Prof. Dr. Selçuk Çolak was born in Adana in 1975. He completed his undergraduate studies in Electrical and Electronics Engineering at Çukurova University in 1997. Following this, he started his master’s studies in the same department and worked as a Research Assistant. He received a scholarship from the Ministry of National Education, which enabled him to pursue his master’s and doctoral degrees in the United States. He obtained his master’s degree in 2000 from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Florida, where he also achieved the title of Senior Engineer.
Selçuk ÇOLAK started his doctoral studies in the Department of Information Systems and Operations Management at the Warrington College of Business at the University of Florida, where he also served as a Research Assistant. He completed his Ph.D. under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Selçuk ERENGÜÇ and Prof. Dr. Anurag AGARWAL with a dissertation titled "Neural Networks Based Metaheuristics for Solving Optimization Problems" and returned to Turkey in early 2006. Selçuk ÇOLAK continued his academic career in the Department of Business Administration at the Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences at Çukurova University, where he is currently a Professor. Additionally, he served as a Visiting Faculty Member during the summer terms in the Department of Industrial Engineering at the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences at Sabancı University between 2011 and 2018.
Dr. ÇOLAK's research areas primarily include Production Management, Project Management, Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Artificial Intelligence, Metaheuristic Methods, Operations Research, and Entrepreneurship. His articles have been published in high-level journals such as Computers and Operations Research, European Journal of Operational Research, Naval Research Logistics, Annals of Operations Research, Journal of Business & Economics Research, and Simulation, and have received numerous citations. Prof. ÇOLAK has contributed chapters to international books and presented papers at various conferences. He has also served as referee for national and international journals, participated in panel and evaluation board memberships for TÜBİTAK and KOSGEB programs, and served as a jury member and chairman in various national and international events.
During and after his doctorate, Selçuk ÇOLAK specialized in project management both in academic activities and in practical applications. He has taught project management courses at Çukurova University and Sabancı University, and has been involved in numerous projects carried out with institutions such as TÜBİTAK, the Ministry of Industry and Technology, United Nations Agencies, the European Union, KOSGEB, and Development Agencies. He has taught various undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral courses at Çukurova University, Sabancı University, the University of Florida, and Çağ University, including Production Management, Production Systems, Project Management, Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Information Systems and Technologies, Heuristic and Metaheuristic Methods, Production Planning and Control, Project Planning and Scheduling, Operations Research, and Entrepreneurship.
Prof. Dr. Selçuk ÇOLAK has held administrative and managerial positions both within the university and externally. Since 2012, he has been serving as the Head of the Production Management Division at the Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, Department of Business Administration at Çukurova University. Between 2013 and 2020, he served as the Deputy Director of the Social Sciences Institute, Distance Education Coordinator, Erasmus Coordinator, and a member of the Institute Council and Institute Administrative Board. He has also served as a member of the Faculty Council and Faculty Administrative Board at the Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences and Kozan Faculty of Business Administration at Çukurova University, and as a member of the University Quality Commission and Director of the Quality Commission Executive Subgroup. Since 2018, Selçuk ÇOLAK has been a member of the Coordination Board of Student Clubs at Çukurova University and the Advisor of the Entrepreneurship Club.
Between 2020 and 2022, Selçuk ÇOLAK served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Çukurova University Technology Development Zone (Çukurova Technopark). Leading systematic teamwork, ÇOLAK managed to raise Çukurova Technopark's ranking from 45th to 22nd in the Ministry of Industry and Technology's Technology Development Zones Performance Index within 1.5 years. In 2021, Çukurova Technopark became the first institution from Adana to participate in the Aviation, Space, and Technology Festival, TEKNOFEST, held in Istanbul. Throughout the event, he facilitated the participation of teams competing under the sponsorship of Technopark and winning various awards, bringing together Adana's youth with ecosystem stakeholders. He also organized Turkey's first Techno Kids' Festival in collaboration with the Ministry of Family and Social Services at Çukurova Technopark.
Dr. ÇOLAK has served as the Coordinator of Çukurova University TTO, Coordinator of the Adana Entrepreneurship Center, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Çukurova Chemical Production Technologies Inc. He is the founder and general manager of Informs R&D IT Consulting Engineering Software Services Ltd. Co. Additionally, between 2017 and 2022, he served as the official academic advisor for Adana province and its districts under the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB), providing consultancy services to the Chambers of Commerce and Industry and Exchanges on behalf of TOBB, maintaining close contact with the business world.
Prof. Dr. Selçuk ÇOLAK is married and has two children.
