ILITCHBUSINESS.WAYNE.EDU - Key Persons

Job Titles:

• Professor of International Business
• Professor of Marketing and International Business Director, Doctoral Programs

Biography Dr. Yaprak has been a Professor of International Business and Marketing at the Ilitch Business School for four decades. The current Historian of the Academy of International Business (the AIB), he has also served as the AIB's Executive Secretary and as a member of the Advisory Board of the AIB's Northeast Chapter. He is the Director, Doctoral Programs, and has served as the Associate Dean for Research at the Ilitch Business School.

Job Titles:

• Associate Professor of Teaching in Accounting

Job Titles:

• Emeritus Professor of Marketing, Supply Chain Management
• Professor

Biography Dr. James T. Low has an M.B.A. in Marketing and Operations Research, and Ph.D. in Marketing from the University of Michigan. Dr. Low holds the Lifetime CPIM Certification in Production and Inventory Management from APICS, which was originally the American Production and Inventory Control Society. In 2014 and 2015, APICS merged with other supply chain organizations to become ASCM, the Association for Supply Chain Management. Dr. Low is also the first Marketing Ph.D. in the world to become a Certified Jonah and Jonah's Jonah of the Avraham Y. Goldratt Institute. In the last 30 years, Dr. Low has spoken on Theory of Constraints topics at more than 175 meetings and conferences, dealing with applications in manufacturing, marketing, accounting, operations research, and organizational change. He has also authored a number of articles on applications of the Theory of Constraints, and Constraints Management, in recognized journals. Dr. Low has conducted sessions on Constraints Management at the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) in Washington, D.C.; at Federal Mogul Corporation in Southfield, Michigan; at Kelsey-Hayes Corporation in Livonia, Michigan; at Meritor (formerly Rockwell Automotive) in Troy, Michigan; several sessions at Ford Motor Company in Dearborn, Michigan, at Georgia-Pacific corporation in Atlanta, at DaimlerChrysler Corporation in Auburn Hills, Detroit, Indianapolis, Trenton, and Kenosha, and at i2 Technologies in Dallas. Dr. Low has published articles in Corporate Controller, APICS: The Performance Advantage, the Journal of Marketing Research, the Journal of Logistics Management, the Journal of the Society of Logistics Engineers, the International Journal of Physical Distribution, and the Journal of Marketing Education, as well as the proceedings of a very large number of conferences. Education B.A. in English from University of Michigan, Ann Arbor 1965. M.B.A. in Marketing and Operations Research from Ross School of Business, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 1971. Ph.D. in Marketing from Ross School of Business, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 1977. Lifetime CPIM Certification in Production and Inventory Management from APICS, the Society for Resource Management, 1983. Certified Jonah of the Avraham Y. Goldratt Institute, New Haven, Connecticut, 1989. Certified Jonah's Jonah of the Avraham Y. Goldratt Institute, New Haven, Connecticur, 1993.

Job Titles:

• Associate Professor of Global Supply Chain Management and Former Chair of the Department of Marketing

Dr. John C.Taylor is a tenured associate professor of global supply chain management and former chair of the Department of Marketing and Supply Chain Management at Wayne State University. He is also the past Editor of the Journal of Transportation Management. Taylor co-developed the logistics major at Wayne State University between 1995-2002, before returning to head up supply chain programs in 2009. Prior to returning to Wayne State he created and developed the supply chain management major at Grand Valley State University. His teaching focuses on automotive supply chain management, transportation policy and international logistics. Taylor is a past member of the National Commission on Intermodal Transportation, an 11 person Presidential Commission on national transportation policy. He is also a past member of the National Motor Carrier Advisory Committee to the U.S. DOT. He is a frequent witness on transportation policy issues before administrative, legislative and judicial forums. He is frequently quoted in national publications such as the Wall Street Journal, and in local publications such the Detroit News, Free Press and Crain's Detroit Business.

Job Titles:

• Associate Professor of Global Supply Chain Management

Biography Dr. Timothy Butler, is an Associate Professor of Global Supply Chain Management in the Mike Ilitch School of Business. He also serves as the Wayne State University Faculty Athletics Representative to the NCAA since the fall of 2019. With more than 35 years of service to Wayne State, Dr. Butler teaches operations management, supply chain management, quantitative analysis and quality improvement in both on-line and traditional (in-person) formats. Dr. Butler was a leader in the development of the Ph.D. program for the Mike Ilitch School of Business, serving as chair of the faculty Ph.D. program development committee and as the founding director of the program. He was also instrumental in the development of the General Motors / Wayne State Supply Chain Case Competition which has engaged over 800 students from around the world over the past 10+ years. Dr. Butler led the first Global Supply Chain Study Abroad trip to Europe and has led four study abroad programs to Central Europe and Italy. His research focus is operations and supply chain management, examining process operations, efficiency, and operations strategy. Dr. Butler's research has appeared in numerous top tier Operations Management and Supply Chain journals, including Journal of Operations Management and Decision Sciences. As a member of INFORMS research institute, he served on the Health Care Applications Group Council, and served as President of the Southeast Michigan Chapter. Dr. Butler has served on the editorial board of Health Care Management Science, The International Journal of Integrated Supply Management, and Journal of Logistics and Transport (Poland). In 2015, Dr. Butler was awarded the William J. Fulbright (Specialist) Scholarship, whereby he traveled and lectured in Poland and China. Dr. Butler received his Ph.D. from the University of South Carolina in 1989. He is an active volunteer in Grosse Pointe and Detroit. He and his wife, Beverly, live in Grosse Pointe Woods. Education Ph.D., University of South Carolina, 1989 MBA, University of Memphis, 1983 BBA, University of Memphis, 1978 Expertise Quality improvement, multi-criteria decision-making, automotive supply chain management, advanced statistical analysis Research and teaching interests

Job Titles:

• Associate Professor
• Associate Professor of Accounting

Biography Myles Stern is an associate professor in the Department of Accounting. Since joining Wayne State University in 1971, he has taught a wide variety of courses in accounting and management information systems. Stern served as chair of the Department of Accounting from 1980 to 1985 and from 2014 to 2017. He has been a frequent speaker at professional development programs, and he has consulted with many businesses and non-profit organizations to help them use information technology more effectively. Stern has published many articles and papers on accounting and information systems. He is a member of the Association of Information Systems and the American Accounting Association. Education Ph.D., Michigan State University, 1974 MBA, University of Michigan, 1968 BA, University of Michigan, 1966 Expertise Technology in Accounting, Business computer networks, Management of information systems, Information systems for manufacturing firms

Job Titles:

• Title

Biography Richard was the Director of Computing Services for the Mike Ilitch School of Business from 2/2008 - 1/2021. In this role, he was responsible for all administrative and academic technology used at the school. Education Master of Education, Instructional Technology, April 2014 Graduate Certificate in Online Teaching, December 2012 Master of Business Administration, August 2008 Post-bachelor Certificate in Computer Science, December 1999 Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, May 1991

Job Titles:

• Member of the American Marketing Association
• President and COO for Intrepid Defense
• Title

Biography Susan A. Hood is President and COO for Intrepid Defense and Security Systems, a start-up visualization technology serving homeland defense and security markets. In this position, she is responsible for establishing presence in the government market and managing day to day activities of the company. Prior to joining Intrepid Defense and Security Systems, Hood worked for Ballard Power Systems Electric Drives and Power Conversion Division where she was responsible for new business development and government liaison. In that position, she interfaced with state and federal agencies and legislators to advance the development of fuel cell technology, served as a member of hydrogen and fuel cell consortia, secured government funding for demonstration projects, and provided strategy language for reauthorization of the Transportation Expenditures Appropriation for 2004. She worked at Ford Motor Company in program development, and is formerly Director of Marketing at Wickes Manufacturing Company where she managed a staff of marketing professionals and was responsible for all divisional marketing and business planning activities. Hood was also a consultant in marketing research and planning for over 10 years. Hood received her Bachelor of Arts in Economics and her M.B.A. from Oakland University. She has over thirty years experience in marketing and business planning specializing in business-to-business marketing and strategic planning. She is a Lecturer at Wayne State University School of Business where she teaches graduate and undergraduate marketing, public relations and advertising strategy courses. Hood developed an Entrepreneurial Marketing Management Seminar for the WSU MBA Program that debuted Fall 2008. Hood is a member of the American Marketing Association, Women in Defense, the National Defense Industry Association, the Michigan Homeland Security Consortium and is a founding member of Secure Michigan - a professional association of Michigan companies engaged in homeland security technologies. Professional experience President and COO for Intrepid Defense and Security Systems, Inc.; Birmingham, MI; 2003-Present Founder and Owner of Insight Marketing; Rochester Hills, MI; 2000-2006 Manager of New Business Development- Electric Drives Business Unit at Ballard Power Systems; Dearborn, MI; 2000-2002 Managing Member at Milestone Marketing, LLC; Rochester Hills, MI; 1989-2000 Director of Marketing at Wickes Manufacturing Company; Southfield, MI; 1980-1989 Senior Program Analyst at Ford Motor Company; Dearborn, MI Memberships American Marketing Association Michigan Homeland Security Consortium Women in Defense National Defense Industry Association Education MBA, Finance Concentration, Oakland University, 1979 BA, Economics, Oakland University, 1976

Job Titles:

• Associate Dean

Biography Toni M. Somers holds an MBA from Bowling Green State University and a Ph.D. from the University of Toledo. Currently, she holds the position of Professor specializing in Technology, Information Systems and Analytics, along with serving as the Associate Dean at the Mike Ilitch School of Business. Her tenure at Wayne State University began in 1988, where she has dedicated over half of her career to administrative roles. Dr. Somers also holds adjunct positions at the Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western University, and Wayne State University's Industrial Systems Engineering department, where she imparts advanced multivariate statistical methods to doctoral students. In the realm of research, Dr. Somers directs her focus towards corporate board diversity and information systems. Dr. Somers extends her expertise to consult with various organizations, ranging from Fortune 500 companies to the United Automobile Workers and several non-profit entities. Her teaching portfolio encompasses a broad spectrum, including intermediate and advanced statistical methods, IT Security, and IT Ethics. In the realm of research, Dr. Somers directs her focus towards information systems strategic planning and the diffusion of information technologies within organizations. Her particular passion lies in enhancing the success rate of technology integration into corporate business processes. Dr. Somers boasts an extensive publication history and has lent her expertise to several editorial boards. Her work includes over 50 publications featured in prestigious IS journals, such as Information Systems Research, Decision Sciences, and five publications in the Journal of Management Information Systems. Her contributions span across various journals, including Information and Management, Production and Operations Management Journal, Journal of Strategic Information Systems, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, European Journal of IS, and the European Journal of Operational Research. Education M.B.A., Bowling Green State University, 1992 Ph.D., University of Toledo, 1982 B.A., University of Toledo, 1977 Expertise Information Systems