Zibin Xu, MSCM '24

Zibin Xu, MSCM ’24, has been an artist all her life. As a child, she wanted to be a fashion designer when she grew up and always assumed she would pursue an art career. But when she left home to attend college at Ohio State University, Zibin realized art may not be the right path for her after all.

While enrolled at Ohio State, Zibin began exploring other subjects she was interested in, particularly business. Though she would still earn a minor in studio art, Zibin decided to change her major to logistics management. In an intro to logistics class, Zibin remembers touring warehouses and ports with her class and professor and falling in love with supply chain.

“I literally got goosebumps when I saw the warehouses and ports on those tours,” Zibin said. “I thought that supply chain was really fantastic and so interesting, and that's why I decided on the major.”

Finding Michigan Ross

After completing her degree at Ohio State, Zibin was eager to continue her education but wasn’t sure where to go for a graduate degree. After a former professor suggested she check out the Ross School of Business Master of Supply Chain Management Program, Zibin was intrigued.

“I learned that there are a lot of opportunities in terms of coursework and applying technical skills,” she said. “The projects you have the opportunity to do also seemed very helpful, so I felt that Michigan Ross was the right fit for me.”

Zibin applied and was accepted, and since starting the MSCM program in the summer, she has been enjoying the challenging curriculum and supportive cohort community.

“I have found that my classmates are pretty competitive. You have to work hard because the flow here is pretty fast, and you learn a lot,” Zibin said. “Many of my classmates also already have work experience, with some of them having worked in a warehouse for four or five years, so when I do a project with them, it benefits me, too. It pushes me to follow their pace and try to understand what we are actually doing and what I can do to help contribute to the team.”

In addition to learning the curriculum alongside her classmates, Zibin is also working on a Supply Chain Consulting Studio Project. Her team is working with Little Caesar Enterprises Inc. at their global resource center in Detroit.

“We did a site visit last week. Our team met with our sponsor and talked about the project. Basically, we are working to improve the product delivery phase of the supply chain process for them,” Zibin said. “We are interested in looking into what the cost model is like and how much more it would cost the company to increase the frequency of deliveries each week.”

Experiencing the Ross community

Zibin says her favorite part of the Michigan Ross experience has been the community. She feels inspired and motivated to do her best by her peers and says she learns so much from spending time with them.

“Many of us are from different cultural backgrounds, so when we work together, it's not just about the project itself; it’s also a chance to learn from others,” Zibin said. “You get to know people from countries like India, and they’ll sometimes explain, ‘In our culture, that's how we do this,’ or maybe they might teach us a few words they know. It’s really fun, and it's just so interesting to learn about different cultures and how to apply new ideas to the problems we work to solve together.”

Starting her supply chain career

Zibin says she’s excited to see what the future holds after she graduates in May.

“I'm still doing some job hunting, but my goal is to land in California or somewhere similar so I can pursue my hobbies, like surfing. I don't have a specific role I want to be in, but I'm going to stay in the industry. I've been applying for some procurement logistics-specific roles,” she said.

Zibin also offered some advice for prospective students considering attending Michigan Ross to pursue their MSCM degrees:

“I would say don't panic, and don't stress yourself,” she said. “You don't have to be the best in every field; you just need to know what you want to focus on and continue developing that. Just know what you want to do, and you can get there.”