Corporate Environmental Management for the Textile Industry: Toward an Empirical Typology

Boffelli Boffelli,Gaiardelli Gaiardelli,Resta Resta,Dotti Dotti,Carissimi Carissimi

doi:10.3390/su11236688

Boffelli Boffelli, Gaiardelli Gaiardelli + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/su11236688

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Journal: Sustainability	Publication Date: Nov 26, 2019
Citations: 8	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: University of Bergamo

Abstract

The increasing attention of stakeholders regarding environmental issues is pushing companies to question their own environmental strategies and to consequently adopt coherent practices. The textile industry appears to be particularly affected because of its heavy impact on the environment. Despite many companies in this industry having developed integrated environmental management systems to make their environmental strategies more effective, the alignment of environmental practices with these strategies is not yet completely evident. This paper aims to fill this gap through a three-step research process. First of all, a reference model built upon an in-depth analysis of the literature provides a summary of the main strategies and practices for corporate environmental management. The model is then used to support an online survey aimed at understanding the level of adoption of environmental management practices in the textile industry. Subsequently, a cluster analysis identifies three different types of companies characterized by three strategic configurations: “committed”, “prone”, and “subjected” to environmental sustainability. Then, each type of company is characterized in terms of practices. Finally, the achieved results are used to derive some considerations (e.g., engaging with stakeholders, looking back to align practice with strategy, looking forward to become environmental leaders) that companies can consider to move forward in their environmental sustainability journey.

Highlights

In recent years, the problem of environmental sustainability has become more and more prominent in the corporate agenda
In line with this objective, we developed an integrated corporate environmental management approach for the textile industry by i) establishing a reference model for corporate environmental management, ii) creating an empirical typology of the textile sector’s environmental strategy, iii) characterizing each strategic type in terms of environmental practices, and iv) proposing some improvement actions based on considerations from the empirical study
The model, which was derived from the literature and which is potentially applicable to any sector, was tailored to the specific characteristics of the textile industry by involving a panel of experts, who were asked to give importance weights to stakeholder and practices categories

Summary

Introduction

The problem of environmental sustainability has become more and more prominent in the corporate agenda. Many organizations have decided to include environmental considerations in the management of their activities in order to reduce to zero the impact on the natural environment [1]. While past studies have contributed significantly to the literature on environmental issues, much continues to be learned about corporate environmental management [2]. The specific industrial context shapes the management systems that exist at the firm level due to its unique combination of regulations and stakeholder pressure [4]. There is a need to develop industry-specific research fields to manage green issues that are suitable for the sector’s characteristics and technologies [5]

Objectives

Discussion

Conclusion