If you are doing online shopping this year you are most likely taking advantage of offers for "free shipping." One of the major shipping carriers is obviously UPS. How your packages arrive in a timely manner is a function of proprietary algorithms and a home-grown mapping system. The man in charge of these IT systems is Jack Levis, UPS's director of process management.

Shipping runs through Jack. He's responsible for all of the routing calculations and mapping applications for UPS. UPS drivers depend on the operations research logisticians that Jack manages. In addition, he's in charge of collecting the telematics information from UPS vehicles to make certain that they are operated properly and efficiently.

Below are both an interview with Jack Levis on "Marketplace" from American Public Media on December 17 and a video with Jack when he was interviewed for the "Geospatial Revolution," episode two produced by Penn State Broadcasting.

I'm also pleased to announce that Jack will be one of our keynote speakers for Directions Magazine's Location Intelligence Conference 2013.

Audio Interview from "Marketplace."

Video from Episode Two, The Geospatial Revolution