Dr Peter Howley

Qualifications

• PhD, University of Newcastle, 2005
• Bachelor of Mathematics (Honours), University of Newcastle, 1995
• Bachelor of Mathematics, University of Newcastle, 1994

Research

Research keywords

• Bayesian hierarchical models
• Clinical indicators
• Performance indicators
• Statistical modelling

Research expertise

My primary research focuses on Bayesian hierarchical modeling and its application to foster quality improvement activity in health care, through the creation of improved methods for analysis and reporting of clinical indicator data. This has involved work with the Australian Council on Health Care Standards and Health Services Research Group. This area relates well with my research into 'performance measures', which extends beyond the health care field. My broader interests (incl. publications and consulting) lie with research and applications of Statistics in the fields of health, finance and management and with quality improvement activity in health, industry, business and education.

Fields of Research

Centres and Groups

Centre

• PRC - Centre for Complex and Dynamic Systems and Control

Memberships

Body relevant to professional practice.

• Editor - Statistical Society of Autralia Inc.
• Editor - Statistical Society of Autralia Inc.

Appointments

Awards

Recognition.

Research Award.

Invitations

Administrative

Administrative expertise

Coordination of courses (on-campus and web-based). Acting Head of Discipline. Membership of School Boards. Coordinator and chair of conference sessions. Associate Editor of International Journal. Section Chair in Statistical Society of Australia Inc. Statistics' Honours and Research Higher Degree Programme Coordinator.

Teaching

Teaching keywords

• Business Statistics
• Quality Improvement
• Research Methods
• Statistical Education
• Statistics
• Total Quality Management

Teaching expertise

I have taught all levels of undergraduate Statistics courses and courses for Master of Statistics and MBA programs, both on-campus and online. My expertise lies with teaching statistical courses (including introductory courses, regression, experimental and questionnaire design, quality improvement courses), particularly to non-statistically minded people. My pet areas are Business Statistics, Business Research Methods and Total Quality Management. I've designed and presented two-day seminars on Continuous Improvement to organisations as well as creating and coordinating the inaugural delivery of the Statistic's Disciplines first online (web-based) course, Total Quality Management.

Teaching interests

• Total Quality Management (TQM), including Statistical Process Control, Experimental Design and Continuous Improvement. The TQM course is a practical Statistics course taught to both undergraduate and Master's level students (many with Business, including managerial, experience). It involves teaching management philosophy and applications of statistical tools as well as simple techniques that everyone in organisations (not only technically-minded people) can utilise to collect and create information in order to facilitate continuous improvement in systems, a customer focus, a scientific approach to data-based decision-making and problem solving in organisations. It also teaches basic survey-design, questionnaire-design and experimental-design techniques which are fundamental to the TQM environment. TQM was pioneered by the statistician W.E. Deming who professed that variation is a key culprit in poor quality and that focussing on the underlying processes is fundamental to organisational or system improvement. Unfortunately, too often TQM is attempted to be taught by non statistically-trained people which results in the salient aspects of TQM being overlooked and organisations failing to understand nor reap the rewards of this management technique. See quotes from students who have undertaken the course.
• Introductory Statistics. Coauthored textbook "Business Statistics in Australia: Methods & Applications" Howley and Gerlach (2006). The front cover, back cover, introduction and contents, chapter one and first few pages of chapters two, three, eight, ten, sixteen and seventeen are provided for online perusal. Lecturers can contact me for an inspection copy (please provide institutional web site confirming your teaching status).

Programs

• Bachelor of Mathematics
• Bachelor of Science (Mathematics co-major)