Topic outline

  • Course overview: Learning objectives, content and assessment

    ATTENTION: The course will be taught remotely in Fall 2021!

    • Participation in the course requires completing a pre-assignment (instructions will be given in the first session).
    • Weekly sessions, based on guest lectures and student presentations, will be on Zoom. Students will be divided into two groups (Thursday or Friday). Division into groups will be done after the pre-assignment.
    • Students will work in groups on weekly design assignments. Each group develops a solution to one design problem presented in the course, and evaluates the design solutions of other groups. The weekly live sessions are based around the design assignments.
    • In addition, the course comprises eight self-study modules on innovation management. Based on pre-recorded lectures and other learning materials, students will submit a learning diary each week.
    • Grading is based on the pre-assignment, participation in online sessions, group work, and learning diary.

    Learning Objectives:

    (1) Learn how to begin translating improvement opportunity to operational designs in current operations and services

    (2) Gain insight into potential operational uses of emerging technologies that enable new and better ways of operating
    (3) Become familiar with different innovation management perspectives and begin applying them for real-life innovation problems

    Learning activities:

    The course is built around a number of implemented or proposed innovative solutions in operations management. These innovative solutions are presented by invited guest lecturers from industry and leading research groups. Together with guest lecturers students identify a new design problem for which further innovation is needed. In small groups students develop a proposal for an improved solution which is then presented to the whole class and evaluated.

    The course starts with students reading the introductory materials and returning a pre-assignment.

    Both design assignment and evaluations are conducted in a group. Each group develops one design and evaluate all designs of the other groups.

    An individual learning diary is written and returned for evaluation each week.

    Assessment Methods and Criteria:

    Students are required to have completed the individual pre-assignment to join the groups for design and evaluation of designs.

    Overall assessment based on individual pre-assignment, participation in the teaching sessions, group’s design, group’s evaluations of peer group’s designs assignments, and the learning diary.

    Study Material:

    Guest lecturer's presentation material.

    Student groups' design presentations.

    Video lectures on innovation management.

    Research articles providing students with useful tools and theoretical frameworks for problem framing, design proposal development and evaluation.

    Responsible teachers: Jan Holmström, Jaakko Siltaloppi

    Workload:

    Total 134h (Pre-assignment 14h; remote weekly teaching sessions 30h; independent weekly study and learning diaries 48h; recap and final learning diary 10h; Group work on design assignment 24h; group work on weekly peer feedback and self-evaluation of own design assignment 8h)