Kai Hoberg is Head of Department of Operations and Technology and Professor of Supply Chain and Operations Strategy at Kühne Logistics University since November 2017. He joined the KLU as an Associate Professor in May 2012. From 2010 to 2012 he was Assistant Professor of Supply Chain Management at the University of Cologne. Kai Hoberg received his PhD in 2006 from Münster University, Germany under supervision of Prof. Dr. Ulrich W. Thonemann.
In his academic career he was a visiting scholar at different top universities such as S.C. Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University, Israel Institute of Technology, NUS Business School at National University of Singapore, Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford and the University of Stellenbosch. Kai Hoberg earned a Diplom Degree in Industrial Engineering at Paderborn University, Germany and Monash University, Melbourne.
Kai Hoberg’s current research topics include supply chain analytics, the role of technology in supply chains, inventory modeling, and the link between operations and finance. In particular, he explores the fundamental drivers of supply chain performance and strategies applying real-world data. His research findings have been published in academic journals like Journal of Operations Management, Production and Operations Management or European Journal of Operational Research. Besides research, Kai Hoberg is very enthusiastic about teaching supply chain management applying new teaching concepts.
Before returning to academia, Kai Hoberg worked as a strategy consultant and project manager for Booz & Company from 2006 to 2010. He conducted supply chain and operations management projects for numerous clients, in particular in consumer, chemicals and discrete manufacturing industries. Currently, he is active as faculty for executive supply chain education for global firms.
Academic Positions
| since 2017 | Professor of Supply Chain and Operations Strategy at Kühne Logistics University, Hamburg, Germany |
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| 2012-2017 | Associate Professor of Supply Chain and Operations Strategy at Kühne Logistics University, Hamburg, Germany |
| 2012 | Visiting scholar at the NUS Business School, National University of Singapore, Singapore (Host: Professor Chung Piaw Teo) |
| 2010 - 2012 | Assistant Professor for Supply Chain Management at University of Cologne, Germany |
| 2006 - 2010 | Project manager and strategy consultant at Booz & Company (formerly Booz Allen Hamilton) in the European Operations team with functional focus on supply chain and operations management |
| 2005 - 2006 | Research and teaching assistant at the Seminar for Supply Chain Management and Management Science, University of Cologne (Professor Ulrich W. Thonemann) |
| 2004 | Visiting scholar at the School of Industrial Engineering and Management, Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel (Host: Professor Yale T. Herer) |
| 2002 | Visiting scholar at the S. C. Johnson Graduate School of Management, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York (Host: Professor James R. Bradley) |
| 2001 - 2005 | Research and teaching assistant at the Institute of Supply Chain Management, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster (Professor Ulrich W. Thonemann) |
| 2000 - 2001 | Students research assistant at the Institute for Production Management, Paderborn University (Professor Otto Rosenberg) |
Education
| 2006 | Dr. rer. pol. at Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster „Analyzing the Fundamental Performance of Supply Chains: A Linear Control Theoretic Approach”, Co-Chairs: Professor Ulrich Thonemann and Professor Jörg Becker |
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| 2001 | Dipl.-Wirt. Ing. in Industrial Engineering at Paderborn University with majors in operations research, production management and electrical engineering, Diplom thesis “Practical Model Formulations and Solutions in Detailed Facility Layout Planning“” |
Project Experience (Selection)
- Supply chain strategy definition for consumer goods division in the chemical industry
- Supply chain strategy definition for aircraft component manufacturer
- Operations strategy definition for recycling machine manufacturer
- Working capital reduction for global steel manufacturer
- Operations segmentation for pharmaceutical custom manufacturer
- Setup of European logistics footprint for consumer goods manufacturer
- Organizational re-alignment of supply-side departments for consumer goods manufacturer
- Operations model for sourcing joint venture of two global consumer goods companies
- Optimization of promotion-related supply chain processes for department store
- Development of a supply chain analysis tool for a global technology enterprise
What we have to learn to do, we learn by doing – as Aristotle pointed out almost 2,400 years ago, learning is about gaining experience. To manage future supply chains, students need to acquire knowledge in numerous fields from mathematical modeling to negotiation skills. However, students need to learn fast in order to keep pace with the constantly accelerating complexity of our supply chains. Different learning styles are available to teach students those supply chain concepts that can make the difference between failure and success. A teaching method that has proven very effective is experiential learning: students learn directly from their own experience.
A classic experiential learning in supply chain management has been around for many years: MIT’s beer game. In a fascinating simple and concise way, generations of students have played the beer game to understand the supply chain dynamics that trigger the bullwhip effect. Departing from the classic beer game many extensions in experiential learning for supply chain management have been made. However, the simplicity and frugality of the beer game has often been lost when students were required to read through thick manuals and spend days to prepare and conduct games.
At Kühne Logistics University and University of Cologne, Prof. Dr. Kai Hoberg has worked on developing experiential learning games for teaching supply chain management. He focuses on simplicity while carving out the core learning objective. Certain games are played by the entire class whereas other games are performed by a group of students that is observed and evaluated by the class. In other settings, students conduct role plays to highlight problems that are further analyzed. The range of topics spans from very strategic issues around supply chain design or supply chain finance to very operational issues in warehousing. Here is a selection of games that provides an overview on different experiential learning approaches:
- Postponement: Students manage a fashion supply chain and learn how postponement and design-for-supply-chain can be beneficial in settings with long lead times and high demand uncertainty.
- Warehouse Picking: Students observe warehouse operations of few students who are picking parts for distribution. Different picking schemas are compared, performance is observed and aligned picking schemas are developed.
- Service Level Alignment: Students observe discussions between sales managers and supply chain planners and analyze data to realize that the service level definition that is applied in the firm does not reflect customer requirements.
We are happy to provide you with more information as required. Please feel free to contact Kai Hoberg for materials or discussions on experiential supply chain management learning.
