Top Business Schools for Operations Management 2024

Typically, around one-quarter of ASU's MBA graduates tend to go into roles operations management or logistics, one of the highest rates of all schools surveyed by FIND MBA. The MBA program's specialization in Supply Chain Management offers a number of operations-oriented classes.

Smeal's graduates go into operations in droves – almost 30 percent of the most recent class went into operations, supply chain, or logistics roles, one of the highest proportions of any school surveyed by FIND MBA. The school's faculty includes some key figures in operations research, such as V. Daniel R. Guide, who co-edits the Journal of Operations Management. Although the school doesn’t offer an MBA in Operations Management, it does offer an MBA concentration in Supply Chain Management.

The school’s decades-old Center for Operational Excellence serves as a hub for Fisher students seeking jobs in operations management. During the first year of the MBA program, students can choose to pursue an “Industry Immersion Academy” in Operations, which allows them to really understand the job possibilities in the field. Experienced professionals looking for a more in-depth look at Lean and Six Sigma tools can look at the school’s one-year long Master of Business Operational Excellence program.

Typically, around 25 to 30 percent of Krannert MBA grads go into operations positions. Although the one-year MBA program does not offer any concentrations, students can take some operations-oriented elective classes. Students can also network through a student-led Operations Club. US News & World Report consistently puts the school at or near the top of its top-ten list of best schools for a career in operations or production.

Founded in 1983, Rutger’s Center for Operations Research looks closely the theory and practical application of operations research, and that insight is leveraged within the MBA program. Although the school does not offer an MBA in Operations, students can choose to pursue concentrations in either “Analytics & Information Management,” or “Supply Chain Management,” both of which address operations topics like information technology, analytics, and related areas.

The school offers an MBA concentration in Operations & Analytics, where students can delve into modules like “Data Management and Business Intelligence,” “Operations Strategy,” and “Strategy and Operations Consulting.” This concentration is now STEM-designated, which gives international students the option of extending their post-study work visa to 36 months in total. 

The school’s quant-heavy MBA specialization in “Analytics and Operations” addresses topics in global operations, marketing analytics, and AI for organizational design, among other topics. The NUS Business School, in cooperation with the Department of Industrial Systems and other partners, operates the Institute of Operations Research and Analytics, which develops research, puts on events, and helps connect students with firms and hiring opportunities. Singapore, with its many industries and global firms, is a great place to study and even work in the operations field. 

Students in the Schulich MBA program can explore operations topics through a specialization in “Operations Management & Information Systems.” According to the school, students who pursue this specialization have found careers as Procurement Analysts, Project Managers, Business Solutions Planners, and Business Strategy Managers, among other positions. Cutting-edge research, relevant to operations management, is done through the school’s Centre for Sustainable Supply Chains. 

The Canadian school hosts the ‘Centre for Excellence in Operations,’ which produces a range of multidisciplinary research and puts on events. Alberta MBA students can pursue the innovative ‘Operations & Business Analytics Career Track.’ Operations-oriented students have landed jobs in companies like Telus and PCL Construction, among others.

The school hosts the uniquely multidisciplinary Center for Behavioral Operations Management, which examines how humans interact with supply chains. Typically, about 10-15 percent of MBA grads go into the operations or logistics fields. Rotterdam is a hub for global operations and logistics.