The Center for Social Data Analytics Speaker Series Presents: Jennifer Nowicki (Supply Chain Management)

Title: "Distant Mines, Local Risks: The Impact of Deregulation on Fissured Workforce Risk Management Systems"

Abstract: What happens to fissured workforce risk when regulation disappears, but the underlying risks remain? We examine this question in the context of the 2017 deregulation of the Dodd-Frank Act’s (2010) conflict minerals provision. Conflict mineral mining involves significant risks to local labor forces; however focal firms have limited visibility into labor practices at sub-tier levels in the supply chain, especially since the labor is contracted by suppliers (i.e., fissured labor). Drawing on information processing theory, operational capability, and coercive isomorphism, we argue that firms respond to regulatory uncertainty by increasing the fidelity of their supply chain risk management (SCRM) systems to prior regulatory guidelines. The data comes from 316 firms subject to the deregulation of Section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Act, which addresses supply chain and fissured labor risks associated with conflict mining. A natural language processing model is used to assess the alignment (i.e., fidelity) of a firm's SCRM system with an established regulatory framework, and an econometric analysis evaluates the impact of the SCRM systems on firm outcomes. The results show that rolling back regulations shapes firms’ SCRM systems. In the absence of coercive pressure, firms increase the fidelity of their SCRM systems to overcome the uncertainties that emerge from deregulation. The findings also reveal that higher fidelity improves the firm's financial health and attenuates the negative effects of prior ESG and fissured labor-related reputational risks. A post-hoc analysis examining potential social washing and strategic silence effects suggests that firms’ improvements emerge not from rhetorical changes, but from substantive changes to firms’ risk management capabilities.

Bio: Jennifer is a PhD Candidate in the Supply Chain & Information Systems (minor: Social Data Analytics) department at the Smeal College of Business at Penn State University. Jennifer’s research looks at domestic and international supply chains in conjunction with responsible operations, sourcing complexity, and labor. She is particularly interested in issues impacting firms that are attempting to manage compounding uncertainties, including evolving regulatory environments, technological advances, and social awareness. Her current projects include topics related to conflict mining & the critical mineral supply chain, trade (de)regulations, and reverse-engineering the strategic facility planning for illicit business networks. Within her research, she employs a variety of empirical methods, including (but not limited to!) econometrics, machine learning / AI, geospatial analyses, data analytics, network science, and simulations. Before joining the PhD program at Penn State, Jennifer worked as a global trade compliance specialist for a third-party logistics company and as a witness & trial coordinator for the Specialty Unit (involving human trafficking cases) within the 20th Judicial Circuit - State Attorney's Office in Florida. One of her most formative (and personally rewarding) experiences was getting to serve as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Western Samoa, where she taught literacy, computer skills, and music.