本文精选了运营管理领域国际顶刊《Journal of Operations Management》近期发表的论文，提供运营管理研究领域最新的学术动态。

Reference-dependent preferences in flat penalty service-level contracts

原刊和作者：

Journal of Operations Management Volume69 Issue8

Jose Benedicto Duhaylongsod （IESEG School of Management）

Felix Papier （ESSEC Business School）

Ayse Onculer （ESSEC Business School）

Abstract

This paper investigates a supply chain governed by a flat penalty service-level contract in which missing the target fill rate can lead to costly operational disruption. We focus on near-miss bias: (1) the preference for near-miss events, that is, risky production quantities that reach the target but narrowly avoid disruption; and (2) riskier decision-making due to such preferences. We propose a reference-dependent behavioral model that explains the near-miss bias. The findings of a laboratory experiment show that production quantities are evaluated based on realized profits and are below the optimal model prediction. Contracts associated with lower perceived severity, that is, the ratio of flat penalty to wholesale price, result in lower production quantities than those with higher perceived severity, even though the standard model does not predict any effect. A structural estimation analysis indicates that the behavioral model performs better than the standard model in terms of predictive accuracy and goodness of fit. Our analysis provides insights for managers who design supply chain contracts in settings with considerable risk of disruption due to a shortage of critical parts.

Link: https://doi.org/10.1002/joom.1251

Consignment inventory shrinkage in general and physician preference medical supplies: An empirically-grounded analytical investigation

原刊和作者：

Journal of Operations Management Volume69 Issue8

Claudia Rosales （University of Arkansas）

Anand Nair （Northeastern University Boston）

Sukrit Pal （Iowa State University）

Abstract

The cost of medical supplies represents a significant portion of hospital spending. Hospitals manage different types of medical supplies, such as general medical supplies and physician preference items. General medical supplies tend to be numerous and relatively low cost, while physician preference items tend to be less numerous and more expensive. Strong physician preference for certain medical supplies can limit the options available to reduce inventory costs. The use of consignment inventory is one way in which hospitals seek to reduce inventory costs for both general supplies as well as physician preference items. However, the use of consignment reduces the level of oversight that hospitals have on consigned inventories, thereby potentially increasing the likelihood of shrinkage. The impact of consignment on shrinkage cost has received limited attention. We investigate this issue by drawing upon the precepts of agency theory and by analyzing hospital data that span multiple years. Our results suggest that the use of consignment increases shrinkage and spend. We develop empirically informed analytical models to better understand the impact of an unforeseen increase in shrinkage on the cost associated with general and physician preference items. The analytical investigation suggests that the impact on general and physician preference items differ depending on the type of consignment contract negotiated between a hospital and a vendor. We discuss the theoretical and managerial implications of our findings.

Link: https://doi.org/10.1002/joom.1256

Negative externality on service level across priority classes: Evidence from a radiology workflow platform

原刊和作者：

Journal of Operations Management Volume69 Issue8

Saman Lagzi （University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill）

Bernardo F. Quiroga （West Virginia University）

Gonzalo Romero （University of Toronto）

Nicholas Howard （Chief Technology Officer, Assurance IQ, Inc, Toronto）

Timothy C. Y. Chan （University of Toronto）

Abstract

We study the potential negative impact of imbalanced compensation schemes on firm performance. We analyze data from a radiology workflow platform that connects off-site radiologists with hospitals. These radiologists select tasks from a common pool, while service level is defined by priority-specific turnaround time targets. However, imbalances between pay and workload of different tasks could result in higher priority tasks with low pay-to-workload ratio receiving poorer service. We investigate this hypothesis, showing turnaround time is decreasing in pay-to-workload for lower priority tasks, whereas it is increasing in workload for high-priority tasks. Crucially, we find evidence of an externality effect: Having many economically attractive tasks with low priority can lead to longer turnaround times for higher priority tasks, increasing their likelihood of delay, thus partially defeating the purpose of the priority classes.

Link: https://doi.org/10.1002/joom.1252

The signaling effect of supplier's customer network instability on service price: Insights from the container shipping charter market

原刊和作者：

Journal of Operations Management Volume69 Issue8

Pankaj Kumar （Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University）

Agnieszka Nowinska （Aalborg University Business School）

Hans-Joachim Schramm （Vienna University of Economics and Business）

Abstract

In a service exchange setting, the supply management literature generally assumes, with notable exceptions, the availability of complete information regarding supplier reliability. Highlighting the information asymmetry in supplier evaluation and using signaling theory, we argue that for a focal buyer, a supplier's downstream ego-network instability, that is, other buyers' turnover in a supplier's network from one period to the next, acts as a signal of supplier unreliability, thereby reducing the price that the buyer pays to the supplier in a service exchange. Furthermore, we suggest that focal buyer–supplier relationship strength and structural equivalence weaken the negative effect of instability because the buyer has a more direct and positive experience with the supplier. Using a dataset of 3263 unique dyads formed by 260 buyers (shipoperators) and 493 suppliers (shipowners) during the 2000–2018 period in the container shipping charter market, we find support for our hypotheses, except for the contingent effect of structural equivalence. Our study contributes to signaling literature and network research by developing a supplier's downstream ego-network instability as a salient heuristic for a focal buyer's pricing decisions. These findings equip buyer managers who may not accurately foresee supplier service quality in the charter market with a new supplier evaluation tool: a supplier's downstream ego-network instability.

Link: https://doi.org/10.1002/joom.1254

Can mass customization slow fast fashion down? The impact on time-to-disposal and willingness-to-pay

Journal of Operations Management Volume69 Issue8

Aydin Alptekinoglu （Pennsylvania State University）

Ashley Stadler Blank （Xavier University）

Margaret G. Meloy （Pennsylvania State University）

V. Daniel R. Guide Jr. （Pennsylvania State University）

Abstract

We experimentally investigate whether mass customization enhances sustainability and firm outcomes in a fast fashion context. Fast fashion delivers fashion trends to consumers quickly and cheaply but has detrimental effects on the environment (e.g., waste accumulation, water pollution). To mitigate these harmful effects, we examine how different points of customer involvement in mass customization affect the anticipated number of months to product disposal and willingness-to-pay for mass-customized products. We employ a series of experiments and find that consumer perceptions of the degree of customization increase as the point of customer involvement shifts upstream from Use to Assembly to Fabrication to Design and that the anticipated number of months to disposal and willingness-to-pay increase as the point of customer involvement shifts upstream to Design. We also find that the implementation of customer involvement in mass customization matters. Overall, these results provide evidence that mass customization via Design may not only help slow fast fashion down, which has major sustainability implications, but it may also present a win-win opportunity for both the environment and firms (in terms of the bottom line—provided, of course, that it does not have any major cost disadvantages).

Link: https://doi.org/10.1002/joom.1255