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Alok Kumar Photo

Alok Kumar

Steve & Jennifer David Chair in Business and Professor of Marketing
Marketing
HLH 335 S
P.O. Box 880492
Lincoln, NE 68588-0492
(402) 472-3378
akumar5@unl.edu
Alok Kumar Photo
Education
Ph.D., University Wisconsin-Madison, 2008

MBA, Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta, India, 1998

B.Tech (Mining Engineering), School of Mines, India, 1995
Areas of Expertise
  • Business-to-Business Marketing
  • Marketing Channels Management
  • Marketing Strategy
Research Interests
  • Distribution Systems
  • Business-to-Business Markets
  • Supply Chain Relationships
  • Marketing Strategy
Appointments
  • Assistant Professor, 2013
  • Associate Professor, 2015
  • W. W. Marshall College Professor, 2018
Vita
Vita August 2023
Spring 2024 Office Hours

Mondays and Wednesdays, 1:45-2:45 p.m., HLH 335S, and by appointment | Working remotely other days.

Biography

Alok Kumar (Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison) is Professor of Marketing at the College of Business, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Previously, he was on the faculty at the Smeal College of Business, Pennsylvania State University. His primary research interests are in the areas of business-to-business relationships, distribution channels, supply chain relationships, and marketing strategy. Much of his research deals with value-creation and value-claiming issues that arise in marketing alliances between autonomous organizations. His research has appeared in outlets such as the Journal of Marketing and the Journal of Marketing Research. Alok serves as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Marketing and Journal of Academy of Marketing Science, is on the Editorial Review Board at the Journal of Marketing Research, and as an ad-hoc reviewer for several journals. 

He has taught both undergraduate and graduate-level courses, including courses in Marketing Strategy, Managerial Marketing, Marketing Management, and Marketing Channels.

He has several years of industry experience in various engineering (operations), marketing, and sales roles. 

 

Research Interests

Distribution Systems

Business-to-Business Markets

Supply Chain Relationships

Marketing Strategy

Published In

Journal of Marketing
Journal of Marketing Research
Strategic Management Journal

Refereed Publications

Sen, A., Kumar, A., Dubey, V., Gupta, A. (in press). Managing Two-Sided B2B Electronic Markets: Governance Mechanisms, Performance Implications, and Boundary Conditions. Journal of Business Research, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2023.114257

Kumar, A., Shi, Skiba, J., Saini, A., Lu, Z. (in press). Impact of Buying Groups on Buyer-Supplier Relationships: Group-Dyad Interactions in Business-to-Business Markets. Journal of Marketing Research, https://doi.org/10.1177/00222437231152207.

Gupta, A., Kumar, A., Grewal, R., Lilien, G. (2019). Within-Seller and Buyer–Seller Network Structures and Key Account Profitability. Journal of Marketing, 83(1), 108-132.

Wathne, K. H., Heide, J. B.,  Mooi, E. A., Kumar, A., (2018). Relationship Governance Dynamics: The Role of Partner Selection Efforts and Mutual Investments. Journal of Marketing Research, 55(5), 704-721.

Grewal, R., Saini, A., Kumar, A., Dwyer, F. Robert, Dahlstrom, R. (2018). Marketing Channel Management by Multinational Corporations in Foreign Markets. Journal of Marketing, 82(4), 49-69.

Chakravarty, A., Kumar, A., Grewal, R. (2014). Customer Orientation Structure for Internet-Based Business-to-Business Platform FirmsJournal of Marketing, 78, 1-23.
 
Heide, J. B., Kumar, A., Wathne, K. H. (2014). Concurrent Sourcing, Governance Mechanisms, and Performance Outcomes in Industrial Value ChainsStrategic Management Journal, 35(8), 1164-1185.
 
Grewal, R., Kumar, A., Mallapragada, G., Saini, A. (2013). Marketing Channels in Foreign Markets: Control Mechanisms and the Moderating Role of Multinational Corporation Headquarters-Subsidiary Relationship. Journal of Marketing Research, 50(3), 378-398.
 
Kumar, A., Heide, J. B., Wathne, K. H. (2011). Performance Implications of Mismatched Governance Regimes Across External and Internal Relationships. Journal of Marketing, 75(2), 1-17.

Research Awards

2022 Louis W. Stern Award to Anindita Chakravarty, Alok Kumar, and Rajdeep Grewal for their article, “Customer Orientation Structure for Internet-Based Business-to-Business Platform Firms” which was published in the Journal of Marketing in 2014.

Faculty Research Award, Department of Marketing, College of Business Administration, University of Nebrasak-Lincoln. (May 2019).

Faculty Research Award, Marketing Department, College of Business Administration, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. (May 2015).

Faculty Research Award, Marketing Department, College of Business Administration, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. (May 2014).

Distinguished Research Award, College of Business Administration, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. (April 2014).

Undergraduate Courses

Marketing Channels Management (MRKT/SCMA 346) - Basic concepts used in analyzing marketing channels, identifies the issues of designing sound channels, the issues of managing them effectively, and evaluating their performance.

Marketing Management (MRKT 442) - Application of marketing principles to the solution of a wide variety of problems involving influence of the consumer, choice of channels, marketing legislation, and the management of merchandising, advertising, personal selling, sales promotion, pricing, and marketing research.

Managerial Management (GRBA 813) - Mixture of case discussions, readings, lectures, plus written and oral assignments. Development of analytical and decision making skills, and an understanding of the market forces which influence those decisions. Major emphasis on the decision areas of product, distribution, personal selling, advertising and pricing, as well as on the development of integrated marketing programs. Social, ethical, and global issues.

Marketing Channels (MRKT 931) - The purpose of this seminar is to introduce the key literature concerning marketing channel structure and behavior. Marketing channels are treated as interorganizational networks comprised of interdependent institutions and agencies involved in the task of moving goods and services from points of production to points of consumption. This seminar will examine the structures that characterize these networks, especially their causes and consequences from an efficiency perspective. In addition, we shall examine some important behavioral phenomena that characterize the interaction between firms in a channel. The literature base to be examined in this course includes theoretical and empirical studies from economics, law, sociology, organizational behavior, organizational theory and social psychology.

Teaching Interests

Marketing Channels

Marketing Strategy

Business-to-Business Marketing

Marketing Management

International Business.

Dissertation Committees

Committee Chair 

  • Ravi Agarwal
  • Shilpa (Somraj) Rao
  • Argha Sen

Committee Member

  • Plavini Punyatoya
  • Durgesh Pattanayak
  • Jenifer Skiba
  • Arvind Agarwal

 

Outside UNL Committee Co-Chair

  • Stefan Hurtak

Outside UNL Committee Member

  • Chen Zhou
  • Abhijith Holehonnur
  • Alok Saboo

Co-Authorship on Journal Articles

Kumar, A., Shi, H., Skiba, J., Saini, A., Lu, Z. (in press). Impact of Buying Groups on Buyer-Supplier Relationships: Group-Dyad Interactions in Business-to-Business Markets. Journal of Marketing Research. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/00222437231152207 (published online 1/7/2023)

Professional Service

Associate Editor, Journal of Marketing. (July 2022 - Present)

Associate Editor, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science (JAMS). (March 2021 - Present)

Editorial Review Board Member, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science (JAMS). (May 2020 - Present).

Reviewer, Ad Hoc Reviewer, Journal of Retailing. (2019 - Present).

Editorial Review Board Member, Journal of Marketing Research. (2016 - Present).

Editorial Review Board Member, Journal of Business Research. (January 2023 - June 2023).

Committee Member, 2022 Shelby D. Hunt/Harold H. Maynard Award Selection Committee. (2023)

Chairperson, 2023 Louis W. Stern Award Committee. (2023).

Editorial Review Board Member, Asia Marketing Journal (AMJ). (2021 - 2023).

Committee Member, 2021 AMA Louis Stern Award Committee. (2021).

Editorial Review Board Member, Journal of Marketing. (January 2019 - December 2021).

Co-Track Chair, Channels & Supply Chain Management, 2021 Winter AMA Marketing Educators' Conference, St. Petersburg, Florida. (July 2020 - February 2021).

Reviewer, Ad Hoc Reviewer, International Journal of Research in Marketing. (2019 - 2020).

Editorial Review Board Member, Journal of Marketing. (September 2017 - June 2018).

Conference-Related, AMA Summer Educators' Conference, Track Chair: Business-to-Business Marketing Track, Atlanta, GA. (2015 - August 2016).

Conference-Related, American Marketing Association Co-Chair for the Interorganizational Special Interest Group (IOSIG). (August 2014 - July 2015).

Conference-Related, AMA Winter Educators' Conference, Track Chair for Marketing Strategy track, San Antonio, TX. (2014 - February 2015).

Conference-Related, ISBM Conference, Session Chair: New Directions in Business to Business Relationships Research, San Francisco, CA. (July 2014).

Conference-Related, ISBM Conference, Session Chair: Emerging Perspectives in Customer Relationship Management, San Francisco, CA. (2013 - July 2014).

Conference-Related, AMA Winter Educators' Conference, Track Chair: Business-to-Business Track. (2013 - February 2014).

Reviewer, Ad Hoc Reviewer, Journal of Service Research. (2013).

Reviewer, Ad Hoc Reviewer, AMA Summer Educators' Conference. (2008 - 2013).

Reviewer, Ad Hoc Reviewer, AMA Winter Educators' Conference. (2008 - 2013).

Reviewer, Ad Hoc Reviewer, Journal of Marketing. (2008 - 2013).

Reviewer, Ad Hoc Reviewer, Decision Sciences. (2011 - 2012).

Conference-Related, AMA Winter Educators' Conference, Session Chair: Systemic Perspectives on Buyer-Supplier Relationships, St. Petersburg, FL. (2011 - February 2012).

Conference-Related, AMA Winter Educators' Conference, Session Chair: New Advances in Interorganizational Exchange, Austin, TX. (2010 - February 2011).

Reviewer, Ad Hoc Reviewer, Journal of Marketing Research. (2008 - 2010).

Conference-Related, ISBM Conference, Session Chair: New Facades in Channel Management, Boston, MA. (2009 - August 2010).

Reviewer, Ad Hoc Reviewer, Marketing Letters. (2009).

Department Service

Committee Member, Marketing Graduate Committee (August 2021 - Present).

Committee Member Evaluation Advisory Committee (September 2020 - May 2022)

Committee Chair, Marketing Graduate Committee. (September 2017 - May 2021).

Committee Member, Evaluation Advisory Committee. (September 2020 - May 2021).

First-Year Paper Reviewer. (August 2021).

Committee Member, Evaluation Advisory Committee. (September 2019 - May 2020).

Committee Member, Faculty Search Committee, Open Rank. (July 2019 - September 2019).

Committee Member, Evaluation Advisory Committee. (September 2018 - May 2019).

Committee Chair, Faculty Search Committee, Open Rank. (July 2018 - September 2018).

Committee Member, Evaluation Advisory Committee. (September 2017 - May 2018).

Committee Member, Faculty Search Committee, Department of Marketing Chair. (September 2017 - December 2017).

Committee Member, MBA/Masters Committee. (January 2017 - May 2017).

Committee Member, Faculty Search Committee, Department of Marketing Chair. (July 2016 - May 2017).

Committee Chair, Faculty Search Committee, Assistant or Associate Professor. (July 2016 - November 2016).

Committee Chair, Faculty Search Committee, Associate or senior Assistant Professor. (July 2016 - November 2016).

Reader, Second Year Paper Review. (May 2016).

Committee Member, Evaluation Advisory Committee. (September 2015 - May 2016).

Committee Member, Marketing Graduate Committee. (August 2015 - May 2016).

Committee Member, Faculty Search Committee, Assistant or Associate Professor (Two Positions). (June 2015 - September 2015).

Committee Member, Faculty Search Committee, Assistant, Associate or Full Professor. (June 2015 - September 2015).

Committee Member, Faculty Search Committee, Assistant Professor. (June 2015 - August 2015).

Reader, Second Year Paper Review. (May 2015).

Committee Member, Faculty Search Committee, Hays Chair in Marketing. (July 2014 - May 2015).

Departmental Advisory Committee, The Pennsylvania State University. (2011 - 2012).

Ph.D. Committee, The Pennsylvania State University. (2011 - 2012).

Candidacy Committee, The Pennsylvania State University. (2011).

Smeal Spring Research Camp, The Pennsylvania State University. (2009 - 2011).

Faculty Recruiting Committee, The Pennsylvania State University. (2008 - 2010).

Ph.D. Comprehensive Exam Committee, The Pennsylvania State University. (2008 - 2010).

Candidacy Committee, The Pennsylvania State University. (2008 - 2009).

College Service

Committee Member, General Committee. (August 2018 - May 2024).

Committee Member, Research and Professorship Review Committee. (August 2021 - May 2023).

Committee Chair, General Committee. (August 2021 - May 2022).

General Committee Chair Representative, Executive Committee. (August 2021 - May 2022).

Committee Member, Ph.D. Committee. (August 2017 - May 2021).

Committee Member, Promo

Awards

AMA Top 50 Marketing Authors Productivity List (2014-2023), American Marketing Association. (February 2024).

Faculty Mentoring Award, Department of Marketing, College of Business, UNL. (May 2023).

Invited, Faculty Fellow, 2023 AMA-Sheth Foundation Doctoral Consortium.

2022 Louis W. Stern Award, American Marketing Association (AMA) Interorganizational SIG. (July 2022).

2020 Journal of Marketing Outstanding Reviewer Award, Journal of Marketing. (April 2021).

AMA Marketing Research Most Productive List in Premier AMA Journals (2011-2020), American Marketing Association. (January 2021).

Faculty Fellow, Marketing Strategy Consortium, University of Texas-Austin. (April 2020).

AMA Top 50 Marketing Authors Productivity List (2014-2019), American Marketing Association, Scholarship/Research. (December 2019).

Faculty Fellow, Marketing Stategy Consortium, Inidiana University (2019).

Nominated, 2018 Shelby D. Hunt/Harold H> Maynard Award, Journal of Marketing. (March 2019).

Faculty Mentoring Award, Department of Marketing, College of Business, UNL. (April 2018).

Haring Symposium, Faculty Representative, Indiana University. (April 2016).

Faculty Research Award, Marketing Department, College of Business Administration, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. (May 2015).

Faculty Research Award, Marketing Department, College of Business Administration, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. (May 2014).

Distinguished Research Award, College of Business Administration, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. (April 2014).

Nominated, 2013-2014 Best Paper Award, College of Business Administration, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. (April 2014).

Haring Symposium, Faculty Representative (The Pennsylvania State University), Indiana University. (2012).

Finalist, ISBM Business Marketing Doctoral Competition, ISBM. (2006).

John Etter Scholarship, University of Wisconsin-Madison. (2006).

Robert Bruce Fellowship, University of Wisconsin-Madison. (2006).

AMA-Sheth Foundation Doctoral Consortium Fellow, University of Connecticut. (2005).

Haring Symposium, Indiana University. (2004).