The management science, or operations research, approach can be traced to World War II, an era in which leading scientists were asked to help solve complex operational problems in the military.34 The scientists were organized into teams that eventually became known as operations research (OR) groups. One OR group, for example, was asked to determine which gun sights would best stop German attacks on the British mainland. The term management science was actually coined by researchers in a UCLA–RAND academic complex featuring academic and industry researchers working together to solve operations problems.35

These early OR groups typically included physicists and other “hard” scientists who used the problem-solving method with which they had the most experience: the scientific method. The scientific method dictates that scientists:

1. Systematically observe the system whose behavior must be explained to solve the problem.

2. Use these specific observations to construct a generalized framework (a model) that is consistent with the specific observations and from which the consequences of changing the system can be predicted.

3. Use the model to deduce how the system will behave under conditions that have not been observed but that could be observed if the changes were made.

4. Finally, test the model by performing an experiment on the actual system to see whether the effects of the changes predicted using the model actually occur when the changes are made.36

The OR groups proved successful at using the scientific method to solve the military’s operational problems.

After World War II, America again became interested in manufacturing and selling products. The success of the OR groups in the military had been so obvious that managers were eager to try management science techniques in an industrial environment. After all, managers also have to deal with complicated operational problems.

By 1955, the management science approach to solving industrial problems had proved effective. Many people saw great promise in refining its techniques and analytical tools, and managers and universities pursued these refinements.

By 1965, the management science approach was being used in many companies and applied to many diverse management problems, such as production scheduling, plant location, and product packaging.

In the 1980s, surveys indicated that management science techniques were used extensively in large, complex organizations. Smaller organizations, however, had not yet fully realized the benefits of using these techniques.

The widespread use of computers in the workplace and the introduction of the Internet have had a significant impact on organizations’ use of management science techniques. In the twenty-first century, managers in organizations of all sizes now have ready access to a wealth of tools and other resources that enable them to easily apply the principles of management science to their companies. Not only has the introduction of technology transformed how businesses operate, but it also enables leadership to automate and organize their company’s systems for greater consistency—and allows them to use the power of technology to aid in their decision making.37

Four primary characteristics are usually present in situations in which management science techniques are applied.38 First, the management problems studied are so complicated that managers need help analyzing a large number of variables. Management science techniques increase the effectiveness of the managers’ decision making in such a situation. Second, a management science application generally uses economic implications as guidelines for making a particular decision, perhaps because management science techniques are best suited for analyzing quantifiable factors such as sales, expenses, and units of production.

Third, the use of mathematical models to investigate a decision situation is typical in management science applications. Models constructed to represent reality are used to determine how the real-world situation might be improved. The fourth characteristic of a management science application is the use of computers. The great complexity of managerial problems and the sophisticated mathematical analysis of problem-related information required are two factors that make computers especially valuable to the management science analyst.

Today, managers use such management science tools as inventory control models, network models, and probability models to aid them in the decision-making process. Other parts of this text outline some of these models in greater detail and illustrate their applications to management decision making. Because management science thought is still evolving, increasingly sophisticated analytical techniques can be expected in the future.