default author photo

Will Ma

Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations

Associate Professor

New York, NY

United States

  • Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations

SCHOLARLY PAPERS

17

DOWNLOADS
Rank 11,388

SSRN RANKINGS

Top 11,388

in Total Papers Downloads

10,023

TOTAL CITATIONS
Rank 16,855

SSRN RANKINGS

Top 16,855

in Total Papers Citations

74

Scholarly Papers (17)

Actions:
Email selected abstracts
1.

The Benefits of Delay to Online Decision-Making

Forthcoming in Management Science
Number of pages: 47 Posted: 20 Oct 2022 Last Revised: 03 Dec 2024
Yaqi Xie, Will Ma and Linwei Xin
University of Chicago - Booth School of Business, Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations and Cornell University - School of Operations Research and Information Engineering
Downloads 1,781 (24,195)
Citation 2

Abstract:

Loading...

online decision-making, resource allocation, delay, batching, multisecretary problem, order fulfillment, multi-item order

2.

Assortment Planning for Recommendations at Checkout under Inventory Constraints

Mathematics of Operations Research (Forthcoming)
Number of pages: 35 Posted: 17 Oct 2016 Last Revised: 13 Mar 2023
Xi Chen, Will Ma, David Simchi-Levi and Linwei Xin
New York University (NYU) - Leonard N. Stern School of Business, Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - School of Engineering and Cornell University - School of Operations Research and Information Engineering
Downloads 1,408 (34,460)
Citation 7

Abstract:

Loading...

revenue management; assortment optimization; personalized recommendation; online algorithms; competitive ratio

3.

Algorithms for Online Matching, Assortment, and Pricing with Tight Weight-Dependent Competitive Ratios

Number of pages: 54 Posted: 20 Jun 2017 Last Revised: 01 Nov 2021
Will Ma and David Simchi-Levi
Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - School of Engineering
Downloads 1,015 (55,515)
Citation 21

Abstract:

Loading...

Online Algorithms, Competitive Ratio, Revenue Management, Online Matching, Adwords, Booking Limits

4.

Learning Valuation Distributions from Bundle Sales

Number of pages: 44 Posted: 27 Mar 2016 Last Revised: 04 Nov 2023
Will Ma and David Simchi-Levi
Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - School of Engineering
Downloads 752 (83,473)

Abstract:

Loading...

bundling, valuation learning, revenue management

5.

Beyond IID: data-driven decision making in heterogeneous environments

Columbia Business School Research Paper No. 4140928
Number of pages: 86 Posted: 27 Jun 2022 Last Revised: 01 Jan 2025
Omar Besbes, Will Ma and Omar Mouchtaki
Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations, Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations and New York University (NYU) - Leonard N. Stern School of Business
Downloads 745 (84,449)
Citation 6

Abstract:

Loading...

data-driven algorithms, distribution shift, distributionally robust optimization, minimax regret, sample average approximation, pricing, newsvendor, ski-rental

6.

VC Theory for Inventory Policies

Number of pages: 50 Posted: 16 Apr 2024 Last Revised: 01 Feb 2026
Yaqi Xie, Will Ma and Linwei Xin
University of Chicago - Booth School of Business, Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations and Cornell University - School of Operations Research and Information Engineering
Downloads 570 (119,756)

Abstract:

Loading...

VC theory, Pseudo-dimension, data-driven algorithm design, generalization bound, estimation error, sample complexity, shattering, inventory, base-stock policy, (s, S) policy, less is more

7.

From Contextual Data to Newsvendor Decisions: On the Actual Performance of Data-Driven Algorithms

Columbia Business School Research Paper No. 4361470
Number of pages: 66 Posted: 21 Feb 2023 Last Revised: 10 Oct 2025
Omar Besbes, Will Ma and Omar Mouchtaki
Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations, Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations and New York University (NYU) - Leonard N. Stern School of Business
Downloads 559 (123,344)
Citation 2

Abstract:

Loading...

data-driven stochastic optimization, empirical risk minimization, k-nearest neighbors, contextual newsvendor, worst-case regret, data quality

8.

Leveraging the degree of Dynamic Substitution in Assortment and Inventory Planning

Number of pages: 47 Posted: 24 Apr 2023 Last Revised: 19 Sep 2024
Jingwei Zhang, Will Ma and Huseyin Topaloglu
The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations and Cornell University - School of Operations Research and Information Engineering
Downloads 505 (138,872)
Citation 3

Abstract:

Loading...

assortment optimization, multinomial logit model, fluid approximation

9.

Dynamic Pricing (and Assortment) under a Static Calendar

Management Science
Number of pages: 71 Posted: 26 Oct 2018 Last Revised: 23 Nov 2020
Will Ma, David Simchi-Levi and Jinglong Zhao
Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - School of Engineering and Boston University - Questrom School of Business
Downloads 429 (168,873)
Citation 2

Abstract:

Loading...

revenue management, dynamic pricing, dynamic assortment

10.

Distributionally Robust Linear and Discrete Optimization with Marginals

Number of pages: 65 Posted: 27 Apr 2018 Last Revised: 14 Sep 2019
Louis Chen, Will Ma, Karthik Natarajan, David Simchi-Levi and Zhenzhen Yan
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Operations Research Center, Students, Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations, Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - School of Engineering and Nanyang Technological University
Downloads 426 (170,272)
Citation 16

Abstract:

Loading...

Robust Optimization, Discrete Optimization, Optimal Transport

11.

Online Job Selection:

Reward Rate vs. Remaining Value

Number of pages: 58 Posted: 01 Dec 2023 Last Revised: 29 Mar 2026
Mohammad Reza Aminian, Will Ma and Linwei Xin
University of Chicago - Booth School of Business, Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations and Cornell University - School of Operations Research and Information Engineering
Downloads 406 (182,042)
Citation 1

Abstract:

Loading...

online allocation, online scheduling, reusable resources, preemption, competitive ratio, cloud computing, personalization, index-based policies

12.

DeepStock: Reinforcement Learning with Policy Regularizations for Inventory Management

Columbia Business School Research Paper No. 5784782
Number of pages: 34 Posted: 25 Nov 2025 Last Revised: 20 Mar 2026
Yaqi Xie, Xinru Hao, Jiaxi Liu, Will Ma, Linwei Xin, Lei Cao and Yidong Zhang
University of Chicago - Booth School of Business, Alibaba Group, Sichuan University, Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations, Cornell University - School of Operations Research and Information Engineering, Alibaba Group and Alibaba Group
Downloads 404 (182,532)

Abstract:

Loading...

13.

Multi-Stage and Multi-Customer Assortment Optimization With Inventory Constraints

Number of pages: 62 Posted: 30 Aug 2019 Last Revised: 27 Jul 2020
Elaheh Fata, Will Ma and David Simchi-Levi
Queen's University - Smith School of Business, Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - School of Engineering
Downloads 375 (197,069)
Citation 2

Abstract:

Loading...

Assortment Optimization, Online Matching, Online Marketplaces, Online Advertising

14.

Reaping the Benefits of Bundling under High Production Costs

Number of pages: 40 Posted: 08 Dec 2015 Last Revised: 10 Sep 2016
Will Ma and David Simchi-Levi
Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - School of Engineering
Downloads 306 (246,910)
Citation 7

Abstract:

Loading...

revenue management, monopolist pricing, bundling, marketing, Bayesian mechanism design

15.

The Competitive Ratio of Threshold Policies for Online Unit-density Knapsack Problems

Number of pages: 45 Posted: 22 Jul 2019 Last Revised: 07 Apr 2025
Will Ma, David Simchi-Levi and Jinglong Zhao
Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - School of Engineering and Boston University - Questrom School of Business
Downloads 147 (502,974)
Citation 3

Abstract:

Loading...

Wholesale, supply chain ordering, knapsack problem, online algorithms

16.

Inventory Balancing with Online Learning

Number of pages: 59 Posted: 02 Sep 2018 Last Revised: 30 Aug 2021
Wang Chi Cheung, Will Ma, David Simchi-Levi and Xinshang Wang
Institute of High Performance Computing, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - School of Engineering and Alibaba Group
Downloads 138 (530,816)
Citation 2

Abstract:

Loading...

17.

Balancing Customer Engagement and Annoyance in Online Retail: Insights from a Field Experiment

Number of pages: 40 Posted: 18 Feb 2026 Last Revised: 30 May 2026
Jackie Baek, Daniel Chen, Will Ma and Dmitry Mitrofanov
New York University (NYU) - Leonard N. Stern School of Business, Boston College - Carroll School of Management, Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Decision Risk and Operations and Boston College - Carroll School of Management
Downloads 57 (1,000,027)

Abstract:

Loading...

field experiment, customer annoyance, email frequency, customer lifetime value, online operations