Rachna Shah is a Professor of Operations and Supply Chain Management at the Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota. Her research lies at the critical intersection of operations management, regulation, and societal outcomes, with a particular emphasis on high-stakes sectors, including healthcare, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and environmentally and socially consequential operations. Professor Shah is globally recognized for her thought leadership in lean operations. Her recent work investigates a key paradox: why operationally excellent firms experience failure? In this research, she examines how regulatory regimes, operational transparency, and organizational incentives shape firm actions, pursuit of innovation, and operational and safety outcomes. In her newest research stream that she calls, "AI-assisted Human-executed work," she is examining performance tradeoffs in emerging digital contexts.

At the Carlson School, she has designed and taught courses across Undergraduate, MBA/MS, and PhD programs. She is actively engaged in global executive education and has designed and taught the core supply chain and operations course in the Vienna Executive MBA (VEMBA), the Carlson Executive MBA (CEMBA), and Carlson-Tsinghua Global Doctorate in Business Administration (DBA) programs. Beyond her research and teaching, Professor Shah provides extensive editorial service to the operations management community. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Lean Enterprise Institute and the Shingo Institute.

CSOM URL: https://carlsonschool.umn.edu/faculty/rachna-shah