From July 4 to July 7, 2015, at the invitation of Prof. YU Yugang, Executive Dean of the School of Management, Dr. ZHANG Fuqiang (tenured professor), associate professor of Washington University in St. Louis Olin Business School, visited the School of Management of USTC. During his four-day visit, Dr. Zhang conducted a series of academic activities with teachers and students and gave an inspiring lecture on the topic of  “Strategic Consumer Behavior in Operations Models”, which attracted an attendance of students and faculty members, including Prof. BI Gongbing, Associate Professor QIN Jin, and Associate Professor GOU Qinglong, postgraduate students with similar interests, and even scholars from other universities. The lectures were hosted by Associate Prof. DU Shaofu of the School of Management of USTC.

As research of operation management keeps deepening in the field, the factors of the policymakers behaviors in operation management are in the ascendant, while consumers’ short-sighted and foresight behavior of vision (consumer strategy) in the process of making purchasing decisions is also very significant. Professor Zhang explained strategies for consumer behavior systematically and the profound impact of such behavior on the traditional operation management, explaining how to depict and analyze the strategies for consumer behavior. He put forward many unique insights on future research directions. The lecture brought the teachers and students present a more comprehensive understanding about applying strategies for consumers in the field of operation management and the latest progress in this research direction. During the lecture, Dr. Zhang answered the participants’ questions carefully, and shared his valuable experience in problem finding, modeling analysis, and extracting revelations.

During the visit, Prof. Zhang conducted targeted academic communication with teachers and students from the School of Management, presided over the three academic seminars, listened to academic reports from teachers and students patiently, and made a wonderful explanation to the teachers and students who consulted him about problems encountered during their scientific research work. His broad knowledge, quick thinking, and deep analysis greatly benefited teachers and students.

Prof. Zhang serves in the Olin Business School of Washington University in St. Louis. He received his master's degree at Simon School of Business, University of Rochester and doctoral degree at Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. His main research field is supply chain management, operation management consumer analysis, and sustainable operation management. He has published a large number of academic papers in top international academic journals: Management Science (MS), Manufacturing & Service Operations Management (M&SOM), Operations Research (OR), Production and Operations Management (POM), and others. He won POM’s Wickham Skinner Early-Career Research Accomplishments Award in 2009, M&SOM journal’s Meritorious Service Award three times (2006, 2009, and 2011), and MS journal’s Distinguished Service Award twice (2009 and 2010). He has served as vice chairman in an M&SOM academic conference, and as deputy editor of both MS and M&SOM.