Dear Colleagues,
We are excited to announce the second session of the Research Webinar Series organized by the POMS College of Supply Chain Management. The series will be held twice per semester (on the second Friday of every other month) and will feature two junior scholars presenting their cutting-edge research.
Our second session is scheduled for:
Date: Friday, November 14, 2025
Time: 10:00 – 11:15 AM Eastern Time
Format: Live Webinar (Registration Required)
Webinar Theme:
Design and Power in Modern Supply Chains: From Vertical Bargaining to Circular Policy
Speakers:
· Ujjwol Paudel (Arizona State University) – Distribution Asymmetry and Vertical Bargaining
Abstract: Asymmetric distribution channels in grocery retail, centralized distribution versus direct-store-delivery, shape suppliers' bargaining power, competitive behavior, and ultimately prices. Using detailed retail data linked to stockout measures, we first show that suppliers with higher stockout ratios, which signal weaker channel ties, face systematically different pricing patterns. We then estimate a structural vertical-contracting model where wholesale prices and delivery frequencies stem from Nash-in-Nash bargaining, while retailers set downstream prices in Bertrand competition.
· Austin Saragih (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) – Spin the Bottle Bill: Deposit-Refund System Policy and Reverse Supply Chain Design
Abstract: The Bottle Bill, a deposit-refund system policy, charges consumers a deposit upon beverage purchase and refunds it upon return of the empty container to a recycling center. In California and nine other states, the redemption value has remained stagnant at 5 cents for decades, the number of recycling centers has decreased, and recycling rates have been declining. To address these issues, we spin the Bottle Bill by jointly optimizing its policy and reverse supply chain as a bilevel mixed-integer nonlinear program. At the policy design level, we optimize the redemption value, manufacturers' fees, and distance policy between consumers and recycling centers. Given this distance policy, at the network design level, we then optimize the number of recycling centers for each county in the state. To solve the bilevel problem, we devise a novel solution approach using continuous approximation and monotonicity analysis with optimality and convergence guarantees. Applying our approach to California's Bottle Bill, we provide policy options and insights that the state could implement to achieve its 80% recycling goal, by explicitly and jointly balancing its redemption value and the number of recycling centers. These options and insights can also be adapted to other U.S. states and countries to advance the circular economy of containers.
The session will be moderated by Yue Zhang (Duke University).
�� Register here: https://msu.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_CVI9mbW7QzW6M4zbC3tJHQ#/registration
We look forward to your participation in supporting this initiative and engaging with impactful research in supply chain management.
Join our LinkedIn group: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/14670041
POMS College of Supply Chain Management Board
President: Stanley Lim, Michigan State University
VP Communications: Yue Zhang, Duke University
VP Meetings: Karthik Natarajan, University of Minnesota
VP Special Events: Rob Basten, Eindhoven University of Technology
Secretary: Ali Fattahi, John Hopkins University
Treasurer: Neda Mirzaeian, University of Texas at Dallas
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Yue Zhang
Visiting Research Scholar
Duke University
University Park PA
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