Postdoctoral Scholar Research - SMI 140600

Operations and supply chain management, as well as sustainability, greatly interest both domestic and international businesses because these issues impact their profitability - especially in today's competitive marketplace. To that end, the USF Muma College of Business has created the Monica Wooden Center for Supply Chain Management & Sustainability at USF, the first center of its kind in Florida, with a generous gift from Monica Wooden, the founder of Mercury Gate. The Center employs globally recognized faculty to teach undergraduate and graduate students - as well as corporate clients - on these issues. The curriculum and training provided by the Center seeks to increase the number of supply chain management professionals across industry segments.

In addition, within the USF Muma College of Business Monica Wooden Center, The USF Supply Chain Innovation Lab was founded in 2020 with the goal of helping industry and government entities with their research ideas. The Lab is well positioned to lead this effort, because its faculty include several supply chain experts, who are leading researchers on logistics issues, including one of the field's foremost scholars. The Lab is not only adding to the body of supply chain scholarship, but also benefits the industry by producing research with solutions to real-world challenges.

For more information about USF and the Muma College of Business, please visit:  http://www.usf.edu/ and http://www.usf.edu/business/. For more information about the Monica Wooden Center for Supply Chain Management & Sustainability please visit https://www.usf.edu/business/centers/supply-chain-sustainability/ as well as the USF Supply Chain Innovation Lab please visit https://www.usf.edu/business/centers/supply-chain-sustainability/lab/.

The USF Supply Chain Innovation Lab at the Muma College of Business, Monica Wooden Center for Supply Chain Management & Sustainability invites candidates with a Doctoral degree in operations research/operations management, industrial engineering, supply chain management, logistics, or a closely related area to apply for a Post-doctoral Research Scholar Position. The main research focus of this Post-doctoral Research Scholar position will be the pioneering research to determine how artificial intelligence (AI) can be used to train the next generation of operations and supply chain work force, as part of a major research project funded by a Fortune 500 company. This is a full-time position that may be renewed annually depending on satisfactory performance and funding availability up to a maximum of two years. Health insurance benefits will be offered through the USF postdoctoral scholar health insurance program https://www.usf.edu/hr/benefits/insurance/postdoctoral-scholars.aspx.

The selected candidate will be a member of the USF Supply Chain Innovation Lab and the Monica Wooden Center for Supply Chain Management & Sustainability, report to Dr. Seckin Ozkul (MCOB), and conduct research, publish manuscripts, present at conferences, prepare proposals, and provide leadership to undergraduate and graduate students working on the project.

Minimum Qualifications: 

Doctoral degree in operations research/operations management, industrial engineering, supply chain management, logistics, or a closely related area. Must meet university criteria for appointment to the rank of Postdoctoral Fellow. Experience in artificial intelligence and large language models (LLMs), modeling research, and empirical data acquisition and analysis, is required. The candidate should have the scientific maturity (4+ years of research experience including doctoral work) to supervise undergraduate and graduate students, if necessary. Additionally, ideal candidate should be able to work independently and collaboratively, have excellent oral and written communication skills in English, and have a good track record of research publications in the above-mentioned areas of interest in the UTD-24/FT-50 as well as Australian Business Dean’s Council (ABDC) List of A*/A journals.

Preferred Qualifications:  

Candidates with research expertise or experience in one or more of the following in addition to the required qualifications above, will be reviewed favorably: behavioral research, transportation and freight logistics, and demonstrated ability in working with interdisciplinary teams.

Working at USF

With approximately 16,000 employees, the University of South Florida is one of the largest employers in the Tampa Bay area. We are dedicated to cultivating a talented, engaged and driven workforce that strives to be bold. Employees excel in USF‘s rich academic environment, which fosters their development and advancement. In 2025, Forbes recognized USF as one of Florida’s best large employers, ranked No. 1 among the state’s 12 public universities. Our first-class benefits package includes medical, dental and life insurance plans, retirement plan options, employee and dependent tuition programs, generous leave, and hundreds of employee perks and discounts.

About USF 

The University of South Florida is a top-ranked research university serving approximately 50,000 students from across the globe at campuses in Tampa, St. Petersburg, Sarasota-Manatee and USF Health. USF is recognized by U.S. News & World Report as a top 50 public university and the best value in Florida. U.S. News also ranks the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine as the No. 1 medical school in Florida and in the highest tier nationwide. USF is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), a group that includes only the top 3% of universities in the U.S. With an all-time high of $738 million in research funding in 2024 and as a top 20 public university for producing U.S. patents, USF uses innovation to transform lives and shape a better future. The university generates an annual economic impact of more than $6 billion. USF’s Division I athletics teams compete in the American Athletic Conference. Learn more at www.usf.edu.

Compliance and Federal Notices

This position may be subject to a Level 1 or Level 2 criminal background check.

Applicants have rights under Federal Employment Laws: 

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

Applicants for USF employment are entitled to request reasonable accommodation(s) in the application process. A request is to be made at least five (5) working days prior to the time the accommodation(s) is needed. Visit the Central Human Resources ADA Accommodations webpage for more information on requesting an accommodation during the application/interview process.