Dr. Imran Ali
PhD, MBA (Exec), BSc. (Hons.).Discipline Lead - Management & Innovation | Senior Lecturer - Operations & Innovation Management
School of Business and Law
Centre for Regional Economies and Supply Chains
120 Spencer Street - Room 4.06, Level 4
120 Spencer Street, VIC 3000, Australia
Dr Imran Ali is a Discipline Lead in Management & Innovation and a Senior Lecturer in Operations and Innovation Management at CQUniversity's Melbourne Campus. He earned his PhD in Business Management from the University of South Australia (UniSA) Business School in August 2017, supported by a fully-funded scholarship. With over 18 years of experience in diverse academic, industrial, and research institutions both in Australia and overseas, Imran has established himself as an expert in supply chains and operations management.
Imran's research primarily focuses on operations, logistics and supply chain management, with a particular focus on emerging topics in agri-food supply chains, including digital transformation, risk management and resilience, circular economy, sustainability, and climate change. The current scope of his research aligns with multiple United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (1, 2, 8, 9 & 13). Imran's work has been published in a range of A/A* (Q1) journals, such as the International Journal of Information Management, International Journal of Operations & Production Management, Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, International Journal of Production Economics, Production Planning & Control, Industrial Marketing Management, Journal of Business Research, IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, International Journal of Physical Distribution and Logistics Management, and high-quality conference proceedings.
Imran currently sits on the Editorial Board of several prestigious journals: the Journal of Business Research, Production Planning & Control and the International Journal of Emerging Markets.
He works closely with the researchers of 'Fight Food Waste CRC' and the 'Centre for Regional Economies and Supply Chain' at CQUniversity to pitch his research to industry partners and funding bodies for external research grants. To this end, Imran's current research grants, as a lead investigator, include: CRCNA (external) - $30,000.00 (2020-2024); Industry partners' (external)- $30,000.00 (2020-2023) + $90,000.00 (2022-2025); CQU's Internal Competitive Research Grant - $12,801.00 (2019-2021).
Imran has received multiple teaching and research accolades, such as: Vice-Chancellor's Award for Outstanding Early-Career Researcher in 2022; Vice-Chancellor's Research Commendation Award for Outstanding Early-Career Researcher in 2021; Dean's Award for Outstanding Early-Career Researcher in 2021 & 2022 (two years in a row) at CQUniversity; the Educator of the Year Award in 2019; and the Best Proceedings Paper at the Academy of Management 2019 Conference (USA).
Before joining academia, Imran held various managerial positions (> 10 years) at small and large organisations and contributed to the organisations' productivity by conducting business analysis, problem-driven research, and benefits realisation reports. As a Business Consultant, Imran applied a range of business management tools and trained staff, earning him a "Best Performance Award" from the company's CEO.
Imran is a passionate advocate for innovative, industry-engaged, interactive and inclusive education. He enjoys teaching at the intersection of cutting-edge theoretical knowledge and practical, real-world industry practices across a broad range of subjects. His approach is focused on equipping students with the skills they need to become job-ready graduates.
Universities Studied At
University of South Australia
PhD thesis title: A Resilience Model for Firms in Perishable Product Supply Chains
Universities Worked At
University of South Australia
Australian Institute of Business
Awards
• Conference Leadership Award, IEOM 2023 Conference, Melbourne, Australia
• Vice-Chancellor's Award for Outstanding Early-Career Researcher, 2022.
• Dean's Award for Outstanding Early Career Researcher, 2022.
• Best Track Paper Award at the Industrial Engineering and Operations Management (IEOM) Conference 2022, Sydney, Australia.
• Vice-Chancellor's Commendation Award for Outstanding Early Career Researcher, 2021.
• Dean's Award for Outstanding Early Career Researcher, 2021.
• Student Voice Commendation, Educators of the Year Award, 2020.
• Best Proceedings Paper Academy of Management 2019 Conference, Boston, USA.
• University of South Australia fully-funded Scholarship (fees offset + living allowance) for PhD, 2013-2017.
• Rector’s Medal for standing top position in the MBA program at the University of Management and Technology, 2010.
• Dean’s Merit Award for achieving the highest GPA in a Semester of MBA at UMT, 2009.
• Best Performance Award for excellence as a Business Consultant, 2011.
Previous teaching
Postgraduate level (online and face-to-face):
- Operations Management and Business Analytics
- Integrated Logistics Management
- Strategic Supply Chain Management
- Think Big (MGMT20143)
- Professional Project (BUSN20019)
- Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Sustainability
Undergraduate level (online and face-to-face):
- Quality Management
- IT&C Technologies
- Distribution and Marketing Logistics
- Operations Management Fundamental
- Business Operations/ sustainable business development
- Introduction to Business
- Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Professional Memberships
Member:
· Advisory Group of the FAO of the UN.
· Academy of Management, USA.
· British Academy of Management, UK.
· Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management.
· Citrus Australia Limited.
· Agribusiness Council of Australia
Computer Software
MS Office Suite, SPSS, AMOS, VOSViewer, R-Software.
Consultancy Work
- Since 2020, serve as an active member of the 'Advisory Group' for the FAO of the United Nations to transform the global food systems.
- Worked as a 'Business Consultant' for large chemical and machinery manufacturers/distributors and helped in the significant improvement of the company’s operational, market and financial performance which led to about a 10% increase in revenue, thus receiving a company award for my endeavours.
- Served as an 'Operations Consultant' for a manufacturing firm significantly improving operations and supply chain systems.
Accreditation
I am currently accredited for supervision in the following:
- 3509 Transportation, logistics and supply chains
At the level of Principal Supervisor
