Dilara Sonmez Lesniak

Data Science · Causal Inference · Optimization

I'm an operations researcher and data scientist completing my Ph.D. in Management Science and Operations Management at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. My research sits where large-scale optimization meets causal inference. My dissertation reimagines how primary care is delivered: it pairs a study on the Medicare savings that come from continuous, well-timed care with an optimization model that redesigns physician panels and capacity under value-based contracts, and a structural model that recovers the true cost of care from how patients actually seek it. Working with terabyte-scale Medicare claims data, I've partnered with health systems like UChicago Medicine and Geisinger to take these models from theory into practice. I'm now looking for data science and operations management roles where I can turn complex, high-stakes data into decisions that improve real operational and financial outcomes.