IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/inm/orinte/v29y1999i5p132-142.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

End-User Modeling Improves R&D Management at AgrEvo Canada, Inc

Author

Listed:
  • Calvin Sonntag

    (91 Vanderbilt Drive, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3Y 1M9)

  • Thomas A. Grossman

    (Faculty of Management, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2N 1N4)

Abstract

The manager of strategic-project planning used spreadsheet modeling and optimization to change the process AgrEvo Canada uses to allocate resources to crop protection and biotechnology R&D projects. We developed a spreadsheet optimization model to show that a perceived bottleneck actually had excess capacity and that all projects could be funded by reallocating resources. To achieve benefits from these insights required resolving political issues rather than solving optimization problems. Descriptive models proved superior to prescriptive optimization results for achieving buy-in. Use of the model led to the shortest and most objective budgeting meeting ever. We brought clarity to a vexing internal debate and helped to retain R&D projects valued at tens of millions of dollars. Managers can effectively apply management science without intervention by management science professionals. End-user modelers are different from expert consultants. Additional field research on end-user modeling is needed.

Suggested Citation

  • Calvin Sonntag & Thomas A. Grossman, 1999. "End-User Modeling Improves R&D Management at AgrEvo Canada, Inc," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 29(5), pages 132-142, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:inm:orinte:v:29:y:1999:i:5:p:132-142
    DOI: 10.1287/inte.29.5.132
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/inte.29.5.132
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1287/inte.29.5.132?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. David S. Rubin & Harvey M. Wagner, 1990. "Shadow Prices: Tips and Traps for Managers and Instructors," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 20(4), pages 150-157, August.
    2. Arthur M. Geoffrion, 1976. "The Purpose of Mathematical Programming is Insight, Not Numbers," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 7(1), pages 81-92, November.
    3. Michael H. Rothkopf, 1996. "Editorial: Models as Aids to Thought," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 26(6), pages 64-67, December.
    4. Stephen G. Powell, 1997. "The Teachers' Forum: From Intelligent Consumer to Active Modeler, Two MBA Success Stories," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 27(3), pages 88-98, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Robert B. Handfield & Steven A. Edwards & Jeffrey S. Stonebraker, 2011. "NC State's Supply Chain Resource Cooperative Educates in the Real World," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 41(6), pages 548-563, December.
    2. S Eom & E Kim, 2006. "A survey of decision support system applications (1995–2001)," Journal of the Operational Research Society, Palgrave Macmillan;The OR Society, vol. 57(11), pages 1264-1278, November.
    3. Thomas A. Grossman, 2002. "Student Consulting Projects Benefit Faculty and Industry," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 32(2), pages 42-48, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Thomas A. Grossman, 1999. "Teachers' Forum: Spreadsheet Modeling and Simulation Improves Understanding of Queues," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 29(3), pages 88-103, June.
    2. Thomas A. Grossman, 2002. "Student Consulting Projects Benefit Faculty and Industry," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 32(2), pages 42-48, April.
    3. James F. Campbell & Morton E. O'Kelly, 2012. "Twenty-Five Years of Hub Location Research," Transportation Science, INFORMS, vol. 46(2), pages 153-169, May.
    4. Church, Richard L. & Murray, Alan T. & Figueroa, Michael A. & Barber, Klaus H., 2000. "Support system development for forest ecosystem management," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 121(2), pages 247-258, March.
    5. Chowdhury, Sudipta & Emelogu, Adindu & Marufuzzaman, Mohammad & Nurre, Sarah G. & Bian, Linkan, 2017. "Drones for disaster response and relief operations: A continuous approximation model," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 188(C), pages 167-184.
    6. Zachary A. Collier & James H. Lambert, 2019. "Principles and methods of model validation for model risk reduction," Environment Systems and Decisions, Springer, vol. 39(2), pages 146-153, June.
    7. Merrick, James H. & Weyant, John P., 2019. "On choosing the resolution of normative models," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 279(2), pages 511-523.
    8. Tsao, Yu-Chung & Lu, Jye-Chyi, 2012. "A supply chain network design considering transportation cost discounts," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 48(2), pages 401-414.
    9. Suzanne de Treville & Ann van Ackere, 2006. "Equipping Students to Reduce Lead Times: The Role of Queuing-Theory-Based Modeling," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 36(2), pages 165-173, April.
    10. Peter J. Regan, 2006. "Professional Decision Modeling: Practitioner as Professor," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 36(2), pages 142-149, April.
    11. Allan W. Gray & Joshua D. Detre & Brian C. Briggeman, 2005. "Valuing Limited Information in Decision Making Under Uncertainty," Working Papers 05-02, Purdue University, College of Agriculture, Department of Agricultural Economics.
    12. Briggeman, Brian C. & Detre, Joshua D. & Gray, Allan W., 2004. "Compound Options: A Real Options Application To An Agricultural Business," 2004 Annual meeting, August 1-4, Denver, CO 19996, American Agricultural Economics Association (New Name 2008: Agricultural and Applied Economics Association).
    13. Irineu de Brito & Silvia Uneddu & Emma Maspero & Paulo Gonçalves, 2020. "Optimizing Long-Lasting Insecticidal Nets Campaign in Ivory Coast," Logistics, MDPI, vol. 4(3), pages 1-21, August.
    14. Sy, Charlle L. & Aviso, Kathleen B. & Ubando, Aristotle T. & Tan, Raymond R., 2016. "Target-oriented robust optimization of polygeneration systems under uncertainty," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 116(P2), pages 1334-1347.
    15. Perry, Gregory M. & Rister, M. Edward & Richardson, James W. & Grant, Warren R., 1986. "Analyzing Tenure Arrangements and Crop Rotations Using Farm Simulation and Probit Analysis," Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 18(2), pages 165-174, December.
    16. Brian C. Briggeman & Allan W. Gray & Joshua D. Detre, 2008. "Using Limited Information to Support the Decision to Launch a New Product in the Fruit Juice Market: A Teaching Case Study," Review of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 30(2), pages 370-378.
    17. Saurabh Chandra & Amit Kumar Vatsa, 2021. "Case Article—Coastal Shipping for Automobile Distribution," INFORMS Transactions on Education, INFORMS, vol. 22(1), pages 28-34, September.
    18. Akash Dania & Bridget Anakwe & Bernadette Ruf, 2019. "Student Preference for Spreadsheet-Based Learning," Accounting and Finance Research, Sciedu Press, vol. 8(3), pages 1-16, August.
    19. Meltem Peker & Bahar Y. Kara & James F. Campbell & Sibel A. Alumur, 2016. "Spatial Analysis of Single Allocation Hub Location Problems," Networks and Spatial Economics, Springer, vol. 16(4), pages 1075-1101, December.
    20. Anton Ovchinnikov & Joseph Milner, 2008. "Spreadsheet Model Helps to Assign Medical Residents at the University of Vermont's College of Medicine," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 38(4), pages 311-323, August.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:inm:orinte:v:29:y:1999:i:5:p:132-142. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Chris Asher (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/inforea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.