About Us

The College of Business at Clayton State University (CSU) recognized the need for an atmosphere which cultivates an exchange of knowledge between students, business leaders, and organizations that are managing the flow of products/services between their suppliers’ supplier and customers’ customer; hence, the Center for Supply Chain Management (SCM) was established in 2011 to foster this comprehensive environment.

The Center for Supply Chain Management serves as a bridge to connect students, faculty, staff, and the business community.

Vision

To be increasingly recognized throughout the Metropolitan and Southeast Atlanta Regions for the excellence of supply chain management programs, the quality and caliber of services, the willingness to meet needs of the business community, and the exposure of graduates to the supply chain profession.

Mission

To provide individuals and organizations with knowledge and skills to drive superior business results through the understanding and application of supply chain management concepts, processes and tools.

Leadership & Faculty

Dr. Carin A. Lightner-Laws has served as the director of the Center for Supply Chain Management since January 2024. She is currently an Associate Professor of Management and Supply Chain Management in the College of Business at Clayton State University (CSU). Since 2019, Dr. Lightner-Laws has been the primary advisor for the Student Supply Chain Roundtable and has been the recipient of numerous University awards -including Advisor of the Year (2021, 2022, 2023), Career Services Faculty Champion (2024), and the CSU Heritage Bank University Professorship.

She holds a Ph. D. in Operations Research-Industrial Engineering from North Carolina State University, an M.O.R. in Operations Research-Mathematics from North Carolina State University and a B.S. in Mathematics from North Carolina Central University. Dr. Lightner-Laws has served as a consultant for various transportation/logistics companies and has recently worked with Adidas- Terrex to analyze their customer segmentation and participation in outdoor adventure sports. Her current research and teaching interests are in the area of operations management, supply chain management, data analytics, logistics/transportation optimization, and hybrid flexible teaching/learning. . Dr. Lightner-Laws has published her research in numerous journals including Soft Computing and the International Journal of Intelligent Computing and Cybernetics.

Craig A. Hill, PhD, is the Charles S. Conklin Endowed Chair and a professor of Supply Chain Management in the College of Business at Clayton State University. His research interests are in the area of supply chain management, in particular production planning, contract manufacturing, supply chain collaboration, and as well as innovations in education. He has published in such journals as the Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative Education, the Journal of Operations Management, IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, and the European Journal of Operations Management. He has over 10 years of industry management and consulting experience in the area of production management, productivity improvement, quality control, and production planning.

Dr. Keith E. Miller is the Associate Dean and a Professor of Management in the College of Business at Clayton State University. Prior to Associate Dean he served as Accreditation Director and Chair for the Department of Management. His research interests include process improvement methods, project management, change management, and online learning quality. He holds the Quality Matters Online Teaching Certificate, Peer Reviewer and Master Reviewer certifications, and several workshop facilitator roles. He has published in business journals including Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative Education and International Journal of Production Economics; he has previously published as a Chemical Engineer, way back in another life.

Dr. Miller has more than 25 years of industry experience as a military officer, management consultant, corporate master trainer, Six Sigma practitioner, and now higher education faculty member and administrator, and has led or coached several hundred process improvement projects to completion along the way. He is a certified Project Management Professional, and a certified Six Sigma Black Belt and Master Black Belt.

Dr. Kamran Moghaddam is a Professor of Supply Chain Management in the College of Business at Clayton State University. He received his BS in Applied Mathematics from the University of Tehran, MS in Industrial Engineering from Amirkabir University of Technology and his PhD in Industrial Engineering from the University of Louisville. Over the past 20 years, Dr. Moghaddam has been active in the field of industrial engineering and operations management in academic and industry environments. He has conducted or been involved in variety of projects such as multi-reservoir systems operations management, transportation and logistics systems design and improvement, optimal maintenance scheduling in manufacturing systems, development of a decision support system for healthcare and public health protection, and reverse logistics systems design and evaluation. Dr. Moghaddam is a licensed Professional Engineer (PE) and a Certified Quality Engineer (CQE) by American Society for Quality.

Advisory Board

The Center for Supply Chain Management is supported by an Advisory Board which includes diverse groups of Industry Executives and CSU faculty/staff. They work together to establish the Center as the focal point for outreach to the supply chain/ logistics industry and community.

Advisory Board members have unique opportunities to:

• Utilize our faculty expertise and consulting services.
• Create brand exposure by speaking with classes and having one-on-one recruiting events.
• Share ideas regarding emerging trends and ideas that will impact our SCM curriculum.
• Have an impact on the lives of students, who will ultimately improve the talent in the SCM and logistics industry.
• Sponsor case competitions and get a closer look at our elite students.
• Be highlighted as an Advisory Board Member on our website and social media outlets.
• Network with industry leaders.
• Participate in an annual symposium to discuss the state of logistics/supply chain management with industry executives, CSU faculty/staff, administrators, alumni, and Supply Chain Scholars.

 If you are interested in becoming an Advisory Board member, please email Dr. Carin Lightner-Laws and fill out this inquiry form. 

Student Supply Chain Roundtable

The Supply Chain Roundtable (SCRT), a student-led organization sponsored by APICS, works closely with the Center for SCM to provide experiential learning opportunities for students in the fields of SCM and logistics management. They host monthly meetings, featuring a supply chain industry professional, where students are exposed to new/emerging supply chain trends and internship/career opportunities.

SCRT 2024-2025 Leadership Team

If you are interested in joining the SCRT, please email the Supply Chain Roundtable.