Supplier Development Practices for Sustainability: A Multi‐Stakeholder Perspective |
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| Authors: | Lingxuan Liu Min Zhang Linda C Hendry Maoliang Bu Shi Wang |
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| Institution: | 1. Lancaster University Management School, Lancaster University, Bailrigg, Lancaster, UK;2. Norwich Business School, University of East Anglia, Norwich, Norfolk, UK;3. School of Business, Nanjing University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China;4. Nanjing‐Hopkins Centre, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China;5. School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China |
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| Abstract: | Supplier development for sustainability is a critical element of sustainable supply chain management and requires extensive multi‐stakeholder collaboration. This article establishes a conceptual four‐stage framework to analyse the collaborative mechanisms of supplier development practices, and presents an exploratory, qualitative analysis to identify the major contributors of sustainable supplier development practices, such as NGOs, industrial associations, consulting firms etc. Based on semi‐structured interviews about 63 organizations from different regions and industries, this article identifies three types of contributor: drivers, facilitators and inspectors. Instead of traditional stakeholder engagement processes, these contributors actively collaborate with buying firms and suppliers to design, implement and evaluate sustainable supplier development programs. The article then provides a matrix to describe the supply chain coverage and supplier performance of supplier development practices, given the absence or positive involvement of facilitators and inspectors. We conclude our study by suggesting future research directions as well as discussing managerial implications. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment |
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| Keywords: | sustainable development supply chain management sustainable collaboration capacity building stakeholder engagement environmental NGOs |
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