Business Case Studies & Business Publications

Queueing Fundamentals

Feldman, Pnina, Th...

Technical Note

Queueing Fundamentals

Feldman, Pnina; Thomas, Doug

OM-1802 | Published February 19, 2024 | 6 pages Technical Note

Collection: Darden School of Business

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This note examines queuing fundamentals and introduces a basic model, variability in systems (arrivals and service processes), and approaches to measure and reduce it. The material also includes practical implications for managing congested systems and helping anticipate and overcome challenges of waiting for service. For MBA students, it can be placed in an operations module on managing variability or queueing. Students can also look for qualitative solutions to address excessive waiting times and hypothesize how their recommendations might affect both actual and the perceived waiting time. For executives, it can serve as a discussion vehicle for operations and customer service.

- Explore rules and relationships about waiting line systems - Explain assumptions of a basic queuing model - Understand process variability and improving operational performance - Analyze the relationships between demand, average number of people waiting, and cycle and flow times