Congratulations to Nikki Zhang who has been selected to represent UNEBS at the upcoming Annual PhD Conference in Economics and Business.

“I am so lucky to be selected as the representative of PhD students in Business School. We all did an excellent job! I appreciate all the comments and suggestions that I have received from judges and audience in the selection,” Nikki said.

During the selection process, Nikki presented a paper entitled “Linking product quality information to firm performance: an application in the Australian red meat supply chains”. This is one of Nikki’s PhD papers that she worked with all of her supervisors and also the co-authors Prof. Derek Backer, Dr. Emilio Morales, Dr. Nam Hoang, and Prof. Garry Griffith. Nikki acknowledges her co-authors for their support and encouragement.  

Nikki believes that information is everywhere in our life. The Australian red meat industry also invested heavily in the measurement, use, and share of information. All stages of the red meat supply chain can benefit from such investment and from using the information. However, there is very little evidence in the previous studies. Nikki’s PhD aims to quantify the value of information sharing in the Australian beef and sheep meat supply chains. It uses Australian survey data targeting two stages of the red meat supply chain: stud breeders and commercial producers. Nikki will also discuss the role of government and industry bodies when the chain failure occur that restricts information flow and sharing. The results provide incentives for information sharing, and for investment in new technologies and procedures which contributes to Australia’s $23 billion red meat industry.

The next step in Nikki’s journey to the Annual Australian PhD Conference in Economics involves preparing the full paper for the presentation.  The 32nd Annual Australian PhD Conference in Economics and Business offers advanced PhD students in the fields of Economics and Finance at Australian universities opportunities to present their research and receive comments from prominent scholars in the area. The Conference was initiated in 1987 and is now a joint venture between the Australian National University, Monash University, the University of Melbourne, the University of Queensland, and the University of Western Australia. It is co-funded by these universities and has three distinct aims. Firstly, it provides PhD students in economics, business and related areas with an opportunity to present their work in front of a world-class group of students and academics. Secondly, it brings together students and academics with a wide range of backgrounds and interests. Finally, it helps students and potential employers interact with each other in a relaxed atmosphere.

Staff at UNEBS look forward to hearing Nikki discuss more about her topic in the upcoming Annual Australian PhD Conference in Economics and Business, and wish her the best of luck!