Elena Belavina studies supply chain management, global sourcing, intermediaries, retailing, applied microeconomic theory, game theory and econometrics. Her forthcoming article titled, “The Relational Advantages of Intermediation” was co-authored with Karan Girotra and will be published in Management Science.
Belavina holds a Ph.D. in management from INSEAD. She earned both a M.Sc. and a B.Sc. in applied mathematics and physics from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, as well as a Diploma of Business Communication Translator from the same institution.
Outside of academia Belavina is a consultant for a major Russian fashion retailer.
New: The Benefits of Decentralized Decision-Making in Supply Chains
Date Posted: Sep 04, 2012
The inefficiency of decentralized decision-making is one of the most influential findings of the supply chain coordination literature. This paper shows that with the possibility of continuing trade, decentralization can be beneficial in improving supply chain performance. In a supply chain with decentralized decision-making and continuing trade, it is easier to incentivize players to coordinate on efficient actions. There are more gains to be shared from coordination, and by virtue of each playe
REVISION: The Relational Advantages of Intermediation
Date Posted: Feb 15, 2012
This paper provides a novel explanation for the use of supply chain intermediaries such as Li & Fung Ltd.. We find that even in the absence of the well-known transactional and informational advantages of mediation, intermediaries improve supply chain performance. In particular, intermediaries facilitate responsive adaptation of the buyers’ supplier base to their changing needs while simultaneously ensuring that suppliers behave as if they had long-term sourcing commitments from buying firms. In