Dr. Maria Jesus Saenz is the Executive Director of the MIT Supply Chain Management Master Programs, an #1 worldwide ranked MIT degree that allows learners innovative educational paths in the supply chain domain, embracing the MIT experience. 

Dr. Saenz also serves as the Director of the  Digital Supply Chain Transformation Lab at the MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics, as Research Scientist. The primary research examines new collaborative paradigms that arise while implementing new digital technologies in supply chains. Our research domains are multidimensional collaboration, digital supply chain capabilities and AI in supply chains. We apply quantitative research methodologies in order to assess how data-driven ecosystems create value.

Dr. Saenz teaches various courses at Master, PhD and Executive Education level on Digital Transformation, Supply Chain Management, Collaboration, Risks, Resilience and Project Management. Regarding her education, Dr. Saenz is certified in Leadership for Senior Executives and Participant Centered Learning by Harvard Business School. She received Cum Laude and the Outstanding Doctoral Award for her PhD in Manufacturing and Design Engineering from the University of Zaragoza, where she previously obtained her M.Sc. in Industrial Engineering, while she also studied Mathematics Sciences for several years. In 2003, she received her tenure as Associate Professor in the School of Engineering at the University of Zaragoza. In 2004, she joined the newly-formed research institute MIT Zaragoza Logistics Center as Professor, and she has also served the Center as its Executive Director. She was also the Director of the Spanish Center of Excellence in Logistics. Dr. Saenz is strategic advisor of startups and has also led various international research projects for the European Commission, as well as for companies on Supply Chain Management innovation, such as Dell, Maersk, Coca-Cola Femsa, Mondelez, P&G, Carrefour, DHL, Leroy Merlin or Caterpillar. She is co-author of more than 100 publications, including books and articles in leading international Journals. Her knowledge transfer work has received 17 awards and her research was cited in the media including Harvard Business Review, MIT Sloan Management Review, WSJ, Forbes, Financial Times Press or Supply Chain Management Review. She has interacted with business leaders as guest keynote speaker in more than 15 countries.

Publications

View more publications on the MIT Digital Supply Chain Transformation web site

• Jackson, I., Saenz, M.J., & Ivanov, D. (2023). From natural language to simulations: applying AI to automate simulation modelling of logistics systems. International Journal of Production Research, 1-24.
• Revilla E., Saenz M.J., Seifert M. and Ma Y. Human–AI Collaboration in Prediction: A Field Experiment in Retail Industry. Journal of Information and Management Systems, forthcoming.
• Revilla E., Acero B., and Saenz M.J. Resilience in the Supply Chain. J. Sarkis (ed.), The Palgrave Handbook of Supply Chain Management. Springer, 2023.
• Jackson, I., Saenz, M. J., Li, Y., & Moreno, M. S. R. Synchromodal Supply Chains for Fast-Moving Consumer Goods. Applied Sciences, 2023, 13(5), 3119.
• What Is a Digital Twin? And How Can It Make Companies—and Cities—More Efficient? By Jackie Snow, The Wall Street Journal, March 17, 2023.
• Tozanli, O. Saenz, M.J. Unlocking the Potential of Digital Twins in Supply Chains. MIT Sloan Management Review. August 2022.
• Saenz, M. J., Revilla, E., Borrella, I. Digital Transformation Is Changing Supply Chain Relationships. Harvard Business Review. July 2022.
• Tozanli, O. and Saenz, M. J. Four Misconceptions are Hampering the Advancement of Digital Twins. Supply Chain Management Review. July/August 2022.
• Saenz M.J., Borrella I. and Revilla E. Digital SC Transformation: Aligning Operations and Strategy. Supply Chain Management Review, April 2022.
• Acero, B., Saenz, M.J., and Luzzini, D. Introducing Synchromodality: One Missing Link Between Transportation and Supply Chain Management. Journal of Supply Chain Management. 2022, 58:51-64.
• Borrella, I., Saenz, M.J., and Revilla, E. Dell: Roadmap of a Digital Supply Chain Transformation. Ivey Publishing. 12/13/2021.
• Torres, A., Gonzalez F., and Saenz, M. J. Driving Slow Doesn’t Always Mean Driving Safe. Supply Chain Management Review. September 2021.
• Saenz, M. J. Don’t overlook the importance of KPIs in AI/ML projects. Supply Chain Management Review. September 2021.
• Herrmann, C., Huang, L., and Saenz M.J. AI and Employees: Crafting Successful Teams. Supply Chain Management Review. February 2021.
• I Like Quadrants And I Cannot Lie, Forbes, May 31, 2020.
• Saenz M.J., Revilla E., and Simon C., What does the human face of AI look like? Supply Chain Management Review, April 2020.
• Saenz M.J., Revilla E. and Simon C., Designing AI Systems with Human-Machine Teams. MIT Sloan Management Review, March 2020.
• Chen W., Kucukyazici B. and Saenz M.J., On the joint dynamics of the economic and environmental performances for collective take-back systems, International Journal of Production Economics, 2019, 218, p.228-244.
• Sheffi Y., Saenz M.J., Rivera L. and Gligor D., The Role of Logistics Clusters in Facilitating Horizontal Collaboration Mechanisms. European Planning Studies, 2019, 27(5), 905–931.
• Saenz M.J., Knoppen, D. and Mendonca E., Building manufacturing flexibility with strategic suppliers and contingent effect of product dynamism on customer satisfaction. Journal of Purchasing and Supply Management, 2018, 24, 238-246.
• Knoppen, D. and Sáenz M.J., Interorganizational teams in low versus high dependence contexts. International Journal of Production Economics, 2017, 191, Sept, 15-25.
• Chen, W., Kucukyazici, B, Verter, V. and Saenz, M.J., Supply Chain Design for Unlocking the Value of Remanufacturing Under Uncertainty. European Journal of Operational Research, 2015, 247, 804-819.
• Sáenz, M.J. and Koufteros, X. (Guest editors). Special Issue on Literature Reviews in Supply Chain Management and Logistics. International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, 2015, 45 (1-2), 2-11.
• Sáenz, M.J. and Revilla E., Creating More Resilient Supply Chains. MIT Sloan Management Review, Summer issue, 2014, 22-24
• Sáenz, M.J., Revilla, E. and Knoppen, D., Absorptive capacity in buyer-supplier relationships: empirical evidence of its mediating role. Journal of Supply Chain Management, 2014, 50(2), 18-40.

Dr. Cassa is a Lecturer at the MIT Supply Chain Management Program where he directs courses on databases, data science, and machine learning. He currently teaches “Databases and Data Analysis for Supply Chain Management” in the Fall and “Data Science for Supply Chain Management” in the Spring in the SCMr program. Along with Dr. Caplice, he also teaches SC4x in the MITx MicroMasters credential in Supply Chain Management.

He actively uses data science in his research, and holds appointments as an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and the Brigham and Women’s Hospital Division of Genetics. Dr. Cassa is also a research affiliate of the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT. He holds a S.B. and M.Eng from MIT and a PhD from the Harvard/MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology in Bioinformatics and Integrative Genomics.

Dr. Caplice serves as the Executive Director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Center for Transportation & Logistics (CTL) where he is responsible for the planning and management of the research, education, and corporate outreach programs for the center. He created and currently serves as Director of the MITx MicroMaster’s Program in Supply Chain Management – the very first MicroMasters credential ever offered.  

Since its inception in 2015, more than 430,000 students from 196 different countries have participated in these online courses and more than 45,000 Verified Certificates have been awarded.  A total of 2,976 MicroMasters credentials have been awarded to date.In the first five years more than 327,000 students from 196 different countries have participated in these online courses and more than 30,000 Verified Certificates have been awarded.  A total of 1,862 MicroMasters credentials have been awarded to date.  In 2018, he was awarded the MITx Prize for Teaching and Learning, the Irwin Sizer Award for the Most Significant Improvement to MIT Education, and the MIT Teaching with Digital Technology Award. 

Dr. Caplice was selected as the first Silver Family Research Fellow in 2016 in recognition of his contribution to supply chain education and research.  Also in 2016, he received the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) Distinguished Service Award. 

He is also the founder and co-director of the MIT FreightLab – a research initiative that focuses on improving the way freight transportation is designed, procured, and managed. His primary research is in all aspects of freight transportation to include combinatorial procurement auctions, robust planning, portfolio management, performance metrics, and infrastructure design.

In addition to his work at MIT, Dr. Caplice is currently the Chief Scientist for DAT Freight & Analytics, the largest truckload freight marketplace in North America with over $120 billion in market transactions.  In this role, he pioneered the concept of freight rate modeling that became Chainalytics Freight Market Intelligence Consortium (FMIC) and is now part of DAT.  He leads the development and deployment of innovations and insights into the transportation industry to include the monthly FMIC Pulse Signal Reportand the bi-weekly Freightvine Podcasts.

Prior to joining MIT, Dr. Caplice held senior management positions in supply chain consulting, product development, and professional services at several companies to include Logistics.com, SABRE, and PTCG.  As part of PTCG/SABRE, he led the team that pioneered the concept and use of optimization-based procurement throughout the transportation industry.

Chris received a Ph.D. from MIT in 1996 in Transportation and Logistics Systems. His dissertation on Optimization Based Bidding for Transportation was selected as the winner of the Council of Logistics Management (CLM) Doctoral Dissertation Award and received an Honorable Mention in the 1996 Dissertation Award sponsored by the Transportation Science Section of the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS).

Prior to receiving his PhD, Dr. Caplice taught at the Virginia Military Institute for two years and served five years in the Army Corps of Engineers, achieving the rank of Captain. His writing has appeared in numerous academic and business journals and publications.  In addition to his PhD, he earned a Master of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin and a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the Virginia Military Institute (VMI).