MercuryGate’s Wooden donates $5 million to university

  The co-founder and chief revenue officer of MercuryGate International has given $5 million to the University of South Florida Foundation to name the Monica Wooden Center for Supply Chain Management & Sustainability.
   Wooden (pictured above) co-founded MercuryGate 19 years ago. As its first CEO, she helped develop procedures industry observers say are among the most sophisticated and flexible transportation management solutions that continue to be available in the market today, according to the announcement from USF.
   Wooden said, “Ninety percent of everything in the world is shipped, so USF’s ability to educate more students in the supply chain field will truly keep the United States at the forefront of this industry.” 
   Wooden’s donation will further the USF Muma College of Business’ goal of providing needed research in the field of supply chain management, as well as prepare talent to carry the state into an era that some experts project may one day rival tourism as the main industry. The center — the first of its kind in Florida — employs five supply chain management faculty who are leading researchers on logistics issues.
   Wooden’s gift will establish an endowed fund to support center operations, including scholarships, research and operational expenses. It also will provide a professorship that will support a distinguished faculty member.
   The U.S. Bureau of Labor & Statistics predicts that logistics jobs will expand by 7 percent within the next 10 years and identified logistics as one of the 20 best business jobs. Logistics and supply chain management also are included in lists that rank top career fields for women over the next decade.
   Since 2015, MercuryGate has donated transportation management software licenses to USF for classroom use, supported faculty with industry insight and was a key player in launching the inaugural statewide Florida Supply Chain Summit co-sponsored by the center this spring.