Journal of Operations Management (JOM)

Call for Applications | The Journal of Operations Management (JOM) is seeking to fill five Departmental Editorial positions across four departments (each starting July 1st, 2025).  Links to each call are provided below. ▪️Inter-organizational Operations: https://lnkd.in/gVX7YEcY ▪️Operations Interfaces: https://lnkd.in/g6HH2aWM ▪️Innovation & Project Management: https://lnkd.in/gYMc6hx9 ▪️Sustainable Operations: https://lnkd.in/gegBMn2R Deadline for Applications: April 15, 2025.

Research Article | When Complexity Meets Complexity: COVID-19-Induced Supply Chain Disruptions and Strategy Portfolio Efficiency Hakan Yildiz, Tingting Yan, Marc Hatton, John Fowler, Thomas Kull, Lori Sisk https://lnkd.in/gUpEYimj Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, global supply chains have experienced sustained impacts from unprecedented complex disruptions in different combinations and at different times. From an efficiency perspective, do these complex supply chain disruptions call for more complex risk management strategies? To answer this, we built an empirically grounded discrete event simulation model, the results of which were analyzed using data envelopment analysis. Results show that with unprecedented complex disruption patterns, a multi-strategy portfolio approach is usually less efficient than a single-strategy or a do-nothing approach unless the strategy portfolio has certain characteristics. The most efficient strategy portfolios typically consist of a moderate number of diverse strategies. Too many strategies in a portfolio can be problematic, leading to increased costs that outpace improvement in revenue and service level. Results illustrate that even a strategy that generally performs poorly can be part of a very good strategy portfolio and vice versa. This study provides nuanced and novel findings that contribute to the resolution of the literature debate about the value of multi-strategy portfolios in addressing complex disruption patterns. Highlighting the value of a strategy portfolio view, these insights help firms better prepare for the next complex and sustained global supply chain disruptions. (Partial image credit: https://lnkd.in/gfSqXWii)

On behalf of the JOM Editorial Team, best wishes to all of you as we approach the end of this year and embark on the next. Looking forward to developments in your ongoing efforts to provide insight and contributions to scholarship and practice! - JOM Editorial Team

Research Article | What doesn't kill you makes you stronger? Evidence from vampire attacks on decentralized exchange and non-fungible token marketplace Xi Zhao, Jian Li, Xiang (Shawn) Wan, Xinyu Zang, Kenny Cheng https://lnkd.in/gRFkqr2F We examine the impact of vampire attacks, a unique platform entry strategy in the blockchain ecosystem, on the operational performance of the incumbent platform. During the vampire attack period, the entrant (attacker) clones the incumbent platform and offers tokenized incentives to entice users away from the incumbent. Prior studies offer little insight into the impact of vampire attack strategy because of its uniqueness in platform cloning, tokenized incentives, and targeted attacks. We implement a quasi-experimental design by leveraging the first and most famous vampire attack launched by SushiSwap (the attacker) against Uniswap (the incumbent). We examine both the deposit-side and exchange-side impacts of the vampire attack on the operational performance of the liquidity pools on Uniswap. Surprisingly, we find that the vampire attack has no significant effect on the liquidity provision on the deposit side. Even more surprisingly, the vampire attack significantly increases the incumbent's trading volume on the exchange side. We further uncover the underlying mechanisms contributing to these intriguing results. We also demonstrate the efficacy of the novel tokenized incentives strategy. We show the generalizability of our findings by examining an alternative vampire attack event in the context of non-fungible token marketplaces. Our study offers significant contributions to the literature on the implications of blockchain on platform operations and platform competition in operations management. (Partial image credit : https://lnkd.in/ggXHchkJ)

Research Article | Innovation intermediation in supply networks: Addressing shortfalls in buyer and supplier capabilities for collaborative innovation Kostas Selviaridis, Martin Spring https://lnkd.in/gPDh9EE4 We investigate how innovation intermediaries address shortfalls in the capabilities that buyers and suppliers must have to access each other's knowledge for innovation purposes, also referred to as indirect capabilities. Prior research on supplier-enabled innovation has identified various capabilities that buyers need in order to collaborate with innovative suppliers. It recognizes that suppliers also require capabilities to access buyer knowledge. However, we still know little about the role of innovation intermediaries—actors who are neither buyers nor suppliers, but still influence innovation processes and outcomes in supply networks. Our case-based research shows that intermediaries create workspaces for R&D and experimentation, help to refine definitions of requirements and de-risk novel solutions, support contracting, and facilitate solution implementation. We contribute to research on supplier innovation by developing a model of intermediaries' activities and underlying capabilities, and their impact on innovation sourcing outcomes. We elaborate the indirect capabilities theoretical perspective by introducing additional types of indirect capabilities for collaborative innovation in supply chains, and showing how these capabilities interrelate. We furthermore extend the literature on innovation intermediaries by elucidating hitherto unexplored capabilities for intermediation and adding insights regarding the contribution of intermediaries to open innovation processes. (Partial image credit : https://lnkd.in/gzisGNKJ)

Research Article | An empirically grounded analytical approach to hog farm finishing stage management: Deep reinforcement learning as decision support and managerial learning tool Panos Kouvelis, Ye Liu, Danko Turcic https://lnkd.in/gknfJ9KC In hog farming, optimizing hog sales is a complex challenge due to uncertain factors, such as hog availability, market prices, and operating costs. This study uses a Markov Decision Process (MDP) to model these decisions, revealing the importance of the final weeks in profit management. The MDP's intractability due to the curse of dimensionality leads us to employ Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) for optimization. Using real-world and synthetic data, our DRL model outperforms existing practices. However, it lacks interpretability, hindering trust and legal compliance in the food industry. To address this, we introduce “managerial learning,” extracting actionable insights from DRL outputs using classification trees that would have been difficult to obtain otherwise. We leverage these insights to devise a smart heuristic that significantly beats the heuristic currently used in practice. This study has broader implications for operations management, where DRL can solve complex dynamic optimization problems that are often intractable due to dimensionality. By applying methods, such as classification trees and DRL, one can scrutinize solutions for actionable managerial insights that can enhance existing practices with straightforward planning guidelines. (Partial image credit : https://lnkd.in/gVFTsJg7)

Interview | Dr Rajinder Bhandal moderates a discussion between Dr. Hung-Chung Su, Dr. Wayne Fu and Graeme Yardley relating to the Journal of Operations Management research "When does it pay to be green? The strategic benefits of adoption speed”, authored by Hung-Chung Su, Wayne Fu, Kevin Linderman.  (https://lnkd.in/g-4QVqGw) https://lnkd.in/eURpnzzx

📢 We are thrilled to invite early career scholars to participate in the 𝗘𝘂𝗿𝗢𝗠𝗔 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗽 2025, part of the 32nd annual EurOMA conference, taking place on 𝗦𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘆, 𝗝𝘂𝗻𝗲 15, 2025 (8:30 – 12:30), at the Politecnico di Milano, Bovisa Campus.   𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁: This event is designed for early career scholars in Operations and Supply Chain Management. It offers a platform for open discussions and practical advice on key career challenges and priorities. Topics include:   - Supervising students - Academic leadership - Teaching innovations - Research funding   For 2025, the workshop theme is “𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗻𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁”, focusing on strategies for securing funding, crafting compelling grant proposals, and expanding your research reach.   🔗 For more details, visit the EurOMA conference website: https://lnkd.in/d9ebJkCT   We look forward to welcoming you in Milan in 2025! #EurOMA2025 #EarlyCareerWorkshop Organizing institutions: Politecnico di Milano, Università degli Studi di Bergamo, Università degli Studi di Padova, Università degli Studi di Udine Albachiara Boffelli, Federico Caniato, Pamela Danese, Matteo Kalchschmidt, Antonella Moretto, Pietro Romano Antonio Cavallin Toscani, Giovanna Culot, Michela Guida, Verónica León Bravo, Laura Macchion, Alice Madonna, Elisa Medina, Matteo Podrecca, Maria Sofia Pugliese, Alessio Ronchini, Enrico Sandrin   Raffaella Cagliano, Cipriano Forza, Guido Nassimbeni, Andrea Vinelli

📢 Call for Participants: 2025 OSCM Junior Faculty & Doctoral Consortium 🎓🌍 The Operations and Supply Chain Management (OSCM) Division is excited to announce its Joint Junior Faculty and Doctoral Consortium at the 2025 Academy of Management (AoM) Annual Meeting in Copenhagen!  Mark your calendars: Friday, July 25th, 2025 🗓️ (8:30 AM – 4:30 PM) followed by a fun social event 🔑 Why attend? This one-of-a-kind professional development workshop (PDW) provides invaluable opportunities to: ✅ Develop your research with feedback from senior faculty 🧑🎓 ✅ Learn from experts during panel discussions on publishing, teaching, career growth, and more ✅ Network with peers and senior scholars in the OSCM community 🤝 📝 How to Apply: Doctoral students and junior faculty working on OSCM topics are invited! 📌 Submit one PDF including: 1️⃣ Cover letter (including full contact info, advisor’s contact for students, program stage, and motivation) 2️⃣ Curriculum Vitae 📄 3️⃣ Dissertation research summary (doctoral students) or research prospectus (junior faculty) 📧 Send applications by February 14th, 2025: 🔹 Junior Faculty: Iana Shaheen – IShaheen@walton.uark.edu 🔹 Doctoral Students: Mehrdokht (Medo) Pournader – medo.pournader@unimelb.edu.au 💰 Financial Support Available: Doctoral students and junior faculty from developing countries can apply for the OSCM Division DEI Assistant Fund (up to $1,000) to support travel. 🌍✈️ We can’t wait to welcome you to an incredible day of learning, networking, and growth! #AcademyOfManagement #PhD #JuniorFaculty #Networking #CareerDevelopment #SupplyChainManagement 🚀📚Veronica H. Villena, Kai Foerstl, Anand Nair, Desirée Van Dun, Katie Wowak, Medo Pournader, Junhao (Vincent) Yu, Subhajit Chakraborty, Meriem Bouazzaoui, MSc, PhD, FHEA

Research Article | The point of no return? Restrictive changes to lenient return policies and consumer reactions to them Huseyn Abdulla, michael ketzenberg, James Abbey, Gregory Heim Retailers face a challenging trade-off in maintaining versus restricting long-established lenient return policies. On the one hand, lenient return policies have become an important part of retailers' value propositions and play a significant role in stimulating consumer purchases. On the other hand, lenient return policies increase the volume of product returns, which hurts profitability. Motivated by observing an increase in restrictive changes to long-established lenient return policies, we investigate consumer reactions to such changes and their managerial implications. Through a series of experiments with diverse consumer samples, we find that restrictive changes, such as shortening return time windows or introducing restocking fees, decrease consumer trust in retailers and lead to lowered purchase, positive word-of-mouth, and loyalty intentions. We also find that providing managerial transparency, in the form of communicating the rationale for restrictive changes, can attenuate the negative consumer reactions to such changes. Moreover, rationales that emphasize the cost of handling returns versus blaming opportunistic and abusive returners are similarly effective. Our findings contribute to the growing academic literature on consumer return policy design and provide actionable insights to retail managers. https://lnkd.in/gdv3RBQw (Partial image credit :  https://lnkd.in/g2hmAjpV)