Thomas I. Maindl is fascinated with converting scientific methodology into real, tangible profit. He developed and sold his first application (accounting for small businesses) at the age of 16 and held expert and management positions in the chemical and software industries for more than 15 years before founding Dr. Maindl Consulting in 2009. He successfully developed, implemented, and deployed optimization-based advanced planning applications with measurable ROI for customers in the chemical, energy, high-tech and other industries around the world and wrote the book "Real optimization with SAP APO" (Springer). Presently, he focuses on delivering spot consulting and seminars & training on challenging topics.

Dr. Maindl earned his MSc and PhD degrees in astronomy from the University of Vienna, Austria and is still an active scientist. He has published numerous research papers in astrophysics, edited a book on extrasolar planetary systems, wrote a textbook on cubic spline interpolation, and delivers first-class lectures on astrophysics, applied numerical mathematics, scientific high-performance computing, advanced planning, logistics, and supply chain management at universities and business schools internationally.