On the morning of December 19, 2024, Professor Yu Wang from the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) was invited to deliver an academic lecture titled “Reservation Property and the Advantage of Being Small: A Queueing Analysis in Bike Sharing” (Chinese subtitle: The Survival Strategy of Small Firms: Modeling Insights from Bike-Sharing Systems) at Lecture Hall 214 of the School of Management, Northwestern Polytechnical University (NPU). The seminar was chaired by Associate Professor Chenglong Li of the School of Management. It attracted a large audience of faculty members, doctoral students, and master’s students from the school.

In his talk, Professor Wang presented his latest research findings under the theme “The Survival Strategy of Small Firms: Modeling Insights from Bike-Sharing Systems.” He began by sharing the origin of the research idea, explaining the motivation and significance of the study. He noted that while observing the usage patterns of bike-sharing services in daily life, he and his team noticed that despite the market dominance of major bike-sharing brands, smaller operators still maintained a loyal user base. This observation sparked their curiosity about the underlying reasons.

Through extensive field investigations and data analysis, the team discovered that users’ preference for smaller bike-sharing brands primarily stemmed from availability—specifically, the ease and reliability of finding an available bike when needed—rather than factors such as brand recognition or pricing advantages. Building on this insight, Professor Wang and his collaborators abstracted key parameters from real-world phenomena and developed a rigorous analytical model based on queueing theory to quantitatively characterize user behavior toward small bike-sharing operators. Their analysis not only uncovered the unique competitive advantage enjoyed by small firms in a highly saturated market but also offered practical managerial implications for their sustainable growth.

The seminar concluded with an engaging and in-depth discussion. Faculty and students actively shared their perspectives, drawing from personal experiences and observations regarding the evolution of the bike-sharing market, user behavior, and strategic positioning of niche players. Professor Wang’s presentation provided valuable insights—not only by addressing a real-world operational challenge through precise data analysis and scientific modeling, but also by demonstrating how everyday observations can inspire high-impact academic research. The event significantly broadened participants’ horizons and stimulated further reflection on research methodology and innovative thinking.

Speaker Biography:

Yu Wang is a Tenured Professor at the Business School of the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech). He received his B.Eng. in Electronic Engineering from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and his Ph.D. in Industrial and Systems Engineering from the University of Minnesota, USA. Prior to joining SUSTech, he served as an Assistant Professor at the Lee Kong Chian School of Business, Singapore Management University.

Professor Wang’s research focuses on operations system analysis and control, operations design and optimization, data-driven studies of operations issues in Chinese society, and innovation in business operating models. He has published 10 papers in top-tier UTD-listed journals, including Management Science, Manufacturing & Service Operations Management, and Production and Operations Management. He currently serves as an Associate Editor for Decision Sciences.

His work has been recognized with the Third-Class Award of Zhejiang Provincial Science and Technology Progress. His policy advisory reports have been adopted by the General Office of the State Council and received official endorsements from the Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee. Professor Wang is a recipient of several prestigious talent programs, including the National Overseas High-Level Young Talent Program, the Guangdong Pearl River Talent Program (Young Elite Scientist), and the Shenzhen Peacock Plan Distinguished Professorship.

(Written by Liu Yuxin / Reviewed by Jia Ming)