Prof. Charles H Fine

Chrysler Leaders for Global Operations Professor of Management
Professor of Operations Management
Co-Director, International Motor Vehicle Program (IMVP)

Assistant

Ariel Brandner
abrandne@mit.edu

Areas of Interest and Expertise

Operations Management
Managerial Accounting
Manufacturing Strategy and Product Development
Core Competence
Supply Chain Management
Value Chain Roadmapping
Economics of Quality Improvement and Flexible Manufacturing
Offshoring (Outsourcing)
eBusiness
Lean Advancement Initiative (LAI)
International Motor Vehicle Program (IMVP)
Management Science (MS)
Roadmap Project: Impact of Microphotonics on Business

Research Summary

Charles Fine focuses on technology supply chains. He examines how to assess the present -- and especially the future -- profitability and strategic leverage among the various sectors in the supply chain; how to design the supply chain (i.e., determine the boundaries and identity of the organization) based on strategic and logistical assessments; and how to assemble the capability to realize the chosen organizational boundaries and manage within and across those boundaries. He is author of Clockspeed: Winning Industry Control in the Age of Temporary Advantage.

Recent Work

  • Video

    Charles Fine - RD2017

    November 22, 2017Conference Video Duration: 34:5

    Faster, Smarter, Greener: The Future of the Car and Urban Mobility

    To support societal demands for mobility fluidity, co-existing with a sustainable planet, mobility systems for a digitally powered society must be efficient and innovation friendly. Efficiency requires intelligent use of assets and aggressive use of best technology, while consumers expect freedom in personal choices as well as fairness. Future society will demand Connected, Heterogeneous, Intelligent, and Personalized (CHIP) mobility. We propose a framework where Heterogeneous transportation modes are Connected both digitally and physically, and Intelligent apps can access data on usage, congestion, prices, and weather, for example, and enable real time and Personalized travel planning throughout a city, whether a traveler wants to optimize time, cost, carbon footprint or touristic aesthetics. This framework proposes that urban planners create policies to support such a vision and that the traditional auto industry is likely to enjoy a less dominant role in architecting mobility frameworks. Governments and city administrations will be joined by traditional auto industry players as well as a range of new-generation entrepreneurs and investors, technology startups, and app developers, all of which have contributions to make in redefining future mobility.

    2017 MIT Research and Development Conference