Eric Olsen

Dr. Eric O. Olsen is currently Assistant Professor of Industrial Technology at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo, CA where he teaches classes in lean manufacturing; quality assurance, production planning and control, and six-sigma at the undergraduate and graduate levels. His research focus is in lean company performance and performance measurement. He enjoys acting as an advisor to students doing senior and graduate thesis work in a range of industries from electronic manufacturing to making wine.

Dr. Olsen's teaching, research, and consulting is informed by over 20 years of industry engineering and management experience at Caterpillar, Litton, and Hewlett Packard. While at HP, he developed his love of learning and teaching as the Worldwide Education Manager of HP's Component and Semiconductor Group. His career has allowed him to work on improvement projects with a wide range of global manufacturing operations, including those in North America, Southeast Asia, and the United Kingdom.

Dr. Olsen writes for VentureOutsource.com on matters of lean, six sigma, and related operational supply chain issues. Dr. Olsen's academic credentials include a BS in Engineering from the University of Maine, an MBA from Virginia Tech, and a PhD in Operations Management from Ohio State. He fills his non-professional time with family home remodeling projects; hiking the central coast of California, and building community networks with friends over a glass of wine on Friday nights. Website: www.cob.calpoly.edu