Starting Operations Management with a “Big Bang”: Using Sitcom to Introduce OM Concepts to Students
Case from journal-Reference no. OMER11-0TA2
Subject category: Production and Operations Management
Authors: CJ Duan; Graham Sterling Pierce
Published by: NeilsonJournals Publishing
Originally published in: "Operations Management Education Review", 2017
Revision date: 19-Jul-2018
Length: 5 pages
Topics: Sitcom in classroom; Work Song Nanocluster; Big Bang Theory and operations management; Audio-visuals and humor
This article illustrates an innovative approach of presenting operations management concepts in the first class in an unorthodox and yet entertaining way. The exercise is centered around an episode of the popular sitcom Big Bang Theory. From our experiences of implementing it in the past three semesters, we found that it has been an effective way of introducing operations management concepts to students in their first undergraduate OM class. Using figures and facts from the sitcom, students can compute productivity measures and appreciate the holistic view of starting and growing a business venture.