In 1980, he began graduate studies in chemistry at the University of Illinois-Champaign/Urbana where he was awarded a University Teaching Fellowship. He worked with Professor Scott E. Denmark on the invention of the carbanion-accelerated Claisen rearrangement. In his second year of study, he was awarded an Eastman Kodak Research Fellowship.

Upon graduation in 1985, he was awarded an NIH postdoctoral fellowship which he used to study with Professor Paul A. Wender at Stanford University, where he worked on the synthesis of the neocarzinostatin chromophore.

In 1986, Prof. Harmata began his independent career at the University of Missouri-Columbia. He became an Associate Professor in 1992 and a full professor in 1998. In 2000, he was named the Norman Rabjohn Distinguished Professor of Chemistry in recognition of his achievements in research and teaching. In 1998, he received a research fellowship from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and stayed for a year at the University of Göttingen where he was affiliated with the groups of Professors Reinhard Brückner and Lutz. F. Tietze. In 2000, he served as chair of the Gordon conference on Organic Reactions and Processes. In 2010, he was named the first Justus Liebig Professor of Chemistry at the Justus Liebig Üniversität in Giessen, Germany. In 2011, he was a JSPS fellow. He has been a visiting professor in Giessen and Strasbourg and has delivered over 180 invited lectures in the United States and Europe. He is a member of the American Chemical Society, Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker, International Society of Heterocyclic Chemistry, and the Alexander von Humboldt Association of America.

Total Syntheses of Solandelactones E and F, Anna Robinson, Catherine J. Fletcher and Varinder K. Aggarwal The Marine Alkaloid Halichlorine - Its Defences and its Defeat, Derrick L.J. Clive An Adventure in Synthesis Inspired by the Pseudolaric Acids, Pauline Chiu Total Synthesis of Papulacandin D, Tetsuya Kobayashi, Christopher S. Regens and Scott E. Denmark Asymmetric Total Synthesis of the Antitumour Terpenoid, (+)-Eremantholide A, Karl J. Hale and Yi Li A Chemo- and Diastereoselective Ring Closing metathesis Macrocyclization Approach to the Total Syntheses of Aigialomycin C and D, Naval Bajwa and Michael P. Jennings Regio- and Stereoselective Metal-Catalyzed Reactions and Their Application to a Total Synthesis of Dactylolide, Daesung Lee and Ivan Volchkov Development of a General Approach to the Leucetta-Derived Alkaloids, Carl J. Lovely The Adventure of Abudinol, and the Misadventure of Muzitone, Frank E. McDonald, Rongbiao Tong, Matthew A. Boone and Jason C. Valentine In Pursuit of an Elusive Target: the Kendomycin Story, Harry J. Martin, Thomas Magauer and Johann Mulzer Synthesis of the Lycopodium Alkaloid Lyconadin A. Discovery of a Unique C-N Bond Forming Reaction, Richmond Sarpong Selective Alkane CH Substitutions: Strategies for the Preparation of Functionalized Diamondoids, Andrew A. Fokin and Peter R. Schreiner A Dipolar Cycloaddition Strategy for the Synthesis of 3,8-Diazabicyclo[3.2.1] Octane Tetrahydroisoquinoline Antitumor Antibiotics: The Total Synthesis of (-)-Lemonomycin, Eric Ashley and Brian Stoltz Studies on the Synthesis of the Apoptolidins, Stephen T. Chau, Gary A. Sulikowski and Bin Wu The story behind the Total Syntheses of Vibsanin E and epi-Vibsanin E, Craig McKenzie Williams

A classic in the area of organic synthesis, Strategies and Tactics in Organic Synthesis provides a forum for investigators to discuss their approach to the science and art of organic synthesis. Rather than a simple presentation of data or a second-hand analysis, this book vividly demonstrates through first hand accounts how synthesis is really done and how by discovering new reactions, creating new designs and building molecules with atom and step economies, the advancement of the science of organic synthesis is providing solutions through function to create a better world.