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Zachary Collier

Asst Prof

Management, Dept of

Address:

Kyle Hall 374
Box 6954

Headshot of Zachary Collier

Biography

My research is broadly about how individuals and organizations manage risks. This involves identifying what can go wrong, how likely it is to happen, and what the consequences might be, and then making decisions about the best ways to reduce that risk to an acceptable level. In my research I apply interdisciplinary modeling tools from decision analysis, operations research, economics, and systems engineering to better understand how complex systems can be effectively managed. In particular, I am interested in supply chains and the semiconductor industry. 

At Radford, I mainly teach courses on operations management. All businesses have operations – the series of processes that ultimately transform raw inputs into the goods and services that the business offers to customers. I like teaching operations management because it provides a useful toolbox of methods and models for thinking about challenging business problems. Operations management can also be used in everyday life, as it provides a way to think clearly about a problem (and probably create a spreadsheet along the way) to gain valuable insights into the best course of action. 

I earned my Ph.D. in Systems Engineering from University of Virginia, a Master of Engineering Management from Duke University, and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Florida State University. In my career I started out in engineering, working for consulting firms in the area of accident reconstruction, and then later for the US Army Corps of Engineers. I am a Fellow of the Center for Risk Management of Engineering Systems at University of Virginia, and a Visiting Scholar at the Center for Hardware and Embedded Systems Security and Trust (CHEST). I have contributed as a subject matter expert to the development of two published industry standards through SAE International. I have additionally consulted to numerous organizations, providing decision making and analytics services for clients across multiple industries. 

My writing has appeared in national outlets including NewsWeek, The Hill, RealClearPolitics, Risk & Insurance, SupplyChainBrain, and others. I have been featured in interviews for TV, radio, podcasts, and print news articles on topics related to semiconductors and supply chain management

Education

Ph.D. in Systems Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 
M.E.M. in Engineering Management, Duke University, Durham, NC 
B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 

Recent Research and Engagement

Editorial Board Member, Risk Analysis

Area Editor, Environment Systems and Decisions

Chair, Advocacy Governance Committee, INFORMS (2024-present)

Co-Chair, Trust and Assurance Committee, NDIA Electronics Division (2022-2023)

President, Resilience Analysis Specialty Group, Society for Risk Analysis (2021-2022)

President, Decision Analysis and Risk Specialty Group, Society for Risk Analysis (2019-2020)

Author of op-eds appearing in Newsweek, RealClearPolitics, The Hill, Supply Chain Quarterly, IndustryWeek, Risk & Insurance, Credit Union Management, SupplyChainBrain, Food Engineering, Innovation & Tech Today, SAE Update, Electronic Products & Technology Magazine, ORMS Today, Electronics Sourcing.

Interviewed for news stories by CNN Business, TechTarget, Newsmax, Consumer Affairs, SpaceNews, WholesaleCentral, Daily Express, Security Boulevard, and multiple radio and podcast interviews. 

Contributor to Valley Business Front Magazine

Televised Interviews:

“Texas floods: Virginia team responds on the ground; Commonwealth braces for supply chain issues.” WDBJ, 11 July, 2025. (Link) 

“This strategy is seen as ‘America’s only hope’ in the high-stakes global chip war.” CBN News, 11 March, 2024. (Link) 

Courses Taught

MGNT 357, Operations and Information Systems Management

MGNT 457, Technology and Innovation Management

MGNT 624, Operations Management

ENTR 250, Entrepreneurship and Innovation

Publications - Journals

Selected Publications:

Collier, Z.A., Gruss, R.J., Abrahams, A.S. (2025). “How good are large language models at product risk assessment?” Risk Analysis, 45(4): 766-789.

Collier, Z.A., Henderson, D.A., Kopf, J.M. (2024). “Protecting intellectual property in low trust environments: Game theoretic modelling of overproduction in contract manufacturing.” International Journal of Intellectual Property Management, 14(5): 444-458.

Collier, Z.A., Briglia, B., Finkelston, T., Manasco, M.C., Slutzky, D.L., Lambert, J.H. (2023). “On metrics and prioritization of investments in hardware security.” Systems Engineering, 26(4): 425-437.

Collier, Z.A., Gaskins, A., Lambert, J.H. (2023). “Business process modeling for semiconductor production risk analysis using IDEF0.” IEEE Engineering Management Review, 51(1): 183-188. 

Morgan, K., Collier, Z.A., Gilmore, E., Schmitt, K. (2022). “Decision-first modeling should guide decision making for emerging risks.” Risk Analysis, 42(12): 2613-2619. 

Collier, Z.A., Guin, U., Sarkis, J., Lambert, J.H. (2022). “Decision model with quantification of buyer-supplier trust in advanced technology enterprises.” Benchmarking: An International Journal, 29(10): 3033-3056. 

Collier, Z.A., Wood, M.D., Henderson, D.A. (2022). “Balancing risk and trust for strategic alliance formation decisions.” Journal of Strategy and Management, 15(4): 509-523.

Collier, Z.A., Sarkis, J. (2021). “The zero trust supply chain: Managing supply chain risk in the absence of trust.” International Journal of Production Research, 59(11): 3430-3445. 

Collier, Z.A., Lambert, J.H. (2020). “Value of risk information in negotiations with evolving preferences.” Journal of Risk Research, 23(10): 1353-1369.

Collier, Z.A., Lambert, J.H. (2019). “Principles and methods of model validation for model risk reduction.” Environment Systems & Decisions, 39(2): 146-153. 

Collier, Z.A., Lambert, J.H. (2019). “Evaluating management actions to mitigate disruptive scenario impacts in an e-commerce system integration project.” IEEE Systems Journal, 13(1): 593-602. 

Collier, Z.A., Hendrickson, D., Polmateer, T.L., Lambert, J.H. (2018). “Scenario analysis and PERT/CPM applied to strategic investment at an automated container port.” ASCE-ASME Journal of Risk and Uncertainty in Engineering Systems, Part A: Civil Engineering, 4(3): 04018026.

Collier, Z.A., Lambert, J.H. (2018). “Time management of infrastructure recovery schedules by anticipation and valuation of disruptions.” ASCE-ASME Journal of Risk and Uncertainty in Engineering Systems, Part A: Civil Engineering, 4(2): 04018012.

DiMase, D., Collier, Z.A., Carlson, J., Gray Jr., R.B., Linkov, I. (2016). “Traceability and risk analysis strategies for addressing counterfeit electronics in supply chains for complex systems.” Risk Analysis, 36(10): 1834-1843.

Collier, Z.A., Trump, B.D., Wood, M.D., Chobanova, R., Linkov, I. (2016). “Leveraging stakeholder knowledge in the innovation decision making process.” International Journal of Business Continuity and Risk Management, 6(3): 163-181.

DiMase, D., Collier, Z.A., Heffner, K., Linkov, I. (2015). “Systems engineering framework for cyber physical security and resilience.” Environment Systems & Decisions, 35(2): 291-300.

Collier, Z.A., Bates, M.E., Wood, M.D., Linkov, I. (2014). “Stakeholder engagement in dredged material management decisions.” Science of the Total Environment, 496: 248–256.

Collier, Z.A., Walters, S., DiMase, D., Keisler, J.M., Linkov, I. (2014). “A semi-quantitative risk assessment standard for counterfeit electronics detection.”  SAE International Journal of Aerospace, 7(1): 171-181.

Collier, Z.A., Linkov, I., DiMase, D., Walters, S., Tehranipoor, M.M., Lambert, J.H. (2014). “Cybersecurity standards: managing risk and creating resilience.” IEEE Computer, 47(9): 70-76.

Roege, P.E., Collier, Z.A., Mancillas, J., McDonagh, J.A., Linkov, I. (2014). “Metrics for energy resilience.” Energy Policy, 72(1): 249–256.

Publications - Books

D’Anna, G., Collier, Z.A. (2023). Cybersecurity for Entrepreneurs. SAE International: Warrendale, PA 

Publications - Chapters

Selected Publications:

Collier, Z.A., Lambert, J.H. (2026). “Enterprise risk management of electronics and computing device supply chains,” In: Vemuri, R., Emmert, J. (Eds.), Advances in Hardware Design for Security and Trust, CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, (pp. 330-347).

Collier, Z.A., Hassler, M.L., Lambert, J.H., DiMase, D., Lambert, C.A., Linkov, I. (2025). “Supply chains of computer and electronics hardware with resilience to counterfeiting and other disruptions.” In: Linkov, I., Kott, A. (Eds.), Cyber Resilience: Applied Perspectives, 2nd Edition, Springer, Cham, (255-276). 

Collier, Z.A., Thekdi, S.A. (2024). “Supply chain security.” In: Sarkis, J. (ed.), The Palgrave Handbook of Supply Chain Management, Palgrave Macmillan: Cham, (pp. 561-584).

Collier, Z.A., Keisler, J.M., Trump, B.D., Cegan, J.C., Wolberg, S., Linkov, I. (2021). “Value-based optimization of healthcare resource allocation for COVID-19 hot spots.” In: Linkov, I., Keenan, J.M., Trump, B.D. (eds.), COVID-19: Systemic Risk and Resilience, Springer: Cham, (pp. 103-114).

DiMase, D., Collier, Z.A., Pav, B., Chandy, J.A., Heffner, K., Walters, S. (2019). “Engineering for vehicle cyber security.” In: D’Anna, G. (ed.), Cybersecurity for Commercial Vehicles, SAE International: Warrendale, PA, (pp. 67-98).  

Collier, Z.A., Panwar, M., Ganin, A.A., Kott, A., Linkov, I. (2016). “Security metrics in industrial control systems.” In: Colbert, E.J.M., Kott, A. (eds.), Cyber-security of SCADA and Other Industrial Control Systems, Springer: Switzerland, (pp. 167-185).

Publications - Proceedings

Selected Publications:

Collier, Z.A., Sloan, M.M. (2024). “The option to trust: Modeling contingent hiring decisions as real options.” Proceedings of the Appalachian Research in Business Symposium, 04-05 April, 2024, Huntington, WV, USA, (pp. 65-72). 

Collier, Z.A., Sellers, E., Loose, D.C., Linkov, I., Lambert, J.H. (2024). “Security audit methodology for embedded hardware devices.” IEEE 10th International Conference on Control, Decision, and Information Technologies (CoDIT 2024), 01-04 July, 2024, Vallette, Malta, (pp. 316-323). 

Collier, Z.A., Loose, D.C., Sellers, E., Polmateer, T.L., Behl, M., Linkov, I., Lambert, J.H. (2023). “Stress testing for resilience of semiconductor supply chains.” IEEE 14th Annual Ubiquitous Computing, Electronics & Mobile Communication Conference (UEMCON), 12-14 October, 2023, New York, NY. 

Collier, Z.A., Elias, J.S. (2023). “GDP, economic freedom, and supply chain resilience: Increasing wealth one link at a time.” Proceedings of the Appalachian Research in Business Symposium, 30-31 March, 2023, Radford, VA, USA, (pp. 33-40).

Collier, Z.A., Elias, J.S., Bhadury, J. (2022). “Income inequality trends in Virginia.” Proceedings of the Appalachian Research in Business Symposium, 24-25 March 2022, Richmond, KY, USA, (pp. 39-46).

Collier, Z.A., Lambert, J.H. (2021). “Measurement and tracking of project activity quality based on time and cost indicators.” Proceedings of the Appalachian Research in Business Symposium, 26 March 2021, Richmond, KY, USA, (pp. 32-37).

DiMase, D., Collier, Z.A., Chandy, J., Cohen, B.S., D’Anna, G., Dunlap, H., Hallman, J., Mandelbaum, J., Ritchie, J., Vessels, L. (2020). “A holistic approach to cyber physical systems security and resilience.” Proceedings of IEEE/NDIA/INCOSE Systems Security Symposium 2020, 01 July – 01 August, Virtual.

Collier, Z.A., Connelly, E.B., Thorisson, H., Lambert, J.H. (2016). “Resilience of initiatives to shifting management priorities under emergent and future conditions.” 2016 IEEE International Systems Conference (SysCon), 18-21 April, Orlando, FL, USA. 

Collier, Z.A., DiMase, D., Heffner, K., Linkov, I. (2015). “Building a trusted and agile supply chain network for electronic hardware.” 20th International Command and Control Research and Technology Symposium (ICCRTS), 16-19 June, Annapolis, MD, USA.

Honors and Awards

  • DCOBE Excellence in Research Award, Davis College of Business and Economics, 2025
  • APEX Award of Excellence in the category of Electronic Media – Electronic Publications, for Cybersecurity for Entrepreneurs, 2024
  • Independent Press Award Distinguished Favorite in the category of Business: Entrepreneurship and Small Business, for Cybersecurity for Entrepreneurs, 2024
  • Chauncey Starr Distinguished Young Risk Analyst Award, Society for Risk Analysis, 2023
  • 40 Under 40, Roanoker Magazine, 2023
  • Dalton Eminent Scholar Rising Star Award, Radford University, 2022
  • Louis T. Rader Outstanding Graduate Student, University of Virginia Department of Systems and Information Engineering, 2018
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