What's Your StORy? Burcu Keskin

Name: Burcu B. Keskin

Employer: University of Alabama

Job Title: Professor of operations management and Reese Phifer Fellow

INFORMS member since 2002

INFORMS Colloquia provide an amazing training opportunity regarding what is about to come next in your career. As an OR/MS student, when you attend the Doctoral Student Colloquium, you learn about the different paths or careers that you may have following your graduation. We have panelists from academia describing the academic paths and from industry describing the various jobs and positions an O.R. PhD may have. The New Faculty Colloquium targets academics at the beginning of their career, providing junior faculty with hard-earned advice on successfully navigating the tenure process while maintaining a work/life balance. The Teaching Effectiveness Colloquium targets prospective and seasoned instructors who would like to be better teachers of O.R., providing attendees with best teaching practices. Each colloquium always has panel of experts sharing their own stories and paths with their own takeaway messages. It is great to learn from the most successful people in our profession.  

I am from Turkey. I have attended one of the best universities in Turkey and majored in industrial engineering as an undergrad. When I was placed into industrial engineering through a central examination system, I had no idea what this major was about. But, as I went through my curriculum, I had come to love it! I obtained my master’s and PhD degrees in industrial engineering as well. This path so far may sound familiar to others, but what is different is that I am a first-generation college graduate in my family and a first-generation academician. There were not many role models from family members that I could go to for advice during my education. I am indebted to my professors who encouraged me on this path. I love living in Alabama and working at a public school so that I can return the favor for some other first-generation college students or academicians. 

I love all parts of the conference, from research talks and vendor demonstrations, to meeting colleagues/friends and visiting a new city. However, as the conference keeps growing in size, it can be intimidating. So, I have a few rules to make the most of the conference: 1) learn something new (research talks and tutorials are best for this purpose); 2) reconnect with a former colleague (take advantage of the social events, coffee breaks, and receptions); and 3) make new friends (volunteering for INFORMS communities provides ample opportunities on this front!).

I do not like air travel as much. It is very complicated, and there are a number of optimization approaches to advance it. However, there are still open questions and unanswered issues.

Analytics is a combination of disciplines that make use of data for better decision making. I believe in the three legs of analytics: descriptive analytics with data analysis; predictive analytics with data making; and prescriptive analytics with data-driven decision making.

Showing the opportunities with analytics careers and putting role models in front of them would be the best option. Organizing summer camps and building shadowing programs would be some of the first steps.

Read, read, and read. Data without problem context cannot lead us to the desirable solutions. We need to understand the problem domains, constraints, and requirements to be able to benefit from our analytical skills.

I am content with respect to my path, and even though I have a few other milestones I still seek to achieve, I take a greater pleasure in celebrating the success of others coming behind me, such as my current and former doctoral students. Two of my students have been in the job market and I hope that we will be celebrating their new positions.

It is a cliché answer but work/life balance stands in the way of many professional achievements. We can’t shake off the feeling of being guilty at all times. When you are working hard, you are feeling guilty about ignoring the life. Or vice versa, when you are focusing on life, you are guilty about not advancing your work. So, we need to stop seeking balance, accept that there are times things are off-balance and stop feeling guilty for these times. It also helps to learn from the experiences of others. Women in OR/MS is an excellent forum for this purpose.  

It is hard for me to choose. All of the INFORMS journals have excellent papers on a wide variety of topics. I have access to all of the journals electronically. But, I get hard copies of Management Science and INFORMS Journal on Applied Analytics (formerly Interfaces).

Books, coffee, and possibly a hammock.

I use Facebook for connecting with family and friends and LinkedIn for linking with professional connects.

Totally Monica. I love cooking and I may get very detailed-oriented (especially, when it comes to cleaning!).