From Classroom to Online to Hybrid: The Evolution of an Operations Management Course

This paper discusses the evolution of an introductory operations management course at the University of Arkansas. The class is a required course in the Masters in Operations Management program in the Department of Industrial Engineering. The authors discuss their experience in creating an online version of this survey course and then reversing direction and converting the online course into a hybrid class, where class is held live one day a week and the remaining course content is delivered online. The paper discusses the evolution of course content and assignments and the impact on student interaction and participation. Throughout, we discuss student response to each of the course delivery modes. Introduction/Background Since its inception in 1974, the Operations Management (OM) program at the University of Arkansas has graduated over 4,500 students with a Master of Science in Operations Management (MSOM). Housed in the Department of Industrial Engineering, and originally developed for the U.S. military, the OM program today draws its students, primarily working professionals, from a broad range of industries and government agencies. The OM program currently operates live program sites at three military bases in the U.S. and three additional locations in the state of Arkansas. In addition, many students take the program online from remote locations not associated with any of the specific sites. Current enrollment in the program stands at just over 450 active students, with approximately 300 of those students affiliated with a one of our six sites and the remaining students classified as true distance students. Although considered a distance program, OM courses are delivered both live and online (in an asynchronous mode). Courses are offered in eight-week accelerated terms, with five terms per academic year. Most OM courses are offered both online and in the traditional classroom setting, with live classes at six sites meeting in the evenings twice a week for three hours each. Classes are taught by a mix of tenured/tenure track faculty (6 of 12 industrial engineering faculty members are actively involved) and adjunct faculty (50+). Adjunct faculty members who teach classes at the various sites are typically practitioners with significant and relevant industrial experience. All have master’s degrees and many have doctorates in relevant fields. At present, about 60% of the course enrollments are accounted for by online asynchronous distance delivery. With a growing number of students coming from remote locations around the state and country, more military students taking course work while being deployed on active duty, and fewer live options available at the smaller civilian sites, this proportion of distance delivery coursework has become the norm in the program. More recently, the program has explored the format of hybrid or blended learning classes, which combine both online and faceto-face learning in the same course. These courses are designed for students who desire some live classroom interaction, but whose work and family commitments make it difficult to come to campus for three hours, two nights a week. Page 24629.2 The OM program is designed for working professionals in such fields as manufacturing, construction, health care, banking, technology services, retail, nonprofit services, state and government services, and the military, who are seeking to enhance their skills in the management of capital, and technological and human resources. Although only approximately 20 percent of MSOM students have engineering bachelor’s degrees, with others coming from a variety of fields, course content is delivered from an industrial engineering perspective, where the use of quantitative tools is emphasized. Graduates of the program over the years have typically been engineers and managers who have gone on to build successful careers in their respective fields of employment. Many have been military officers who have attained senior ranks in the Air Force and the Navy, the two military branches primarily served by this program. Although our civilian graduates have been fewer in number until recently, they are no less successful in their chosen fields of endeavor. Among the latter are a former vice president of a Fortune 100 company, the chancellor of a state university, and numerous senior level managers in a variety of industrial sectors (transportation, retail, manufacturing, etc.). The program is designed to equip students with leadership and management skills, as well as analytical and problem solving skills that are aimed at making them better managers of both work processes and people. Putting students first ensures all students of any ethnicity and gender have equal chances for educational success. Online, live and hybrid classroom options allow students the flexibility to learn at their convenience and in their own setting. The OM student body is one of the most diverse on campus. Table 1 highlights the race/ethnicity breakdown of our students by year for academic years 2009-2011. High minority and female percentages are due to the large percentage of students who are military members. The diversity of our students contributes to the overall diversity of the entire College of Engineering graduate population. Table 1. Students Enrolled in Operations Management Program Race Fall 2009 Fall 2010 Fall 2011 Female Male Female Male Female Male African American 37 42 29 45 30 48 American Indian or Alaska Native 2 3 1 5 2 4