Ruth Kaufman

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

is a British specialist in

operations research Operations research () (U.S. Air Force Specialty Code: Operations Analysis), often shortened to the initialism OR, is a branch of applied mathematics that deals with the development and application of analytical methods to improve management and ...

(OR). she is a visiting senior fellow at the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

, where her role is to create links between academics and OR practitioners, and also practises as a consultant.

Education

Kaufman has a B.A. (1974) in mathematics and social sciences from the

University of Sussex The University of Sussex is a public university, public research university, research university located in Falmer, East Sussex, England. It lies mostly within the city boundaries of Brighton and Hove. Its large campus site is surrounded by the ...

Career

She has worked in OR in the fields of transport and electricity, and as a principal OR analyst at the

Department of Health A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their o ...

. Staying in government posts, she led the OR unit of the

Export Credits Guarantee Department The Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD), branded as UK Export Finance (UKEF), is the export credit agency and a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. In 1920, UKEF had a maximum total exposure of just £26 mi ...

(ECGD) and became the chair of the Government Operational Research Service and chair of the Heads of OR Forum. She was head of strategy, change and OR at the ECGD before retiring from that post in 2008. She was the president of the

Operational Research Society The Operational Research Society (ORS), also known as The OR Society, is an international learned society in the field of operational research (OR), with more than 3,100 members (2021). It has its headquarters in Birmingham, England. History The ...

1 January 2016 - 31 December 2017. She was a co-founder of the society's Pro Bono OR scheme, launched in 2013.

Other activities

Outside work she was chair for five years to 2014 of Woman's Trust, a charity supporting women in London who face domestic violence.

Recognition

In 2011 she was made a Companion of OR, an award "for sustained support and encouragement for the development of Operational Research". In the 2016 New Year Honours she was appointed

"for services to Operational Research".

References

Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Alumni of the University of Sussex British operations researchers British women mathematicians Officers of the Order of the British Empire {{UK-mathematician-stub