We study a monopolistic firm which introduces two product versions sequentially in two periods. We analyze and compare the firm's decisions on the innovation level of the new version, the production quantities and prices of both versions, and the associated profit in four settings: when the...

The differentiation of products and services parallel with the globalization, motivated researchers to commit resources within supply chains more effectively. Competitive nature of the markets requires innovativeness with swift actions to supply mass customized demand. The total cost in the...

We consider a market consisting of two populations, termed rich and poor for convenience. If a product is priced such that it is very expensive for the poor, but affordable to the rich, it becomes a status symbol for the poor and this makes it more desirable for the poor. At a lower price the...

We study the problem of scheduling a chain-reentrant shop, in which each job goes for its processing first to a machine called the primary machine, then to a number of other machines in a fixed sequence, and finally back to the primary machine for its last operation. The problem is to schedule...

Environmental and energy independence concerns lead to government subsidies for electric vehicles (EVs). Operational decisions for a government are i) to incentivize EV ownership by a direct consumer subsidy, a station subsidy that reduces charging inconvenience, or by both subsidies; and ii) to...

We develop a forecasting method for the manufacturer and online seller of a product collection that changes periodically and radically. The firm, an industry leader in technology and quality, has experienced double-digit annual sales growth. In seeking to minimize supply-demand mismatch costs...

We consider a firm’s choice of service rate in the following environment. The firm may have high or low quality, and sells a good to consumers who are heterogeneously informed. Consumers arrive according to a Poisson process and are serviced in a random period of time. If a consumer arrives...

Models of consumer learning and inventory behavior have both proven to be valuable for explaining consumer choice dynamics. In their pure form these models assume consumers solve complex dynamic programming (DP) problems to determine optimal choices. For this reason, these models are best viewed...

This paper studies how "rational inattention (RI)" -- a type of information processing constraint proposed by Sims (2003) -- affects the joint dynamics of consumption and income in a permanent income model with general income processes. Specifically, I propose an analytical approach to solve the...

Wealth uncertainty may be resolved before consumption in which case consumption is optimal. But if uncertainty remains at the consumption level, after allocative decisions are made, ex post relative consumption is suboptimal. Therefore, ex ante the consumer has to balance attitudes to risk with...