Flexibility in matching

Abstract

We examine a service system that matches jobs and candidates with different ability levels. A candidate’s ability will affect the possibility of obtaining a high return on a job assignment. Based on the property that the jobs to be assigned to a candidate are substituted in an assignment problem, we propose a novel random parameter generating process to demonstrate that the expected reward increases with the ability level of a candidate at a diminishing rate. This observation is consistent with the classic result in process flexibility literature that a little flexibility (i.e., ability level) can capture the most benefit. Our observations can help a company decide the proper level of ability.

Keywords

• Flexibility
• Service operations
• Matching and assignment