Live chat tools help boost sales for e-vendors, study finds
According to new research published in the INFORMS journal Information Systems Research, live chat tools can help boost sales and increase profits.
According to new research published in the INFORMS journal Information Systems Research, live chat tools can help boost sales and increase profits.
The popularity of bike-share systems has grown in popularity thanks to the younger, more environmentally conscious generation. While they have garnered considerable attention in cities from Paris to Washington, D.C., their promise of urban transformation is far from being fully realized.
In his President’s Desk column in the February issue of OR/MS Today, INFORMS President Ramayya Krishnan shares examples of how O.R. and analytics are addressing some of society’s biggest problems, and the importance of collaboration and active engagement with government and industry, other INFORMS members, and the public to ensure O.R. and analytics continue to grow in vibrancy and relevance.
The convergence of big data, AI (artificial intelligence) and algorithmic platforms is transforming all sectors of the economy. Driverless cars and popular applications such as IBM Watson and AlphaGo have captured the imagination of the public and leaders alike. Organizations of all types and sizes are pondering what AI means for them. As AI automates, fully or partially, the execution of a task, the nature of a job that is a collection of tasks, changes. This in turn raises questions among workers in every sector of the economy about the future of their work, and policymakers are actively discussing the myriad opportunities and challenges of AI’s impact on our society and our economy.
In his latest President's Desk column, 2019 INFORMS President Ramayya Krishnan discusses INFORMS' AI and O.R. efforts, the synergies and opportunities at the nexus of these two disciplines, and how INFORMS can expand its reach and impact in these areas.
Jeff Cohen
Chief Strategy Officer
INFORMS
Catonsville, MD
[email protected]
443-757-3565
An audio journey of how data and analytics save lives, save money and solve problems.

With seemingly no limit to the demand for artificial intelligence, everyone in the energy, AI, and climate fields is justifiably worried. Will there be enough clean electricity to power AI and enough water to cool the data centers that support this technology? These are important questions with serious implications for communities, the economy, and the environment.
It’s college graduation season, which means over 4 million seniors will graduate in the next few weeks, flooding the job market with new candidates. One area that has shown high potential for the right candidates is artificial intelligence and machine learning. Both disciplines are part of the larger data and analytics career path.
Drugs being explicitly developed to treat rare diseases are getting more expensive.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., as the new secretary of Health and Human Services, is the nation’s de facto healthcare czar. He will have influence over numerous highly visible agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health and the Food and Drug Administration, among others. Given that healthcare is something that touches everyone’s life, his footprint of influence will be expansive.
The recent US-China agreement to temporarily reduce tariffs is a major step for global trade, with tariffs on US goods entering China dropping from 125% to 10% and on Chinese goods entering the US decreasing from 145% to 30% starting May 14. While this has boosted markets and created optimism, key industries like autos and steel remain affected, leaving businesses waiting for clearer long-term trade policies.
With sweeping new tariffs on Chinese-made products set to take effect this summer, Americans are being urged to prepare for price hikes on everyday goods. President Donald Trump's reinstated trade policies are expected to affect a wide swath of consumer imports, including electronics, furniture, appliances, and baby gear. Retail experts are advising shoppers to act before the tariffs hit and prices rise.
Twenty years ago, few people would have been able to imagine the energy landscape of today. In 2005, US oil production, after a long decline, had fallen to its lowest levels in decades, and few experts thought that would change.
In the case of upgrading electrical and broadband infrastructure, new analysis from the University of Massachusetts Amherst reveals {that a} “dig once” strategy is almost 40% more economical than changing them individually.