ISM student presents at ISM/APICS meeting

Matthew Olson, integrated supply management major and senior in the Lee Honors College, presented “A Salute to Our Veterans: What the Military and Business Taught Each Other,” at a joint professional development meeting of the Institute of Supply Management and The Association for Operations Management (APICS) organizations in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Olson shared his experiences in military history and logistics, along with information from his Honor's College theses, "Army Supply Chain Management: Trends and Parallels With Industry." He presented in conjunction with Ken Jones, Ivy Tech Community College – Central Indiana, CPSM, C.P.M., and member of the Integrated Supply Management program’s executive council. The audience included business professionals, students and faculty of nearby universities, members of the Marine Corps and even a WMU alumnus.

Olson highlighted his recent experiences with the U.S. Army Tank Automotive Command (TACOM) Life Cycle Management Command (LCMC), and how the Army supply chain is rapidly responding to changes in the military environment. As part of the presentation, he drew parallels to business in the areas of product development, procurement and logistics.

“Matt has had unique learning experiences during his two internships with the US Army TACOM LCMC during two summer internships,” says Dr. Bret Wagner, associate professor of management and director of the integrated supply management program.

“Combined with his Honor's College research project, this experience provided him a valuable perspective on supply management in the military. The event offered him an opportunity to share this knowledge and experience with the business community," says Wagner.

“Matthew represented WMU extremely well,” says Jones, “and his presentation received high marks from attendees. One attendee commented, ‘I thought the gentleman from WMU was excellent! He should give his presentation to other ISM/APICS chapters in the region.’ This comment summed up the general sentiment from all meeting participants.”

Olson will receive his bachelor's degree from WMU – Lee Honors College next week with a minor in Law. After graduation, he plans to continue his employment with the U.S. Army TACOM LCMC in southeastern Michigan..

ISM major is recipient of L.L. Waters Scholarship

Integrated supply management major Matthew Wright, of Muskegon, Mich., is the recipient of the 2010 L.L. Waters Scholarship. Wright was the only student nationwide to earn the $2000 award, which was presented during the annual meeting of the American Society of Transportation and Logistics (AST&L) in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., in November.

From left, Wright is pictured with David Yeley, president of AST&L and Dr. Bret Wagner, director of the ISM program. In addition to the scholarship, AST&L paid for him to attend the conference and his membership in the organization.

Wright is a member of The Association for Operations (APICS), Institute of Supply Management, Golden Key International Honor Society and he is a new member of AST&L. He is currently working on a project for Pfizer of Kalamazoo and he expects to graduate in fall 2011.

In addition to his studies, Wright spent a semester abroad at Swinburne University of Technology in Australia where his main focus was supply chain and global logistics.

“Matthew has demonstrated organizational abilities, motivation, a strong work ethic and exceptional written and communication skills and is always exceptionally well prepared for classes,” says Dr. Bret Wagner, associate professor of management and director of the integrated supply management program. “His professional objectives and goals consist of putting his skill sets to use for a corporation and advancing his knowledge and certification in logistics and supply chain management.”

The L.L. Waters Scholarship Fund
The L.L. Waters Scholarship Fund was set up in honor of L.L. Waters, University Professor Emeritus of Transportation and Business History in Indiana University’s School of Business, in recognition of his many contributions to undergraduate and graduate level education in transportation, logistics and international business during a teaching career of more than four decades.