Students will practice managerial skills and mathematical/statistical methods necessary to optimize the decisions involved in product development and management of operations.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE INFORMATION ABOUT THE TEACHING AND ASSESSMENT METHOD(S) USED IN THIS COURSE IS WITH RESERVATION. THE INFORMATION PROVIDED HERE IS BASED ON THE COURSE SETUP PRIOR TO THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS. AS A CONSEQUENCE OF THE CRISIS, COURSE COORDINATORS MAY BE FORCED TO CHANGE THE TEACHING AND ASSESSMENT METHODS USED. THE MOST UP-TO-DATE INFORMATION ABOUT THE TEACHING/ASSESSMENT METHOD(S) WILL BE AVAILABLE IN THE COURSE SYLLABUS. Every year, companies launch thousands of new products. Many firms consider innovation the lifeblood of their business although failure rates of up to 80% are not uncommon. In this course we study what it takes to successfully develop products and bring them to the market. Specifically, we discuss how companies can translate customers’ needs into product concepts, and how they can produce and supply the new products in a cost-efficient yet customer-oriented manner. The course addresses the strategic, marketing, and operational decisions that lie at the core of this process.

Management of Operations and Product Development, 6th edition (2020), Maastricht University, compiled by Mahdi Ebrahim and Tim Oosterwijk, McGraw-Hill Custom Publishing, ISBN 9781307552348.

Basic mathematics and statistics, general marketing concepts, basic finance.
An advanced level of English.