Section: Overview
Overview
Key publications
Research funding
Supervising & teaching
Career

Key details

Areas of expertise

  • sustainable supply chain management
  • Social and economic impact of industries
  • Operations management
  • Diversity & inclusion
  • Decision-making

Available to supervise research students

Available for media queries

About Catherine Lou

Dr Catherine Lou is a senior lecturer in supply chain and logistics in the Victoria University Business School, Specialisation advisor in Supply Chain and Logistics Undergraduate Course and Research Leader for Business Discipline /Research Fellow at the Institute for Sustainable Industries & Liveable Cities at Victoria University.

Catherine joined VU as a lecturer after she completed her PhD (Supply Chain Optimisation) in 2015. During her PhD she was awarded the International Student of the Year – Postgraduate by Victoria State in 2013 and has since been awarded the VU Outstanding Student Alumni Award 2015. In October 2018 Catherine was awarded the Young Professional of the Year award by the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport in Australia (CILTA). She is the Australia Chairperson and Global Vice Chairperson (Australasia) for Women in Logistics and Transport.

She has conducted research in supply chain modelling since 2008 and has a strong applied mathematical modelling background. Catherine has received competitive research grants during her research career. She has research interests that cover the topics:

  • supply chain management (sustainability, operations management, optimisation modelling, social procurement, corporate governance and performance, risk management)
  • green tourism (sustainable supply chain framework) and visitor economy 
  • women in leadership and development, gender/cultural diversity and inclusion for sustainable development
  • international students wellbeing
  • business information systems through the application of optimisation modelling, statistics, and other quantitative analysis.

Qualifications

  • PhD, Victoria University, Australia, 2015
  • MSc, BUAA, China, 2010
  • GCTE, Victoria University, 2018

Key publications

Year Citation
2022 Lou, C. X., Islam, S. MN., & Billington, N. (220729). Supply chain management and corporate governance: Artificial intelligence, game theory and robust optimisation.

doi: 10.4324/9781003266457

2020 Li, Y., Wang, Y., Lou, X., & Zhang, Z. (Eds.). (201201). Report on the development of sports industry of China (2019). China: Social Sciences Academic Press (China).

Year Citation
2022 Lou, C. X., Bonti, A., Prokofieva, M., & Abdelrazek, M. (220101). Supply Chain and Decision Making: What is Next for Visualisation? (pp. 653-672).

doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-93119-3_26

2019 Wang, Y., Zhang, Z., & Lou, X. (191201). Sports Industry Investment Monitoring Report In Li, Y. (Ed.) (pp. 181-210). China: Social Sciences Academic Press.

Year Citation
2021 Corney, T., Lou, C., Woods, B., & Dewhurst, A. (210312). International Student Housing and Wellbeing. Melbourne, Australia: Victoria University.

Year Citation
2020 Wang, J., Shee, H., & Lou, X. (201231). A Review of Supply Chain Risk - Outsourcing Pollution Perspective IEEE Computer Society Press.
2020 Lou, C. X., Bonti, A., Prokofieva, M., Abdelrazek, M., & Chowdary, Kari. (200901). Literature Review on Visualization in Supply Chain Decision Making Paper presented at Proceedings of the International Conference on Information Visualisation (pp. 746-750).

doi: 10.1109/IV51561.2020.00019

Year Citation
2021 Jin, H., Chan, M., Morda, R., Lou, C. X., & Vrcelj, Z. (210101). A scientometric review of sustainable infrastructure research: visualization and analysis. International Journal of Construction Management,

doi: 10.1080/15623599.2021.2017114

2020 Wang, Y., Lou, X., & Wang, C. (200115). The Difference of Two-Stage decision-making of Residential Sports consumption in Beijing and Its policy implication - a Research based on Double-hurdle Model. Journal of Beijing Sport University, 43(1), (16-28).
2020 Lou, C. X., Shuai, J., Luo, L., & Li, H. (200115). Optimal transportation planning of classified domestic garbage based on map distance. Journal of Environmental Management, 254

doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2019.109781

Research funding for the past 5 years

Please note:

  • Funding is ordered by the year the project commenced and may continue over several years.
  • Funding amounts for contact research are not disclosed to maintain commercial confidentiality.
  • The order of investigators is not indicative of the role they played in the research project.

Warehousing - Addressing Changing Skills Needs
From: Victorian Skills Authority
Other investigators: Dr Riccardo Natoli, Dr Himanshu Shee
For period: 2022-2023
$39,500
Australia-ASEAN: 'New Normal for the Visitor Economy Supply Chain'
From: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Australian Government (DFAT)
Other investigators: Dr Joanne Pyke, Prof Terry De lacy, Dr Thu-huong Nguyen
For period: 2022-2023
$38,500

Social Value Creation for Transport and Infrastructure
From: Victorian Higher Education Strategic Investment Fund
Other investigators: Dr Malindu Sandanayake, Dr Elmira Jamei, Dr Hing-wah Chau, Aspr David Goodwin, Prof Zora Vrcelj, Dr Riccardo Natoli, Dr Melissa Chan, Dr Jonny Bouras
For period: 2021-2022
$593,000

International Student Housing and Mental Wellbeing
From: Department of Jobs, Precincts & Regions
Other investigators: Aspr Timothy Corney
For period: 2019-2020
Not disclosed
Project Jigsaw
From: NEM Australasia
Other investigators: Dr Joanne Pyke, Prof Terry De lacy, Dr Hua Wang, Dr Khandakar Ahmed
For period: 2019-2019
$6,132

Developing a Sustainable Value Chain Framework for International Students Studying in Australia
From: Infotecture Development
Other investigators: Dr Riccardo Natoli
For period: 2017-2018
$30,000

Supervision of research students at VU

Available to supervise research students

Available for media queries

Currently supervised research students at VU

No. of students Study level Role
1 Associate supervisor

Currently supervised research students at VU

Students & level Role
(1) Associate supervisor

Teaching activities & experience

Catherine is the specialisation advisor Unit Coordinator of the following VU units:

Key academic roles

Dates Role Department / Organisation
Sep 2019 - Present
Specialisation advisor for Supply Chain undergraduate course program
Victoria University
Sep 2021 - Present
Research Leader for Business, Institute for Sustainable Industries & Liveable Cities
Victoria University
Dates Role & Department/Organisation
Sep 2019 -
Present
Specialisation advisor for Supply Chain undergraduate course program
Victoria University
Sep 2021 -
Present
Research Leader for Business, Institute for Sustainable Industries & Liveable Cities
Victoria University

Key industry, community & government roles

Dates Role Department/Organisation
Oct 2020 - Oct 2023
Australia Chairperson
Women in Logistics & Transport (WiLAT) in Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport in Australia
Sep 2021 - Dec 2024
Global Vice Chairperson of Australasia
Women in Logistics & Transport (WiLAT)
Dates Role & Department/Organisation
Oct 2020 - Oct 2023
Australia Chairperson
Women in Logistics & Transport (WiLAT) in Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport in Australia
Sep 2021 - Dec 2024
Global Vice Chairperson of Australasia
Women in Logistics & Transport (WiLAT)

Awards

Year Award
2018

Young Professional of the Year - Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport in Australia

2019

International Young Achiever Award Finalist - Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (International)

2021

VUBS Award for Excellence in Research (Individual - Early Career) - Victoria University Business School

2022

Finalist of 'Professional Women in Transport' - Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport Australia

Show more awards

Professional memberships

  • Chartered Member, Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport in Australia

Media appearances

01st September 2018

WINNING RESEARCHER

"Meet Catherine Xiaocui Lou, the State of Victoria’s international postgraduate student of the year 2013." After Catherine graduated and she joined VU as academic, and was awarded the Young Professional of the Year award by Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport in Australia (CILTA). The award recognises outstanding individual, for their achievements in the industry in 2018. Her experience was captured as success stories under VU community.