Nur Sunar
Nur Sunar
Professor and Sarah Graham Kenan Scholar
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Welcome to my website! I am a Professor of Operations at Kenan-Flagler Business School at UNC-Chapel Hill. I received my Ph.D. from Stanford Graduate School of Business. My current research interest is to study innovative business models, technologies, and policies, especially in energy, sustainability and online platforms.
I am particularly interested in innovative business models and novel challenges related to renewable energy technologies (e.g., residential solar panels, large-scale renewable energy technologies, online solar marketplaces), sustainability practices of organizations (e.g., voluntary carbon offsetting) and smart city technologies (e.g., the Internet of Things, smart meters, EVs and residential batteries). I am also passionate about developing innovative business solutions that enhance access to healthcare.
Another stream of my research examines data-driven business problems, including firms’ investment strategies under incomplete information and design of service systems.
In my research, I use various techniques, including machine learning methods (clustering, deep learning, and text mining), data-driven optimization, stochastic control, game theory and econometrics.
I am always open to new research collaborations. You can reach me from the following email address: Nur_Sunar@kenan-flagler.unc.edu
Selected Honors & Awards:
Selected Honors & Awards:
2026 Weatherspoon Award for Excellence in MBA Teaching, UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School
2024 Amundi-ESSEC Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Best Paper Award
2022 Named one of the Best 40-Under-40 MBA Professors by Poets & Quants
2022 INFORMS Service Science Cluster Best Paper Award
2024 - 2025 Full-Time MBA All-Star Teaching List, UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School
2023 - 2024 Full-Time MBA All-Star Teaching List, UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School
2022 - 2023 Full-Time MBA All-Star Teaching List, UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School
2021 - 2022 Full-Time MBA All-Star Teaching List, UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School
2020 INFORMS Data Mining Best Paper Award
2019 People's Choice Award, Early-career Sustainable Operations Workshop
Multiple Meritorious Service Awards from Management Science and M&SOM
Selected Service Responsibilities:
Selected Service Responsibilities:
Associate Editor, Management Science
Associate Editor, Operations Research
Associate Editor, M&SOM
Senior Editor, POM
UNC Kenan-Flagler, Operations Management Concentration Head
UNC Kenan-Flagler, PhD Admissions Committee
Papers and Publications:
Papers and Publications:
Energy & Sustainability
Zeng, J., Duran, S., Karacaoglu, N. and Sunar, N. (2026) Algorithmic Nudging for Energy Savings and Environment: Evidence from an IoT Platform, under review.
Keywords: algorithmic nudging, energy savings, internet of things (IoT), sustainability
Sunar, N., Swaminathan, J., Yorukoglu, S. and Ge, P. (2024) Electricity Pricing Rules with Residential Solar-plus-Storage: Economic and Environmental Impacts, under revision.
Keywords: solar PV, battery storage, residential electricity prices, time-of-use rates, flat rate, electric utility, environment, green technology, distributed renewable energy
Keskin, N. B., Li, Y. and Sunar, N. (2024) Green Ride-Hailing: Impact on Environment and Consumers, under revision.
Keywords: ride-hailing, green vehicles, green transportation, emissions, consumer surplus, sustainable operations
Gao, Z., Sunar, N. and Birge, J. (2023) Designing Renewable Power Purchase Agreements: Impact on Green Energy Investment, under review.
Winner, 2024 Amundi-ESSEC Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Best Paper Award
Keywords: renewable energy investment, power purchase agreement, capacity investment, long-term contract, investment tax credit for clean technology
Keskin, N. B., Li, Y. and Sunar, N. (2024) Data-driven Clustering and Feature-based Retail Electricity Pricing with Smart Meters, accepted at Operations Research.
Winner, 2022 INFORMS Service Science Cluster Best Paper Award
Winner, 2020 INFORMS Data Mining Best Paper Award
Keywords: Retail electricity, smart meter, spectral clustering, feature-based dynamic pricing, data-driven analysis, pricing experiment in Texas
Media Mention: Rethinc. Labs News
Huang, H., Sunar, N., Swaminathan, J. and Roy, R (2023) Do Noisy Customer Reviews Discourage Platform Sellers? Empirical Analysis of an Online Solar Marketplace, Manufacturing & Service Operations Management. 25:6, 2195-2215.
Keywords: Online marketplace, solar PV installation, customer reviews, text mining, deep-learning-based natural-language-processing model
Roy, R., Sunar, N. and Swaminathan, J. (2024) Impact of Market Thickness and Heterogeneity on Matches in Online Marketplaces with Active Providers, under revision.
Keywords: Online service marketplace, online solar marketplace, market thickness, market heterogeneity, matches
Sunar, N. and Staats, B. (2023) Telemedicine for inclusive care: Remedy for socioeconomic health disparities?, accepted at Management Science.
Keywords: inclusive operations, telemedicine, inclusive healthcare, health disparities, health equity, digital healthcare, innovative healthcare delivery
Sunar, N. and Swaminathan, J. (2022) Socially Relevant and Inclusive Operations Management, Production and Operations Management. 31:12, 4379-4392.
Keywords: sustainable operations, inclusive operations, climate change, disparities, renewable energy, access to healthcare, agriculture, food security, equity, socially responsible operations
Sunar, N. and Swaminathan, J. (2021) Net-Metered Distributed Renewable Energy: A Peril for Utilities? Management Science. 67:11, 6716-6733.
Winner, People's Choice Award, 2019 Early-career Sustainable Operations Workshop
Keywords: Rooftop solar panels, distributed renewable energy, net metering, utility profit, welfare, rooftop solar panel data
Sunar, N. and Birge, J. (2019) Strategic Commitment to a Production Schedule with Uncertain Supply and Demand: Renewable Energy in Day-Ahead Electricity Markets Management Science. 65:2, 714-734.
Keywords: Renewable energy, new business model, wholesale market participation, penalty rules, MISO's wholesale market data, supply function
Sunar, N. and Plambeck, E. (2016) Allocating Emissions Among Co-Products: Implications for Procurement and Climate Policy Manufacturing & Service Operations Management. 18:3, 414-428.
Keywords: carbon offsets, voluntary offsetting, supply chain, buyer profit, climate policy, welfare, data on rare earth metal and palm oil supply chains
Sunar, N. (2016) Emissions Allocation Problems in Climate Change Policies Invited Book Chapter, Environmentally Responsible Supply Chains. Springer Series in Supply Chain Management, vol 3. Springer, Cham.
Data-/Information- Driven Decision Making
Roy, R., Sunar, N. and Swaminathan, J. (2026) Data-Driven Dynamic Assortment in Online Platforms: Learning about Two Sides, under review.
Keywords: assortment optimization, two-way learning, two-sided platform, data-driven decision making.
Sunar, N. and Wang, Z. (2024) Optimal Multi-armed Bandit with Dependent Arms, under review.
Keywords: multi-armed bandit, Bayesian, dependent arms, optimal policy, continuous time.
Keskin, N. B., Li, Y. and Sunar, N. (2024) Data-driven Clustering and Feature-based Retail Electricity Pricing with Smart Meters, accepted at Operations Research.
Winner, 2022 INFORMS Service Science Cluster Best Paper Award
Winner, 2020 INFORMS Data Mining Best Paper Award
Keywords: Retail electricity, smart meter, spectral clustering, feature-based dynamic pricing, data-driven analysis, pricing experiment in Texas
Media Mention: Rethinc. Labs News
Sunar, N., Tu, Y. and Ziya, S. (2021) Pooled vs. Dedicated Queues When Customers Are Delay-Sensitive. Management Science. 67:6, 3785-3802.
Keywords: pooled queue, dedicated queues, customer balking, rational customers, delay-sensitive customers, observable queues
Sunar, N., Yu, S. and Kulkarni, V. (2021) Competitive Investment with Bayesian Learning: Choice of Business Size and Timing. Operations Research. 69:5, 1430-1449.
Keywords: optimal stopping, Bayesian learning, competition, investment size, investment timing
Sunar, N., Birge, J. and Vitavasiri, S. (2019) Optimal Dynamic Product Development and Launch for a Network of Customers Operations Research. 67:3, 770-790.
Media Mention: Chicago Booth Review
Keywords: optimal stopping, stochastic control, network, customer targeting, product development, product launch
Harrison, J. M. and Sunar, N. (2015) Investment Timing with Incomplete Information and Multiple Means of Learning. Operations Research. 63:2, 442-457.
Keywords: optimal stopping, optimal control, costly learning, Bayesian sequential hypothesis testing, subset selection
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