Sustainable supply chain management practices and performance

Abstract

Purpose Sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) is a relatively new sub-field of supply chain management (SCM). The performance of SSCM is based on the triple bottom line approach encompassing people-planet-profit, hence being defined not in only in social and environmental terms, but also the economic. The purpose of this paper is to develop an integrated study which uses antecedent-practices-performance principles in order to determine the drivers of SSCM practices, and the impact of these practices on sustainable supply chain performance. The importance of the study lies in the fact that the Indian Government is making significant efforts to boost the manufacturing sector, and sustainability is among the significant imperatives for Indian manufacturing to be competitive globally. Design/methodology/approach A conceptual model based on the antecedents-practices-performance principles was developed, and included six constructs identified from the literature: the drivers being the motivators of sustainability, lean management (LM) and supply management (SM), the practices were the environmental and social practices in the supply chain and, finally, the sustainable supply chain performance; eight hypotheses were conceived in the model development process. The survey instrument was conceptualised from an in-depth study of literature and was employed to conduct a survey of 211 operations and supply chain managers and functional heads from the Indian manufacturing industry. The scales were validated by employing the confirmatory factor analysis, followed by structural equation modelling to develop the structural relationships between the constructs using Amos 20.0. Findings The results of the SEM suggest that the antecedents, i.e. motivators, LM and SM, have a significant bearing on environmental and social practices in the SCM; these practices, in turn, also have a positive relationship with SSCM performance (except the relationship between LM and social practices in SCM) with acceptable goodness-of-fit measures. Thus out of the eight hypotheses, seven can be said to statistically significant. Research limitations/implications In addition to the motivators of sustainability, the study based on extant literature has considered LM and SM among the drivers of sustainability in SCM. The study has also identified that in earlier studies, the focus has been on environmental practices, and this integrated study has also included social practices in the supply chain. Originality/value This study suggests that sustainability performance may also be realised through lean and SM principles; an integrated perspective has been adopted with the consideration of both environmental and social practices. Further, the proposed model represents a novel integration of literature from diverse domains such as environmental management, business ethics and corporate social responsibility as well as performance management.

A framework for managing the agri-fresh food supply chain quality in Indian industry

“…The sustainable outcome of AFSCQ is based on getting a balance among economic development, environmental security and social advancement. Baliga et al (2019) stated that the performance of sustainable supply chain management is grounded on the triple bottom-line method comprising people-planet-profit, hence being distinct in social, environmental and economic terms. Kamble et al (2020) discussed about the consciousness and rising concern for economic, social and environmental influences on food production as well as consumption.…”

How do food supply chain performance measures contribute to sustainable corporate performance during disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic emergency?

“…As a result, persistent practice leads to sustainable management practices. Sustainable SC management practices are increasingly growing in developed economies towards sustainable values in terms of economy, environment and society (Baliga et al. , 2020).…”

An agile new product development-based sustainable supply chain framework to improve environmental quality performance: emerging economies perspective

“…Whereas Pahlevan et al (2021) developed a framework based on the life cycle assessment concept for SSCM in the aluminum industry, Soni et al (2020) worked to find out the drivers and barriers to SSCM. Baliga et al (2020) identified the drivers of SSCM practices and their impact on SSCM success. The correlation between SSCM practices and agile practices was investigated by Geyi et al (2020), who quoted that agile practices have a positive impact on sustainable and operational performance.…”