Shaping Global Leaders

Dr. Vijay Kannan's 24 Years of Impact at the Huntsman School

Guided by wisdom and a strong sense of ethics that have earned the trust and respect of those around him, Dr. Vijay Kannan’s deep understanding of global business operations has profoundly impacted the student experience since he joined the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business in 2000.

Kannan has held key leadership roles in the School. As the Director of International Programs, he supervised the School’s extensive global learning experiences. Vijay personally led 23 international student trips to locations in India, France, Thailand, Vietnam, China, Chile, Peru, South Korea, Russia, Armenia, Turkey, and Brazil. Each trip involved significant planning, execution, and personal commitment to ensure students a world-class experience. While Head of the Department of Management, Kannan efficiently and effectively led curriculum upgrades and enhanced degree offerings for students. As Academic Director of the Huntsman Scholar Program, he worked diligently to provide exceptional out-of-class learning experiences to prepare students to lead with distinction in commerce and public affairs. During his time as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, he supervised curriculum development, degree offerings, and academic policies and procedures, and helped the college successfully renew its AACSB accreditation.

Vijay was awarded the Vernon & MaRee Buehler Endowed Professorship in recognition of his significant scholastic achievements, including authorship of numerous articles on supply chain management, cellular manufacturing, and manufacturing strategy.

Kannan studied Management Sciences at the London School of Economics & Political Science, received an MBA in Finance and Decision Science at Indiana University, and earned a PhD in Production & Operations Management at Michigan State University.

Alongside his tremendous professional achievements, Kannan never lost focus on what matters most—his students.

“Throughout my time in the Huntsman School, I have tried to help students appreciate that knowledge alone is not enough, but the ability to make sense of it, think critically, and make decisions accordingly is what will help them be effective leaders. In the classroom, on a global learning experience, or as a mentor, my commitment has been to help students see the possibilities, and develop the skills and capacities to become future professionals and citizens that have meaningful impact.”

Student comments reflect Vijay’s investment in their development and affirm his thoughtful approach to their learning: 

• This class helped me apply my knowledge rather than just cram the information into my head and try to remember it for an exam. Definitely one of the harder courses I have taken at USU, but I feel like I have grown as a student.
• I really enjoyed the case studies and lectures. There were many opportunities to learn and improve my understanding of making decisions about supply chains and global business, as well as its intricacies.
• Thank you for focusing on skills that will be relevant outside the class.
• I really like the connections we made in class to how what we’re learning applies to real-world content. I really like how we were pushed to analyze the learnings each week.
• I loved the class. Discussing the reasons why some companies’ supply chains worked while others didn’t was one of my favorite parts of the course. My other favorite was the simulated supply chain activities. I felt I learned as much from those as from several of the other discussions combined.

Douglas D. Anderson, dean of the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business, notes, “Vijay has filled many important roles in his 24 years at the Huntsman School. In each of these roles and in his teaching, research, and service to the university and the academic community, he has been a model of the engaged professor. We are deeply grateful for his profound contribution to our community.”