Kevin LindermanAssociate Professor

Kevin Linderman
CSOM Operations & Mgmt Sci
3-235 CarlSMgmt
321 19th Ave S
Minneapolis, MN  55455
Phone: 612/626-8632
linde037@umn.edu


Education
PhD, 1998, operations research and operations management, Case Western Reserve University
MS, 1996, management science, Case Western Reserve University
MS, 1989, mathematics, Miami University
BA, 1987, mathematics and philosophy, Minnesota State University

Kevin Linderman is an associate professor with a BA in mathematics and philosophy from Minnesota State University, MS in mathematics from Miami University, an MS in management science at Case Western Reserve University, and a PhD in operations from Case Western Reserve University. His research has been supported by a National Science Foundation. He is a recipient of the Chan Hahn Distinguished Paper Award and Elwood S. Buffa Doctoral Dissertation Competition Winner (Co-Advisor). His publications have appeared in Management Science, Journal of Operations Management, IIE Transactions, European Journal of Operations Research, Journal of Quality Technology, and Journal of Statistical Computation and Simulation. His research interests include quality management, six sigma, innovation, knowledge management, environmental operations, and manufacturing planning and control systems.

Research

Expertise
Process Improvement, Six Sigma, and Lean
Quality management and Control
Operations management theory
Knowledge management and Technology

Research Statement
My research focuses on reducing the gap between theory and practice in the problem domain of continuous improvement and innovation. I employ a variety of research techniques and methodologies to tackle important research questions. My research agenda can be viewed as a pull system, where I address challenging research questions in my problem domain by pulling in the appropriate research techniques and methodologies. As a result, my research agenda reflects a problem-driven as opposed to methodological-driven approach to understanding continuous improvement. Methodologies employed in my research vary from quantitative models and optimization to empirical methods.

Current Research
Innovation and knowledge management

  • Recent Research Grants
  • Sustaining High Quality Performance in Organizations, National Science Foundation Grant
  • Knowledge creation and diffusion in organizations using the Six Sigma approach, National Science Foundation Grant


Publications

Major Publications

  • "Social and Method Effects on Learning Behaviors and Knowledge Creation in Six Sigma Projects," K. Linderman, A. Choo, and R. Schroeder, Management Science (forthcoming).
  • "Six Sigma: Definition and Theory," K. Linderman, R. Schroeder, C. Liedtke, and A. Choo, Journal of Operations Management (forthcoming).
  • "Six Sigma: The Role of Goals in Improvement Teams," K. Linderman, R. Schroeder, and A. Choo, Journal of Operations Management (forthcoming).
  • "Evolution of Quality: First Fifty Issues of Production and Operations Management," K. Linderman, R. Schroeder, and D. Zhang, Production and Operations Management (2005).
  • "An Integrated Systems Approach to Process Control and Maintenance," K. Linderman, K. McKone, and J. Anderson, European Journal of Operations Research (2005).
  • "Integrating Quality Management Practices with Knowledge Creation Processes," K. Linderman, R. Schroeder, C. Liedtke, S. Zaheer, and A. Choo, Journal of Operations Management (2004).
  • "Hazardous Waste Disposal: A Waste-Fuel Blending Approach," K. Linderman and A. D. Flowers, Production and Operations Management (2003).
  • "Six Sigma: A Goal Theoretic Perspective," K. Linderman, R. Schroeder, S. Zaheer, and A. Choo, Journal of Operations Management (2003).
  • "Robust Economic Design of Control Charts," K. Linderman and A. Choo, IIE Transactions (2002).
  • "A Weibull Process Failure Mechanism for the Economic Design of MEWMA Control Charts," K. Linderman and T. E. Love, Journal of Statistical Computation and Simulation (2003).
  • "Economic Statistical Design of MEWMA Control Charts," K. Linderman and T. E. Love, Journal of Quality Technology (2000).
  • "Implementing Economic Statistical Design of MEWMA Control Charts," K. Linderman and T. E. Love, Journal of Quality Technology (2000).

Instruction

Teaching Philosophy
Continuous improvement is a centerpiece to my teaching philosophy. I often experiment with new technologies to improve the content and delivery of course materials. I employ multiple learning techniques to address different learning styles. I am interested in how people learn differently and am incorporating new teaching techniques to accommodate these differences. Using more diverse teaching methods and styles helps prevent students from falling through the cracks.

Courses

Fall, 2009
OMS 6059 Quality Management and Lean Six Sigma Sec.  001
OMS 6059 Quality Management and Lean Six Sigma Sec.  060
OMS 8745 Research on Quality Management Sec.  001
Spring, 2010
OMS 3059 Quality Management and Lean Six Sigma Sec.  020
MOT 8113 Operations Management for Competitive Advantage Sec.  001


Service

Scholarly Service and Honors

  • 2004 Academy of Management Chan K. Hahn Distinguished Paper Award
  • 2006 Elwood S. Buffa Doctoral Dissertation Award (Co-advisor)

Community Relationships

  • Consulting and industrial research projects with Keystone, Schwan's Food Service, MacMillian Bloedel, TBN, GEON, PCC Airfoils, Select Comfort