Aims and Scope
With the rapid rise of emerging information technologies, such as artificial intelligence, big data and analytics, mobile internet, cloud computing, internet of things and blockchain, the digital economy is playing an increasingly important role in the global economy[1]. In 2020, the global digital economy reached $32.6 trillion, accounting for 43.7% of GDP[2]. The emergence of the digital economy is accelerating the transformation of traditional economy modes[3]. Pretty much all businesses today strive for digital competency. Online markets are rising and thriving. The major e-commerce and network platforms that carry online economic activities have also sprung up. The increased use of digitization is changing the business models, collaborations, and work practices in product and service provision[4,5]. It also challenges social and market institutions at all levels—societal, industry, professional, organizational, group, and individual[6-8].
Consequently, effectively promoting the digital transformation and further improving the production and service operations management (PSOM) are critical problems for enterprises. This special issue is to explore the development mechanism of the digital economy, enhance the understanding of the theoretical basis, innovate research methods based on digital technology, and conduct in-depth research on PSOM in the digital economy.
The rapid development of the digital economy not only provides new opportunities and challenges for efficient and scientific operation and management in industry, but also nurtures new research topics and methods in academia. The digital economy has four core characteristics: digital information, modern information networks, digital technologies, and new business models. First, digital information, such as images, words, and sounds, refers to information stored on virtual carriers and can be used repeatedly. Second, the modern information network, which refers to the virtual network connecting all participants, is the carrier formed by the Internet for market organization and transmission of digital information. Third, digital technology, such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, cloud computing, and big data, is a tool for analyzing and processing digital information. Fourth, integrating with the traditional economy, digital technology induces new business models, such as platform supply chains, pay per use services, service-oriented manufacturing, sharing manufacturing[9-10].
Recent developments in the literature, particularly from the MS and OR disciplines, have highlighted the need for digital industry transformation to be better theorized[3-7]. However, this field is still emerging. The existing research lags far behind the practical needs of providing decision support and policy suggestions in the digital economy. To this end, it is urgent to explore the development mechanism of the digital economy, enhance the understanding of the theoretical basis, innovate research methods based on digital technology, and conduct in-depth research on PSOM in the digital economy.
This special issue aims to attract state-of-the-art research on PSOM in the digital economy, leading to an exploration of several crucial research domains using different MS/OR methodologies. All submissions must have clear managerial contributions and be built on rigorous research methods. In particular, the following research directions are in the scope of this Special Issue:
○Data management and governance: e.g., valuation of data assets, information sharing
○Platform operations: e.g., supply and demand matching, pricing and revenue management
○Optimization decision: e.g., networked collaboration, resource matching, dynamic optimization
○Application/adoption of digital technologies, such as big data, artificial intelligence, data-driven
○Analysis of the new economic models, such as the gig economy, sharing economy, social e-commerce
○Analysis of the new global supply chain management model in the digital economy
○Risk control and management in the digital economy
○Enterprise sustainability in the digital economy
We expect novel and innovative papers in the areas that include but are not limited to the above. Any new models, theories and methods related to the digital economy fit the mission.
To prepare their manuscript, authors should closely follow the “Guide for Authors” of Omega - The International Journal of Management Science. Authors should submit their paper via the OMEGA online submission and editorial system at: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/omega and select “Special Issue: Production and Service Operations Management in Digital Economy” as the “Article Type”. Submitted papers should not have been previously published nor be currently under consideration for publication elsewhere. Manuscripts will be strictly refereed based on the standards of Omega - The International Journal of Management Science.
Publication Schedule
The submission deadline: October 1, 2023.
The final decision notification: May 1, 2024.
Publication date (tentative): Late 2024
References
[1]OECD. A roadmap toward a common framework for measuring the digital economy. Report for the G20 Digital Economy Task Force, 2020.
[2]China Academy of Information and Communications Technology. White paper on the global digital economy, 2021.
[3]Avi Goldfarb, Catherine Tucker. Digital economics. Journal of Economic Literature, 2019, 57(1): 3-43.
[4]Zhong-Zhong Jiang, Guangwen Kong, Yinghao Zhang. Making the most of your regret: Workers’ relocation decisions in on-demand platforms. Manufacturing & Service Operations Management, 2021, 23(3): 695-713.
[5]Xiaoyang Zhou, Kexin Chen, Haoyu Wen, Jun Lin, Kai Zhang, Xin Tian, Shouyang Wang, Benjamin Lev. Integration of third-party platforms: Does it really hurt them? International Journal of Production Economics, 2021, 234: 108003.
[6]Susan V. Scott, Orlikowski Wanda. The digital undertow: How the corollary effects of digital transformation affect industry standards. Information Systems Research, 2022, 33(1): 311-336.
[7]Qing Zhang, Xiuqi Jiang, Yini Zheng. Blockchain adoption and gray markets in a global supply chain. Omega, 2023, 115: 102785.
[8]Balan Sundarakani, Aneesh Ajaykumar, Angappa Gunasekaran. Big data driven supply chain design and applications for blockchain: An action research using case study approach. Omega, 2021, 102: 102452.
[9]Zhong-Zhong Jiang, Guangqi Feng, Zelong Yi, Xiaolong Guo. Service-oriented manufacturing: A literature review and future research directions. Frontiers of Engineering Management, 2022, 9(1): 71-88.
[10]Xiaoyang Zhou, Chong Gao, Ding Zhang. Product service supply chain network competition: An equilibrium with multiple tiers and members. International Journal of Production Research, 2022, DOI: 10.1080/00207543.2022.2060771.