C. John Langley, Jr., who retired in 2001 from the Department of Supply Chain Management in the Haslam College of Business at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, has been named Emeritus Professor of Supply Chain Management. In addition to instructing at UT from 1973-2001, where he served as the John H. “Red” Dove Distinguished Professor of Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Langley has held posts at the Georgia Institute of Technology (2001-2010) and Penn State University (2010-present).
‘Honor and Privilege’
In response to his new emeritus title, Langley expressed his appreciation for the recognition and praised the work of Haslam’s supply chain management department.
“It is a great honor and privilege to be recognized as Emeritus Professor of Supply Chain Management at the University of Tennessee,” he said. “My career has provided me with about a 50-year perspective on UT and its supply chain programs, 28 years of which I served as a tenured faculty member. While I am very proud of the accomplishments recorded in those foundational years by our elite team of faculty and students, the most recent 20+ years have firmly established UT as one of the premier academic programs in the world of supply chain management. Coupled with the fact that my family has maintained its residence in Knoxville over the length of my career, my recognition as emeritus professor will facilitate opportunities to interact with UT faculty and students in areas of mutual interest.”
John Bell, head of the supply chain department, who now holds the John H. “Red” Dove Professorship of Supply Chain Management and is also Daniel & Karen Myers Faculty Scholar and Nancy & David McKinney Faculty Research Fellow, called Langley’s emeritus appointment richly deserved.
“Dr. Langley has been a leading supply chain educator for more than 50 years; his contributions to the industry are abundant,” Bell said. “Furthermore, he is literally one of the founders of our academic discipline here at UT, so this honor befits his contributions to our program and to the broader field of supply chain management. ”
Bell added that the department is looking forward to welcoming Langley at the upcoming Supply Chain Forum to be held in April, where participants will benefit from Langley’s vast experience.
“Dr. Langley’s tenures at UT, Georgia Tech and Penn State, combined with his experience in the field, are force multipliers to his already profound knowledge of the discipline,” Bell said. “Our students and other forum participants will reap the rewards of John’s professional and academic journeys.”
A Distinguished, Awarded Career
Langley, who holds a bachelor, MBA and doctorate from Penn State, has made many contributions to the study of supply chain management. At UT, beyond his teaching role, he and his faculty colleagues teamed to establish the Supply Chain Forum, Center for Logistics Research and the Office of Corporate Partnerships. At Georgia Tech’s Stewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering, Langley’s responsibilities as the supply chain and logistics institute professor of supply chain management included the founding and executive directorship of the GT Supply Chain Executive Forum. During his continuing tenure at Penn State, he serves as clinical professor of supply chain management and former director of development for the Center for Supply Chain Research in the Smeal College of Business.
Additionally, UT’s Emeritus Professor in Supply Chain Management is a past president of the Council of Logistics Management (now Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals [CSCMP]) and for 28 years has led the highly regarded Annual Third Party Logistics Study at CSCMP’s annual conference. A popular speaker at industry and academic conferences, Langley co-authored several books and published research in several journals, such as the Journal of Business Logistics, International Journal of Physical Distribution and Logistics Management, International Journal of Logistics Management, Supply Chain Management Review and Land Economics. Further, he has served on several corporate boards of directors including Forward Air Corporation, Averitt Express Inc., UTi Worldwide Inc., Landair Transportation and Metasys Inc. Langley is also a member of the ownership group of the Knoxville Ice Bears, a professional hockey team in the Southern Professional Hockey League that has been in business for 23 years.
For his contributions to the field, Langley has received numerous honors and awards. In 1992, Smeal recognized him as an Outstanding Alumnus of its Business Logistics Program. In 1993, the CSCMP presented him with its Distinguished Service Award, which is widely considered the discipline’s highest honor. In 2007, the American Society of Transportation and Logistics recognized Langley as an Honorary Distinguished Logistics Professional for his long-term contributions and continuing commitment to the transportation logistics community. Most recently, in 2023 he was inducted into the inaugural class of CSCMP Distinguished Fellows.
About Haslam’s Department of Supply Chain Management
The Haslam College of Business has one of the most comprehensive, forward-thinking and highly regarded supply chain programs in the world. U.S. News & World Report and Gartner consistently rank it among the top five programs. An advisory board of more than 40 industry professionals informs its curriculum, and students develop applied skills to help improve organizational performance through supply chain management.
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CONTACT:
Scott McNutt, business writer/publicist, rmcnutt4@utk.edu
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