Jeff Alden: I basically pursued areas that I liked, excelled in, and seemed good for a future career. Since I really enjoy problem solving, math modeling, and helping people make better decisions, I naturally migrated to Operations Research. So I was sure what I wanted to do, but not sure where to work. Well, I attended a presentation about the research opportunities at GM R &D given by Larry Burns (now a VP at GM). It seemed like an ideal place to work, so I gave him my resume and soon accepted a research position at GM R&D. For the next decade, I researched production systems looking at throughput, maintenance, leveling, stability, agility, and cost-drivers. I?m now on a two-year rotation in GM Engineering managing development of decision-support tools and methods for engineering in a variety of areas that include test-scheduling, warranty cost drivers, and work load planning.