The Centre for Supply Chain is dedicated to supply chain excellence in education, research, and practice through collaboration with academics, industry partners, government entities, and other research institutes. The focus of the Centre is on the following five pillars:
Research
Research is a core part of what we do at the Centre. The Centre's cross-disciplinary team of researchers from leading Universities and organizations undertake cutting-edge and impactful research to develop and disseminate world-class knowledge and practices in supply chain. Our team actively publishes in the top-ranked business, operations, supply chain, and logistics journals.
Knowledge Exchange & Applied Learning
The Centre provides a platform for students, alumni, faculty, and industry professionals to collaborate and share ideas, latest developments, and best practices in supply chain. Throughout the year, the Centre organizes several events such as conferences, seminars, and symposiums to promote knowledge exchange. Also, the Centre disseminates knowledge and latest insights through various publications, newsletters, blogs, and podcasts. For students, the Centre promotes applied learning through industry guest speakers, site visits, case competitions, and more.
Training and Consultancy
The Centre undertakes corporate training, advisory services, and consulting projects for public and private sector entities and inter-governmental organizations in various supply chain domains. The Centre also plays an active role in the professional development of academics and students through training programs and workshops.
Promoting Women in Supply Chain
The Centre is committed to empowering women to enter and take the lead in the supply chain and logistics profession and meet the need for more women professionals and leaders in the supply chain. We have several supply chain women leaders in our team, and much can be learned from their inspiring journeys, including breaking barriers and overcoming obstacles.
Partnerships and Collaboration
We constantly reach out to research institutions, businesses, and the supply chain community to build partnerships and forging interdisciplinary collaborations to advance the Centre's activities. We also work with other Universities and research centres for co-organizing events and joint application of research grants.
If you are interested in being part of a community eager to understand and solve real-world supply chain issues, sign up to become a member of this Centre.
If you would like further information, please get in touch with Dr. Sreejith Balasubramanian (s.balasubramanian@mdx.ac.ae)
The Centre organizes several events throughout the year such as conferences, seminars, symposiums to bring together academics and practitioners to explore and strengthen our understanding of the current supply chain challenges and opportunities.
Upcoming Events
Centre for Supply Chain Excellence and Help Logistics Joint Panel Session on “The Role of Women Leaders in Building Resilient Supply Chains” at the Sixth Emerging Research Paradigms in Business and Social Sciences conference (ERPBSS 2022) – 25th February, 2022
“The Role of Women Leaders in Building Resilient Supply Chains”
Friday, 25th February 2022
16:00 – 17:00, Dubai - GMT + 4
Panel Moderator:
Dr Sreejith Balasubramanian
Head, Centre for Supply Chain Excellence, Middlesex University Dubai
Panel Members
Ms. Bouran Najem
Head of Supply Chain, World Food Programme (WFP)
Ms. Bouran Najem has served 24 years in United Nations organizations mainly WFP including UNRWA for 4 years. During her international career with UN, she has been assigned to many important positions like WFP Head of procurement in Yemen, logistics officer in Amman for the Syrian emergency, Afghanistan, Pakistan and UNHRD emergency hub in Dubai. She played an important role within the Dubai International Humanitarian City for more than 3 years, setting the Operational unit, expanding the facilities, and playing a very active role in responding to COVID 19 emergency response in 2020/2021.
Alia Gharaibeh
Regional Director – Middle East, HELP Logistics
Alia is the Middle East Regional Director for HELP Logistics, a Kuehne Foundation Program. The program aims to provide best-in-class supply chain and logistics knowledge to enable humanitarian actors to deliver effective and efficient emergency relief operations. Alia holds a Master’s degree in Industrial Engineering and has 15 years of experience in managerial positions in the Middle East. As an entrepreneur and business consultant, she advised and trained shipping and retail SME's. For several years, Alia Gharaibeh lectured at the German Jordanian University (GJU) where she mentored the new generation of young logistic professionals on topics of supply chain, logistics, and operations management.
Dr. Janya Chanchaichujit
Associate Professor, Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Prince of Songkla University, Thailand
Dr. Janya Chanchaichujit is an Associate Professor in Logistics and Supply Chain Management in the Faculty of Environmental Management, Prince of Songkhla University in Thailand. Prior to work at Prince of Songkhla University, she was a Director of Center for International Affairs and Head, of Logistics and Business Analytics Center of Excellence at Walailak University, Thailand. Dr. Chanchaichujit holds a PhD in Logistics and Supply Chain Management from Curtin University in Australia, an MSc in Operational Research from the University of Hertfordshire in the UK, and BSc in Mathematics from Mahidol University in Thailand. Dr. Chanchaichujit’s research interest focuses on incorporating various aspects of operational research applications, mathematical modelling techniques, and technologies into the design and operation of logistics and supply chain management. Her aim is to enhance industry competency to assist with decision analysis and problem solving to support sustainable logistics and supply chain management. Outside the university professor, Dr. Chanchaichujit is also an active entrepreneur, founded AC Plus Consultants Co. Ltd, a consulting firm, working with public and private organizations providing consulting service on supply chain technology transformation, feasibility study and business model. Her client’s business varies from freight and transportation, to manufacturing, retail and healthcare.
Dr Siti Norida Wahab
Department of Technology and Supply Chain Management Studies, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malayisa
Siti Norida Wahab is a Senior Lecturer in the operations management program at the Faculty of Business and Management, UiTM Puncak Alam. She has more than 15 years of experience in both the industrial and educational fields. Her previous leadership positions include roles at the managerial level in multinational logistics companies and renowned private universities. Her research interest includes sustainable adoption in logistics and supply chain management. She managed national and international grants and has published her research works in high-rated journals, proceedings and book chapters. Besides, she supervised a number of MSc and PhD candidates. For excellence, she has won a platinum, diamond, gold and bronze medallist for the innovation competitions. She also actively serves as a reviewer for journals and academic conferences. Currently, she is a professional technologist of the Malaysia Board of Technologists and a chartered member of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport.
Past Events
Souq Economics and Centre for Supply Chain Excellence Present Joint Symposium
Walailak University and Middlesex University Dubai Joint Supply Chain Research Symposium - September 07, 2021
Our Centre undertakes cutting-edge policy and practice-influencing research to solve complex, real-world supply chain issues. Our research projects and interests are mainly in the areas of:
- Sustainability/Green Supply Chains, Green Innovation, and Circular economy
- Construction and Manufacturing Supply Chains
- Tourism, Hospitality, and Retail Supply Chains
- Medical, Health Care, and Pharmaceutical Supply Chains
- Application of Industry 4.0 Technologies in Supply Chain
- Supply Chain Analytics
- Logistics and Supply Chain Modelling and Optimization
- Supply Chain Resilience and Risk Mitigation
- Ethical Sourcing
Publications
Our academic colleagues and affiliated members are actively publishing in top ranked logistics and supply chain management journals. Some of the selected recent publications are:
Balasubramanian, S. (2020). Stakeholders' role in delivering sustainable supply chains in the construction sector. International Journal of Society Systems Science, 12(2), 165-184. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJSSS.2020.108415
Balasubramanian, S., & Shukla, V. (2020). Foreign versus local firms: implications for environmental sustainability. Benchmarking: An International Journal, 27(5), 1739-1768. https://doi.org/10.1108/BIJ-12-2019-0526
Balasubramanian, S., & Shukla, V. (2020). Leadership Strategies for Global Supply Chain Management: The Case of UAE's Construction Sector. In Leadership Strategies for Global Supply Chain Management in Emerging Markets (pp. 54-77). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-2867-9.ch003
Balasubramanian, S., Gharehdash, M., Gharehdash, M., Shukla, V., & Upadhyay, A. (2020). Supply chain network design models for a circular economy: a review and a case study assessment. Circular Economy for the Management of Operations, 247-265. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003002482
Balasubramanian, S., Kaitheri, S., Nanath, K., Sreejith, S., & Paris, C. M. (2021). Examining post COVID-19 tourist concerns using sentiment analysis and topic modeling. In Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism 2021 (pp. 564-569). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-65785-7_54
Balasubramanian, S., Shukla, V., & Chanchaichujit, J. (2020). Firm size implications for environmental sustainability of supply chains: evidence from the UAE. Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal, 31(5), 1375-1406. https://doi.org/10.1108/MEQ-01-2020-0004
Balasubramanian, S., Shukla, V., Mangla, S., & Chanchaichujit, J. (2021). Do firm characteristics affect environmental sustainability? A literature review‐based assessment. Business Strategy and the Environment, 30(2), 1389-1416. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.2692
Balasubramanian, S., Shukla, V., Sethi, J. S., Islam, N., & Saloum, R. (2021). A readiness assessment framework for Blockchain adoption: A healthcare case study. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 165, 120536, 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2020.120536
Chanchaichujit, J., Balasubramanian, S., & Charmaine, N. S. M. (2020). A systematic literature review on the benefit-drivers of RFID implementation in supply chains and its impact on organizational competitive advantage. Cogent Business & Management, 7: 1818408, 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2020.1818408
Chanchaichujit, J., Balasubramanian, S., Shukla, V., & Rosas, J. S. (2020). Multi-objective decision model for green supply chain management. Cogent Business & Management, 7: 1783177, 1-33. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2020.1783177
Dsilva, J., Balasubramanian, S., Ajayan, S., & Paris, C. (2020). An Expectation-Experience Analysis of Service Quality of Business Travelers in Low-Cost Airlines. e-Review of Tourism Research, 18(3), 375-392. https://ertr-ojs-tamu.tdl.org/ertr/index.php/ertr/article/view/727/231
Rao, P., Balasubramanian, S., Vihari, N., Jabeen, S., Shukla, V., & Chanchaichujit, J. (2021). The e-commerce supply chain and environmental sustainability: An empirical investigation on the online retail sector. Cogent Business & Management, 8(1), 1938377, 1-29. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2021.1938377
Schulte, M., & Paris, C. (2020). A Qualitative Study Exploring Retailers Perspectives of the Significance of Supply Chain Transparency and Ethical Sourcing in the UAE Diamond Industry. International Journal of Intelligent Enterprise (In Press).
Schulte, M., Balasubramanian, S., & Paris, C. M. (2021). Blood diamonds and ethical consumerism: an empirical investigation. Sustainability, 13(8), 4558, 1-18. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13084558
The Centre undertakes corporate training, advisory services, and consulting projects for public and private sector entities and inter-governmental organizations in various supply chain and related domains.
Completed Projects
Advanced Training of Trainers for MEKONG Institute on Green Freight and Logistics
Dr. Sreejith Balasubramanian, Dr. Janya Chanchaichujit & Dr. Albert Tan has co-designed and delivered a 3-week training program for MEKONG Institute, an intergovernmental organization run by six governments in the Greater Mekong Sub-region. The hands-on training saw 30+ participation from both public and private sector employees from Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. The training covered key aspects of global Freight and Logistics, Supply Chain Analytics, Smart Logistics, Green SCOR in the context of ongoing and post COVID-19 scenarios
End of Project Evaluation - Green Freight and Logistics Development in Mekong Countries
Dr. Sreejith Balasubramanian, Dr. Janya Chanchaichujit & Dr. Albert Tan has undertaken a 3-month multi-method end of project evaluation of the Mekong Institute's (MI) three-year project on "Green Freight and Logistics Development in the Mekong Countries" funded by the Republic of Korea through the Mekong – Korea Cooperation Fund (MKCF). The evaluation using the REESI Framework involved a rigorous desk review of project documents, materials, budget allocation, meeting minutes, software, etc., along with 37 stakeholder interviews at the government, company, and association level to assess the success of the project in terms of its relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability and impact against its intended objectives, outputs, outcomes. Based on the evaluation, we also provided recommendations to Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Viet Nam, and Thailand (CLMVT) governments to improve their green freight and logistics and a new proposal for improving green freight and logistics in MEKONG countries.
Bridgestone's Supply Chain Network Redesign Project
Dr. Sreejith Balasubramanian and his students had undertaken a 4-month consulting project to help support Bridgestone's Global Supply Chain Network Redesign Project. This included a review of Bridgestone's existing logistics network in the MEA region and supported them in the redesign of the logistics network in accordance with the latest situation and best practices.
The Centre for Supply Chain Excellence is supported by an industry advisory board and an academic advisory board to support the linkage between industry/government and academia. The committee provides support and strategic guidance to the Centre's activities as well as proposes forward-thinking initiatives. Senior professionals and researchers from private organizations, governmental agencies, and research institutions interested in supply chain management are welcome to join our advisory committee.
Industry Advisory Board
Dr Raman Kumar
Managing Director – Al Futtaim Logistics
Mr. Michael Stockdale
Chief Executive Officer
B2C Logistics
Mr. Prakash Rao
Group Head of Supply Chain Projects
Landmark Group of Companies
Mr. Ritesh Somani
Director - Supply Chain and 3PL Trans, Middle East and North Africa
Amazon
Mr. Marwan Mubarak
Commercial and Chartering, Mubarak Marine
Academic Advisory Board
Dr Cedwyn Fernandes
Pro-Vice Chancellor, Middlesex University
Director, Middlesex University Dubai
Email: e.reyes@mdx.ac.ae
Associate Prof. Dr. Janya Chanchaichujit
Faculty of Environmental Management
Prince of Songkla University, Thailand
E-Mail: janya.chanchaichujit@gmail.com
Albert Wee Kwan Tan, PhD
Associate Professor
Academic Program Director
Asian Institute of Management
Email: ATan@aim.edu
Dr Cody Paris
Associate Professor & Deputy Director Academic Planning & Research
Middlesex University Dubai
Email: C.Paris@mdx.ac.ae
Dr Sushmita A Narayana
Assistance Professor, Operations & Supply Chain Management
National Institute of Industrial Engineering
Email: sushmitan@nitie.ac.in
Head of Centre for Supply Chain Excellence
Dr Sreejith Balasubramanian
Head & Founder – Centre for Supply Chain Excellence
Senior Lecturer - Supply Chain and Logistics & Chair of the Research Committee
Middlesex University Dubai
Email: s.balasubramanian@mdx.ac.ae
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/Dr-Sreejith-Balasubramanian
Core Team
Dr Vinaya Shukla
Senior Lecturer in Management
Middlesex University London
Email: V.Shukla@mdx.ac.uk
Dr Supriya Kaitheri
Senior Lecturer, Data Analytics
Middlesex University Dubai
Email: s.kaitheri@mdx.ac.ae
Mr Rory McConnon
Senior Lecturer & Campus Programme Coordinator, Business School
Middlesex University Dubai
Email: r.mcconnon@mdx.ac.ae
Affiliated Members & Research Associates
Associate Prof. Dr. Janya Chanchaichujit
Faculty of Environmental Management
Prince of Songkla University, Thailand
E-Mail:janya.chanchaichujit@gmail.com
Albert Wee Kwan Tan, PhD
Associate Professor
Academic Program Director
Asian Institute of Management
Email: ATan@aim.edu
Dr Sushmita A Narayana
Assistance Professor, Operations & Supply Chain Management
National Institute of Industrial Engineering
Email: sushmitan@nitie.ac.in
Dr Cody Paris
Associate Professor & Deputy Director Academic Planning & Research
Middlesex University Dubai
Email: C.Paris@mdx.ac.ae
Dr Krishnadas Nanath
Associate Professor in Data Science & Head of InsightsX Lab
Middlesex University Dubai
Email: K.Nanath@mdx.ac.ae
Mr Jaspreet Singh Sethi
Senior Lecturer Computer Engineering and Informatics
Middlesex University Dubai
Email: J.Sethi@mdx.ac.ae
Mr Stephen King
Lecturer, School of Media
Middlesex University Dubai
Email: s.king@mdx.ac.ae
Ms Meike Schulte
Sustainability Researcher
Alumna, Middlesex University Dubai
Email: mnschulte@hotmail.com
Dr Mostain Belal
Supply Chain Researcher
Alumnus, Middlesex University London
Email: mostain_belal@yahoo.co.uk