’s education and experience. This study surveyed the education background of those teaching the basic undergraduate POM courses, their academic and professional affiliations, and their teaching methodology. The authors examined the emphasis placed on topics and whether any changes were projected in these emphases. Diversity exists in all of these areas; the common ground appears to be traditional teaching methods. The concern is how to reduce unwarranted diversity into a generally accepted body of knowledge and where the leadership to do this will be found.