Female university lecturer with many marks in the logistics industry

With nearly 30 years of experience in research and teaching, Associate Professor, Dr. Ho Thi Thu Hoa, senior lecturer, Head of Logistics and Supply Chain Management Department, Faculty of Industrial Engineering and Management, International University, Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City has become one of the leading female experts in the field of logistics in Vietnam.

Ms. Thu Hoa not only left her mark through her research and teaching activities, but also contributed to shaping policies and development strategies for the industry.

Filling the gap in logistics platform research

Associate Professor Dr. Ho Thi Thu Hoa is one of the leading female experts in the field of logistics in Vietnam.

Associate Professor, Dr. Ho Thi Thu Hoa's journey to logistics began in 1993, when she registered for the university entrance exam to study Maritime Transport Economics at Vietnam Maritime University - a major that is a very important part of the logistics service chain.

According to Associate Professor, Dr. Ho Thi Thu Hoa, logistics is not as dry as many people think, but is very attractive and has an important contribution in clearing the flow of goods and connecting values. Providing logistics services is not only to meet the needs of businesses, but also to contribute to the sustainable development of the country.

“How can we contribute to making a phone go from raw materials to components and then continue through the assembly line to the finished product and be able to bring it to the global market at the same time; how can we contribute to making Vietnamese agricultural products able to be exported to international markets with high quality and value?” Those questions led Ms. Thu Hoa to learn about planning, determining transportation schedules, designing routes, optimizing operations and coordinating methods to create a smooth, uninterrupted flow throughout the supply chain.

After graduating from university, Ms. Thu Hoa continued her postgraduate studies at Vietnam Maritime University and in 2002 received a scholarship to attend the course "Logistics and Multimodal Transport" in Rotterdam (Netherlands) - one of the world's leading seaport and logistics centers. After that, she continued to work in training human resources in the logistics industry with the desire to share new knowledge, new problems, and intelligence.

The desire to fill the gap in data and fundamental research on logistics has motivated Associate Professor, Dr. Ho Thi Thu Hoa to continue choosing the scientific path. The PhD scholarship at the University of Economics in Bratislava (Slovakia) is an opportunity for her to access the world's logistics knowledge, contributing to the systematization of knowledge, applied research and providing a basis for domestic policy making.

“Logistics to me is not just numbers, but the “blood vessels” of the economy, where each research and each improvement can create great value for businesses and society, as well as have a direct impact on national competitiveness and sustainable development” - Associate Professor, Dr. Ho Thi Thu Hoa shared.

Associate Professor Dr. Ho Thi Thu Hoa has chaired and participated in 20 scientific research topics at all levels, published more than 100 scientific articles domestically and internationally, and edited 4 textbooks and monographs.

The close connection between scientific research - teaching - practical application is a special point in the research journey of Associate Professor, Dr. Ho Thi Thu Hoa. Her research works and those of her colleagues contribute to creating a basis for policy making and strategic orientation for ministries, branches and localities, and also propose practical solutions for businesses. In addition, she is invited to participate as a chair or member of international research projects, thereby contributing to promoting the international integration process of Vietnam's logistics industry.

During her nearly 30-year career, Associate Professor, Dr. Ho Thi Thu Hoa has chaired and participated in 20 scientific research projects at all levels, many international projects; published more than 100 domestic and international scientific articles, many of which are in the Scopus category. In particular, Ms. Thu Hoa has chaired the compilation of 4 textbooks and monographs - the foundational documents for logistics training and research in Vietnam.

One of her outstanding contributions is participating in the development of the Vietnam Logistics Services Development Strategy for the period 2025 - 2035, with a vision to 2050, as a member of the Strategy Development Steering Committee and Head of the Human Resources Research Group, contributing to the long-term, sustainable development orientation for the entire industry. In addition, she is also the project manager of "Developing the logistics industry in Ho Chi Minh City to 2025, with a vision to 2030"; presiding over research topics on logistics, supply chains, inland waterway transport, seaport brands for ministries, branches and localities, participating in the Editorial Board of specialized reports, developing national standards...

Building high-quality human resources

Building a high-quality logistics workforce for the country is an important goal and the driving force that makes Associate Professor, Dr. Ho Thi Thu Hoa stick with and devote much enthusiasm to training. She always focuses on bringing practical issues into teaching and connecting businesses so that learners not only grasp theory but also practice thinking to solve practical problems effectively.

According to Associate Professor, Dr. Ho Thi Thu Hoa, in recent years, the logistics sector in Vietnam has developed very strongly, promoting an increase in human resource demand in both quantity and quality. Schools have expanded training in this field at both university and college levels, but human resources have not yet met the market's requirements. Many businesses tend to train on-site, but this approach only helps meet immediate operational needs; to have a high-quality team, capable of finding optimal solutions or improving the system, it is clear that well-trained human resources from educational institutions are still needed.

Associate Professor Dr. Ho Thi Thu Hoa (first from left) is always active in guiding doctoral students, graduate students and undergraduate students.

Therefore, she always strives to participate in training and guiding graduate students, master students and undergraduate students to contribute to providing more human resources for teaching as well as practical activities in the industry. The achievement that makes Ms. Thu Hoa most proud is not her personal title, but the maturity of many generations of students, who have now become experts, managers, teachers, joining hands to develop Vietnam logistics.

According to Associate Professor, Dr. Ho Thi Thu Hoa, to meet practical requirements, training institutions need to orient training activities, update subjects and teaching content, to be more suitable with reality. Along with that, schools and businesses need to accompany students so that after graduation, they must be able to work immediately, meeting the needs of domestic and foreign businesses. For students, you need to practice three factors: Attitude - skills - knowledge, to be able to become global human resources, conquering the international market.

“I always encourage and motivate young colleagues and students to confidently pursue logistics and hope that they will become brave logistics entrepreneurs, confident in integration, dare to dream big and have enough capacity to affirm the position of Vietnamese logistics on the regional and world map” - Associate Professor, Dr. Ho Thi Thu Hoa expressed.

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Van Hop, Head of the Faculty of Industrial Engineering and Management, International University, Ho Chi Minh City National University, assessed that Ms. Thu Hoa has made important and lasting contributions to the development of the logistics and supply chain management sector in Vietnam. The valuable point is that her research always closely follows business practices, accurately reflecting the needs for innovation, digitalization, and greening of the industry. Thanks to that, her research results are not only academic but also have a real impact on policy planning and orientation for the development of Vietnam's logistics industry towards modernity, sustainability, and international integration.

With great significance in connecting theory and practice, her research results have contributed to the development of the National Logistics Services Development Strategy, regional logistics center planning, logistics development and high-quality logistics human resource development policies and have been applied in many provinces and cities.

In teaching and training, Ms. Thu Hoa has always actively participated in building and developing undergraduate and graduate training programs; devoted much enthusiasm to teaching, guiding and inspiring generations of students, trainees, graduate students as well as young colleagues in studying, scientific research and contributing to the development and improvement of the quality of human resource training in the industry.

In particular, in terms of policy development and industry development, Ms. Thu Hoa has participated in consulting and directly implementing policy planning for central and provincial agencies. Her contributions have helped to effectively connect the three pillars: State - business - school, creating a foundation for the sustainable development of the industry.

The contributions of Associate Professor, Dr. Ho Thi Thu Hoa have been recognized with many Certificates of Merit at all levels as well as important awards. Recently, she was honored as one of 12 outstanding individuals to receive the Vietnam Women's Award 2025.

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/giao-duc/nu-giang-vien-dai-hoc-voi-nhieu-dau-an-trong-nganh-logistics-20251118071601590.htm