Since 1965, the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) has presented its annual Distinguished Service Award, the group's highest honor, to an individual who has given exemplary, career-long service to the logistics and supply chain management professions. This year, that individual is Dr. Thomas W. Speh.

The James Evans Rees Distinguished Professor of Distribution at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, Speh is best known for his research on warehousing costs. But as his long-standing service to CSCMP, the Warehousing Education and Research Council (WERC), and educational institutions attests, his interests and achievements reach far beyond the four walls of the DC.

Speh's leadership skills and strategic thinking led to terms as president of CSCMP, where he helped guide the group's transition to a supply chain focus, and as president of WERC, where he co-founded the Warehousing Research Center. A committed educator, he led the development of Miami University's supply chain program and taught its first course. Speh, who is the author of more than 50 scholarly articles, research monographs, and textbooks, has also been recognized as one of DC VELOCITY'S "Rainmakers."

CSCMP will formally present Speh with the 2007 Distinguished Service Award at its annual educational conference, slated for Oct. 21 through 24 in Philadelphia.