Evaluating the human resource related soft dimensions in green supply chain management implementation

Abstract

Because of increased carbon emissions, environmental protection initiatives have gained significant attention at global level. One of the major initiatives taken by the industrial sector to minimize the negative environmental effect of the value chain activities is Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM). In industry, soft (human resource-related) dimensions influence the implementation of GSCM process greatly. In the literature, relatively less discussion is provided on assessing the significance of soft dimensions in efficient GSCM acceptance in industry. The present work is an attempt to construct a structural framework for assessing the significance of the soft dimensions in adopting GSCM concepts by taking a case of automotive company in India. A hybrid approach of Best Worst Method (BWM) and Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) approach is employed in this work. BWM is used to prioritize the GSCM oriented soft dimensions, and DEMATEL is employed to extract interrelationships among them. The result shows that ‘Top management commitment’, ‘Employee involvement’, ‘Organizational culture’ and ‘Teamwork’ are the highly prioritized causal soft dimensions in efficient GSCM adoption. This research work would help industry managers and practitioners to decide where to concentrate for GSCM concepts in context of soft dimensions for sustainable business development.