About Professor John Birge

Biography

Professor John R. Birge earned a Bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Princeton University in 1977 and a Master’s degree and a PhD in operations research from Stanford University in 1979 and 1980, respectively. He joined the Chicago Booth faculty in 2004, and is currently the Jerry W. and Carol Lee Levin Professor of Operations Management at the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business. Previously, he was Dean of the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science and Professor of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences at Northwestern University (1999-2004). He also served as Professor and Chair of Industrial and Operations Engineering and chair and founder of the Financial Engineering Program at the University of Michigan (1993-99).
Professor Birge was the 6th President of the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS), and is currently the Editor-in-Chief of Operations Research, which is a flagship journal for the operations research community since its inception in the 1950s. He is also a member of the INFORMS, the Mathematical Programming Society, the Mathematical Association of America, and Sigma Xi.

Professor Birge studies mathematical modeling of systems under uncertainty, especially for maximizing operational and financial goals using the methodologies of stochastic programming and large-scale optimization. He was first drawn to this area by a need to use mathematics in a useful and practical way. Professor Birge explains, “my research has shown how special problem structure can allow for efficient solution of complex problems of decision making under uncertainty.” This research has been supported by the National Science Foundation, the Ford Motor Company, General Motors Corporation, the National Institute of Justice, the Office of Naval Research, the Electric Power Research Institute, and Volkswagen of America.

Professor Birge has published widely and is the recipient of the Best Paper Award from the Japan Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences Fellows Award, and the Institute of Industrial Engineers Medallion Award. He was also elected to the National Academy of Engineering. Professor Birge has worked as a consultant for a variety of firms including the University of Michigan Hospitals, Deutsche Bank, Allstate Insurance Company, and Morgan Stanley, and he uses cases from these experiences in his teaching.