Exploring supply chain sustainability research in Latin America

The effects of power imbalance on supply chain sustainability adoption: evidence from the artisanal fishing industry

Purpose

Grounded on resource dependence theory, the authors explored how power and dependence affect sustainability adoption in an artisanal fishing supply chain (AFSC) in Mexico.

Design/methodology/approach

An in-depth longitudinal case study was conducted to identify relationships among fishers, a cooperative and intermediaries using a content analysis of data gathered from a combination of interviews, focus groups, observations, participatory workshops and secondary data.

Findings

As a result of the existing power imbalance among AFSC members, mediated forces (e.g. rewards for intermediary–fishers relationship) were the most prominent observed. In addition, a close and high dependence on resources affecting supply chain sustainability (SCS) adoption was identified. For example, within intermediary–cooperative relationships, a power imbalance caused mostly by financial resource dependence generated a negative impact on economic sustainability related to unfair prices and unfair trade. The results, thus, showed the detrimental influence of intermediaries among AFSC members on SCS adoption.

Practical implications

A greater understanding of power imbalance and dependence can help AFSC members to identify their weaknesses and develop actions to adopt sustainability.

Originality/value

Unlike previous research, the authors go beyond the often positive research focus of SCS studies and provide, through the resource dependence theory, a longitudinal view on how power imbalance negatively affects SCS adoption.

Board structure policy, board diversity and social sustainability in the logistics and transportation sector

Purpose

This study aims to examine the roles of board gender and cultural diversities in driving social sustainability practices through the moderating effect of board structure policies in the logistics and transportation sector.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conducted fixed-effects regression with 2005–2019 data from Thomson Reuters Eikon.

Findings

The results showed that female directors are significant predictors of social sustainability across the four dimensions of human rights, workforce, product responsibility and community development. Additionally, directors with different cultural backgrounds (but not the workforce) are significant determinants of community development, human rights and product responsibility. Furthermore, although board structure policies positively moderate the relationship between board gender diversity and social sustainability, they fail to moderate the relationship between board cultural diversity and social sustainability.

Originality/value

The findings have crucial implications for the logistics and transportation sector's social sustainability and may help the sector align with employees' and society's expectations. The incorporation of board gender and cultural diversities into the research design was a response to calls by the European Union (EU) and the United Nations (UN) to address board configuration and stakeholders' concerns.

Social sustainability in supply chains: the role of local practices and informal networks

Purpose

The study aims to investigate cultural aspects in supply chains, analysing the effect that local customs may have in the quality of buyer–supplier relationships. Building on the premisses of social exchange theory (SET), it concentrates on the impacts that suppliers’ use of local practices and informal networks may have in buyers’ attitudes and perceptions. The issues addressed and the empirical evidence provided represent initial, yet important steps in the fulfilment of the ‘cultural void’ within supply chain social sustainability (SCCS) literature.

Design/methodology/approach

Through a role-playing experiment applied to a total sample of 468 participants, the effects of Chinese guanxi, Russian blat, South Korean yongo and Brazilian jeitinho on buyers’ satisfaction, buyers’ commitment, trust and solution severity are measured by their use to access informal networks as solutions to both common (i.e. documentation irregularities) and extraordinary (i.e. modern slavery) supply chain problems.

Findings

Results show that, while the activation of informal networks may impact buyers’ perceptions, the use of some local practices by suppliers (i.e. Chinese guanxi and Brazilian jeitinho) cause greater variations in buyers’ attitudes and perceptions than others (i.e. South Korean yongo and Russian blat), with ethical offences (i.e. modern slavery) and higher levels of buyers’ dependency acting as catalysts of these processes.

Originality/value

The investigation of cultural practices typical of economically peripheral countries contributes to the understanding of new facets of buyer–supplier relationships, with the investigation of non-Northwestern practices being particularly important in this regard.

Embracing change in tandem: resilience and sustainability together transforming supply chains

Purpose

This article investigates how micro-foundations of sustainability can build supply chain resilience (SCRes). Specifically, by defining supply chains as social-ecological systems, this article explores how sustainability as a supplier capability leads to the transformative development of SCRes capabilities.

Design/methodology/approach

Longitudinal multi-case studies were developed over the first year of the COVID-19 outbreak. A total of 52 interviews were conducted with managers and employees of 12 global supplier firms as well as associated local cooperative and consultancy managers. Secondary data were also used for triangulation. An inductive approach was used for data analysis to elaborate theory through a metaphor.

Findings

Nine micro-foundations of sustainability were identified and categorised using the dynamic capabilities steps: sensing, seizing and reconfiguring. They were found to move together with the preparing, responding and transforming steps of SCRes, respectively, and thus to perform as dance partners using our dance performance metaphor. Moreover, ten supplier cases were found to be adopting a transformative social-ecological perspective as they performed all key stages of our dance performance metaphor. The transformations all resulted from either institutional or social sustainability, and the associated micro-foundations generated six main SCRes capabilities, most commonly linking visibility and organisation with institutional and social sustainability respectively.

Practical implications

A deeper understanding of sustainability micro-foundations is provided for supply chain managers to enhance the development of SCRes strategies in preparation for future sustainability-related crises.

Originality/value

Unlike previous research, this article explores an intertwined understanding of SCRes and sustainability during a crisis. Through the micro-foundations of sustainability we explain how sustainability capability builds transformative SCRes using a supplier perspective.

Retaining talent in the maritime sector by creating a work-family balance logic: implications from women managers navigating work and family

Purpose

This paper contributes to the social pillar of sustainable supply chain management. It does so by investigating how women managers in the maritime sector handle work-family conflict, thereby acting as institutional entrepreneurs to create a work-family balance logic. The maritime sector is a male-dominated supply chain management environment, which suffers from a talent gap of a lack of women executives. One reason for this problem is work-family balance issues that deter women from staying in the workforce.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors interviewed 35 women working as port managers in different developing countries. The authors analyzed their strategies in coping with the conflict between family and work to create a work-family balance logic.

Findings

The authors found four different types of strategies to handle work-family conflicts. Responses showed that women executives in this sector can be institutional entrepreneurs. Based on the findings, the authors were able to confirm and contribute to the existing model proposed by Silva and Nunes (2021) on sustainable supply chain logic. The authors also provided recommendations for these women as institutional entrepreneurs and for policymakers to retain women talent in the supply chain management.

Research limitations/implications

The research focuses on a specific supply chain management sector, which is the maritime sector. It also relies exclusively on interview data.

Practical implications

The authors propose recommendations to develop a work-family balance logic and retain talented women in the supply chain industry based on monitoring equality and supporting their need for a work-family balance, both in the short and long terms.

Originality/value

The authors interviewed women executives in one of the most male dominated sectors. The authors studied their ability to cope with work-family conflicts and identified four ways to create a work-family balance logic. These findings enabled us to show the contribution and limits of women executives as institutional entrepreneurs for work family balance logics in male dominated sectors.

Supplier diversity for socially responsible purchasing: an empirical investigation in Brazil

Purpose

Based on a critical lens, this paper aims to empirically evaluate the adoption of programs to buy from minority suppliers (MS) and their outcomes in Brazil, considering a multi-stakeholder approach (buying companies, suppliers and third parties).

Design/methodology/approach

The data were collected via an exploratory survey involving 109 buying companies and two case studies with 21 in-depth interviews.

Findings

It was revealed that supplier diversity (SD) in Brazil is still developing, and is more rhetoric than a practice promoting real change. The current traditional procurement mindset, the role of third parties, and the focus on supplier selection, rather than on supplier development prevents a social impact that could reduce inequality between MS and their counterparts.

Originality/value

Previous studies were focused on buying companies' perspective in advanced countries that have clear regulation for SD. By exploring the phenomenon in a country with great economic disparities and no regulation, and using a critical lens, this study highlights the difference between desired and effective implementation of social initiatives that promote inclusiveness.

Analysing the interactions of sustainability practices and financial performance on business-to-business buying behaviour in Indian manufacturing industry: a graph-theoretic approach

Purpose

This study aims to develop a framework for the action hierarchy of sustainability practices and financial performance and their optimal combination for supplier evaluation and selection in business-to-business (B2B) for the Indian manufacturing industry.

Design/methodology/approach

Through the extensive literature review followed by comprehensive interviews conducted using the Delphi methodology with professionals, this study attempts to represent the interactions of the sustainability practices and financial performance factors on B2B buying behaviour using a graph-theoretic approach.

Findings

The contribution of environmental, social, economic and financial performance to B2B buying behaviour is obtained quantitatively in the context of the Indian manufacturing industry.

Research limitations/implications

This study considers inputs from the Indian manufacturing industry, which may vary significantly based on the type of industry and geographical locations.

Practical implications

This study provides a direction to prioritize their supplier evaluation and selection criteria for sustainability practices and financial performance with quantifiable rationale.

Originality/value

The study seeks to encourage manufacturing industries to plan their actions by quantifying the intangibles through a systematic approach.

Practice theories and supply chain sustainability: a systematic literature review and a research agenda

Purpose

This paper presents an investigation into the ways the term “practice” is commonly referenced in supply chain management academic papers. Scholars have not yet developed a common understanding of the meaning and do not use practice theories when examining practices related to sustainability management in supply chains. Hence, the authors highlight theoretical gaps and make recommendations for future research.

Design/methodology/approach

Grounded in a systematic literature review of 232 peer-reviewed papers published in operations and supply chain management journals, a qualitative content analysis was conducted using both a deductive and an inductive approach.

Findings

Results show that supply chain sustainability (SCS) scholars seem barely interested in increasing the understanding of the term “practice,” widely used in the literature to refer to a practical context. Moreover, a clear distinction between being practical and using practice theories to study SCS practices is needed. A descriptive and critical analysis revealed eight key supply chain practices connected to sustainability, with a clear reflection on their meaning. As awareness of practice theories for research on SCS is limited, few recommendations for researchers and practitioners were identified.

Originality/value

Unlike prior literature reviews, the authors reinforce the need to increase the maturity of the SCS field by going beyond superficial theoretical building. Practice theories pathways are provided to enlighten scholars on how to avoid using the term “practice” as taken-for-granted and on how to deal with SCS research and practice.

Supply Chain Social Sustainability: Unveiling Focal Firm’s Archetypes under the Lens of Stakeholder and Contingency Theory

Sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) has received increasing attention from scholars and practitioners. Despite its importance, we know little about critical aspects of it, as some important gaps are highlighted in the SSCM literature: deepening social dimension, exploring governance mechanisms, and strengthening theoretical development. This research aims to analyze how stakeholder salience and contingency factors influence the extent to which focal firms implement governance mechanisms to address social issues in supply chains. We conduct a multiple case study in six focal firms operating in Brazil. We intend to reduce the shortage of empirical evidence on emerging economies by focusing on a leading emerging country. This study contributes to the literature in three main aspects: (1) We classify social issues into central, peripheral, and remote, based on their priority within SSCM practices from emerging economy cases; (2) We outline three archetypes of social-SCM, namely elementary, selective, and extensive, to reflect the extent that focal firms incorporate social issues within their practices; (3) We also provide a typology to assess the extent to which focal firms address social issues, therefore contributing to reducing the gap regarding the social dimension within SSCM scholarship, combining the stakeholder theory and contingency theory.

Exploring the roles of lead organisations in spreading sustainability standards throughout food supply chains in an emerging economy

Purpose

This paper investigates how food supply chains (SCs) introduce sustainability standards (i.e. organic and/or Fair Trade labels). The authors combined the concepts of power and dependence with types of governance mechanisms to analyse for-profit and cooperative organisations. The authors explored nuances of how lead organisations are spreading sustainability standards.

Design/methodology/approach

Four cashew nut and honey SCs were investigated as case studies in Brazil, with data gathered through 15 interviews, secondary data and field visits. Data were examined through a content analysis process following a combined deductive and inductive approach.

Findings

Sustainability is spread driven by market pressure, mainly through the diffusion of technical information, either by lead organisations enablers or inter-organisational relations. The authors found that the type and structure of organisations impact the source of power (mediated or non-mediated) and level of mutual dependence between buyer and supplier. For instance, suppliers that hold a strategic position use direct governance mechanisms, which, in turn, lessens the power imbalance in regard to the lead organisation. The authors found in the analysis, a close relation between governance mechanisms and the spread of sustainability, which is ultimately based on strong SC relationships.

Practical implications

By recognising their role and the contingencies in spreading sustainability standards along the SC, managers of lead organisations can better design their relationships as well as create strategies to increase their supply chain sustainability (SCS) performance.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to the underexplored issue of how sustainability standards are spread throughout SCs in Latin America. Also, it shows how different types of SC rely on governance mechanisms that foster SCS.

The value of supply chain integration in the Latin American agri-food industry: trust, commitment and performance outcomes

Purpose

This paper aims to explore the antecedents and performance outcomes of supply chain integration in the agri-food industry in Latin America, a context that the literature on supply chain management has not extensively addressed. The quinoa supply chain, an industry that has encountered a boost in market demand in the past year, is selected as the unit of analysis. Supply chain integration dynamics are analyzed to provide recommendations about integration strategies and benefits in the agricultural sector.

Design/methodology/approach

A conceptual model was designed in this study, which includes the drivers (i.e. trust and commitment) and outcomes (i.e. operational and economic performance) of supply chain integration. The relationships were verified through a unique survey, the data of which were collected from 79 respondents operating at different levels of the Peruvian quinoa supply chain (i.e. suppliers, producers and customers). The proposed hypotheses were tested through the partial least squares (PLS) regression.

Findings

The results underscore the relevance of trust and commitment as enablers of supply chain integration initiatives in the agri-food industry. These factors are particularly essential for involving the farmers who are the most upstream actors in the supply chain and characterized by unstructured organizations. A high level of integration in these types of supply chain enhances the capacity to improve operational performance, which in turns positively affects the main economic indicators.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the discussion of supply chain integration in the agri-food industry, which remains unexplored thus far. It relies on a multitier collection of responses, which is extended to all the levels of the quinoa supply chain, thereby providing the study with a unique depth of analysis. Furthermore, this work contributes to the ongoing discourse on the performance impact of supply chain integration, which several SCM scholars have recently questioned.

Supply chain sustainability trajectories: learning through sustainability initiatives

Purpose

This paper explores how organizational capabilities and path dependence affect the implementation of supply chain (SC) sustainability initiatives. Through the lenses of contingency and evolutionary theory, the paper addresses the underexplored supply chain dynamics that enhance or inhibit sustainability trajectories.

Design/methodology/approach

Using in-depth multi-case studies for theory elaboration, five supply chains were studied through open-ended interviews with SC members, secondary data collection and site visit observation. The design consists of a combination of deductive and inductive approaches to elaborate theory on supply chain dynamics and enhanced sustainability trajectories.

Findings

The empirical study shows that learning is a fundamental condition for supply chains as they implement sustainability initiatives, and that exploitation capabilities are more frequently used than exploration capabilities. Path dependence plays a role in the outcomes of supply chain sustainability initiatives, which are influenced by both path dependence and contingencies of the contexts in which these systems operate.

Research limitations/implications

This paper puts forward five propositions that emerge from the literature and from the field study results. Although this is an exploratory research bounded by geographical limitations and the limited number of SC cases, the goal of elaborating theory may open up several promising avenues for future large-scale and longitudinal research studies.

Practical implications

By enhancing our understanding of the dynamics of supply chain sustainability trajectories, decision-makers, scholars and policy-makers can better understand how supply chains learn, how they employ SC member capabilities and how they deal with stakeholder resistance.

Originality/value

This paper extends supply chain sustainability theory by addressing the knowledge gap that exists with regard to understanding the dynamics of evolving supply chain sustainability trajectories. This paper sheds additional light on this important topic and contributes in multiple ways to the sustainable supply chain management literature.

Integrating Green Practices into Operational Performance: Evidence from Brazilian Manufacturers

The pressures exerted by the market, society, regulators and/or clients on organisational environmental responsibility have required companies to adopt environmental management practices. Within this process, integration with suppliers and customers is important to enable companies to meet these demands, and at the same time achieve their organisational goals. Using empirical results from 117 respondents on Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM) practices among Brazilian manufacturers, we examined the impact of the adoption of green practices on operational performance. To do so, we developed a questionnaire to collect the variables on environmental practices and operational performance in manufacturing firms in Brazil, an emerging economy in which this sector accounts for 25% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The results show that the adoption of GSCM between suppliers and/or customers has a positive effect on operational performance. This means companies can benefit from a green supply chain by cooperating with upstream suppliers of environmentally responsible production technology and by exchanging environmental information with them, as well as considering the views of customers and green consumers in their production processes. This study provides empirical support for managers promoting environmental practices that may lead to operational performance and sustainable growth.