Resource Modeling and Allocation in Competitive Systems

Abstract

This thesis includes three self-contained projects:

In the first project Bidding strategies and their impact on the auctioneer's revenue in combinatorial auctions, focusing on combinatorial auctions, we propose a simple and efficient model for evaluating the value of any bundle given limited information, design bidding strategies that efficiently select desirable bundles, and evaluate the performance of different bundling strategies under various market settings.

In the second project Retailer shelf-space management with promotion effects, promotional investment effects are integrated with retail store assortment decisions and shelf space allocation. An optimization model for the category shelf-space allocation incorporating promotion effects is presented. Based on the proposed model, a category shelf space allocation framework with trade allowances is presented where a multi-player Retailer Stackelberg game is introduced to model the interactions between retailer and manufacturers.

In the third project Supply-chain oriented robust parameter design, we introduce the game theoretical method, commonly used in supply-chain analysis to solve potential conflicts between manufacturers at various stages. These manufacturing chain partners collaboratively decide parameter design settings of the controllable factors to make the product less sensitive to process variations.