In virtually every business environment executives might face complex problems that cannot be solved with common management tools and employees’ experience alone. Complex problems are affected by manifold aspects which makes it advisable to apply rich combinatorics when generating potential solutions. In such situations, simulated annealing, a probabilistic technique derived from solid-state physics, is the method of choice. In a real-world example we show how simulated annealing has been applied to optimize resource
allocation of an alternative postal operator. Furthermore, we want to present and discuss other potential fields of application in the business environment.

Mr. Maderner holds a PhD in theoretical physics and a diploma in Jazz drumming. After his academic career he joined the big names in consulting like Roland Berger and A.T. Kearney. Currently Mr. Maderner is Senior Partner of GCI Management Consulting, specializing on Supply Chain and Production Management. Besides his consulting experience, Mr. Maderner has also
worked for a few years as a line manager in the logistics industry.

https://www.wu.ac.at/en/scm/events/speaker-series/summer-semester-2019