Innovative Applications in Analytics Award

The purpose of the Innovative Applications in Analytics Award, brought to you by the Analytics Society of INFORMS, Kinaxis and Adelphi University is to recognize the creative and unique application of a combination of analytical techniques. The prize promotes the awareness and value of the creative combination of analytics techniques in unusual applications to provide insights and/or business value.

Applicants can submit proposals that span applications of descriptive, predictive and/or prescriptive analytics, as well as data creation, collection and dissemination which support or enable original analytical methods.

Descriptive innovation could include novel measures, visualization methods, or creative approaches to the analytics process improvement, among others. Predictive innovation might be statistical applications, text analytics or simulation, among others. Prescriptive innovation might include game theory or optimization. New sources of data creation and collection, and new avenues for dissemination of analytical approaches can also help demonstrate the innovativeness of the submission. The lists above are not meant to be exhaustive, but rather illustrative examples of areas of innovation.

2019 IAAA Results

The 2019 IAAA award had 24 participants that applied a diverse set of analytical tools and techniques that provided significant improvements to profit and nonprofit organizations. After a rigorous and difficult process, due to the high-quality level of the applications, a judging committee chaired by Juan R. Jaramillo (Adelphi University) and composed of Ali Megahed (IBM), Pallav Chhaochhria (McKinsey & Company ), Catalina M. Jaramillo (NYU), Nitish Goshal (Ameritas) Michael F. Gorman (University of Dayton), Rodrigo Estrada (Corona Organization) and Zhen Liu (Benedictine University) selected six finalists. The six finalists presented their innovative applications at the 2019 INFORMS Analytics Conference to the judging committee. The finalists represented a diverse set of industries, organizations and nationalities, showing the richness of analytics applications today.

The 2019 winners are:

• First place: Transparent Machine Learning Models for Predicting Seizures in ICU Patients from cEEG Signals presented by Aaron F. Struck (University of Wisconsin), Cynthia Rudin (Duke University) and Brandon Westover (Massachusetts General Hospital).
• Second place: Machine Learning: Multi-site Evidence-based Best Practice Discovery presented by Eva Lee (Georgia Tech) and Brent M. Egan (University of South Carolina - School of Medicine)
• Third place was awarded to Using Advanced Analytics to Rationalize Tail Spend Suppliers at Verizon presented by Mike Barough (Verizon).

The other three finalists, listed in alphabetical order, are as follows:

A Machine Learning Approach to Shipping Box Design presented by Guang Yang (jet.com/Walmart Labs).

InnoGPS: Innovation Global Positioning System presented by Jianxi Luo (Singapore University of Technology and Design).

Taking Assortment Optimization from Theory to Practice: Evidence from Large Field Experiments on Alibaba presented by Jake Feldman (Washington University in Saint Louis).