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 4,500+ members (2026). It has its headquarters in Birmingham, England.
History The OR Society was created in April 1948 as the Operational Research Club, becoming the OR Society in 1953. It is the world's oldest-established learned society catering to the OR profession and one of the largest in the world,As of November 2013, the History page of IFORS lists INFORMS as its largest member society, with approximately 10,000 members, and ORS and the Operations Research Society of Japan second with about 3000 members each. According to , the ORS membership has approximately 4000: . with members in 53 countries. A full history of the OR Society can be found on the OR Society website.OR Society_History
Founding members of the OR society included: Charles F. Goodeve, Patrick Blackett, and Charles Tizard.
Governance The OR Society is registered charity number 313713Charity Commission of the UK, accessed 2013-11-02. and also a company limited by guarantee (Company number 00663819). Its charitable objectives are the advancement of knowledge and interest in OR and the advancement of education in OR.
The management of the society is overseen by a General Council. Its affairs are managed by a board, consisting of five officers elected by the membership and up to six members of the General Council.
The current president is Gilbert Owusu. Previous presidents have included Sir Owen Wansbrough-Jones, Maurice Kendall, John Giffard, 3rd Earl of Halsbury, George Alfred Barnard, and K. D. Tocher.
Publications The society publishes the Journal of the Operational Research Society, Knowledge Management Research and Practice, Journal of Simulation, European Journal of Information Systems, O.R. Insight, Health Systems, Journal of Business Analytics and Inside O.R. (a monthly news magazine). The society's publisher is Taylor & Francis.
Subgroups The OR society has two sorts of subgroups: Regional Societies and Special Interest Groups.
The OR Society has a number of regional societies which enable members to promote O.R. and build contacts with other operational researchers working in their (or related) area(s) and to expand their knowledge in O.R.
Interaction with other bodies The OR Society works with a number of other bodies, to achieve common aims, including (amongst others): International Federation of Operational Research Societies, an umbrella organisation for 45 plus O.R. societies from different countries across the world. Association of European Operational Research Societies, (a regional grouping within the International Federation of Operational Research Societies (IFORS)). The Council for Mathematical Sciences. This council provides advice to government, education funding committees (such as ESPRC) on mathematical matters including education and policy, and brings together mathematicians with stakeholders in mathematics to explore issues and solutions. The council includes The O.R. Society, the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications, The Royal Statistical Society, The London Mathematical Society and the Edinburgh Mathematical Society.
Awards To promote and disseminate O.R. knowledge and working practices the OR Society gives awards (medals, prizes and grants). These awards include (but are not limited to): The Beale Medal - for sustained contribution to O.R. The President’s Medal – for the best account of O.R. practice given at the Society’s annual conference The PhD Prize - most distinguished body of research leading to the award of a doctorate in the field of O.R. Scholarships to enable distinguished contributors to present their work at the IFORS Triennial Conference Donald Hicks Scholarships for young researchers and practitioners The May Hicks awards for student projects The Simpson Award for young researchers and practitioners The Lyn Thomas Impact Medal - awarded to the academic or research which best demonstrates novelty and real-world impact, backed up by evidence
See also List of mathematical societies Council for the Mathematical Sciences
References
External links
Catalogue of the ORS archives, held at the Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick