Paul Thompson, founder and chairman of Hickory-headquartered, global third party logistics company Transportation Insight, will be the speaker at this fall’s Harlan E. Boyles Distinguished Lecture at Appalachian State University.
The talk is entitled The Seven Attributes of a Great Leader.
The event, sponsored by the Walker College of Business, is on Friday, October 28 at 10 a.m. in Holmes Convocation Center on Appalachian’s campus.
A visionary behind many successful companies in the North American transportation and logistics industry, Mr. Thompson has founded or co-founded six highly successful North American companies, including his portfolio’s flagship brand Transportation Insight, a global third-party logistics provider with more than $1.5 billion in gross revenues and more than 1,200 clients that range from mid-cap to Fortune 500 companies.
Transportation Insight has appeared on the prestigious Inc. 5000 Honor Roll of fastest-growing privately held companies in North America since 2008 and was named a 2016 SmartWay® Excellence Awardee from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, as a result of its efforts to work with client partners to implement supply chain network and transportation strategies that move goods in the cleanest, most energy-efficient way possible while reducing the impacts of carbon pollution.
Mr. Thompson has more than 25 years of executive experience in supply chain, logistics and transportation leadership including business strategy, operations, optimization modeling, supply chain consulting and yield management. Having spent 15 years developing pricing models for some of the largest motor carriers in the United States, Mr. Thompson is a recognized innovator in long-term value creation.
Mr. Thompson was recently named the inaugural Grant Thornton North Carolina 100 Cultural Leader of the Year and was an award recipient at the 2015 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year® Southeast Region.
Mr. Thompson was instrumental in the establishment of the Transportation Insight Center for Entrepreneurship at Appalachian State University and serves as a board member for the center, as well as Appalachian’s Supply Chain Management program. Mr. Thompson also serves on the Catawba County Chamber of Commerce and Wine to Water, is a past Board Chairman of Hickory Christian Academy and Samaritan’s Feet, and acts as a strategic adviser to Safe Harbor Rescue Mission, Access 2 Excess / Restore Global and various churches in the Hickory, NC, area.
In addition, Mr. Thompson’s investment in the 66,000 square-foot Transportation Insight corporate campus at the historic Lyerly Mill has been a catalyst in efforts to revitalize Hickory, NC and its downtown area. While the campus is a cornerstone of the company’s Vision 20/20 growth plan to become a $3.5 to $5 billion company by Jan. 1, 2020, Mr. Thompson’s underlying purpose in the development is to invest in a lifestyle business that promotes physical activity and better overall quality of life for its associates and the community at large.
Mr. Thompson earned his bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering from the University of Arkansas.
The Boyles Lecture is open to the public, and there is no cost to attend. The event will be held at the Holmes Convocation Center on the campus of Appalachian State University. Shuttles will run from Peacock/Raley Lot Circle and the Rivers Street Parking Deck, beginning one hour prior to the lecture.
The lecture series is named for the late Harlan E. Boyles, who served for 24 years as N.C. state treasurer. The lecture and reception are open to the public. For more information, call 828-262-2057.