Dr Meng Jia

I obtained my PhD from Lancaster University before joining the University of Leicester as a Lecturer in Operations and Supply Chain Management. I'm now also a visiting researcher at Pentland Centre for Sustainability in Business at Lancaster University.

My primary research focus centers on sustainable supply chain management and I am actively engaged in investigating several key areas within this domain. Firstly, I am examining the deployment and effectiveness of sustainability-oriented supplier development initiatives, seeking to understand their impact and effectiveness in fostering sustainable practices within supply chains. Additionally, I am exploring the role of first-tier suppliers in managing sustainability challenges across multi-tier supply chains, aiming to elucidate their responsibilities and potential contributions to sustainability efforts. Furthermore, I am intrigued by the involvement of non-traditional supply chain actors, such as consultancies, in addressing sustainability challenges, and I am investigating their strategies and efficacy in this regard.

In parallel, my research extends into the realm of supply chain finance, where my focus lies in exploring the governance prerequisites and implementations of financial mechanisms designed to bolster the resilience and sustainability of supply chains. Furthermore, I am actively engaged in a collaborative venture on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) management and circularity aiming at advancing both the understanding and the practices in this field. 

Additionally, I am beginning to expand my research into the food supply chain domain. Both of my PhD students are focusing on this topic, examining critical aspects, such as fairness and the use of visual management tools, of food supply chains within the UK context. 

Recently, I have also developed a keen interest in the role of technologies for digital transformation in supply chains. My research in this area seeks to understand how digital tools, such as blockchain and AI, can enhance transparency, efficiency, and resilience across supply chains.

AJG: 4:

Jia, M., Stevenson, M. and Hendry, L. C. (2021), “The boundary-spanning role of first-tier suppliers in sustainability-oriented supplier development initiatives”, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, Vol. 41 No. 11, pp. 1633-1659. 

Jia, M., Hendry, L. and Stevenson, M. (2022), “Supplier absorptive capacity: Learning via boundary objects in sustainability-oriented supplier development initiatives”, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, Vol. 42 No. 8, pp. 1173-1199.

AJG: 3:

Jia, M., Stevenson, M. and Hendry, L. (2023), “A systematic literature review on sustainability-oriented supplier development”, Production Planning & Control, Vol. 34, No. 8, pp. 727-747.

AJG: 2:

Phraknoi N, Stevenson M, Jia M. (2024), "Governance requirements in supply chain finance: The need for a dual-layered semipermeable boundary", International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management. Accepted. 

I'm happy to take PhD students who are interested in the following areas:

1. Sustainable supply chain management

2. Buyer-supplier relationship in multi-tier supply chains

3. Supply chain finance

4. WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) and Circularity

5. Food supply chain resilience

6. Technologies for digital transformation in supply chains

• MN2110 Operations Management
  
  
• MN7053 Global Strategy, International Marketing, and Operations Management

• MN2108 Strategy
  
  

1. Prizes

• Kingsman Prize for Best Doctoral Researcher of 2022 (Management Science, Lancaster University)
  
  
• Highly Commended Paper of International Journal of Operations & Production Management (IJOPM) 2021

2. Fundings

• Principle Investigator of the project “The use of training of trainers (ToT) approach in achieving socially sustainable supply chain: a case study of a supplier development initiative in China”, Nov, 2023 – July, 2024, £1,000, partly funded by the Seedcorn funding, University of Leicester
  
  
• Co-Investigator of the project “BRUFSS: Building Resilience in the UK’s Food Supply Chain System”, Sept, 2023 to March, 2025, £9,460.30, British Academy/Leverhulme Small Research Grants
  
  
• Principal Investigator of the project “Achieving socially sustainable supply chain via scaling up sustainability-oriented supplier development initiatives”, August, 2022 to July, 2023, £2,830, College Research Development Funding, University of Leicester

3. Funded visiting scholarship

• Visiting researcher at Politecnico di Milano funded by Politecnico di Milano for four months (27 May – 27 Sept, 2024)

• EurOMA Annual Conference 2020
  
  
• EurOMA Annual Conference 2021
  
  
• EurOMA Annual Conference Sustainable Operations and Supply Chains Forum 2022
  
  
• EurOMA Annual Conference 2023

• EurOMA Annual Conference 2024