Research Manager - Mathematical Programming and Location Science

The research manager for Mathematical ProgrammingandLocation Sciencewill establish a new line of research, as well as support and further extend the research in NUMA (Numerical Analysis and Applied Mathematics) and in particular in CODeS at an international level in the domain of operations research. More specifically this includes the following responsibilities:

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  You follow and assess relevant internal and external developments within the domain of operations research; your focus is on research topics directly coupled to mathematical programming and location science.
• You recruit, coach and evaluate researchers, you define the work planning and you contribute to the creation of an inspiring environment for conducting creative, innovative research.
• You coordinate and align research programs and activities.
• By attending and organizing conferences and workshops, you expand CODeS’ national and international network in research and industry.
• You publish research results, conduct lectures,and participate in relevant working groups on national and international levels.
• You initiate, attain and coordinate research project ideas. This includes knowledge acquisition of relevant national and international research programs, participation in project idea initiatives and defining project plans.
• You set up projects in cooperation with partners from KU Leuven as well as with external (national and/or international) partners.
• You manage research projects and activities by tracking the project progress, by attending and organizing project meetings and by participating in and organizing project collaboration initiatives.
• You contribute to the inception and development of proof-of-concepts to demonstrate and evaluate research results.
• You contribute to the development of the research strategy within the CODeS research group, and you translate the policy plan into operational goals.
• You compare internal research results with those of other research centers.

• Knowledge and experience in the following research domains:

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  Mathematical programming theory and methods:linear, integer, nonlinear, and stochastic programming; exact methods including branch-and-cut, Benders decomposition); approximation algorithms and mathematical programming-based heuristics (matheuristics).
• Broad industrial and societal problem domains, including (facility) location, vehicle routing and scheduling, especially in humanitarian, emergency, and environmental logistics. Expertise in formalizing, modeling, and solving real-world problems from these domains
• Development of mathematical programming-based methods and other optimization algorithms. Implementation of such algorithms in one or more modern programming languages combined with state-of-the art optimization solvers.

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  PhD in Operations Research or a relevant domain;
• Experience as a post-doctoral researcher in executing research and guiding PhD students;
• An established international network in the operations research domain;
• Experience in the execution of national and international research projects;
• Experience in the definition of national and international research proposals;
• A track record of academic peer-reviewed publications which have demonstrable impact;
• Affinity with the relevant national and international research community;
• Experience in research projects in collaboration with industry;
• The ability to work both independently and as part of a research team;
• Fluent in English, both written and oral.