Ph.D.–Georgia Institute of TechnologyM.B.A.–Duke UniversityB.S.–University of Notre Dame
Dr. Richard M. Franza is Department Chair of the Department of Management and Entrepreneurship of Kennesaw State University’s Coles College Business. The Department has 25 full-time and over 15 part-time faculty members and delivers courses in areas such as Strategic Management, Operations and Supply Chain Management, Human Resource Management, Entrepreneurship, Organizational Behavior, Family Business, International Business, Leadership, and Managerial Ethics. Dr. Franza is also an Associate Professor of Management with primary areas of expertise in Operations Management (OM), Management of Technology (MOT), and Project Management. His main research areas are the strategic investment in production facilities, the intersection of operations and marketing, new product development, and technology transfer. He also teaches, conducts research, and provides consultation in the areas of business process improvement, supply chain management, and technology strategy. He has taught at the Air Force Institute of Technology and Bentley College prior to his arrival at Kennesaw State.
Dr. Franza is a retired United States Air Force officer who managed research and development programs for the Strategic Defense Initiative or “Star Wars” program. Dr. Franza earned a B.S. in Applied Mathematics from the University of Notre Dame, an M.B.A. from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, and a Ph.D. in Operations Management from the Georgia Institute of Technology. He has published articles in the European Journal of Operational Research, Research-Technology Management, Decision Sciences Institute Journal of Innovative Education, International Journal of Flexible Manufacturing Systems, National Contract Management Journal, and Journal of Technology Transfer. He has had numerous refereed proceedings and presentations in many national and international forums of OM and MOT. He is also the author of book chapters in a leading OM textbook and a prominent research book directed at the study of the intersections between operations, engineering, and marketing.
Dr. Franza resides in Kennesaw, Georgia with his wife, Lorie, and their two daughters, Audie (9) and A.J. (7). Dr. Franza enjoys golf and reading.