Carol Prahinski

With almost 30 years of speaking experience and as a graduate of Second City improvisation, Dr. Carol Prahinski engages audiences with stories about business strategy misalignment, supply chain snafus, and purchasing agents with character.  Her enthusiasm and thought-provoking questions keep audiences engaged and entertained with lessons that can be applied immediately in your work and personal situations.

Dr. Prahinski received her Ph.D. and MS degrees in Operations Management from Ohio State University, an MBA from Babson College (Wellesley, MA), and a BSBA degree in Operations Management from the University of Delaware.  She is a Past International Director and Past Region Advisor with Toastmasters International; past president of the National Speakers Association; and a registered parliamentarian with the National Association of Parliamentarians.

Carol has won numerous speaking and leadership awards. She was selected as one of the top 50 business professors (Poets and Quants, 2018); the top professor who had the most positive impact on undergraduate students in 2018; speaking awards; Toastmaster of the Year; and Distinguished District Governor with Toastmasters International.  In addition, she has won several international awards for her research, business cases, and her Ph.D. dissertation.   Her research articles have been listed in the top 25 hottest articles for multiple years. She has won several international awards for her business cases. She was awarded a dissertation grant from the National Association of Purchasing Management for outstanding doctoral research in the field of purchasing.

Before her academic career, Carol had nine years of supply chain management and purchasing experience in the food manufacturing industry.