About the Tauber Institute for Global Operations

About the Tauber Institute

Industry identified a need. The University of Michigan responded.

It all began when a gathering of business advisors identified a key category of employees missing from their organizations: trained professionals who understand both the business and engineering aspects of manufacturing.

As a result of that discussion, the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and College of Engineering formed a new cross-unit collaboration. Named for benefactor and U-M alumnus Joel Tauber, the Tauber Institute was born — and immediately began to innovate.

Faculty in the two schools created new courses to deliver an integrated education addressing the challenges of modern manufacturing, with an emphasis on leadership skills.

The Tauber Institute sought every opportunity to immerse students in real-world experiences — leading to the development of Tauber team projects and the annual Spotlight! event, where students compete for academic scholarships through their presentations about work at top companies across the U.S. and around the world. “When I was honored with the naming of the Tauber Institute back in 1995, I never dreamed it would become the vibrant global network of operations professionals and thought-leaders that it is today. Thank you all for your contributions to this community that inspires me with its energy and its eagerness to embrace new ideas.”

- Joel Tauber

Tauber team projects: on display at Spotlight!

Over the summer, teams of Tauber Institute students tackle a wide range of operations challenges faced by our industry partners. At the annual September Spotlight! event, student teams present their solutions in a competitive setting to win academic scholarships.

Spotlight! is an ideal opportunity for corporate representatives to meet Tauber students, develop relationships, and explore how a future Tauber team project could improve operations at their organization. According to sponsoring company calculations, this year’s Tauber team projects resulted in an average savings of $43 million per project over three years, per company calculations. The total savings projected was $989 million.

AWARD WINNING INSTITUTE

The Tauber Institute has enjoyed many accolades — including the UPS George D. Smith Prize for effective education in the fields of operations research, management science, and analytics. But a truer measure of Tauber’s success is that its graduates quickly secure rewarding employment, make an immediate impact in their respective companies, and rise to positions of authority.