Applications of empirical science in manufacturing and service operations

T his paper sets the stage for the special issue on the application of empirical science in operations management (OM). It highlights the contributions that empirical science can make to operations management research and practice. In particular, the role of theory building and testing as a motivation for OM empirical research is emphasized. The paper provides a brief history of the empirical tradition in OM and the scholars who were the early pioneers. The paper also gives a brief overview of the most widely used approaches to empirical research and concludes with a summary of the papers that are included in this volume.