Burak Kazaz

Title

  • Becker Professor of Supply Chain Management
  • Meredith Professor for Teaching Excellence
  • Director, Brethen Institute

Education

  • Ph.D., Management Science, Purdue University
  • M.S. and B.S., Industrial Engineering, METU (Türkiye)

Professional Experience

  • Department Editor, Decision Sciences, 2026–2028
  • Associate Editor, guest Department Editor & Editor-in-Chief, M&SOM, 2017–2020
  • Senior Editor, Production and Operations Management, 2015–present
  • Associate Editor, IISE Transactions, 2008–2025
  • Executive Director, Franklin Center for Supply Chain Management, 2013–2017

Selected INFORMS and Related Activities - Member since 1995

  • INFORMS Publication Committee, 2022–2026
  • Chair, Committee for AI Guidelines, 2024–2025
  • MSOM Society: (elected) President, Executive VP, VP of Meetings, iFORM SIG Chair, 2017–2022
    • Initiated 1RR initiative: SIG Conference submissions considered for publication in M&SOM
    • Africa initiative: creating an inclusive society in publication
  • Tutorial speaker, 2020

Selected Professional Honors and Awards

  • MSOM Society Distinguished Service Award, 2026
  • Wickham Skinner Prize, POMS, 2017
  • Best Paper, “Humanitarian Operations,” POMS, 2016
  • INFORMS President’s Pick – best publication, 2015
  • Best Analytical Paper, DSI, 2014
  • Grants/Awards: Abbott Labs, P&G, APICS, BP, IBM

Selected Publications

  • Kazaz, B., F. Xu, H. Yu, 2025, “Retailing strategies of imperfect produce and the battle against food waste,” M&SOM 27(4), 1146–1163.
  • Kazaz, B., S. Webster, P. Yadav, 2023, “Increasing the supply of health products in underserved regions,” POM 32, 4212–4228.
  • Hekimoğlu, M.H., B. Kazaz, 2020, “Analytics for fine wine: Realistic prices,” POM 29(9), 2096-2120.
  • Kazaz, B., S. Webster, P. Yadav, 2016, “Interventions for an Artemisinin-based malaria medicine supply chain,” POM 25(9), 1576–1600.
  • Kazaz, B., S. Webster, 2015, “Technical note – Price-setting newsvendor problems with uncertain supply and risk aversion,” OR 63(4), 807–811.
  • Noparumpa, T., B. Kazaz, S. Webster, 2015, “Wine futures and advance selling under quality uncertainty,” M&SOM 17(3), 411–426.
  • Kazaz, B., M. Dada, H. Moskowitz, 2005, “Global production planning under exchange-rate uncertainty,” MS 51(7), 1101–1119.
  • Kazaz, B., 2004, “Production planning under yield and demand uncertainty with yield-dependent cost and price,” M&SOM 6(3), 209–224.

To view the entire list of my publications, please visit my CV

Candidate Statement

INFORMS publications are at an inflection point. Submission volumes across our 17 journals are surging, artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping every stage of the scholarly process, and researchers increasingly have faster alternatives. This moment demands both strategic vision and practical experience. I am running for VP of Publications to provide both.

I have been an INFORMS member since 1995 and have served on the Publications Committee since 2022. As the longest-serving executive officer of the MSOM Society, I have held every leadership role: President, Executive VP, VP of Meetings and Communications, and the Chair of iFORM SIG. My editorial experience spans M&SOM (AE, guest DE, guest EIC), POM (SE), IISE Transactions (AE), and Decision Sciences (DE). I have organized and hosted conferences both at MSOM and POMS Societies; these roles gave me a ground-level view of what works – and where we can do better.

Navigating the AI revolution in publishing: I chaired the committee charged with developing AI guidelines for all INFORMS journals, leading the effort to build a framework that is principled, practical, and portable across a diverse publication portfolio. The volume of AI-assisted submissions is growing rapidly, and the challenges extend in every direction: how manuscripts are written, how they are reviewed, and how the integrity of the scholarly record is protected. My goal is to work closely with EICs and all stakeholders to develop clear, consistent, and enforceable policies on AI use in manuscript preparation – policies that are transparent to authors, and that are adaptable as the technology evolves. I recognize that AI offers genuine tools for editors: assistance with desk screening, integrity checking, and reviewer identification at scale. I plan to embrace these capabilities thoughtfully, while guarding against the homogenization of ideas and the erosion of human scholarly judgment. INFORMS has both an opportunity and an obligation to set community norms about AI’s role in the publication landscape.

Accelerating review without sacrificing rigor: Long review times frustrate authors, delay the dissemination of scholarly discoveries, and push researchers toward faster venues. This is a real and growing competitive threat that demands a serious response. Critically, speed must never come at the expense of the intellectual standards that have made MS, OR, M&SOM, and other INFORMS flagship journals among the most cited in the world. Faster and rigorous reviews are not in conflict – achieving both requires investment, coordination, and strong editorial leadership. I am prepared to work closely with EICs to provide all three and reduce median review times through more effective reviewer matching, tiered review pathways aligned with manuscript complexity, and improved tools and recognition for the reviewers whose volunteer contributions sustain our entire enterprise. The “1RR initiative” we launched in MSOM Society is a demonstrated success: papers submitted to the MSOM SIG Conference are now consistently channeled for publication in M&SOM.

Amplifying societal impact: Operations research and management science have never been more relevant. Climate resilience, healthcare equity, supply chain fragility, and humanitarian logistics, the design of fair algorithmic systems are precisely the problems our community is built to solve. Our publications should reflect that relevance with practitioner-facing summaries, deeper policy engagement, and special issues targeting critical societal problems. I am committed to expanding global access through open-access pathways, author-friendly licensing, and equitable pricing so our methods reach researchers and decision-makers everywhere, including underrepresented communities.

INFORMS publications are a public trust – the intellectual legacy of our community, the professional currency of our members, a genuine contribution to human welfare. I am honored to ask for your support and your vote.

For more information, please visit: https://whitman.syracuse.edu/faculty-and-research/faculty-staff-directory/details/bkazaz.