Quality and Operations Management

Overview

Aimed at improving the processes through which new and existing products and services are developed and delivered, we now witness a strong upsurge in industry’s interest in improvement techniques and philosophies. Examples are Six Sigma, Lean Production and Lean Product Development. Many industrial companies and public organizations are using improvement programmes based on these or similar ideas and success in these programmes requires a change in mindset together with organisational transformations. Engineers equipped with the knowledge and competence required for leading quality driven change processes and business improvement are therefore crucial.

The Quality and Operations Management programme of Chalmers University of Technology gives you a thorough understanding of tools for identifying customer needs and business opportunities. You will be trained in the skills needed to manage the process of developing products and services.

A strong focus will be on the usage of different qualitative and quantitative tools. Another focus will be on production and delivery processes, in both manufacturing and service and on the tools and techniques for their improvement. You will acquire a number of competencies needed to manage improvement and change processes, whether they concern product development or production. These skills include leadership, project management and change management.

Career

Graduates of the programme can find positions as quality and improvement process facilitators, problem solvers or change agents, production, quality or product development engineers or project managers. There is also the prospect of working within management in the above mentioned areas as well as management consultants or academic researchers.

Examples of positions acquired by students of earlier versions of this programme are: management consultants, production engineers, quality engineers, Six Sigma Black Belts, project leaders in product development and company internal quality consultants. Future career opportunities are not restricted to manufacturing organizations, but also include service providing organizations and public services.