管理科学系学术讲座（9月23日）

时   间：2025年9月23日（周一） 10:00-12:00

地   点：管理学院思源楼524室

主讲人：Hugo Lam 利物浦大学管理学院教授

主持人：陈祥锋 复旦大学管理学院教授

主题一：The Impact of Blockchain-Enabled Smart Contracts on Firms' Operational Efficiency

Abstract: Smart contracts, enabled by blockchain technology, are increasingly adopted by firms to automate the execution of agreements or contracts without the involvement of intermediaries. However, it is still unclear how smart contracts may affect firms' operational efficiency. We address this issue empirically by conducting a quasi-natural experiment in the United States in which certain states have enacted relevant laws that increase in-state firms' propensity to adopt and use smart contracts. Our difference-in-differences estimation suggests that compared with out-of-state control firms, in-state treatment firms' operational efficiency increases significantly after the enactment of smart contract laws. Our post hoc analysis further suggests that state-level smart contract laws help increase in-state firms' actual smart contract activities, which in turn lead to operational efficiency improvement. We also find that the operational efficiency improvement varies across firms with different supply chain complexities. While firms with a large number of supply chain partners (i.e., high horizontal complexity) gain more operational efficiency improvement, the improvement becomes less pronounced if firms' supply chain partners are distributed across different countries (i.e., high spatial complexity). Overall, our research not only demonstrates smart contracts' ability to improve operational efficiency but also reveals the critical role of supply chain complexity in affecting the operational efficiency improvement.

主题二：Publishing in IJOPM: An Editor’s Perspective

International Journal of Operations & Production Management’s (IJOPM) mission is to publish leading-edge, innovative research that has the potential to significantly advance the field of Operations and Supply Chain Management, theoretically and practically. IJOPM is a high-impact (5-year Impact Factor = 9.6), high-ranked (rated 4 in the 2024 Academic Journal Guide) empirical journal with a rigorous review process (2024 acceptance rate = 6%). In this seminar, I will provide an introduction of the journal, highlighting its review process, submission statistics, special issues, and future initiatives and activities. I will also share some insights about the topics, theories, and methods of past research published in the journal. I am happy to answer any questions related to the journal.

Bio:

Professor Hugo Lam is Chair in Operations Management and Director of Research (Operations and Supply Chain Management) at the University of Liverpool Management School. He obtained his PhD in Operations Management from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Hugo’s research focuses on operational implications of emerging technology adoption and sustainable supply chain management, with relevant papers published or forthcoming in Management Science, Journal of Operations Management, Production and Operations Management, and International Journal of Operations & Production Management, among others. He is serving the Operations Management community as a Co-Editor-in-Chief of International Journal of Operations & Production Management and an Associate Editor of Journal of Operations Management. He has also served as a Guest Editor for several Operations Management journals, editing special issues related to social media, metaverse, extreme weather, and sustainable supply chains.