Michael BourlakisIVP and Trustee

Michael has been involved with the logistics industry for the past 30 years as a sales and logistics manager for a major multinational food company and as an academic researcher having worked for 6 UK universities (Leicester, Oxford, Newcastle, Brunel, Kent and Cranfield Universities). Since 2013, he has been a Professor of Logistics and Supply Chain Management at Cranfield School of Management (UK) where he is also the Director of Research and the Head of the Logistics, Procurement and Supply Chain Management Group, a world-leading academic group in logistics and supply chain management.

Michael joined CILT in the UK in the late 1990s and has become a core member of two of its Forums: the Retail Forum and the Logistics Research Network.

The Institute has always been extremely supportive and influential in my career, and I will never forget that CILT in the UK provided me with my first “seed-corn” research funding in 2001 to examine the impact of the foot and mouth disease in UK food logistics. This was an impactful research work which generated major interest from national media and other stakeholders, and it paved the way for further national and international research funding and academic publications in food and retail logistics which still represent my key research specialisms.

Subsequently, as an academic researcher, Michael has worked closely with numerous multinational organisations including many from the food and retail supply chain and provided key insights to policy makers such as UK Government Departments.