Sustainable Supply Chain Management: An Empirical Study of a Global Automaker’s Indian Operations

Abstract

The primary purpose of the paper was to identify the key capabilities that can be adopted or adapted for successful implementation of sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) practices in a different business environment. This paper reports an in-depth exploratory case study of a global automaker in India. An assessment is carried out for SSCM to generate valuable interorganisational resources that become sources of competitive advantage. This paper after an initial literature review identifies key sustainability practices across a wide range of industries for effective SSCM implementation. The key findings of this research are the capabilities to adopt a set of operating principles such as lean manufacturing, quality management or strategic management practices directly across markets/environments without any change. The research also identifies capabilities to innovate, collaborate and partner that require development of critical resources or changing key resources for successful implementation of SSCM in a different business environment. This paper provides an insight into the dynamic capabilities for SSCM implementation in a different market. Our study findings will help managers configure their supply chains for sustainable benefits in economic, social and environmental spheres in a different market. This work also contributes to research on how organisational routines influence firm adaptation to a major environmental change.