The diffusion of environmental management system and its effect on environmental management practices
International Journal of Operations & Production Management
ISSN: 0144-3577
Article publication date: 28 April 2014
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the diffusion of ISO 14001-based environmental management system (EMS) on five key organisational functions, namely production, procurement, sales, logistics, and R&D. In examining the EMS diffusion, this paper focuses on two aspects of diffusion: the extent of diffusion of EMS and the balance of EMS diffusion across the five organisational functions.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from 286 companies in Australia which were certified to ISO 14001. The respondents are personnel in the company who hold responsibility in managing the EMS.
Findings
The results show that the extent of diffusion of EMS has a positive effect on green products, green processes, and green supply chain management. In addition, diffusion variation (imbalance) has a negative effect on green product and green supply chain management. This study demonstrates the importance of both the depth and the balanced diffusion of EMS across different organisational functions in driving environmental management practices.
Research limitations/implications
The results support the theory of organisational climate which emphasises the importance of both climate level and climate strength. In the context of our study, firms with high both extensive (climate level) and balanced diffusion (climate strength) of EMS will produce better environmental innovations than those which only have climate level.
Practical implications
The results provide insights for managers to consider the extent and balance of diffusion of EMS in their organisational functions as an indicator of the implementation of EMS in their organisations.
Social implications
The findings imply the need for expanding the scope of collaborations beyond the firm's level, that is from being intra-organisational to inter-organisational by involving supply chain partners (primarily customers and suppliers). When the diffusion of environmental initiatives (including ISO 14001 EMS) can be extended to supply chain partners, the environmental effects will also be significantly larger and wider compared to when it is confined in individual firms.
Originality/value
This paper is one of the first to study the extent and balance of diffusion of EMS within organisations and its impact on environmental management practices
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the guest editor and three anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments on earlier versions of this paper. This study was supported by Joint Accreditation Systems for Australia and New Zealand (JAS-ANZ). Lai is partially supported by the Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China (GRF 5455/11).
Citation
Prajogo, D., K.Y. Tang, A. and Lai, K.-H. (2014), "The diffusion of environmental management system and its effect on environmental management practices", International Journal of Operations & Production Management, Vol. 34 No. 5, pp. 565-585. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOPM-10-2012-0448
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2014, Emerald Group Publishing Limited