James E. West

Title
Adjunct Assistant Professor
Department
Department of Management and Technology
College
College of Business

Office Hours

Fridays 11-12n PDST or by appointment

Areas of Expertise

Dr. West has 45 years of extensive business and industry experiences serving as a system engineer, technical specialist, manager and manufacturing consultant worldwide to Fortune 500 firms including Square D Company, Avco Lycoming, Westinghouse, Owens Corning, General Electric, BMW and Lockheed Martin to name a few. He has served as President, board member, in special interest technical roles and presented papers for professional societies throughout his career including the American Production and Inventory Control Society (APICS), the Society for Manufacturing Engineers (SME), the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers (IISE) and was the conference chair for the first Automotive Supplier Excellence (ASE) National Conference in South Carolina.

Dr. West has been working to improve manufacturing productivity and competitiveness for small to large firms as a technical specialist and consultant for the NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership for thirty years.  Dr. West has also served as a Boeing Board Member with Impact Washington, the local Washington MEP affiliate.  He is an advisor with NIST and the MEP as an embed engineer for the Advanced Robotics Manufacturing (ARM) Institute,  the Clean Energy Smart Manufacturing Innovation Institute (CESMII), and NextFlex, the flexible hybrid electronics institute.

Dr. Jim West is an Adjunct Professor of Management in the College of Business at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University- Worldwide since 2010. He also teaches Information Technology as an Assistant Professor at University of Washington’s School of Engineering and Technology and is an Adjunct Professor for the University of Maryland in Information Technology. Formerly with Boeing Commercial as a program manager, Dr. West was appointed by Todd Zarfos, Vice President of the Washington State Design Centers to the UW-T Institute of Technology Advisory Board in 2010. He served as the Boeing Advisor and taught part time in the Institute and the Milgard School of Business until joining UW-T as an Assistant Professor in 2016 after his retirement from Boeing Commercial Airplanes after 25 years.

Dr. West has a Doctorate of Management with a focus in Information Technology and Organizational Leadership from the University of Phoenix; a Certificate in Systems Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University, a Masters in Technology and Education from Clemson University and a Bachelor of Science Degree from the University of South Carolina, Columbia in Business Administration with minors in Management and Marketing.

Dr. West has 44 years of extensive business and industry experiences serving as a system engineer, technical specialist, manager and manufacturing consultant worldwide to Fortune 500 firms including Square D Company, Avco Lycoming, Westinghouse, Owens Corning, General Electric, BMW and Lockheed Martin to name a few. He has served as President, board member, in special interest technical roles and presented papers for professional societies throughout his career including the American Production and Inventory Control Society (APICS), the Society for Manufacturing Engineers (SME), the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers (IISE) and was the conference chair for the first Automotive Supplier Excellence (ASE) National Conference in South Carolina.

Dr. West has been working to improve manufacturing productivity and competitiveness for small to large (OEM) firms as a technical specialist and consultant for the NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership for thirty years.  Dr. West has also served as a Boeing Board Member with Impact Washington, the local Washington MEP affiliate.  He is an advisor with NIST and the MEP as an embed engineer for the Advanced Robotics Manufacturing (ARM) Institute,  the Clean Energy Smart Manufacturing Innovation Institute (CESMII), and NextFlex, the flexible hybrid electronics institute.

Dr. West also serves on a statewide and national committee to provide technical knowledge, skills and expertise in support for national efforts to enable and enhance information technology infrastructure, risk management and cybersecurity support for the Region 10 Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) that is operationalized within the US Department of Homeland Security in Washington state.  

Dr. West is an advisor and board member for Lotus Ozone, a privately held manufacturer of water purification systems in Bangalore, India. He volunteers as an engineering advisor to Green River Community College, to the Federal Way School District’s Continuing Education Advisory Board, and is a resident of Dash Point and President of the Dash Point Improvement organization. In his spare time, he enjoys his family, gardening, swimming and cross country skiing. 

  • D.Mgt. - Doctor of Management in Organizational Leadership and Technology: Information Systems and Technology, University of Phoenix-Wyoming
  • M.H.R.D. - Master of Human Resource Development, Clemson University
  • MMIS 494: Aviation Information Systems
  • MMIS 561: Global Info & Tech Mgmt
  • MMIS 690: Management Info Sys Capstone
  • OBLD 511: Organizational Leadership

MBAA 520: Organizational Behavior, Theory and Applications in Aviation

ASCI 521: Aviation Aerospace Information Management

MGMT 221: Introduction to Management Information Systems

MGMT 317: Organizational Behavior

MGMT 320: Business Information Systems

OBLD 511: Organizational Leadership

Professional Experience

Boeing Commercial Airplanes, Project Manager (5)                              2007–2016

Boeing Commercial Airplanes, Project Manager (4)                              2004–2007

Lockheed Martin Aircraft Center, Systems Engineer                              2004           

Information Services                                                                               2000

Supply Chain Management Solutions                                                     2000

Jacobs Engineering, Manufacturing Systems Engineering                    1995–1996

CRS Sirrine Engineers Advanced Technology Group                            1993–1995

Fluor Daniel, Director                                                                              1993–1995

South Carolina State Technical Colleges, Instructor                               1986–1993

Avco Lycoming, Production Planning Manager                                       1983–1986

Litton Systems, Hewitt Robins Division, Marketing Manager                  1980–1983

Square D Company, Production Control Analyst                                    1975–1980


Manufacturing & IT Consulting Experience

Impact Washington, Mukilteo, WA                                                        2010

Lockheed Martin, Greenville, SC,                                                         2003

Supply Chain Management Solutions, Los Angeles, CA                      1999

Flowserve Corporation, Long Beach, CA                                              1998

Owens Corning Fiberglas, Anderson, SC                                             1992–1998

Stanback Corporation, Salisbury, NC                                                    1994

IKON Office Solutions, Greenville, SC                                                   1994

ICI Chemicals, Philadelphia, PA                                                            1994

Fine Art Lamps, Miami, FL                                                                     1994

General Electric Turbine Engine, Greenville, SC                                   1993

BMW, Greenville, SC                                                                             1993

Compaq Computers, Liberty, SC                                                           1993

Eurokera Glass, Greenville, SC                                                             1993

Westinghouse, Greenwood, SC,                                                            1992

Academic & Professional Organization Memberships

NIST Manufacturing Technology Centers                                                                  1988–Present

Association for Computing Machinery, Information Technology SIG                        2016–Present

University of Washington Tacoma, Industrial Advisory Board                                        2010–2016

Board of Directors, Impact Washington, NIST MEP Program                                        2010–2016

Boeing Focal University of Washington, Tacoma and Bothell                                        2010–2016

University of Washington Faculty Advisory Committee                                                2020-2023

University of Washington Tacoma Executive Council​                                                   2020-2023

University of Washington Tacoma, Institute of Technology,                                          2013–2016

            Industrial Advisory Board

Board of Directors, Impact Washington, NIST MEP Program                                        2011–2016

Boeing Focal University of Washington, Tacoma and Bothell                                        2011–2016

Board Member, Dash Point Community Involvement                                                    1997–2011

Conference Chair, ASE-Automotive Supplier Excellence Conference                          1996–1997

Member of the Year, APICS-American Production and Inventory                                 1996–1997

Control Society

President, APICS Board of Directors, Industrial Crescent Chapter                                1996–1997

Technical Excellence Award, University of South Carolina                                                      1990

Board Member, APICS Small Manufacturing Specific Industry Group                          1988–1996

Board Member, APICS Industrial Crescent Chapter                                                      1988–1996

Board Member, Society for Manufacturing Engineers                                                    1986–2000