This series introduces D^3 Associates Program projects which aim to answer important questions at the intersection of artificial intelligence and digital technologies in business and society.
This article shares insights from Elisabeth Paulson, Assistant Professor of Business Administration at 性视界 Business School who is pursing research on the topics of artificial intelligence and refugee resettlement.
1.What drew you to this area of research and how did you first become involved in this work?
Early in my academic career, I knew I wanted to work on problems with social impact. When I began my PhD, my advisors were starting to hear about 鈥渇ood deserts鈥� in the news and encouraged me to think about how tools from operations research and data science could help address these challenges. That led me to study nutrition incentive programs鈥攊nterventions designed to help low-income households access healthier food options. I studied how these programs could be more effective by personalizing them to households based on their characteristics.
That initial experience launched a broader research agenda focused on how algorithms and data can support organizations that are tasked with making complex resource allocation decisions. Today, my work applies that lens to different domains鈥攊ncluding refugee resettlement鈥攚here the decisions are high stakes, the constraints are very real, and the goal is to serve people as effectively and equitably as possible.
2.What are some common misconceptions or barriers around the problem you鈥檙e working to solve?
One misconception is that algorithms or tools developed in one context will easily generalize to another. In practice, operational, institutional, and social constraints require thoughtful adaptation, especially in humanitarian and public-sector settings.
3.What research is being done on this topic and how is your approach or perspective unique?
Much of the existing work on optimization-driven resource allocation focuses either on improving machine learning predictions or on optimizing decisions once those predictions are made. These parts are often treated as separate problems. My current research agenda is focused on closing that gap鈥攄esigning prediction models specifically for the downstream decisions they inform. While this 鈥渄ecision-aware鈥� approach is gaining traction and many outstanding researchers are contributing to it, my work is focused on adapting this pipeline to specific, socially impactful domains like refugee resettlement鈥攚here considerations like interpretability, fairness, and trust are just as important as accuracy or efficiency.
4.What excites you most about this work and its potential impact?
I鈥檓 excited by the possibility of combining rigorous methodological research with tangible impact. In the refugee resettlement context, improving placement recommendations even slightly can meaningfully change a family鈥檚 trajectory鈥攈elping them find employment, integrate into their community, and build stability in a new country. More broadly, I hope this work demonstrates how AI and algorithmic tools can be designed to support people and institutions working toward social good.
5.How do you hope working with D^3 will amplify the impact of your work?
Part of D^3鈥檚 mission is to use AI to advance society, which closely aligns with my goals. D^3 helps amplify the visibility of my work鈥攇etting the word out to other researchers, practitioners, and policymakers who can build on or benefit from it. The D^3 team provides access to, and support for using, cutting-edge AI tools and infrastructure. That allows me to scale the research agenda more effectively and ensures that my time is spent solving the right problems. Critically, their support also enables me to work with top-tier PhD students who are technically strong and motivated by social impact.
6.What changes do you hope to see in your field as a result of the work being done in this area?
I鈥檇 like to see algorithm design more directly informed by how those algorithms will be used. This means fostering stronger collaborations between methodological researchers, domain experts, and practitioners鈥攕o that research questions are shaped by real-world needs, and solutions are grounded in institutional realities.
7.What鈥檚 an essential area in which AI and digital technologies will reshape the way businesses or society operate in the long run that we may not be considering?
At this point, I鈥檝e read so many thoughtful theories about how AI will reshape everything from labor markets to education to healthcare that I鈥檓 not sure there鈥檚 a theory that鈥檚 truly been overlooked. But given the rate of AI development, the most profound changes may still lie beyond what we can currently imagine.
The D^3 Associates Program supports and accelerates faculty research into the ways AI and digital technologies are reshaping companies, organizations, society, and practice.