Himani Ananthula

PhD Candidate, Operations Management, Kellogg School of Management
Advisor: Prof. Achal Bassamboo 

Contact Information

Overview

I am a PhD Candidate in Operations Management at the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University. Before pursuing my PhD, I completed my undergraduate studies at the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, in 2016, where I majored in Mechanical Engineering and minored in Electrical Engineering.

My research examines labor supply dynamics in the gig economy and develops optimal strategies for service providers managing flexible workforces. I employ data-driven analytical modeling and econometric models in my work.

I am on the 2025–2026 academic job market.

Research Interests/Methodologies: Gig Economy, Service Operations, Data-driven Modeling, Stochastic Modeling, Causal Inference, and Large-Scale Optimization

Upcoming Talks

• 2025 Annual POMS Conference, Atlanta | May 10, 2025 |04:00 PM – 05:30 PM| GRAND HALL EAST A | Session: College of SCM Best Student Paper Presentation
  Title: Adapting to Gig Economy Dynamics: Network and Staffing Strategies for Long-Haul Trucking Platforms

• 2025 Annual POMS Conference, Atlanta|May 11, 2025| 03:00 PM – 04:30 PM| EMBASSY C | Session: Service Design Framework
  Title: Flexible Workforce and Endogenous Behavior: Implications for Service System Design
• 2025 INFORMS MSOM Conference SIG Day, London | June 27, 2025 | Time: 8:30am – 10:00am| LT6 | Session: Empirical Research in Supply Chains
• 3rd Annual Purdue SCOM Conference, West Lafayette| August 22-24, 2025 | Time: TBD | Session: TBD 

Research 

1. Adapting to gig economy dynamics: network and staffing strategies for long-haul trucking platforms  with Milind Sohoni and Achal Bassamboo. R&R at MS 2025            *Accepted at MSOM SIG Conference 2025, Supply Chain Management track.
   *Finalist, POMS Annual Meeting 2025, College of SCM best student paper award.

2. Division of Labor and the On-Demand Economy: Implications for System Design with Achal Bassamboo and Milind Sohoni (Work in Progress)
3. A modified Benders algorithm for relay network design resilient to supply shocks with Milind Sohoni and Achal Bassamboo.(Draft under preparation)
4. Cost of work-life balance: Earnings Trade-offs for Long-Haul Truckers. (Work in progress)

Additional Information is on my Personal Website.