The benefits, however, don’t stop with research. Corporate Sponsors also have a unique opportunity to impact student supply chain curriculum by providing feedback on the preparation that they see in the students they hire for internships and full-time positions.
“Industry input helps keep us on the cutting edge of providing world class supply chain education,” said Robert Novack, associate professor of business logistics. “Because we have such a close connection with many of the most active hiring firms of our students, we’re really able to keep our ear to the ground as to what our students do well and what curricular adjustments may be required in the future, based on changes in the industry.”
Attendees of the anniversary celebration dinner, held the evening before the daylong Corporate Sponsor meeting, had the unique opportunity to hear from the center’s founder, John Coyle; current executive director Grenoble; and the incoming executive director, Steve Tracey, who will take the helm later this summer as Grenoble retires.
“So much has changed in the industry since the beginning of the center 25 years ago,” said Grenoble. “It’s been a privilege to work with the center from the beginning, first under John Coyle [professor emeritus of business administration and director of corporate sponsors for CSCR] and later as executive director.”
Tracey added, “It’s truly an honor to follow in the footsteps of two individuals who are so accomplished in their profession and to be a part of such a robust logistics and supply chain tradition. I’m really looking forward to joining the supply chain team at Penn State.”
About the Center for Supply Chain ResearchThe Center for Supply Chain Research is one of the nation’s leading institutions dedicated to research and education in the supply chain field. The center’s mission is to be a leading source of supply chain knowledge creation and dissemination. Working in conjunction with faculty members from various academic areas, the center conducts research in areas such as distribution, warehousing, transportation, procurement and supply, customer service, systems modeling and design, logistics information systems, global logistics, and more. Learn more at www.smeal.psu.edu/cscr/.