Managerial barriers to sustainable supply chain management: a descriptive study in the manufacturing industry in south India

Entity: Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV)

Confidenciality: No

Education area(s): Gestió d'Empreses Tecnològiques

APS: No

Title in different languages: Managerial barriers to sustainable supply chain management: a descriptive study in the manufacturing industry in south India

Abstract: Sustainable Supply Chain Management (SSCM) plays a vital role in promoting environmental, economic, and social sustainability across industries. However, there are several barriers to SSCM implementation, and these barriers vary from country to country and industry to industry. Studies on barriers to SSCM implementation are limited in developing countries, particularly in manufacturing industries. This study examines the current status of SSCM practices and 31 key barriers under the four internal barrier categories in two manufacturing industries, TAFE and RML, at Chennai, South India. Data was collected from the faculty working in the SCM department through a structured questionnaire and analyzed using the Best-Worst Method (BWM), a structured multi-criteria decision-making tool. The study highlights the significance of the five SSCM practices that include choosing suppliers mostly on the basis of quality standards, working closely with suppliers to address problems, regularly gathering customer input, aiming to meet future customer expectations, and putting pressure on suppliers to deliver more quickly. The results by BWM analysis indicate that Organizational barriers are the most significant barrier category compared to the other three barrier categories, Cultural, Communication, and psychological. It also indicates that nine of the top ten key barriers are from the Organizational barriers category. The findings from this study offer practical value to managers in the manufacturing industries in South India seeking to enhance SSCM outcomes, emphasizing the importance of addressing internal organizational barriers before tackling external ones. These insights lay the groundwork for future academic research and strategic industrial development.

Subject: Indústries

Academic year: 2024-2025

Language: en

Work's public defense date: 2025-09-08

Subject areas: Economic and business sciences

Student: Lourduraj John de Britto, Maryen de Miracle

Work's codirector: Cher Zubareva, Julia

Department: Enginyeria Química

Creation date in repository: 2025-12-12

Keywords: Sustainable supply chain management (SSCM), multi-criteria decision-making method (MCDM), best-worst method (BWM).

Title in original language: Managerial barriers to sustainable supply chain management: a descriptive study in the manufacturing industry in south India

Access Rights: info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess

Project director: Martín Bofarull, Mónica