INFORMS Releases

Many technology startups assume that if they want global success, they need global customers from the very beginning.

New research suggests the opposite may be true.

Startups can improve their chances of succeeding in foreign markets when they first focus on learning from users closer to home.

For years, remote work has been viewed as one of the most important drivers of employee satisfaction. New research suggests that assumption may be giving remote work too much credit.

A study published in the INFORMS journal Management Science found that while remote employees often report higher job satisfaction, much of that advantage disappears when researchers account for factors such as workplace culture, trust in management, communication and opportunities for professional development.

If the future of warehouse work belongs to humans and robots working side by side, a key question remains: What is the most effective way for them to collaborate?

New research published in Transportation Science, a journal of INFORMS, suggests the answer may be more flexible than many warehouse operators expect. The study, "Picking the Best Bot: Collaboration Strategies for Humans and Bots in Order Pick Systems with Traveling Salesman Problem Routing," found that under many real-world conditions, warehouse workers achieve higher productivity when they dynamically switch among multiple autonomous mobile robots rather than work exclusively with a single robot.

A study published in Management Science finds that the industry’s standard approach of matching video game players against opponents with similar skill levels is not necessarily the most effective way to keep people engaged. Instead, researchers show that more sophisticated matchmaking systems—ones that account for how players respond to recent wins, losses and competitive experiences over time—can significantly increase player retention.

If people form opinions online before they fully evaluate whether information is true, then the fight against misinformation may begin far earlier than most platforms are designed to address. A new study published in Information Systems Research, a journal of INFORMS, suggests that social media users can begin developing stable opinions about unfamiliar topics after seeing only a handful of consistent posts. Researchers found that after roughly five exposures, users’ impressions often began stabilizing and shaping how they responded to future information.