Associate Professor Dimitrios Andritsos of HEC Paris

Dimitrios Andritsos

Associate Professor of Information Systems and Operations Management

How long at HEC Paris: Since 2011

Education: Engineering undergrad in Greece (National Technical University of Athens); M.Sc. Industrial Engineering (Purdue University), and M.Eng. Supply Chain Management (MIT) iv) Ph.D. Operations Management (UCLA Anderson)

List of EMBA courses you currently teach: Operations Management (Core course); Healthcare Management and Policy (Specialization), and Design and Delivery of Exceptional Services (Specialization)

I knew I wanted to be a business school professor when….: I wish I could claim that this happened as part of a well-crafted master plan, but it didn’t! It was something that happened over time, as a result of my love for the academic environment. But once it happened, I never looked back.

What are you currently researching and what is the most significant discovery you’ve made from it? I am currently pursuing two lines of research. One is focused on the operations of healthcare delivery and the second on the pharmaceutical supply chain. As an example, in our latest research, we found that in settings where product differentiation is minimal (e.g, generics) innovative design of pharmaceutical production processes can be a critical driver of competitive differentiation.

If I weren’t a business school professor… I don’t have a convincing answer to this! Being a business-school professor allows to pursue several interests at the same time (research, teaching, close collaboration with industry leaders and policy makers) and (sometimes) across multiple industries and it is difficult to imagine what would dominate if I was to take a more targeted trajectory.

What do you think makes you stand out as a professor? This is for the students to answer!

One word that describes my first time teaching: Excited (but VERY reserved)

Professor I most admire and why: This is an easy one. My PhD advisor from UCLA Anderson, Prof. Chris Tang. His hard work, dedication, ability to reinvent himself but also his humbleness, have provided a great role model for several of his students and collaborators including myself.

What do you enjoy most about teaching business students? The energy, the positive/can-do attitude, the diversity of experiences and life paths and above all the collective knowledge of the business classroom. Our job then becomes to bring this out and build on it.

What is most challenging? The need to remain at the cutting edge and well-informed. Even when we teach concepts that have been well studied and understood (sometimes) for decades, it is always critical to present them in light of the most recent developments that characterize the societies we live in.

In one word, describe your favorite type of student: One that makes meaningful, to-the-point comments that advance the conversation.

OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM

What are your hobbies? Dance! Since my undergrad years I joined a Greek folk dance group and we had the chance to travel and perform at some of the most beautiful theaters in Greece. After moving to the US, where it was harder to have easy access to high-quality Greek dancing, I slowly transitioned to salsa dancing – and discovered a completely different world of social dancing.

How will you spend your summer? Doing research, teaching and taking some time off In Greece.

Favorite place(s) to vacation: Greece (of course)

Favorite book(s): The Stranger by Albert Camus

What is currently your favorite movie and/or show and what is it about the film or program that you enjoy so much? Over the years I’ve had to watch a lot of French TV in order to improve my French. If I had to pick only one show I would go with “Le Bureau des Légendes” (marketed as “the Bureau” in English), a spy thriller which, especially in its first seasons, managed to balance action, politics, personal relations and much more in superb ways. “Succession” would be an easy favorite from US TV.

What is your favorite type of music or artist(s) and why? My music tastes can vary from different salsa genres to the (American) blues to Rembetika (the Greek blues), to various types of traditional Greek music – all this mostly driven by my love for dance.

REFLECTIONS

If I had my way, the business school of the future would have much more of this… We tend to work a lot within our respective fields’ silos. Yet, key problems that we face require multiple types of expertise. I see this a lot in my study of healthcare systems. Thus, I am convinced that what would be needed is a shift towards a more multi-disciplinary approach that would expose students to key societal and organizational problems and would provide students with the tools, frameworks and right pointers that are needed to confront them.

In my opinion, companies, and organizations today need to do a better job at…  enabling people from different backgrounds to work and thrive together even in environments that can be challenging and stressful. Healthcare organizations are a relevant example.

I’m grateful for… the opportunity to work with and teach students coming (literally) from all over the world, from so many different backgrounds and with so many different experiences. It is truly humbling and allows one to put their own life in perspective.