Thu, 06.07.2017

Negotiation mechanisms for supply chain coordination

Prof. Dr. Andreas Fink

Helmut-Schmidt-University Hamburg, Germany

 
We consider decentralized decision-making approaches for well-formed supply chain coordination problems at the level of operations management. Assuming that the intertwined decisions of the involved firms can be modeled as formal contracts, the use of automated procedures for achieving a mutually satisfactory agreement is reasonable. At first, we introduce the broader topic, describe different problem types, deliberate on general requirements for solution methods, and discuss principle solution approaches. Subsequently, we present and analyze generic negotiation protocols for multi-issue combinatorial solution spaces, in particular considering sequencing and scheduling problems as illustrative application examples. The elements of respective contract spaces are common knowledge, whereas information asymmetry prevails regarding the preferences of the involved self-interested decision-making units. Finally, we extend negotiation mechanisms by utilizing monetary transfers (side payments) and give some insights on the effectiveness of different building blocks under consideration of strategic behavior.

Short profile

Andreas Fink studied Business Administration and Computer Science at the University of Technology Darmstadt from 1989 to 1995 and received his diploma "with honors". From 1995 he worked as a researcher at the University of Technology Braunschweig and received his doctoral degree "summa cum laude" in 2005. His dissertation also won the "Michehl-Förderpreis für Wirtschaftswissenschaften" and the "Heinrich-Büssing-Preis". From 2000 to 2001 he worked as an assistant professor at the University of Technology Braunschweig. 2001 to 2002 he was the professor for Information Systems at the Universität der Bundeswehr München. From 2002 he has been an assistant professor at the University of Hamburg and received his habilitation for Business Administration at the Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences at University Hamburg in 2005. Since 2006 he is a full professor at the Helmut-Schmidt-University Hamburg.