The University of South Dakota Beacom School of Business now offers an online Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) with Operations and Supply Chain Management specialization.

Enrollees “benefit from in-depth study of supply chain management, lean management, quality control and other topics relevant in today’s rapidly evolving global market,” according to Beacom School of Business officials.

In addition to the core M.B.A. courses that prepare students for leadership in any business role, those on the Operations and Supply Chain Management tract can cultivate a more focused career path with strengths in managing logistics, sourcing, quality and waste elimination.

The minimum number of credit hours for the M.B.A. program with a specialization in Operations and Supply Chain Management is 36 credit hours. You can apply online as long as you pay a $35 application fee and complete a Graduate Application. There are other requirements concerning undergraduate transcripts and letters of recommendation. To check out the full scope of what is required, visit www.usd.edu/acpc/graduate-school-application-support.

The priority application review dates for the M.B.A. program are:

• Spring Semester: Apply by October 1
• Summer Semester: Apply by March 1
• Fall Semester: Apply by June 1

The University of South Dakota Beacom School of Business, established in 1927, has been continuously accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) International since 1949. The school’s M.B.A. program has been accredited by AACSB since 1965. AACSB International Accreditation is considered the hallmark of excellence in management education.

The University of South Dakota’s online Master of Business Administration also offers specialization in Business Analytics, Health Services Administration and Marketing. For more information, contact USD Online at 800-233-7937 or via e-mail at cde@usd.edu.

MOL LAUNCHES EXECUTIVE TRAINING WITH A GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE

On Sept. 4—and for the fourth straight year—Tokyo-based Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd. launched its One MOL Global Management College in-house training program, MOL President and CEO Junichiro Ikeda announced.

One MOL Global Management College was started in 2014 to improve management skills in a cross-cultural environment and develop the next generation of executives who will be leaders in the MOL Group’s global management.

The program targets not only employees in Japan but also personnel from overseas subsidiaries who represent the future of the MOL Group. For instance, this year the four-month program is hosting 14 participants from seven countries.

They will take part in what MOL calls “energetic, hands-on sessions focused on the themes of personal empowerment, organizational management and strategic leadership.” Special emphasis is placed on company values that are referred to as “MOL CHART Values.” CHART is an acronym for Challenge, Honesty, Accountability, Reliability and Teamwork.

Participants are also challenged to come up with their own proposals to improve the company. These are pitched to MOL’s top executives on the final day.

“SHOULD CALIFORNIA HAVE ITS OWN TRADE POLICY?”

That is the question being asked Oct. 5 at the 2017 Annual Policy Conference of California State University at Los Angeles’ Pat Brown Institute for Public Affairs.

Held in association with the World Trade Center Los Angeles and the Los Angeles Economic Development Corp. at the L.A. Hotel Downtown, the conference aims to answer: What should the nation’s largest state and the world’s 6th largest economy be doing? And: What role can and should cities, large and small, play?

Among those scheduled to show up, dialogue and debate are: Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti; Panorea Avdis, director of the California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development; Stephen Cheung, president of the World Trade Center Los Angeles; John Grubb, COO of the Bay Area Council; Mickey Kantor, former U.S. Trade Representative and Secretary of Commerce; and Joann Lo, co-director of Food Chain Workers Alliance.

Also, Carla Marinucci, senior writer of the Politico California Playbook; Ambassador Vilma Martinez, president of the Los Angeles Board of Harbor Commissioners; Robert Shrum, director of Jesse Unruh Institute of Politics at the University of Southern California; and Rodrigo Tavares, author of Paradiplomacy: Cities and States as Global Players and former head of the São Paulo State Government’s Office of Foreign Affairs.

Ticket information is available at calstatela.patbrowninstitute.org.

WMG AND DYSON WELCOME FIRST COHORT ONTO THE NEW ENGINEERING DEGREE

 Undergraduate engineering students recently launched the Dyson Institute of Engineering and Technology on the Dyson technology campus in Malmesbury, Wiltshire, England.

Dyson, the maker of powerful vacuum cleaners, fans, heaters, parts and tools, developed the program in collaboration with Warwick Manufacturing Group and the University of Warwick.

More than 850 applicants sought 25 places in the Dyson Institute, but due to what officials called “the exceptionally high caliber of candidates,” 33 undergraduate engineers were accepted onto the four-year engineering degree.

They will be mentored by Dyson’s practicing scientists and engineers and taught by academics from WMG, University of Warwick. Students “will benefit from learning high-level science and engineering theory, combined with real-world application on live projects,” say school officials. “They will come away from higher education debt-free, having earned a salary throughout and the prospect of a graduate role with Dyson on completion of the four-year degree.”

Adds Professor Lord Bhattacharyya, chairman and founder of WMG, University of Warwick, “It is vital that in order for UK companies to be competitive they must have the right people with the right skills. I am delighted we are working with the Dyson Institute on this degree and welcome the move by James Dyson to develop a pool of talent which have the skills that are required to work in industry today.”

Applications are now open for 2018; visit www.dysoninstitute.com for more information.

R.I.P. TO SUPPLY CHAIN EDUCATION BOOSTER ART VAN BODEGRAVEN JR.

Art van Bodegraven passed away on June 18 but, befitting a supply chain education advocate, his “final shipment” did not arrive at its destination until Sept. 13.

That is when DC Velocity magazine posted van Bodegraven’s final The Art of Art blog entry, “An ROI for Supply Chain Education.”

“Art was a prolific writer and had amassed a collection of unpublished blog posts he had planned to run well into the future,” reads the editor’s note that precedes the article. “To honor his memory, we will continue to post these remaining blogs as he had intended.” 

Van Bodegraven drew from some vast knowledge for his stories. He had been managing principal of the van Bodegraven Associates consultancy and the founding principal of Discovery Executive Services, which develops and delivers supply chain educational programs. Before “graduating” to the popular The Art of Art blog, he had been principal co-author of DC Velocity’s Basic Training monthly column for a decade and principal co-author (with Ken Ackerman) of Fundamentals of Supply Chain Management, the definitive primer in the field.

“An ROI for Supply Chain Education” explores the value of such an education, pointing out that many now claim it can pay off more—in terms of knowledge and earning potential gained—than a traditional M.B.A. How does van Bodegraven come down on that notion? You’re going to have to read the column yourself at blogs.dcvelocity.com/the_art_of_art/2017/09/my-entry.html.