Meet the New McDonough Faculty: Babak Zafari
We are pleased to welcome new faculty members to the Georgetown McDonough community this fall.
In our Meet the New McDonough Faculty Series, learn more about the interests, specialties, experiences, and personalities behind the talented academics inside the Rafik B. Hariri Building on Georgetown’s campus.
We spoke with Babak Zafari, associate professor of the practice in operations and information management (OPIM), about what he hopes to accomplish at Georgetown through his engagement with students, research, classroom teachings, and beyond.
What are you most looking forward to when it comes to working at Georgetown McDonough?
I am excited to join a school with well-established and forward-looking programs, a strong group of faculty with whom I will collaborate and learn from, and talented students, which will make this whole experience more rewarding.
What institution or previous line of work are you coming from?
I’m joining McDonough from Babson College, where I was an assistant professor of statistics and analytics. Prior to that, I was a visiting professor of decision sciences at The George Washington University School of Business.
What is your area(s) of expertise and which subject(s) are you most passionate about?
Machine learning, analytics, natural language processing models, anomaly detection, and statistical modeling.
What is your favorite quote and why?
“Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony,” by Mahatma Gandhi.
What is your favorite podcast or book and why?
My favorite book is Thinking, Fast and Slow. I enjoy reading about behavioral decision sciences and how we make decisions in the face of uncertainty, and this book has it all.
How would you describe yourself in a few words?
I would describe myself as reliable, friendly, considerate, witty, and patient.
What do you hope to ultimately bring to the McDonough community?
I hope I can contribute to the analytics and data science areas through my years of experience in teaching, research, and curriculum development.