Theresa Wise, M.S. ‘92 Ph.D. ‘95

Organization: Delta Air Lines (retired)
Position: Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer

Theresa has spent over 25 years in the airline industry – beginning during her years in Cornell’s Center for Applied Math, where she worked towards applying polyhedral combinatorics to drive more optimal solutions to the airline crew scheduling problem. She recently concluded over 15 years as CIO of Northwest and Delta Air Lines.

Theresa Wise most recently served as Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer for Delta Air Lines. Under Theresa’s leadership, Delta integrated technology systems following its merger with Northwest, combining more than 1,200 IT systems in what is now recognized as a blueprint for airline mergers. As the airline industry faces unprecedented challenges, information technology is increasingly a competitive differentiator. Today, Theresa led a team of more than 2,000 professionals who innovate and leverage technology solutions to enhance the customer experience with Delta. Theresa began with her work in the airline industry in 1990, building a mathematical model to optimize crew schedules. She has since held a variety of positions in Flight Operations, Operations Research, Industrial Engineering, and IT.

She is an active supporter of education, arts and community, having served on the Board of Regents for St. Olaf College, the Children’s Theatre Company, the Science Museum of Minnesota, Minnesota Business Partnership, Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, and as a violinist with the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra.

Theresa graduated from St. Olaf College with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and chemistry and holds a Ph.D. and master’s degree in applied math / operations research from Cornell University.