Contact Dr Heather Skipworth
- Tel: +44 (0) 1234 750111 x2843
- Email: heather.skipworth@cranfield.ac.uk
- ORCID
Background
Prior to her academic career Heather graduated in Mechanical Engineering and worked in the packaging industry for a number of years fulfilling manufacturing roles responsible for productivity, quality and design improvements. During this period she also completed a Marketing Diploma, part time, to gain an appreciation of approaches to demand creation to complement her knowledge and experience on demand fulfilment and operations management. Following the completion of an MSc in Engineering and Management of Manufacturing systems at Cranfield University she joined BICC, a large cable manufacturer, as an internal manufacturing consultant. Here she took a leading role in performance improvement projects and first developed an interest in form postponement as a strategy for improving supply chain performance. She subsequently won an EPSRC Industrial Case Award, from BICC, to fund her Doctorate at Cranfield School of Management.
Current activities
Heather joined Cranfield School of Management faculty in 2004 following the completion of her Doctorate at Cranfield University addressing the application of the form postponement logistics and manufacturing strategy. As an Associate Professor she is also Director of the Agile Supply Chain Research Club, which provides a collaborative forum where member companies can share promising supply chain practices and participate in Cranfield University research. She works on a variety of research projects in the Centre for Logistics, Procurement and Supply Chain Management, and has published in a number of leading international journals. Her particular areas of research interest include: agile and responsive supply chains; segmented supply chain strategy; supply chain risk and resilience; and supply chain relationships.
Heather teaches on the MSc in Logistics and Supply Chain Management leading modules on Supply Chain Strategy and Sales and Operations Planning (SOP). She also delivers a supply chain module to the MBA programme. Further, she is the lead author on a key logistics text influencing academics and practitioners entitled "Logistics Management and Strategy" (edition 6, 2019), which is ranked as number 5 in the top ten supply chain books of all time on www.supplychainopz.com.
Clients
- DHL
- Ecolab
- St-Gobain
- PPG
- Ball
- Pitney Bowes
- VW Logistics
- Port of Tilbury
- Specsavers
- Nestle
- Travis Perkins
- Proctor & Gamble
- O2
- Bausch & Lomb
- CEVA Logistics
- TNT Fashion
- Environment Agency
- MOD
- BAE Systems
- Siemens Magnet Technology
- Applied Materials
- Kongsberg Automotive
Publications
Articles In Journals
- Skipworth HD, Bastl M, Cerruti C & Mena C (2023) Supply networks for extreme uncertainty: a resource orchestration perspective, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, Available online 20 February 2023.
- Kühl C, Skipworth HD, Bourlakis M & Aktas E (2022) The circularity of product-service systems: the role of macro-, meso- and micro-level contextual factors, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, Available online 23 August 2022.
- Roscoe S, Aktas E, Petersen K, Skipworth H, Handfield R & Habib F (2022) Redesigning global supply chains during compounding geopolitical disruptions: The role of supply chain logics, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, 42 (9) 1407-1434.
- Kühl C, Bourlakis M, Aktas E & Skipworth H (2022) Product-service systems and circular supply chain practices in UK SMEs: The moderating effect of internal environmental orientation, Journal of Business Research, 146 (July) 155-165.
- Moradlou H, Reefke H, Skipworth H & Roscoe S (2021) Geopolitical disruptions and the manufacturing location decision in multinational company supply chains: a Delphi study on Brexit, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, 41 (2) 102-130.
- Moradlou H, Fratocchi L, Skipworth H & Ghadge A (2021) Post-Brexit back-shoring strategies: what UK manufacturing companies could learn from the past?, Production Planning and Control, 33 (14) 1319-1336.
- Skipworth H, Delbufalo E & Mena C (2020) Logistics and procurement outsourcing in the healthcare sector: a comparative analysis, European Management Journal, 38 (3) 518-532.
- Roscoe S, Skipworth H, Aktas E & Habib F (2020) Managing supply chain uncertainty arising from geopolitical disruptions: Evidence from the pharmaceutical industry and Brexit, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, 40 (9) 1499-1529.
- Kühl C, Bourlakis A, Aktas E & Skipworth H (2019) How does servitisation affect supply chain circularity? A systematic literature review, Journal of Enterprise Information Management, 33 (4) 703-728.
- Søgaard B, Skipworth H, Bourlakis M, Mena C & Wilding R (2018) Facing disruptive technologies: aligning purchasing maturity to contingencies, Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 24 (1) 147-169.
- Hansen C, Mena C & Skipworth H (2017) Exploring political risk in offshoring engagements, International Journal of Production Research, 55 (7) 2051-2067.
- Cerruti C, Mena C, Skipworth H & Tavoletti E (2016) Characterizing agile supply partnerships in the fashion industry, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, 36 (8) 923-947.
- Skipworth H, Godsell J, Wong CY, Saghiri S & Julien D (2015) Supply chain alignment for improved business performance: an empirical study, Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 20 (5) 511-533.
- Wong CY, Skipworth HD, Godsell J & Achimugu N (2012) Towards a theory of supply chain alignment enablers: a systematic literature review, Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 17 (4) 419-437.
- Skipworth H & Harrison AS (2008) Implications of form postponement to manufacturing: a cross case comparison, International Journal of Production Research, 46 (1) 173-195.
- Skipworth H & Harrison AS (2006) Implications of form postponement to manufacturing a customized product, International Journal of Production Research, 44 (8) 1627-1652.
- Skipworth H & Harrison A (2004) Implications of form postponement to manufacturing: a case study, International Journal of Production Research, 42 (10) 2063-2081.
Conference Papers
- Moradlou H, Skipworth H, Bals L & Aktas E (2022) Supply chain reconfiguration in response to geopolitical disruptions: exploration versus exploitation. In: 29th EurOMA International Annual Conference, 2022, Berlin, 1-6 July 2022.
- Moradlou H, Skipworth H, Bals L & Aktas E (2022) Rightshoring for ambidexterity: supply chain reconfiguration in response to geopolitical disruptions. In: IPSERA 2022: Building bridges, Jönköping, 10-13 April 2022.
- Moradlou H, Reefke, H, Skipworth & Tate W (2020) Brexit and Manufacturing Supply Chain Location Decision. In: International Purchasing Supply, Education and Research Association (IPSERA) Conference, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 5-8 April 2020.
- Moradlou H, Reefke H, Skipworth H & Tate W (2019) Investigating the Impacts of Brexit on Manufacturing Location Decisions. In: POMS Conference 2019 - Brighton, Brighton, 2-4 September 2019.
- Moradlou H, Fratocchi L, Skipworth H & Ghadge A (2019) Is Reshoring still a viable Strategy for the UK Manufacturers?. In: European Sciences Decision Institute (EDSI) Conference - UK, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, 2-5 June 2019.
- Roscoe S, Skipworth H, Aktas E & Habib F (2019) Supply chain risk management and the role of firm size: a longitudinal study of Brexit. In: 26th European Operations Management Association (EurOMA) Conference, Helsinki, 17-19 June 2019.
- Aitken J, Deakins E, Skipworth H & Cole R (2018) The role of temporal norms and orientations in operations management. In: 25th EurOMA International Annual Conference, 2018, Budapest, 24-26 June 2018.
- Nonhoff B, Skipworth H, Bourlakis M, Mena C, Bernon M & Reefke H (2017) Exploring the imperative for purchasing strategic alignment to drive purchasing maturity. In: 24th EurOMA Conference 2017, Edinburgh, 1-5 July 2017.
- Carr J, Skipworth HD & Mena C (2016) Product architecture design: the role for supply chain configuration. In: 27th Annual Conference of the Production and Operations Management Society, Orlando, FL, 6-9 May 2016.
- Shao W, Skipworth H, Welch N & Noble G (2012) A supplier segmentation framework to support a growth strategy at British American Tobacco. In: Logistics Research Network, Cranfield University, Cranfield, 5-7 September 2012.
- Shao W, Skipworth H, Welch N & Noble G (2012) A supplier segmentation framework to support a growth strategy at British American Tobacco. In: 23rd Annual Conference of the Production and Operations Management Society, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A, 20-23 April 2012.
Books
- Moradlou H, Reefke H & Skipworth H. (2020) Manufacturing out, distribution in. In: Carmaggedon? Brexit and beyond for UK Auto (Bite-sized Brexit Books), Independently Published.
- Harrison A, Skipworth H, van Hoek R & Aitken J (2019) Logistics Management and Strategy: competing through the supply chain. Pearson, ed. 6.
- Harrison A, van Hoek R & Skipworth H (2015) Logistics Management and Strategy: Competing Through the Supply Chain. Pearson, ed. 5th Edition.
- Harrison A, van Hoek R & Skipworth H (2014) Logistics management and strategy: competing through the supply chain. Harlow: Pearson Education Ltd.
- Bernon M, Baker P, Mena C, Palmer A, Smart A, Skipworth H & Templar S (2012) Towards more sustainable supply chain management. In: Cranfield on Corporate Sustainability, Sheffield: Greenleaf Publishing, p. 149-166.
