Stanley Lim
Assistant Professor | Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI, UNITED STATES
Stanley Lim's research explores operational issues at downstream (or so called "last-mile") supply chains.
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Biography
Stanley Lim is an assistant professor of supply chain management in the Department of Supply Chain Management and faculty affiliate with the Evolution and Future of Work Research Initiative at Michigan State University. He holds a Ph.D. in Supply Chain Management from the University of Cambridge, a Master's in Computer Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and an M.B.A. from Warwick Business School. His research explores operational issues at downstream (or so called "last-mile") supply chains. He is recognized for his practical and managerial approach, grounding his work in real-world applications. By adopting an interdisciplinary perspective that combines operations management, marketing, and economics and utilizing customer behavior analytics, Stanley aims to enhance the theory and practice of operation. He seeks to provide practical insights that can inform how and under what conditions firms can best distribute their products and services to end consumers.
At present, his focus centers on understanding the economics of distribution services in digital and nondigital retail, covering the four A's: (1) accessibility of location and information, (2) availability of inventory, (3) assurance of product delivery, and (4) assortment planning. These areas comprise the four core services retailers provide to help consumers reduce their search and transaction costs. His research applications encompass omni-channel retailing, food waste management, and package delivery.
Based on this research agenda, Stanley has developed analytical models for store network and facility location design, workload and job assignments, and service policies. These include, for example, models to predict failed delivery attempts and incorporating the predictions in routing, estimate the opportunity cost of product stockouts for inventory planning, determine the optimal return window for consumer return policies, and evaluate spatial competition to guide store market area design. Additionally, he has explored the impact of contract terms on the bargaining power and economic outcomes of retailers and suppliers, the relationship between drivers' workload and delivery performance, the influence of subscription models on consumer behaviors, and consumers' sensitivities to lead times and their product return behaviors across digital and nondigital channels.
Industry Expertise (3)
Research
Education/Learning
Logistics and Supply Chain
Areas of Expertise (6)
Logistics
Retail Strategy
Consumer Behavior
Machine Learning
Consumer Trends
Retail Systems
Accomplishments (5)
Meritorious Paper (professional)
2018
Chris Voss Best Paper (professional)
2018
Literati Highly Commended Paper (professional)
2018
Emerald/EFMD Outstanding Doctoral Research Award (professional)
2018
Harry Boer Best Student Paper (professional)
2016
Education (3)
University of Cambridge: Ph.D., Supply Chain Management
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: M.S., Computer Science
Warwick Business School: M.B.A.
Affiliations (1)
- Journal of Operations Management : Associate Editor
Links (2)
News (3)
Expert Advice on Overcoming Last-Mile Logistics Issues When Shipping Plants
Greenhouse Grower online
2023-06-11
Dr. Stanley Lim, Assistant Professor in the Department of Supply Chain Management, Broad College of Business at Michigan State University, shares insights on challenges and solutions in last-mile logistics.
Amazon hits brakes on 5 Michigan facilities as U.S. online shopping slows
Michigan Business Watch online
2022-09-16
The reason: American shoppers are increasingly willing to go back into stores, said Stanley Lim, an assistant professor of supply chain management at Michigan State University.
Latest apps promise fast service but can they deliver?
Associated Press online
2022-04-19
“For this type of model to work — 15 minutes, 10 minutes, 20 minutes, you name it — you need density, right?” said Stanley Lim, a Michigan State University professor who specializes in supply chains. “In a rural area, you can service these customers but not profitably. That’s going to be a limit to the spread that these companies can go for.”
Journal Articles (5)
Estimating Stockout Costs and Optimal Stockout Rates: A Case on the Management of Ugly Produce Inventory
Management Science2023 Efficiently managing inventories requires an accurate estimation of stockout costs. This estimation is complicated by challenges in determining how to compensate consumers monetarily to ensure they will maintain the same level of utility they would have obtained had stockouts not occurred.
Channel Changes Choice: An Empirical Study About Omnichannel Demand Sensitivity to Fulfillment Lead Time
Management Science2023 We examine a large transaction-level data set of an Italian omnichannel furniture retailer to study channel-specific effects of fulfillment lead time on demand. This omnichannel retailer sells the same products and has the same product fulfillment across three channels: showroom, online, and catalog. The showroom channel carries no inventory but allows customers to touch and feel the products.
Do it right the first time: Vehicle routing with home delivery attempt predictors
Production and Operations Management2022 Up to 20% of all business-to-consumer deliveries fail on the first attempt. Failed deliveries not only carry cost implications but also incur damage to retailers’ brand reputation. Despite its economic significance, research has paid little attention to delivery attempt as an operational outcome or seldom accounted for its effects in routing models. This is partly due to the many factors that can influence delivery outcomes.
Scan Based Trading and Bargaining Equilibrium: A Structural Estimation of Supply Chain Profit
Manufacturing & Service Operations Management2022 Scan based trading (SBT) represents a type of replenishment system in which the supplier retains title until the product is scanned through checkout at the retail store by the consumer. Although SBT carries potential benefits for both parties in the supplier-retailer dyad, it may also yield asymmetric gains to these parties, particularly because SBT can impose greater inventory costs to suppliers through shrink.
Scan Based Trading and Bargaining Equilibrium: A Structural Estimation of Supply Chain Profit
Production and Operations Management2022 Scan based trading (SBT) represents a type of replenishment system in which the supplier retains title until the product is scanned through checkout at the retail store by the consumer. Although SBT carries potential benefits for both parties in the supplier-retailer dyad, it may also yield asymmetric gains to these parties, particularly because SBT can impose greater inventory costs to suppliers through shrink.
