Sharda honored by global association as AIS Fellow
Monday, January 13, 2020
Oklahoma State University professor Dr. Ramesh Sharda was named a 2019 Fellow of the Association for Information Systems (AIS) at its International Conference in Information Systems in Munich, Germany, in December. He was one of only two Americans honored by the international organization representing information systems research, education and practice.
“The AIS Fellow Award recognizes individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the information systems discipline in terms of research, teaching and service,” according to AIS. “AIS Fellows serve as role models and inspirations to colleagues and students within the information systems discipline.”
Vice dean for graduate programs and research in the Spears School of Business and Regents Professor of Management Science and Information Systems, Sharda was also named a Fellow in 2018 of the international society for practitioners of operations research, management science and analytics known as INFORMS. He is only the third person to be recognized as a Fellow by both organizations.
“This is a historic honor for Dr. Sharda,” said Dr. Rick Wilson, head of the Spears Business Department of Management Science and Information Systems. “It is well deserved given Ramesh’s many significant contributions to the Information Systems field. And being named a Fellow by both organizations is akin to being inducted into the baseball and basketball hall of fames and speaks to his amazing interdisciplinary contributions.”
Sharda joined OSU as an assistant professor in 1980 following completion of his Ph.D. at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His tenure at OSU’s business school includes a robust research career in data science, analytics and decision making leading to more than 250 published articles resulting in more than 1,000 citations. He has also co-authored well-known textbooks in the field, one now in its 11th edition.
Sharda’s other honors include receiving the OSU Regents Distinguished Research Award twice (2003, 2016) and being inducted into the Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame in 2016.
“Dr. Sharda is an internationally recognized and respected scholar who has amassed an impressive list of accomplishments,” said Spears Business Dean Dr. Ken Eastman. “Being named an AIS Fellow is certainly a well-earned honor. This fete is even more impressive given he was also named a Fellow by INFORMS not long ago. He truly is a legendary figure in his field, and we are honored to have him as one of our faculty.”
Sharda says his greatest reward has been watching the accomplishments of students he has mentored, including more than a dozen Ph.D. candidates and many more master’s students who have enjoyed careers in academia, business and government.
“I think the biggest thing personally is that I’ve always been able to vicariously enjoy the successes that the students are having because when they succeed and recognize you or remember you then you have the satisfaction that your life has been meaningful because you made a difference in somebody’s life,” Sharda said.
Media contact: Jeff Joiner | Communications Coordinator | 405.744.2700 | jeff.joiner@okstate.edu