Usama Awan

Short description

Usama Awan is an Associate Professor of Sustainability at CREDS – the Centre for Digitalization and Sustainability, University of Inland, Norway. He completed his PhD in Industrial Engineering and Management (with distinction) in 2019 at Lappeenranta-Lahti University of Technology (LUT), Finland. He holds a Master’s degree in International Marketing (2010) from Mälardalen University, Sweden, and an MBA (2002) from Quaid-i-Azam University, Pakistan. His doctoral research focused on transnational supply chains and social sustainability.

His teaching focuses on Operations Management and Business Administration, with active participation in MBA and BBA programs. With over six years of professional academic experience, he has lectured extensively at both undergraduate and graduate levels. Usama has also held international positions, including as a researcher at the Palumbo-Donahue School of Business, Duquesne University, USA (2021–2022), and as an Assistant Professor at Mount Allison University, Canada (2021). He has taught a wide range of courses, including Supply Chain Management, Operations Management, Quantitative Methods, and B2B Marketing, accumulating over six years of university-level teaching experience.

Research Overview
My research applies a Multi-Level Perspective (MLP) to link natural resource economics with technology development in order to advance corporate sustainability, industrial ecology, and sustainable innovation. I investigate how circular economy principles—such as resource efficiency, product life-cycle extension, remanufacturing, and closed-loop supply chains—interact with digitalization and green innovation to transform industrial systems. At the core of this work is the transition from linear to circular value creation models, where firms orchestrate resources, adapt capabilities, and leverage new technologies to reduce environmental impact while enhancing competitiveness. By integrating circular economy research with MLP, I explore multi-level dynamics, from policy frameworks to firm-level practices, that drive transformative sustainability transitions.

In digital operations strategy, I explore interdisciplinary themes including Industry 4.0 and circular economy in value chains, artificial intelligence in organizational routines, and how business intelligence and big data analytics contribute to enhanced manufacturing agility. My previous research has focused on Industry 4.0 and circular economy, the use of big data for sustainable supply chains, and challenges related to quantum computing. I have also studied IoT in vaccination programs, consumer behavior related to plastics, and global e-waste recycling. Furthermore, I examine artificial intelligence (AI) for processing and reconfiguring organizational capabilities, focusing on how AI can help organizations adapt and improve strategic and operational processes.

Research Interests
I examine how circular economy (CE) practices and artificial intelligence (AI) can be combined with emerging technologies to enhance resource efficiency, drive sustainable innovation, reduce environmental impact, and strengthen long-term organizational resilience and competitiveness. By integrating net zero strategies, decarbonization initiatives, and data-driven decision-making, my research explores how organizations can transition toward more sustainable and circular business models while leveraging digital transformation for strategic advantage.

I am particularly interested in Web 3.0 technologies and their potential to improve strategic decision-making. I study how Web 3.0, AI, and big data can help organizations become more innovative, sustainable, and agile. My work focuses on the impact of AI on organizational learning and capability reconfiguration processes, and how these processes strengthen strategic and operational capabilities. I also investigate how organizations can enhance strategic agility and digital resilience, transition to circular economy models, and address global sustainability challenges.

Expertise
I have authored over 27 peer-reviewed publications and actively contribute to research on green innovation, sustainable supply chains, production strategy, and organizational transformation. I have been recognized as a Top 1% Highly Cited Researcher by Clarivate/Web of Science (2023) and among the Top 2% Most Cited Scientists by Stanford/Elsevier (2022–2024).

Academic Focus / Research Areas

• The impact of digital transformation on decentralized decision-making

• The impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on enhancing organizational learning

• Addressing sustainability challenges in circular supply chains

• Developing  strategies in the circular economy and product lifecycle management