10: Supply Chain Networks with Multicritera Decision Makers

In this paper, we develop a theoretical framework for multicriteria decision-making in multitiered supply chain networks. The framework handles competition among the decision-makers who consist of manufacturers, retailers, and consumers. The endogenous variables include the product shipments between the network tiers, the prices of the product at the various nodes of the supply chain network, as well as the service levels provided. The work significantly generalizes the model of Nagurney, Zhang, and Dong (2002) by introducing another tier of decision-makers in the form of retailers and by allowing all tiers to be multicriteria decision-makers. Furthermore, it generalizes the model of Nagurney, Dong, and Zhang (2002), which considered three tiers of decision-makers but the decision-makers were exclusively faced with single criterion to optimize. Moreover, it formalizes the incorporation of service levels.