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Decentralized Decision-Making in Retail Chains: Evidence from Inventory Management

Author

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  • Aguirregabiria, Victor
  • Guiton, Francis

Abstract

This paper investigates the impact of decentralizing inventory decision-making in multi-establishment firms using data from a large retail chain. Analyzing two years of daily data, we find significant heterogeneity among the inventory decisions made by 634 store managers. By estimating a dynamic structural model, we reveal substantial heterogeneity in managers’ perceived costs. Moreover, we observe a correlation between the variance of these perceptions and managers’ education and experience. Counterfactual experiments show that centralized inventory management reduces costs by eliminating the impact of managers’ skill heterogeneity. However, these benefits are offset by the negative impact of delayed demand information.

Suggested Citation

  • Aguirregabiria, Victor & Guiton, Francis, 2022. "Decentralized Decision-Making in Retail Chains: Evidence from Inventory Management," CEPR Discussion Papers 17149, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:17149
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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • D22 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Firm Behavior: Empirical Analysis
    • D84 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Expectations; Speculations
    • L22 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Firm Organization and Market Structure
    • L81 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Retail and Wholesale Trade; e-Commerce

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