RESEARCH
My research lies at the intersection of supply chain risk management and network analysis. Specifically, I study supply network antecedents to supply chain risks and ways to mitigate the negative consequences of such risks. My methodological expertise lies in the areas of quantitative empirical methods (statistical models) based on survey and secondary data. Aside from my dissertation, I also collaborate with senior researchers to explore related research topics, such as corporate social responsibility, chief risk officer appointments, supply chain integration, and servitization.
Dissertation research
Essay 1: A cross-disciplinary literature review on product recalls
Research on product recalls has recently witnessed a sharp increase; however, this stream of research is dispersed within and outside the discipline of management. In this article, I review this research stream by adopting a stakeholder-stage framework that draws on stakeholder theory and crisis management literature.
Progress: Forthcoming at Transportation Research Part E.
Essay 2: Supply base complexity and automobile quality risks
This empirical essay examines the relationship between supply base complexity and quality risks, measured by the percentage of complaints and the number of recalls. I merged several databases to test the hypotheses, including (i) supply network data of the Chines automobile industry from the MarkLines database; (ii) passenger car complaint data from 12365auto.com; (iii) automobile recall data from qiche365.com.
Progress: Being finalized for submission.
Essay 3: Vertical spillover effect of automobile recalls
This empirical essay examines the vertical spillover effect. I theorize that the impact caused by negative events will spread within the supply network due to the cash flow effect and impression effect, and these effects depend on the characteristics of the buyer-supplier relationship and supply network structure.
Progress: "Rejected and resubmitted" to Journal of Operations Management.
Supervisors of my dissertation: Hari Bapuji, Prakash Singh, and Srinivas (Sri) Talluri.
Related areas
Related topic 1: Corporate Social Responsibility in Consumer Product Recalls
Although product recalls are a nightmare for the recalling company, the negative consequences of recalls can be mitigated if the firm makes recall decisions that are regarded as socially responsible. This study takes recall remedy to consumers as a proxy of corporate social responsibility of the recalling firm, and examines its antecedents.
Coauthors: Manpreet Hora, Aleda Roth, and Hari Bapuji.
Progress: This essay is targeted for submission to Decision Science.
(Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration)
Related topic 2: Chief Risk Officer Appointments on Firm Risk and Operational Efficiency
To exercise risk control at a corporate level, firms often appoint Chief Risk Officers (CROs) into their top management team. By appointing CROs, firms might reduce firm risks and financial losses due to operational disruptions. Yet, by inducing stringent control measures on risks, security, and compliance at different levels, organizations might also create unwieldy bureaucracies with operational hurdles that compromise operational efficiency, leading to paradoxical efficiency outcomes. In this research, we examine how CRO appointments affect firm risk and operational efficiency. We also examine the moderating effects of environmental dynamism and industry litigation threats.
Coauthors: Andy Yeung, Hugo Lam, and William Ho.
Progress: Published in Journal of Operations Management.
Secondary areas
Research topic 1: Re-evaluating Supply Chain Integration and Firm Performance
This paper is set to provide answers to the following research questions: Does a higher degree of SCI always lead to greater firm performance improvements? As the answer to this question is likely to be no, we explore the performance implications from a strategic perspective: Is the SCI–performance relationship contingent on a company’s competitive priorities (i.e. operations strategy)? We explore the research questions through multiple quasi-independent data sets to test the impact of SCI on firm performance.
Coauthors: Frank Wiengarten, Prakash Singh, and Brian Fynes.
Progress: Published in Supply Chain Management: An International Journal.
Research topic 2: Servitization and Supply Chain Integration
This research examines how supply chain integration moderates the relationship between servitization and performance. Based on the resource-based view and transaction cost economics, we hypothesized the dual effects of supply chain integration in servitization.
Coauthors: Yang Yang, Prakash Singh, Hongyi Sun, and Yezhuang Tian.
Progress: Published in Production Planning & Control.
Research topic 3: Bibliographical Literature Review
This paper is a retrospective look at 68 years of publication output of the Operations Research journal, revealing changes in its publications, its authors and their impact over time, and how these changes might affect researchers and practitioners in the present.
Coauthors: Angelito Calma, William Ho, and Lusheng Shao.
Progress: Published in Operations Research.
