Keynote Speakers
ICCL aims to bring together researchers and practitioners working in logistics to provide them with a platform to share, present, and discuss the latest advances in computational logistics-related topics. We are proud to present speakers from academic and industrial fields recognized worldwide for their extensive experience and knowledge in the area.
Christopher Mejía, Ph.D.
Keynote:
"AI tackling SC uncertainty at micro and macro levels:
From nanostore evolution to port disruptions".
Bio
Christopher Mejía is a Research Scientist at the MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics, where he focuses on applied research in retailing operations and food supply chains. He works with various stakeholders, including consumer packaged goods manufacturers, carriers, and retailers, to improve efficiency and flexibility in operations. His research addresses dynamic consumer profiles and changing purchasing patterns, aiming to reduce socioeconomic and health problems such as income disparity, food malnutrition, and waste through sustainable policies and business models.
Additionally, Dr. Mejía is the Director of the MIT Supply Chain and Global Logistics Excellence Network for Latin America, leading impactful research and education projects in collaboration with top Latin American universities and the Center for Latin-American Logistics Innovation. He also directs the MIT Graduate Certificate in Logistics & Supply Chain Management, targeting outstanding graduate students from Latin America.
Dr. Mejía holds a M.Sc. and a PhD in Industrial Engineering from Monterrey Tech, Mexico, with summa cum laude honors. Prior to joining MIT CTL, he was a Postdoctoral Fellow at Eindhoven University of Technology, where he investigated retailing operations for emerging markets. He has authored and edited several books and has over 12 years of experience working in over 10 countries across three continents, focusing on improving supply chain efficiency. He has contributed to numerous scientific papers and industry projects addressing transportation, logistics, retailing, and supply chain management in emerging markets.
Homero Escandon, PhD
Keynote:
"Nearshoring Trends for Global Supply Chains".
Bio
Homero Escandón has over 26 years’ experience in operations and supply chain roles across multiple industries. He is currently Executive Vice President & Head of Operations for Biotix, Inc. – a world class manufacturer of laboratory consumables and liquid handling solutions. He is also currently President of ASCM San Diego Chapter. Prior to Biotix, Dr. Escandon held positions at Northrop Grumman, LISI Aerospace, and United Technologies Corporation. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Organizational Leadership and a Master of Business Administration from National University. His certifications include Certified in Transformation for Supply Chain (CTSC), Certified Supply Chain Professional - Fellow (CSCP-F), Certified in Logistics, Transportation & Distribution - Fellow (CLTD-F), Certified in Production & Inventory Management (CPIM), Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt (LSSMBB), Project Management Professional (PMP), Certified Professional in Distribution & Warehousing (CPDW), Certified Supplier Quality Professional (CSQP), and Certified DISC Practitioner.
Dr. Escandon is a Lead Lean instructor at Biotix. He is also a Master APICS Instructor, teaches extended learning programs at CSU San Marcos and UC Berkeley. He is on several academic advisory boards including the National University BA in Management; UCSD Extension specialized certificate in SupplyManagement, CSU San Marcos Operations & Supply Chain Management programs, MiraCosta Supply Chain Management program, and Southwestern Community College Supply Chain Logistics Technology program.
In his time away from work, teaching, & volunteering.
Marzieh Khakifirooz, PhD
Keynote:
"AI Horizons: Navigating the Next Frontier in Logistics and Supply Chain Innovation".
Bio
Dr. Marzieh Khakifirooz is a research professor at Tecnológico de Monterrey and a fellow researcher at the Artificial Intelligence for Intelligent Manufacturing Systems (AIMS) Research Center in Taiwan. Holding a Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering with a focus on Decision Analytics. She has conducted extensive research on optimizing supply chains and smart manufacturing processes. Her contributions are recognized through her role as an editor for Springer’s book series on Optimization and Its Applications and as an associate editor at the Journal of Energy Systems and the Operations Research Forum.
With outstanding practical experience from various global consultancies for high-tech industries, Dr. Khakifirooz's expertise lies in data-driven decision-making, AI applications in smart manufacturing and logistics, supply chain optimization, and sustainability-focused operations. Her research interests span optimization, data-driven, AI-based, and human-in-the-loop intelligent decision-making, with applications in social goods, smart society, smart manufacturing, smart health, smart energy, and smart mobility.
A Member of the IEEE, Dr. Khakifirooz received her Ph.D. in industrial engineering and engineering management and her M.S. degree in industrial statistics from National Tsing Hua University (NTHU), Hsinchu, Taiwan. Currently serving as an Assistant Professor at the School of Engineering and Sciences, Tecnologico de Monterrey, Mexico, she remains an active member of the System Dynamic Society, Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), and Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers (IISE).
Cipriano Santos, PhD
Keynote:
"Operations Artificial Inteligence, How AI is Everywhere"
Bio
Dr. Santos is an experienced Mathematical Optimization Technologist with a demonstrated history of technical and organizational leadership. His research focuses on integrating optimization, machine learning, and reinforcement learning. At Tecnológico de Monterrey, Dr. Santos will be leading an effort to transfer and deploy this research at companies in the Bay Area, including start-ups.
Senior technical advisor to the Recruitology Machine Learning team, providing day to day guidance on optimal methodology to tackle complex problems and contribute to the creation of intellectual property. Recruitology is a cloud-based recruitment platform used by 300+ media companies and publishers to help 80,000 SMB employers annually find the right candidates for their jobs through intelligent matching.
Retired from Hewlett-Packard Laboratories as Distinguished Technologist. During his 27 years at HP, he participated in several applied research projects developing mathematical optimization models and decision support tools for Supply Chain Inventory Management, Customer Relationship Management, Optimal Resource Allocation for Large Data Centers, Large Scale Workforce Planning tools for the services industry, including tactical Resource Planning, Airline Dispatcher Workload Distribution Optimization, and Operating Room Planning & Scheduling.
Dr. Santos is the co-founder of the former HP Labs Advanced Prototyping Organization program in Guadalajara, Mexico. The program identified the best undergraduate and graduate STEM students from top Mexican Universities to work with researchers at HP labs and help them build lab prototypes that tackle high impact, high-risk business problems of HP.