This portal is sponsored by the Supply Chain Resource Consortium at North Carolina State University as a service to the supply chain field.
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ISM 91st Annual International Supply Management Conference and Education
Minneapolis Convention Center
May 7 to May 10, 2006
The 91st Annual ISM International Conference convenes at the Minneapolis Convention Center, May 7 to May 10, 2006. Once again, NC State University will exhibit our unique MBA Supply Chain program. Former students will be on hand to tell of their experiences and answer questions. Please stop by booth #738.
Purchasing Magazine’s 2005 annual salary survey, based on a sample of 1,839 purchasing professionals, found that MBA programs are stepping-stones to higher salaries. 73% of all of those surveyed had a college degree or certificate.
| Total Respondents | Average | Median |
| Salary | $ 78,500 | $ 69,000 |
| MBA | $105,900 | |
| Age | 46 | 47 |
| Years experience | 16 | 15 |
In 2005, NC State’s SCM/MBA starting salaries (with only 3 to 5 years experience) topped out at $90,000 with a mean of $71,000.
MBA ’03 alumna Bilu Warrier, Purchasing Manager for Corporate Operations and Support Services at American Airlines, recalled that, “We were taught so many new tools, practical applications and methods that when we are hired we are often the experts in some of these areas in our new organizations. In my job interviews, when I discussed my project experience in detail, I was seen as an experienced supply chain professional, not as a fresh MBA.”
Student / Company Projects
The Supply Chain Resource Consortium (SCRC) at NC State is the sponsor of a unique industry/university partnership that is designed to provide faculty and student interaction with industry decision makers, on-going student involvement in real industry problems and solutions to industry problems that increase the excellence of this emerging field. The projects are structured to provide two levels of learning: (1) the application of technical skills, and (2) practice in managing team dynamics.
Practicum
The Supply Chain Management Practicum is the capstone of the SCM/MBA concentration. It is a 100% project-based class, covering supply chain issues such as procurement, logistics, and planning and control. Course deliverables include a project report published for the affiliated companies and a management presentation at the SCRC member meetings.
Recent Practicum projects include the following. Click on a title to read a description of the project.
Improvement of laptop replacement supply chain
Spend channel evaluation
In-source or 3pl out-source analysis
Service supply chain performance measures
Start-to-finish sourcing of a commodity
Bulk transportation analysis
Supply Chain Relationships
The Supply Chain Relationships course covers major themes and strategies of SCM relationships including performance measurement, relationship assessment and negotiation, and managing conflict in globally integrated supply chains. The focus is on performance measurement, relationship assessment, negotiation, and conflict management in business relationships in a globally integrated supply chain.
Recent Relationships projects include the following. Click on a title to read a description of the project.
Supply disruption analysis
Staff augmentation analysis
Commodity resin strategy
Market intelligence on energy equipment
Materials cost drivers
Market analysis of chemical market
Student Comments
“The SCM/MBA program and the SCRC provided me with a complete package. The curriculum helped me focus in on a long term vision of where I wanted to end up in my career. The projects helped me develop the necessary skills. The internship provided an honest look at the industry in general and how I fit into it.” Scott Frahm '05, Bechtel
“I had an undergraduate degree in engineering and wanted to link that with a background in business. The SCM/MBA concentration was a good mix with the logical problem-solving experience I had with my engineering degree.” Derek Elin '05, Duke Energy
“I completed eight student projects with many different companies. These projects gave me an opportunity to test the knowledge I acquired from class discussions and project work.” Divya Goyal '04, American Airlines
“The most valuable aspect of the SCRC partnership for me was to have the opportunity to spend time with real hiring managers, people that were in the business – that could get YOU in the business.” Mike Johnston '05, IBM
“Few MBA programs allow you to put what you learn into practice in the real world, and it is one of the key differentiators of this program. I also have earned degrees from UNC’s Kenan Flagler School of Business and Duke, which gives me a good point of comparison.” Sara Jane Sondecker '05, Duke Energy
SCRC Partner Companies
The SCRC was established to help companies fill the void in qualified human resources. Its focus is to serve the needs of member companies by bringing applied research and knowledge creation to help them achieve supply chain excellence.
The fusion of the SCRC company participation with the academic experience of the NC State MBA program creates a unique pairing of industry professionals with SCM faculty and students. While the students are gaining real experience, the sponsoring companies are benefiting from the on-the-job interaction and guided problem-solving.
Click here for a list of current SCRC partner companies.
Company Comments
When asked what particularly stands out about the support the SCRC provides their member companies, American Airlines’ John Boettcher’s answer is, “recruitment. The SCRC goes out of their way to match students to our needs. I send in material about job openings and they get the word out, sometimes even posting it on the various professors’ doors. American Airlines is very visible, thanks to the SCRC.”
Duke Energy has established a scholarship for the NC State MBA program to attract new supply chain talent who may not know much about their company. According to Cheryl Hoffman, “We want the message to be there that we care about the people that come out of (the NC State program) because they have what it takes to work in supply chain at Duke Energy…or we wouldn’t be putting our money there.”
Beth Gutweiler adds, “When I get a resume from an NC State supply chain student, I know that he or she is going to have relevant experience through projects with companies, and it may not be with Halliburton. Just understanding how to work with a corporate culture and how to take a theory that you learned in a classroom and apply it to a real world example is tremendously valuable.”
Curriculum
| Fall I | ECG 507 | Economics for Managers |
| BUS 530 | Managing People in the High-Tech Environment | |
| BUS 550 | Statistics and Quantitative Methods | |
| ACC 580 | Survey of Accounting | |
| BUS 590 | Managerial Effectiveness I (1.5 hours) | |
| Spring I | BUS 520 | Managerial Finance |
| BUS 560 | Marketing Management and Strategy | |
| BUS 570 | Production & Operations Management | |
| BUS 590 | Managerial Effectiveness II (1.5 hours) | |
| BUS 590S | Supply Chain Relationships | |
| Summer | Supply Chain Management Internship | |
| Fall II | BUS 500 | Strategic Management |
| BUS 572 | Planning and Control Systems | |
| BUS 590T | Supply Chain Logistics | |
| IT Elective | ||
| Spring II | BUS 590U | Supply Chain Practicum |
| SCM Elective 1 | ||
| SCM Elective 2 | ||
| Global Elective | ||
The four required SCM courses consist of a combination of classroom instruction and student/company projects:
Supply Chain Relationships - major themes and strategies of SCM relationships including performance measurement, relationship assessment and negotiation, and managing conflict in globally integrated supply chains.
Supply Chain Logistics - the basis behind effective logistics decision-making and how it relates to the broader issues in managing the entire supply chain and fulfilling the strategic objectives of the firm.
Supply Chain Information Flows - emphasizes the critical role and function of information in the performance of extended supply chains through examples, case studies and exercises.
Supply Chain Management Practicum - the capstone of the SCM MBA concentration. Features a team-based project designed to solve a real issue for an SCRC partner company and to recommend a solution for implementation.
SCM Electives - Project Management, Cost Management, Managing Global Decision Risks, Independent Study.
Student Demographics
Undergraduate field of study
36% engineering
33% business
13% natural science
13% humanities & social science
5% computer science
Undergraduate institutions
21% NC State
48% other US
31% international including China, India, Taiwan, Turkey and Vietnam
Contact
Steve Edwards, Co-Director SCRC steven_edwards@ncsu.edu
Jennifer Arthur, MBA Office jennifer_arthur@ncsu.edu