Ed Kahan Business
Optimization Leadership Seminar
Smarter Operations for Smarter Planet
June 30, 2010
Organized by IBM Research – Haifa
Abstracts
Purchasing Commitments to Encourage Pharmaceuticals to
Invest in Research and Development and Production
Capacity of Drugs and Vaccines for Low Income
Countries
Prof. Yehuda Bassok, Marshall
School of Business, University of Southern California
Developing and producing drugs and vaccines is a risky
business. First, the success rate for developing new drugs
and vaccines is low, and R&D costs are high. Second,
investments in research and development, production
capacity, and production are very large and irreversible. If
the demand for drugs or vaccines is high, investors enjoy
high profits. But if the demand does not materialize,
investors can lose hundreds of million of dollars. These
risks are universal and widespread all over the world; in
high income countries as well as medium and low income
countries. The difference between the low income and high
income countries is that in the low income countries neither
the population nor the government can afford to pay the full
price of drugs and vaccines. Thus, pharmaceutical companies
do not have an incentive to develop and produce new drugs
and vaccines. The objective of this study is to design
mechanisms to encourage the development of new vaccines and
drugs, and motivate manufacturers to build capacity and
produce the appropriate quantities of drugs and vaccines. We
develop a payment mechanism that encourages pharmaceutical
companies to develop and produce drugs and at the same time
encourages states and donors to reveal their true demand and
not to inflate it.
Leveraging Information and Analytics for Smarter
Decisions and Optimized Performance
Mr. Michael J. Schroeck, IBM
Business Analytics and Optimization, Global Business
Services
The demand from organizations to gain as much value as
possible from their data is unprecedented. With one of every
two leaders indicating they do not have access to the
information they need to do their job, the demand for
knowledge of business analytics and optimization is growing
rapidly. In this talk you will gain a perspective on how
companies can use information and business analytics to
optimize performance.
How to Lead in a Smarter Planet
Pnina Vortman, IBM Academy of
Technology Smarter Planet Solutions Innovation Lead, IBM
Research - Haifa
The challenges of change in our world and major shifts in
the application of new technology are reshaping the IT
industry and our world, creating increasing value in a new
economic environment. Advanced analytics are shaping the
massive quantities of data collected through instrumentation
and integration of systems to improve operational efficiency
and assist in making forward-looking decisions. These
smarter systems demand a different kind of leadership that
can harness the possibilities of a smarter planet.
Smarter Water: Water Operations and Management
Challenges and Opportunities in a Smarter Planet
Dr. Segev Wasserkrug, IBM
Research - Haifa
Water is a basic need, and the demands for water of
sufficient quality and quantity and for handling wastewater
are becoming issues for all nations, even for those who have
a large supply. Therefore, intelligent ways of managing and
operating the urban and regional water systems are required.
Data that is made available today using smart sensors can
revolutionize water and wastewater operations and
management. For example, the threat of pollution of water
resources by wastewater and storm water can be resolved with
an advanced water management system via intelligent
automation and proactive actions, while operators can take
advantage of analytics and visualization to respond quickly
to events. In this talk, an overview of the challenges and
opportunities for smarter water operation and management
will be discussed. The talk will focus on several key
challenges in operating and managing water systems. Details
will be provided on how analytics and optimization can be
applied to these specific challenges.
Research Collaboration between IBM and Academia
Dr. Segev Wasserkrug, IBM
Research - Haifa
IBM Research has a strong tradition of research
collaboration with academia. We go beyond the boundaries of
our IBM labs to work with colleagues in universities around
the world to solve real-world business and societal
challenges. We foster collaborative relationships through
fellowships, grants, and funding for programs of shared
interest. In this talk, we will outline the multi-faceted
collaboration activities that IBM Research in general and
IBM Research – Haifa in particular have with
universities.
A Simulator for Training Emergency Room Teams
Dr. Avraham Shtub, Technion
Based on recent developments in the areas of simulation
based teaching, IBM Research, Hadassah Ein Karem Hospital
and the Technion Faculty of Industrial Engineering and
Management are developing a simulator for Training Emergency
Room Teams. This presentation will focus on the need for
such a training environment and the solution developed so
far by the research team.
