Across emerging markets, 50 million nanostores serve about 4 billion consumers with their daily groceries. Collectively, they are the largest client of many multinational manufacturers of consumer-packaged goods. These mom-and-pop operated stores are undergoing a multi-faceted digital transformation, that has the power to improve the livelihoods of millions of shopkeepers and to increase the access to affordable food for billions of consumers. Prof. Fransoo will present recent research findings of empirical and model-based work that help understand the operational dynamics and strategic performance of the channel, including research questions around channel choice, trade credit, and digital ordering.
About the speaker
Jan Fransoo is Professor of Operations and Logistics Management in the Department of Information Systems & Operations Management at Tilburg University, and holds courtesy affiliations at Eindhoven University of Technology and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Prior to joining Tilburg, Fransoo was on the faculty at Kuehne Logistics University and Eindhoven University of Technology. Fransoo has over 30 years of experience in conducting research in operations and supply chain management, making use of a wide variety of analytical, quantitative, and qualitative methods. His research is widely published in and cited by high-impact academic journals, and in several of his (co-edited) books, notably “Sustainable Supply Chain Management”, “Reaching 50 Million Nanostores”, and “Behavioral Operations in Planning and Scheduling”. His current research interests focus on retail and pharmaceutical distribution in developing markets, on sustainability transitions in the logistics industry, and on the role of humans in AI-enhanced decision making. In addition to his research and teaching, Fransoo has extensive university leadership experience, has led large scale research projects, programs, and institutes, and consulted and partnered with many companies, and multiple governments and intergovernmental organizations. Fransoo holds an MSc in Industrial Engineering and a PhD in Operations Management from Eindhoven University of Technology.