Spring 2024 Supply Chain Scholarship Winners Highlight the Transformative Impact AI Will Have on Logistics, Planning, and Forecasting
Extensiv (formerly 3PL Central) — delivering omnichannel software solutions for warehouse, inventory, and order management — announced the winners of its Spring 2024 Supply Chain Scholarship as well as its continued investment in growing industry talent with the opening of the Fall 2024 scholarship submission window. Extensiv designs its scholarship program to support the next generation of innovative supply chain leaders in undergraduate and graduate supply chain management, logistics, and operations management programs.
“When nearly one-third (32%) of third-party logistics (3PLs) providers report that finding and retaining workers and that operational efficiency are significant business challenges for 2024, we must invest in tomorrow’s logistics leaders,” said Rachel Trindade, chief marketing officer at Extensiv. “Extensiv designed this scholarship to foster innovative ideas and cultivate new perspectives, while also building the talent pipeline our customers will need to thrive in the future. Favour, Jazlyn, and John presented a sharp analysis of the opportunities emerging technologies can provide to transform traditional logistics workflows. We are honored to support them on their supply chain journey.”
Since 2020, Extensiv has given over $20,000 to scholarship winners and finalists who have demonstrated innovation and creativity around advancements in warehousing or inventory management. Previous winners have advanced thinking around artificial intelligence (AI) in pricing demand forecasting models and the potential of augmented reality (AR) in the supply chain.
Scholarship Winners
The winner of the $2,500 Spring 2024 Supply Chain Scholarship is Favour Irek, an undergraduate student at the University of Arizona. Favour’s winning essay details the impact of AI and machine learning in the supply chain and how organizations should invest in integrated data platforms, talent, change management, and responsible AI practices to fully capitalize on the technology’s potential.
In her submission, Favour concludes that artificial intelligence will likely be the most impactful advancement in global logistics for decades to come, “AI and machine learning have massive potential to transform supply chain planning, forecasting, logistics, and risk management. By analyzing massive sets of data from across the supply chain, AI systems can detect patterns and make predictions far more accurately than humans. This could significantly improve demand forecasting, inventory management, and production planning.”
Jazlyn Yanssens of Duquesne University and John Blue of the University of Cincinnati were named runners-up, and their nominations focused on the role of electric trucks and AI-related efficiencies in the supply chain, respectively.
Fall Scholarship Application Window Opens January 3, 2024
For those interested in the next Extensiv Supply Chain Scholarship round, the Fall 2024 semester application will open on January 3, 2024, and close on June 1, 2024. Applicants must be enrolled in a Bachelor’s, Master’s, or MBA program in supply chain, logistics, or operations management.
To apply, students should submit their name, school, major, contact information, and a 1,000-word (maximum) essay on the next big advancement in supply chain management by June 1, 2024. Winners of the Fall 2024 Extensiv Supply Chain Scholarship will be notified before July 1, 2024.
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