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The aim of the research is to identify and prioritise the implementation challenges of blockchain technology and suggests ways for its implementation in supply chains.

Underlined by the technology, organisational, and external environment model, a conceptual framework with four challenge categories and sixteen challenges is proposed. Data collected from three stakeholder groups with experience in the implementation of blockchain technology in India is analysed by employing an analytical hierarchy process method-based case study. Further, a criticality–effort matrix analysis is performed to group challenges and suggest ways for implementation.

The analysis revels that all stakeholders perceive complexity challenge associated with the technology, organisational structure, and external environment, and issues of compatibility with existing systems, software, and business practices to be high on the criticality and effort scales, which thus require meticulous planning to manage. Likewise, top-management support issues related to insufficient understanding of how technology fits with the organisation’s policy and benefits offered by the technology requires high effort to address this challenge.

The results were obtained by focusing on the Indian context and therefore may not apply to other nations’ contexts.

By investigating the challenges that the developers, consultants, and client organisations need to address, this study assists managers in developing plans to facilitate coordination among these organisations for successful blockchain implementation.

To the authors’ knowledge this study is the first to identify and prioritise the challenges from the perspectives of multiple stakeholder groups with experience in blockchain technology implementation.

Driven by increasing concerns for sustainable development and digitalization, intermediaries have emerged as relevant actors who can help supply chains tackle grand societal challenges. They can also trigger significant changes in structure, shape and governance models of supply chains. The goal of this research is to advance the understanding of supply chain intermediation and digital governance as coordinating mechanisms for enabling multi-level collective action to address the world's grand challenges.

This is a conceptual research paper that uses a vignette approach, where real examples are described to help question and expand theoretical insights and provide a basis for future research. The examples are drawn from past and ongoing extensive primary and secondary data collection efforts in diverse types of supply chains.

Three contexts are proposed to illustrate how intermediaries and digital governance can play a key role in helping supply chains tackle grand challenges. The first and second context highlight the differences between material and support flow intermediaries in a triadic supply chain relationship. The third context illustrates intermediation within a multi-level network which can be industry-specific or span across industries. The three contexts are evaluated on the level of intervention, the focus on material or support flows, and traditional or digital governance. The specific Sustainable Development Goals which can be tackled through intermediary intervention are also indicated.

Intermediaries are often hidden actors in global supply chains and have received limited attention in the academic literature. The conceptual foundation provided in this manuscript serves as the basis for future research opportunities. Three main avenues for further research in this domain are proposed: (1) novel forms of intermediation beyond economic and transactional arrangements; (2) novel forms of digital governance; and (3) translating multi-level collective action into sustainable development outcomes. Research on intermediation driven by sustainable development and digitalization trends can spur empirical advances in sustainable supply chain and operations management with important societal impact.

In the digital age, emerging technologies have affected every industry. Information and communications technology and digital technologies have transformed traditional supply chains into smart and more resilient ones, enabling effective management of challenges. Given the importance of the two topics, namely sustainable supply chain management and Industry 4.0 in supply chain management, on the one hand, and the dearth of theoretical research performed in this area on the other, this study aims to propose a conceptual model on a sustainable digital supply chain management in manufacturing companies.

This study utilized a qualitative approach. First, an in-depth review of the relevant literature was done. Then, following a multi-grounded theory methodology, relevant data were gathered by reviewing 92 papers and conducting nine semi-structured interviews with industry experts. These data were analyzed using the MAXQDA software.

A total of 41 concepts, ten sub-components and three main components (dimensions) were extracted, and the proposed conceptual model was presented. Finally, based on this conceptual model, three propositions were suggested.

Considering that the present study was performed in the context of Iranian manufacturing companies, caution should be exercised in relation to the generalizability of the obtained results. Also, due to the problems in the digital technology infrastructure and the limited use of these technologies by manufacturing companies (emphasized by the interviewees), this study focused on the theoretical dimension of using digital technologies by these companies.

The proposed comprehensive model can help academicians as well as practitioners to focus better and explore the variables and constructs of the model, paving the way toward successful implementation of digital technologies in the manufacturing supply chain.

To the best knowledge of the authors, this study is among the first of its kind which presents a holistic and comprehensive digital supply chain model aimed at guiding companies to consider sustainability from all the main dimensions and their relevant indicators.

Collaboration methods are unique strategies that can help organizations hedge against external and internal supply chain risks without stressing their relationships with supply chain partners. However, selecting the most appropriate collaboration method from a given set of strategies is a multifaceted challenge. This paper aims to address this issue.

The decision maker's dilemma of fighting data uncertainty in input parameters to check the efficacy of a given collaboration or mitigation approach is tackled by the integration of Grey theory with the technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) method. The proposed technique is applied and tested for an Indian diesel generator-set manufacturer to identify the most apposite set of sustainable collaboration strategies.

The results showed that when a firm is bidding for different horizontal collaboration strategies across its supply chain system technology and resource-sharing-centered collaboration strategies are the prominent option. In the case of the company's vertical collaboration deployment, the focus should be kept on information sharing to achieve impactful collaboration. The outcome of the analysis helped the Indian manufacturer to adopt transparent order and production information sharing with its regional distributors and core suppliers within its supply chain.

This study demonstrates from a methodological perspective the successful application of the Grey-TOPSIS approach that effectively captures data uncertainty. It also integrates sustainability parameters in collaboration strategy criteria selections.

Risk management has always been an area of concern for every global firm. The firm's supply chain management (SCM) practices are also affected by the degree of risk involved in almost all decisions. The purpose of this paper is to address the issue of assessment of risk associated with global supply chain.

The suggested methodology consists of two phases. The aim of the first phase is to select the location of a global facility with least risk and in the second phase, least risky configuration of supply chain is selected. The methodology adopted in the paper is demonstrated using the hypothetical case of an industrial valve manufacturing global firm.

The paper presents a tool for strategic and planning level. It supports a supply chain manager at strategic level to find the least risky location for manufacturing facility; while at the same time, the methodology supports a supply chain planning manager when selecting the least risky configuration of suppliers and distributors.

There are many models in the literature that addressed the issue of risk minimization in supply chain, but after an exhaustive literature review, it was noticed that there is no model that minimizes risk in locating a global facility and resulting supply chain simultaneously. The paper thus accomplishes this task by using PROMETHEE‐II and goal programming tools to suggest a decision framework for assessment of risk associated with global supply chain.

This research aims to analyze the deployment of lean practices and resilience capabilities within the healthcare supply chain across different disruptive scenarios. The study addresses the gap in how different tier levels of the healthcare supply chain integrate lean and resilience.

Employing a case study approach, the research evaluated four Italian organizations (two healthcare providers, one pharmaceutical distributor and one pharmaceutical producer) representing the three main tier levels of the healthcare supply chain. The methodology involved a questionnaire assessing the adoption of specific lean practices and resilience capabilities, followed by a scenario analysis by experts used to identify critical practices and capabilities across different disruptive scenarios.

This research systematically identified critical lean practices and resilience capabilities that are underutilized at various tier levels within the healthcare supply chain, highlighting significant opportunities for theoretical advancement in operational efficiency and system robustness during disruptions. Additionally, the study introduced a novel methodological approach to evaluate the effectiveness of lean and resilience practices across different disruptive scenarios, thereby enriching the theoretical framework for crisis management within healthcare operations. Finally, we emphasized the crucial roles of just-in-time and anticipation capability in bolstering the performance of all the healthcare supply chain.

The study contributes to the fields of supply chain management and healthcare by systematically identifying and classifying the importance of lean practices and resilience capabilities in managing disruptions. Additionally, the potential for cross-tier collaboration and knowledge sharing to enhance overall supply chain resilience is highlighted.

The research study seeks to explore the relationship among strategic gaming, the learning organization model and approach, and transfer of learning as key success strategies for improved individual and organizational performance and sustainable competitive advantage. This research aims to identify and elaborate on the strategic integration of interdisciplinary organizational areas leading to the development of a learning organization.

The research uses a cross‐sectoral case study approach to learning by focusing on the newly designed Advertising‐SCM (Ad‐SCM) simulation consisting of a strategic organizational game where experiential learning in organizational practice was emphasized and, subsequently, student learning outcome assessment results were analyzed.

The Ad‐SCM simulation game project strengthened the interdisciplinary business education for the learners by preparing them to connect to the corporate world effectively through the use of strategic gaming that modeled learning organization practice and transfer of knowledge, skills, attitudes and job relevant qualities to excel in the workplace. Interdisciplinary strategic games are valuable tools for learning and knowledge management within and across organizations, and need to be further investigated.

The research is useful for educators to try interdisciplinary, innovative projects to reinforce learning across all organizational disciplines in an inter‐organizational setting, and improve organizational performance for a sustainable competitive advantage. The research is of great value to industry professionals as it motivates critical thinking through the use of the “learning organization” as an interdisciplinary learning zone and investigates the key issues in cross‐sectoral business management areas.

Interdisciplinary strategic gaming enables industry involvement to build up cross‐disciplinary management exchanges between employees and provides real‐life case scenarios for interdisciplinary research projects. This research explores the possibility of transfer of learning during the individual's academic pursuits leading to the reduction in training costs and improved return on investment for organization in the future.

The paper utilizes an innovative research stream highlighting the relationship among the use of strategic gaming, becoming a learning organization and transfer of learning for effective learning and knowledge management.

This paper aims to explore the cybersecurity challenges the electric power industry faces due to its increased reliance on digital supply chains (DSCs), focusing on the procurement phase.

This study uses qualitative methods, with 17 semi-structured interviews conducted among industry participants to delve deep into the challenges and potential solutions. The Gioia methodology was applied to analyse the interview data. The ecosystem and procurement theory is used to understand the interconnectedness and vulnerabilities within the electric power industry’s DSC.

Three aggregated dimensions were identified: cybersecurity, risk management and supplier tensions. Key findings suggest the importance of precise cybersecurity requirements, continuous monitoring, engagement with all supply chain actors and adaptability to emerging threats.

This paper presents a framework to systematically address and mitigate cybersecurity risks in the DSC. Combining theoretical foundations with reasonable measures can significantly enhance cybersecurity resilience. By implementing these guidelines, organisations can foster collaboration across the supply chain, maintain regulatory compliance and continually adapt to the evolving threat landscape.

The paper is based on unique interview data from actors in the electric power industry. It presents a new framework for managing cybersecurity in DSCs, underpinned by the theoretical lenses of ecosystems and procurement.

This paper aims to examine the relationships between organizational purpose, leadership practices and sustainable outcomes for universities in emerging economies. We propose that a strong sense of purpose is a fundamental and defining feature in the leadership practices of these institutions, which ultimately contributes to their success.

The authors present a research model that defines the relationships between a sense of purpose, leadership practices, student success outcomes, alumni involvement outcomes and societal reputation outcomes. Over 200 higher education administrators in India participated in the study.

The institutions' sense of purpose directly relates to their leadership engagement practices and their student success outcomes. Student success outcomes are a crucial linkage between leadership engagement practices and alumni involvement outcomes to achieve their societal reputation.

As competitiveness intensifies, educational institutions under resource constraints must differentiate their organizational practices. This paper demonstrates how their core purpose and leadership actions result in achieving effective outcomes and overall sustainable societal reputation.

There is a significant difference between having an organizational purpose and enacting that purpose through their leadership practices. These results highlight the cascading effect from the institution's fundamental sense of purpose to their leadership practices and the positive outcomes of student success, alumni involvement and societal reputation.

Competitive pressures will force major changes in inventory management in the next few years. Changes will result from businesses identifying and capitalising on the opportunities to manage their entire supply chains as single entities. Supply chain management techniques deal with the planning and control of total materials flow from suppliers through end‐users (see Figure 1).

This paper investigates the integration of middle mile drones (MMD) into logistics operations, addressing two key questions: (1) What are the drivers, financial implications and upcoming innovations associated with integrating drones into MM logistics? and (2) What challenges need to be overcome for successful implementation of drones in MM logistics?

The study combines expertise from an industry professional with over ten years of experience in drone operations and logistics applications, along with insights gained from discussions with 33 industry executives.

The research identifies several unique advantages of integrating drones into MM logistics, including their potential to improve operational efficiency in challenging environments. However, significant challenges related to scalability, evolving airframe designs and operational constraints remain. Early-stage use cases demonstrate the viability of MMD technologies in lower-risk logistics environments, but broader implementation requires overcoming the identified challenges.

As MMD logistics is a nascent field, the study is exploratory and based on early-stage use cases and expert discussions. The limited scope of practical implementations may restrict the generalizability of the findings. Future research should focus on larger-scale operations and empirical studies of MMD integration in diverse logistics contexts.

The findings offer valuable insights for practitioners related to the costs, benefits and challenges of integrating drones into logistics operations and for policymakers related to societal implications, workforce development, privacy and safety concerns, and environmental impact.

This paper contributes to the evolving understanding of drone applications in MM logistics by presenting early use cases and identifying both challenges and opportunities for MMD technology and offers a foundation for future research and practice in this emerging domain.

The main purpose of this study is to assess the influence of business analytics (BA) on supply chain ambidexterity (SCA) and market learning (ML) in the context of Iran as a developing country.

The study population encompasses a range of key positions such as senior managers, supply chain managers, senior IT managers and senior marketing and marketing research managers in Iran. Through a survey, a questionnaire was designed to gather data from these individuals. The data collected from a total of 214 participants underwent rigorous analysis using structural equation modeling.

Findings revealed BA has a positive influence on SCA and ML. Furthermore, the study found that distinct facets of ML, namely, exploratory and exploitative learning, exerted a positive influence on SCA. Additionally, the investigation uncovered that the mechanisms of exploratory ML and exploitative ML play a partially mediating role in the relationship between BA and SCA.

It is prudent to acknowledge that the study’s sampled entities were exclusively Iranian companies, potentially curtailing the extent of generalizability of our findings.

This research contributes valuable theoretical insights and practical implications to policymakers and top managers of organizations, particularly the surveyed organizations to formulate and implement an appropriate strategy to avail of BA techniques toward enhancing SCA. Also, this study provides significant insights into the determinants of SCA and demonstrates how organizations can leverage data analytics and ML to attain sustained growth and ambidexterity within the supply chain context.

The overall objective of this study is to holistically analyse the complexities involved in the adoption of sustainable wood supply chain in the Amazon and to develop strategic interventions to improve the system.

This study uses the systems thinking and modelling framework that included problem structuring followed by the development of a systems model. Tumbira and Santa Helena do Inglês, two Amazonian communities, were used as a case. Data were collected by staying inside the Amazon, observing the community members and interacting with them during their activities, including logging inside the forest.

A behaviour over time (BOT) graph developed as a part of problem structuring showed that deforestation of the Amazon is still increasing, despite the creation of protected areas and NGO activities in the region. Developing a sustainable wood supply chain is considered as one of the approaches for sustainable forestry in the Amazon, but its adoption is slow. The systems model captured the underlying structure of this system and explained this counterintuitive behaviour using eleven interacting feedback loops.

This study is confined to two Amazonian communities and recognises the limitations of generalisations.

This paper illustrates the development of three strategic interventions to improve the adoption of sustainable wood supply chain in the Amazon.

This study highlights the real issues faced by real communities living in the Amazon for adopting sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) practices. It contributes to the literature on sustainable wood supply chain by systemically analysing the challenges in its adoption, not sufficiently discussed in the literature.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the contribution of production and operations managers (POMs) and logistics managers (LMs) in improving manufacturing and service operations, comparing experiences in Australia and Britain.

The findings are based on surveys of the two occupations in the two countries. Thus, the focus is on comparing and contrasting two strategically placed occupations within the supply chain and in two traditional manufacturing economies in developed countries, in opposing hemispheres of the world.

The working lives of 254 Australian and 195 British POMs and 303 Australian and 168 British LMs are explored to see how well prepared they are for the business challenges of today, whether they see the need for changes in the ways in which they work and what satisfactions they derive from their worlds of work?

Insights are provided for senior management into the deployment and personal and professional development needs of two key occupations within supply chain management.

The findings from the research give fresh insights into the ways in which managers in the two areas of responsibilities in the two countries.view their worlds of work

The importance of sustainable supply chain management practices (SSCMPs) in the financial performance of firms is increasing significantly. However, the influence of SSCMPs on financial performance can vary across sectors and contexts. This research aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the influence of SSCMPs on the financial sustainability of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the food processing industry. For this, the influence of sustainable environment practices, customer and supplier relationships, social SCMPs and lean supply chain on the financial sustainability of food processing SMEs is studied.

A questionnaire survey was conducted to collect data from 56 food processing SMEs in Mbeya, Tanzania. The study employed a cross-sectional research design and a census approach to capture data from all eligible SMEs in the target population. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and multiple linear regression (MLR) were utilized as the primary data analysis techniques.

The findings of the study revealed a positive and significant influence of various SSCMPs on the financial sustainability of food processing SMEs. Specifically, sustainable environment management practices (β = 0.147, p = 0.000), supplier relationship management (SRM) (β = 0.715, p = 0.001), customer relationship management (CRM) (β = 0.894, p = 0.016), social SCMP (β = 0.901, p = 0.005) and lean supply chain practices (β = 0.675, p = 0.003) were all found to have a significant effect on the financial sustainability of the surveyed food processing SMEs.

The study recommends the need to plan and integrate SSCMPs in firms’ operation processes, promote collaboration and networking and offer capacity-building initiatives that equip food processing SMEs with the necessary skills and knowledge to implement SSCMPs effectively. These will nurture effective adoption of SSCMP, leading to improved operations, environmental performance, financial sustainability and long-term viability of the sector.

While SSCMPs have gained attention in the literature, the specific focus on its impact on financial sustainability in the context of food processing SMEs adds originality to this research. Industry stakeholders and policymakers can utilize the findings of this study to develop supportive policies and programs that promote sustainable supply chain practices and enhance financial sustainability in the food processing sector.

By integrating upper echelon theory and institutional theory, this study investigates the influence of top management commitment to sustainability on sustainable performance. Additionally, the mediating role of green supply chain management practices and the moderating role of institutional pressure are examined.

Data were collected from 376 managers and employees in green hotels within the Thai hospitality industry using a time-lagged survey.

The findings reveal that top management commitment to sustainability positively influences sustainable performance and that green supply chain management practices mediate this relationship. Additionally, coercive and normative pressures moderated the relationship between top management commitment to sustainability and green supply chain management practices.

This study highlights the importance of green supply chain management practices for hospitality firms. It emphasizes that strong leadership commitment to sustainability, partnerships with suppliers and compliance with regulations are crucial for the successful implementation of green supply chain initiatives.

This study contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence about the mechanisms through which top management commitment to sustainability translates into improved sustainable performance. Furthermore, the study enhances our understanding of how external pressures, specifically coercive and normative pressures, influence the adoption of green supply chain practices, offering new insights into how contextual factors shape management actions regarding sustainability. This adds nuance to our understanding of the interplay between internal commitment and external pressures in driving sustainability outcomes in the hospitality industry.

This paper aims to critically analyze the engineering education focused on sustainability in supply chain management, in courses offered by Brazilian higher education institutions.

Topics related to sustainable supply chain management were listed from the literature and used as a framework to gather professors’ opinions on how well these topics are covered in engineering courses offered in Brazil. Data analysis was performed via frequency analysis and comparative ordering using the Fuzzy technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution technique.

It was possible to evidence that most of the topics are superficially presented within other subjects and that there are few associated practical activities that enable greater learning. Comparatively, issues related to ISO standards (related to quality and environmental management systems) and compliance with environmental laws, regulations and standards were highlighted. Additionally, it was possible to verify that there is a need for further study on issues related to energy efficiency, worker training and corporate governance.

No similar study was found in the literature. The findings presented in this paper can contribute to the improvement of engineering education in Brazil and other countries.

The aim of this research is to examine the relationship between green supply chain management and sustainability performance in a manufacturing context.

A survey approach was adopted to collect data from 163 manufacturing organizations to test the research hypotheses. A structural equation modeling (SEM) using the technique of path analysis with bootstrapping is used to test the hypothesized relationships.

The research findings provide supporting evidence for the importance of implementing green supply chain management (GSCM) as a holistic system that includes internal and external green practices. Besides, the findings highlight the direct effect of GSCM on environmental, social and operational performance. Finally, the findings provide supporting evidence that GSCM could only be translated into better economic returns through the improvement of environmental and operational performance.

The nature of the surveyed sample and the use of a single informant might limit the ability to generalize the research findings outside the research context.

The research findings help managers understand that GSCM must be implemented as a holistic system and that the real benefits of its implementation extend beyond the mere environmental benefits to include operational, social as well as economic benefits.

The paper’s contribution to knowledge is twofold. First, the study identifies how GSCM is conceptualized and how its effect is translated into improved economic performance. Second, the research explains the contradicting findings in previous studies regarding the relationship between GSCM and economic performance.

This paper aims to examine the performance of marginalized farmers in supply relationships with agri-tech firms in emerging rural agricultural economies. The complex relationship among the suppliers, dual relationship and knowledge transfer (KT) was studied. This paper empirically investigates the relationship between KT and supplier’s performance improvement (SPI) via buyer–supplier relationship (BSR).

Grounded on agency theory, a conceptual framework has been proposed to identify the mediation effect of BSR. The context deals with suppliers who are farmers in developing nations. The hypotheses were tested using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation with a sample of 121 marginalized farmers from Indian states. The data was collected using a survey instrument designed by adapting the well-cited and validated measures. These marginalized farmers worked in collaboration with the agri-tech firms facilitating them with the KT.

The relationships established from the results also indicate the fact that KT is a powerful tool to make connections with farmers that lead to their performance improvement. The KT was found as a driver to improve performance (SPI) and the BSR acted as a positive mediator in this study. The complex relationships among the KT, BSR and SPI hold.

This paper can be subscribed to various nuanced understandings of the agricultural supply chain context in emerging economies, in the specialized cases where farmers belong to the marginalized communities. This study has the scope to replicate using a mixed-method approach in emerging economies beyond India. It also advances the agency theory literature in the supply chain discipline of emerging rural economies.

This study offers strategic implications for agri-tech practitioners, policymakers and academic debate. The marginalized farmers with KT and improved BSR can become a part of the mainstream value chain, their debts can be reduced, suicides can be prevented and the quality of their family life can be significantly improved.

This study makes a unique contribution by investigating how the agri-tech firms (non-traditional buyer) and supplier relationship and KT helps improve the economic sustainability of smallholder farmers in India. The authors immersed themselves in fieldwork by interacting and meeting in person with 121 farmers residing in the remotest of the remote rural areas across multiple states of India. This resulted in the collection of authentic data and capturing the ground realities from one of the fastest-growing and largest emerging economies.

The paper seeks to examine the impact of operational quality management practices within the supply chain.

Regression analysis is used to identify relationships between a firm's internal and external (customer and supplier focused) operational quality practices and measures of product quality and customer service.

Not only do both internally and externally focused quality management practices impact performance, but externally focused efforts have a greater impact on performance and are perceived by managers to be of greater importance.

The study does not suggest how specifically quality management practices impact performance, how the efforts of individual supply chain members contribute to overall success, or how performance gains should be shared by the various chain members.

The study provides managers with guidance on how to leverage relationships with suppliers and customers to improve product quality and customer service.

The study provides a supply chain as opposed to a firm‐level perspective on managing a firm's quality.

Big data analytics capability (BDAC) can affect firm performance in several ways. The purpose of this paper is to understand how BDA capabilities affect firm performance through supply chain resilience in the presence of the risk management culture.

The study adopted a cross-sectional approach to collect survey-based responses to examine the hypotheses. 167 responses were collected and analyzed using partial least squares in SmartPLS3. The respondents were generally senior IT executives with education and experience in data and business analytics.

The results show that BDA capabilities increase supply chain resilience as a mediator by enhancing innovative capabilities and information quality, ultimately leading to improved firm performance. In addition, the relationship between supply chain resilience and firm performance is influenced by risk management culture as a moderator.

The present study contributes to the relevant literature by demonstrating the mediating role of supply chain resilience between the BDA capabilities relationship and firm performance. In this context, some theoretical and managerial implications are proposed and discussed.

The main problem addressed by this research is the current debate between the negative and positive effects of industrial clusters. This debate is a result of gaps between theoretical implications and empirical evidence in both the classical agglomeration theory and the agglomeration lifecycle theory. The purpose of this study is to propose a framework for developing an index measuring both organizational cluster involvement and organizational supply chain including the three pillars (economic, social, and environmental). Furthermore, the index acts as a quantitative predictor of the stages of the life cycle of industrial clusters. Adopting a case study methodology, the applicability of the index development framework is demonstrated. First, cross-sectional exploratory interviews are performed to locate items measuring the three pillars of organizational sustainability within Egyptian communication industry. Second, an explanatory, cross-sectional approach is applied gathering data from eight professionals related to involvement and supply chain sustainability of their organizations. Analytical hierarchical process is used for weighting and aggregating individual item metrics into two indicators (Saaty, 1980). Measuring, managing, and controlling capabilities of organization's supply chains outweighs the need to manage risks. The proposed framework aids firms within a cluster in making timely decisions about what needs addressing to improve supply chain sustainability performance. Hence, all environmental, social, and economic capabilities can be effectively monitored and controlled.

To determine the extent to which long‐established technologies (such as barcoding and electronic data interchange (EDI)) have been applied across their supply chains, identify factors influencing implementation, discuss future trends for new technologies, and document the business benefits accrued.

Five case studies were conducted in manufacturing companies who are members of EAN Australia. As members of EAN Australia, the case study companies were using (to some extent at least) some aspects of the EAN system, and thus involved in using e‐commerce‐enabling technologies.

Indicates that the use of technology is largely restricted to the demand (in this study retail trading partners) side of the supply chain, despite a general understanding of the potential benefits of implementation backward through the supply side. There is general agreement that emerging technologies (such as the internet) will provide further opportunities, and at the same time increase pressure for extended use.

Being limited to organizations operating in the Australian fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector, the results therefore need to be read in this context. It would be useful if these findings could be compared with those from other countries and different industry sectors.

It is apparent that for manufacturers a critical loop is often not closed due to the limited availability of point of sale (POS) data from major trading partners, and that this has served to limit value capture (by the manufacturers) through extended application.

Highlights both the potential for business‐to‐business (B2B)‐enabling technologies to facilitate improvements in manufacturing operations, and the reality of their current limitations. An important emergent theme was that business benefits could be as much attributed to complementary methodologies (cooperative arrangements, cross‐functional involvement, etc.), as to the use of the technologies themselves. As such, the cases point to the critical nature of information in this area, and to the need for appropriate relationships between trading partners to underpin and enable data flows between trading partners.

This study examined the factors impeding the implementation of micro-credentials and accepting it as a credible source of earning professional qualifications and certifications necessary for pursuing higher education or other career goals.

The factors were identified by reflecting on the recent literature and Internet resources coupled with in-depth brainstorming with experts in the field of micro-credentials including educators, learners and employers. Two ranking methods, namely Preference Ranking for Organization Method for Enrichment Evaluation (PROMETHEE) and multi-objective optimization based on ratio analysis (MOORA), are used together to rank the major challenges.

The results of this study present that lack of clear definitions, ambiguous course descriptions, lack of accreditation and quality assurance, unclear remuneration policies, lack of coordination between learning hours and learning outcomes, the inadequate volume of learning, and lack of acceptance by individuals and organizations are the top-ranked and the most significant barriers in the implementation of micro-credentials.

The findings can be used by educational institutions, organizations and policymakers to better understand the issues and develop strategies to address them, making micro-credentials a more recognized form of education and qualifications.

The novelty of this study is to identify the primary factors influencing the implementation of micro-credentials from the educators', students' and employers' perspectives and to prioritize those using ranking methods such as PROMETHEE and MOORA.

This study aims to investigate the impact mechanism of supply chain relationship quality on knowledge sharing and firms’ innovation performance during supply chain collaborative innovation.

A conceptual model linking supply chain relationship quality, knowledge sharing and firms’ innovation performance is developed, and the hypotheses of the relationships among them are proposed. To test these hypotheses with structural equation modeling, this study conducts a survey of 287 Chinese manufacturing firms that carried out collaborative innovation with supply chain partners.

Supply chain relationship quality has a significant positive effect on tacit knowledge sharing but its positive effect on explicit knowledge sharing is not significant. Both explicit and tacit knowledge sharing across supply chain enterprises positively influence firms’ innovation performance. Supply chain relationship quality influences firms’ innovation performance directly as well as indirectly through the mediating roles of explicit and tacit knowledge sharing.

This study provides empirical evidence of supply chain relationship quality’s direct and indirect effects through explicit and tacit knowledge sharing on firms’ innovation performance. This study also provides supply chain practitioners with better understanding of the importance of developing relationship quality and knowledge sharing across supply chain as they are positively associated with firms’ innovation performance.

This paper focuses on managerial practices in the context of supply chain. It focuses on the innovation of monitoring and control practices and proposes a holistic approach to managing social sustainability in the supply chain, extending the point of view beyond the traditional boundaries of individual factories or their immediate suppliers.

The analysis is based on a systematic review of scientific literature on managerial practices in supply chains, with a specific focus on social sustainability. The primary goal is to identify essential measurement strategies and key indicator factors within this domain.

Our findings highlight that most of scientific literature focuses on qualitative approaches, though quantitative approaches are also used. Despite the extensive research, an under-investigated area is the use of hybrid models for measuring social sustainability in the supply chain.

This framework is designed to identify the main categories of measurement and relative indicators for assessing social sustainability in supply chains.

This research proposes an innovative and integrated framework, leveraging a hybrid approach that addresses the limitations observed in existing management practices. Additionally, it provides directions for future research.

The purpose of this study is to explore the potential impact of blockchain technology on supply chain performance (SCP). This study further delves into the enablers of blockchain adoption (BA) in SCM and investigates both the direct and mediated effects of blockchain assimilation on garnering a competitive edge in the supply chain and bolstering innovation proficiency, ultimately enhancing SCP.

This study used a quantitative approach, leveraging partial least squares structural equation modelling. Empirical data were sourced from 500 validated data sets obtained through questionnaires.

The results indicate that technological readiness and knowledge sharing are key drivers for integrating blockchain into supply chains, with technology readiness displaying a substantially stronger influence. Furthermore, BA significantly enhances supply chain innovation capabilities (SCIC), competitive performance (CP) and overall supply chain efficiency. Notably, both SCIC and CP mediate and amplify the positive effects of blockchain on SCP, emphasising the vital role of innovation and competition in optimising the benefits of blockchain.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to bridge the gap in the literature connecting SCM and blockchain. The established model augments the theoretical discourse on the SCM-blockchain, offering scholars a validated framework that can be adapted and built upon in future studies.

Humanitarian supply chains (HSCs) by their very nature require urgent reaction to unforeseeable needs, making it difficult to properly plan for the support of actual demands. As such, integrating sustainability into traditional HSC practices continues to present a challenge to governments, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and other humanitarian-related agencies. This study focuses on identifying and categorizing the leading enablers to green humanitarian supply chains (GHSCs) and proposes a model for improving the responsiveness based upon a fuzzy total interpretive structural modelling approach.

Total interpretive structural modelling (TISM) uses group decision-making to identify contextual relationships among each pair of enablers and elucidates the nature of each underlying relationship. The fuzzy TISM shows the level of strength (very high influence, high influence, low influence and very low influence) of each enabler in relation to other enablers, which can help to inform management decision-making.

GHSC management requires strategic planning of inventory and logistics management. The importance of collaborative relationship building with HSC partners for developing capability and the effective use of available resources are keys to success. These improved relationships also help to promote postponement and similar speculation-based logistics strategies, as well as advanced purchasing and pre-positioning strategies. Finally, the speed and quality of response is found to be the top enabler in GHSC management.

One noted shortcoming of the chosen research method is its reliance on subjective expert judgement. However, collecting judgements is at the basis of many research methods, and the research team took utmost care throughout the research process to allay biases. Future empirical research can further examine the relationships suggested herein. Managers can use the model developed in this research to consider impactful ways to design and execute sustainable HSCs.

To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is a novel attempt to identify enablers to GHSC management. Secondly, the research team has used an advanced methodology (fuzzy TISM) to develop the contextual inter-relationships among the enablers which has not been used earlier in this direction before and thus advances the GHSC literature.

The purpose of this paper is to discuss a novel life cycle approach to education for sustainable development (ESD) where the students become “design thinkers”.

A case study on the creation, development and utilisation of educational games by university students is presented. The paper discusses the case study in the context of Kolb’s experiential learning and dynamic matching model, Perry’s stages of intellectual development and Beech and Macintosh’s processual learning model. The data used were from questionnaire feedback from the pupils who played the games and students who designed the games. Further qualitative feedback was collected from local schools involved in playing the games created by the students.

Overall, the students responded positively to the assessment and would like to see more of this type of assessment. They enjoyed the creativity involved and the process of developing the games. For the majority of the skill sets measured, most students found that their skills improved slightly. Many students felt that they had learnt a lot about effectively communicating science. The school children involved in playing the student-created games found them accessible with variable degrees of effectiveness as engaging learning tools dependent on the game.

This paper contributes a new approach to ESD which incorporates learner-centred arrangements within a full life cycle of game creation, delivery, playing and back to creation. The games can be used as a tool for enhancing knowledge and influencing behaviours in school children whilst enhancing ESD capacity in schools. The assessment also helps forge important links between the academic and local communities to enhance sustainable development.

Supply‐chain management, at least in the largest multi‐national corporations, is a global endeavor. It is undergoing a transformation caused by the worldwide spread of digital communications, and e‐commerce in particular. Hence, it is necessary to understand the development of e‐commerce and its future trends. This development is based on what is at times rather rapid advances generated or supported by the external environment with factors like institutions and electronic infrastructures. E‐commerce is rapidly spreading internationally, but by no means uniformly, across boundaries, or for that matter within countries. The great relevance of examining the international spread of e‐commerce is that most corporations actually source globally. The stages of e‐commerce evolution, from rather primitive incipiency to highly advanced B2B forms, are conditioned by factors which range from the availability of complementary assets to institutional considerations.

The challenges confronting the Nigerian construction industry which led to the adoption of supply chain management (SCM) practice were evaluated in this chapter. It was discovered that the Nigerian construction industry is confronted with fragmentation and poor information management. The stakeholders within the Nigerian construction industry proposed the adoption of SCM to overcome the fragmentation and other shenanigans facing the industry. This chapter revealed that construction supply chain (CSC) practices within the Nigerian construction industry focus on waste elimination by adopting the lean concept. The focus on the lean concept could be attributed to the numerous research related to lean or the enormous waste emanating from the Nigerian construction industry. Regardless of the emphasis on lean, the Nigerian CSC is still confronted with fragmentation and heavy waste generation. Thus, this chapter proposed the adoption of principles and technologies driven by the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) is a paradigm shift for the management of CSC in the country. It was discovered in this chapter that Nigerian construction supply stakeholders had not embraced the technologies and principles of the 4IR. The failure to adopt the technologies driven by the 4IR is attributed to the absence of a CSC model that depicts the management of CSC in alignment with the 4IR. This chapter called for developing a SCM model for the Nigerian construction industry in tandem with the principles and technologies of the 4IR.

This study aims to address the topic of ethics, responsibility and sustainability (ERS) orientation of students enrolled in schools of economics and management master’s degrees. It examines the effect of educational background and gender on Portuguese students’ orientation towards ERS, as well as the extent to which there is a relation between the scientific area of the master degree in which the student is enrolled and his/her ERS orientation.

The authors used a sample of 201 students from several master degrees offered by the School of Economics and Management of a large public Portuguese university and analysed their ERS orientation using a survey by questionnaire.

Findings suggest that there are differences in orientation across gender, with female students valuing ERS more than their male counterparts. Educational background has minimal effects on the responses. It was also found some sort of selection effect in terms of the scientific area of the master degree and ERS orientation.

This study contributes to the literature by analysing the issue of whether students with an educational background in economics and management present different ERS orientation than their counterparts, as well as by examining whether there is some sort of self-selection into the study of disciplines in which ERS orientation is likely to be a week. As far as the authors are aware, this is the first study analysing this type of issue regarding ERS.

This study aims to investigate the pricing dynamics within a triple-channel supply chain. The publisher can sell printed books (p-books) through bookstores or online direct sales, and electronic books (e-books) are sold directly through the internet. The primary objectives include determining optimal wholesale and final prices for p-books, assessing the profitability of introducing e-books, comparing profits across channels and supply chain modes and identifying optimal demand volumes.

The research uses first-order derivatives and the Stackelberg game to analyze the pricing strategies. Two supply chain modes, centralized and decentralized, are considered, and various parameters are examined to understand their impact on prices, demand volumes and final sales profit.

The results indicate that the e-book is either not published or is introduced simultaneously with the printed version in both modes. In the decentralized mode, the wholesale price of a p-book is equivalent to the final price in the bookstore channel in the centralized mode. One channel among the three selling channels is used to maximize the total profit in the centralized supply chain, whereas all demand should be fulfilled through either online direct sales or e-book channels in the decentralized mode.

This paper introduces a comprehensive triple-channel book supply chain model, considering cross-price sensitivities and lag times for e-books. The study provides insights into the dynamics of the book industry and compares them with existing literature, contributing to a broader understanding of the pricing strategies in a triple-channel context.

The purpose of this investigation is to examine how the adaption of digital supply chain management (DSCM) practices affects the efficiency of factories and sustainable production. The research consists of eight constructs which, respectively, inspired eight hypotheses.

The emergence of DSCM practices has significant importance for sustainable production and enhances overall firm performance.

The smart PLS-SEM approach allowed us to examine the data from 450 factories in Côte d'Ivoire. The results indicated that research hypotheses are highly significant and exhibit a strong correlation with DSCM for firm performance and competitiveness. The outcomes underscore the significance of DSCM strategies in achieving competitive advantage, enhancing firm performance and promoting sustainable production within the manufacturing sector.

This study is useful for policymakers, industrialists and the government of Côte d’Ivoire.

This study aims to present a Faculty-Led Program applied in two contrasting countries, the USA and Peru, focused on the supply chain management of food and beverages to demonstrate its benefits in human capital development. This Faculty-Led Program provides valuable opportunities to acquire skills and knowledge in foreign environments.

Students from Universidad del Pacífico and Rochester Institute of Technology were exposed to the food and beverages industry in Lima and New York. The theory will be presented to justify the program’s positive impact on the human development of the participating countries and empirical evidence of training capabilities that it allowed, according to the theoretical framework proposed by (Braskamp et al., 2009), to identify dimensions of learning. The study was based on primary data collected from 20 students from Universidad del Pacífico through a participant observation approach, retrieving a final essay project and the students’ testimonies at the end of the program implemented in other similar studies in Peru (Simone, 2021). The data were categorized into three domains and then summarized to provide key insights. In this case, the methodology is qualitative, but the data were also subjected to statistical analysis.

The results suggest that knowledge of the value chain of food and beverages obtained in this program was successfully consolidated. The learning outcomes from this method were obtained through students’ projects aimed to share the learned global practices with the industry and were materialized in three domains: the cognitive domain, with students recognizing and valuing cultural aspects; the interpersonal domain, students learned from social interactions with stakeholders; and the intrapersonal domain, students showed high acceptance of US culture within the course context, though their affect toward it was more potent than toward their own culture. These domains allowed students to assess how such international experience impacted their learning in more than just the academic outcome.

The study relies on self-reported subjective methods in the short term since it summarizes students’ perspectives, expressed in a final written essay, regarding three main dimensions of learning. Besides, the process assesses the improvement of those dimensions through a participant observation approach and collecting testimonies. More objective, comparable outcomes could be achieved in the medium term by evaluating the participants’ performance in the business world.

This paper presents a conclusive application of the Faculty-Led Program, which exposed students to the diverse food and beverage industry in Lima and New York, providing valuable insights through field studies and allowing them to experience both cultures and different realities. They recognized technological advancements and delays applicable to both countries, benefiting future managers and planners in workforce development. The firsthand experience taught students practical skills and perspectives for effective industry management. To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first research in Peru focused on a short-term study abroad program based on the food and beverage supply chain industry to identify its value and contribution to a more holistic human capital development.

The global food industry is faced with the dilemma of finding a balance between food wastage and food shortage. Approximately one-third of food produced globally goes to waste, while about 800 million people suffer from undernourishment. Given this context, the purpose of this study is to investigate the unresolved challenges related to enhancing transparency associated with products of high perishability and low shelf life.

The authors conducted 25 interviews with global agri-food supply chains (AFSCs) experts to ask what impedes the progress of the current technologies, such as blockchain, to enable transparency and traceability (T&T) in AFSCs.

The findings indicate barriers at the individual, firm and supply chain levels. Based on these barriers, the authors propose an interconnected framework to explain technologically-driven T&T and guide on barrier removal from AFSCs. The authors conclude that by applying technology (i.e. blockchain) the authors can resolve the tension of supporting T&T in AFSCs. This can enable the efficient and transparent tracking of goods, reduction of food waste and loss, as well as promotion of the use of recyclable packaging and further sustainable practices and materials, all of which are aligned with a range of UN Sustainable Development Goals (2, 8, 10 and 12). Moreover, the authors see that some factors are interrelated. Based on these factors, the authors build an interconnected framework to guide on barrier removal from AFSCs. Managers in AFSC would find the findings especially relevant.

Drawing on industrial network theory and signalling theory, the authors propose an interconnected framework for explaining barriers (challenges) and potential solutions (opportunities) to T&T in AFSCs. This framework is developed by examining the interconnections of barriers at micro, meso and macro levels and applying signalling theory to explain how solutions address these barriers. The specific contributions of this study are: the list of barriers that impede the implementation of technological solutions for T&T in AFSCs; and a three-stage framework that explains how to remove the barriers for T&T. The study is limited by the focus on blockchain, which calls for future research once the next decentralised technology becomes available.

This paper aims to assess how cocoa supply chain companies disclose sustainable development goals (SDGs) information in their sustainability reports. This assessment highlights strategic aspects of sustainable supply chain management and reveals leveraging sustainability points in the cocoa industry.

The two-step qualitative approach relies on text-mining company reports and subsequent content analysis that identifies the topics disclosed and relates them to SDG targets.

This study distinguishes 18 SDG targets connected to cocoa traders and 30 SDG targets to chocolate manufacturers. The following topics represent the main nexuses of connections: decent labour promotion and gender equity (social), empowering local communities and supply chain monitoring (economic) and agroforestry and climate action (environmental).

By highlighting the interconnections between the SDGs targeted by companies in the cocoa supply chain, this paper sheds light on the strategic SDGs for this industry and their relationships, which can help to improve sustainability disclosure and transparency. One interesting input for companies is the improvement of climate crisis prevention, focusing on non-renewable sources minimisation, carbon footprint and clear indicators of ecologic materiality.

This study contributes to policymakers to enhance governance and accountability of global supply chains that are submitted to different regulation regimes.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no previous study has framed the cocoa industry from a broader SDG perspective. The interconnections identified reveal the key goals of the cocoa supply chain and point to strategic sustainability choices for companies in an important global industry.

The purpose of this paper is to identify the factors associated with farm financial success for those farms known to produce for local supply chains. The analysis considers alternative measures of farm financial performance and considers the role of the local foods supply chain in the choice to market locally.

The paper uses a two-stage Heckman approach which addresses the possibility of sample selection bias. In the first stage, the choice model to engage in direct marketing is estimated. In the second stage, the authors estimate a model of the financial performance of those in the sample that direct marketed which includes an IMR term calculated from the parameters of the first stage equation. The analysis uses national farm-level data from the Agricultural and Resource Management Survey of the US Department of Agriculture and combines data from 2009 to 2012 to overcome the constraint of small samples.

Indicators of the development of a local foods supply were positively related to the choice to engage in direct marketing. Factors affecting farm financial performance varied significantly between a short-term and a long-term measure. The results emphasize the importance of considering multiple outcome measures, developing local supply chains and provide implications about beginning farms.

If a local foods system is going to thrive, the farms that market the agricultural products in the local food system must attain a certain level of profitability. The value of the analysis is an improved understanding of the financial performance of farms producing for a small, but growing segment of the food supply chain.

The ability of a team from a manufacturer and its partners to formulate strategic plans for supply chains is investigated. The research aims to improve the process of formulate strategic plans for supply chains is investigated. The research aims to improve the process of formulation using the strategic operations and logistics planning (SOLP) process.

SOLP involves researchers facilitating many meetings of the planning team in an action research setting at their premises. Combining knowledge from operations strategy and socio‐technical systems (STS), participant observation and semi‐structured surveys are used to obtain rich data. Team members derive order‐winning criteria and design policies along the supply chain for several product groups, using the process to craft strategies whilst researchers study it. One application included managers from supply chain partners whilst the other was limited to manufacturer managers. Working within the corporate plans of the focal company, the formulation is carried out by middle managers.

Carrying out the process twice at a heavy fabrication business (HFB) in Australia demonstrated that a team of chain managers can formulate strategic operations plans for a complete heavy industry chain. Extensive support, in the form of worksheets and facilitation, is important to formulation and extent of implementation of the plans. A case is made that assistance is probably necessary for full implementation of those plans.

Whilst limited to cases in a heavy manufacturer, the research is believed to be applicable to a range of medium‐sized supply chains.

The need for the team to include supply chain partners and the effect of member's capability and authority is investigated. The extent of implementation and the effect of team attributes on execution is studied.

The research demonstrates that a team of chain managers can, with suitable support, formulate strategic operations plans for a complete heavy industry chain. The case sheds some light on the benefits, or drawbacks, of having members of other chain partners present.

Today's environment imposes traceability compliance on food firms. Power within the interorganisational relationships in the food supply chain may hinder the integration necessary for that traceability to be effective. The purpose of the present study is to define the configuration of power in food industry‐distribution relationships from the food industry perspective.

The variables of power configuration considered in this study have been classified as mediated and non‐mediated power sources, in accordance with the criteria used by French and Raven. The Rasch model employed in the treatment of the values given by the food industries to the construct perceived power (mediated and non‐mediated power sources) permit a unidimensional measurement of that construct. Thus, the model estimated using this methodology explains power‐shaping in the food industry‐distribution relationships in the Canary Islands.

The results obtained are mostly based on the distributors' use of mediated power sources; they describe a situation that does not contribute to a high level of commitment in such relationships, since the negative effects of this type of power do not favour the climate required for the implementation of active traceability.

The data applied in this study were gathered prior to the implementation of traceability as a legal requirement, and consequently it would be advisable and useful to conduct a post‐implementation.

The paper adopts a business management approach, aimed at improving relations in the food supply chain. The methodology employed allows food firms to establish suitable chain integration strategies, facilitating the effective implementation of traceability. The paper presents a conceptual framework and analytical methodology which sustain the present study and subsequent work.

This paper examines nationalism as a driver of political risk and how it can lead to supply chain disruptions for foreign multinational enterprises (MNEs).

Conceptual research based on a review of the literature on nationalism and supply chain risk management.

This research unveils how economic nationalism could engender supply chain disruptions via discriminatory practices toward all foreign MNEs and how national animosity may generate additional risks for the MNEs of nations in conflict with one another. These discriminatory practices include an array of host government and grassroots actions targeting foreign MNEs. While economic nationalism and national animosity emanate from within a host country, they may stimulate geopolitical crises outside the host country and thereby affect the international supply chains of foreign MNEs.

This research lays the foundation for analytical and empirical researchers to integrate key elements of nationalism into their studies and recommends propositions and datasets to study these notions.

This study shows the implications that nationalist drivers of supply chain disruptions have for foreign MNEs and thus can help managers to proactively mitigate such disruptions.

This study reveals the importance of integrating notions of national identity and national history in supply chain research, since they play a key role in the emergence of policies and events responsible for supply chain disruptions.

Understanding the factors that advance green innovation is crucial for firms to deal with the complexity of green innovation. In light of this, this study aims to explore the influence of supply chain knowledge, non-supply chain learning and corporate reputation on green innovation.

This study uses a quantitative research approach where data is gathered from managers of 208 small and medium enterprises in Ghana using survey questionnaires. The structural equation modeling is used to analyze the survey data.

The findings reveal supply chain knowledge relates positively with non-supply chain learning, corporate reputation and green innovation. Corporate reputation also impacts green innovation positively and provides partial mediation effect between supply chain knowledge and green innovation. Meanwhile, non-supply chain learning does not relate positively with green innovation as well as fails to mediate the impact of supply chain knowledge on green innovation.

This study contributes to knowledge in the mediating mechanisms of corporate reputation and non-supply chain learning between supply chain knowledge and green innovation. Through this, the authors propose a theoretical model to explain how firms can leverage supply chain knowledge, corporate reputation and non-supply chain learning to improve green innovation and can serve as the basis for further theoretical and empirical research in innovation and external sources of knowledge.

One of the most important components of healthcare is the timely delivery of pharmaceutical products, such as life-saving medicines. However, disruptions like COVID-19 bring new challenges and risks to the pharmaceutical supply chain (PSC) and healthcare organizations that impact their operational performance. This study focuses on mitigating risks in India's generic medicine supply chain (GMSC) as a result of various disruptions, which can assist policymakers develop appropriate plans and strategies to build resilience in the Jan Aushadhi Scheme (JAS) of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in order to improve their overall performance.

Risk-causing vulnerabilities and resilience capabilities are identified from the literature review and expert's opinions. Following that, the vulnerabilities are classified into cause-and-effect vulnerabilities, and supply chain resilient capabilities (SCRCs) are measured using a hybrid fuzzy DEMATEL and best worst method (FDEMATEL-BMW) framework.

The outcome of the study reveals that transportation breakdown, loss of human resources and loss of suppliers are the potential risk-causing vulnerabilities that lead to vulnerabilities like shortages of medicines, loss of in-hand stock qualities and loss of sales/revenue. In addition, the analysis suggests that the sustainability of an organization with maximum weightage is the critical factor for building resilience in GMSC followed by flexibility, agility and visibility.

The integration of resilience into Jan Aushadhi GMSC can help in managing disruptions efficiently and effectively to mitigate risk and optimize MSMEs overall performance.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this work will be the first of its kind to model resilience in GMSC of MSMEs using a hybrid framework.

The purpose of this article is to explore and classify the pattern of themes and challenges in developing socially sustainable supply chains.

The methodology is based on a systematic review of the peer-reviewed literature to explore what major themes and challenges have been discussed and the significant gaps where opportunities for further research can be found.

In total, four categories of themes were identified, namely, human-centric, focal organization-centric, supply chain-centric and governance-centric. Challenges were classified into seven categories, namely, inadequate and asymmetric knowledge, difficulties of operationalization, shifting the values, subjectivity in evaluation, governance complexity, difficulties of small- and medium-sized enterprises and sustainability fade.

The focus of the article is on the social pillar of sustainable development in the context of supply chains. A more holistic systematic investigation of synergy of all the three pillars/bottom lines of sustainable development (economic, environmental and social) can be an opportunity for further research.

Taking a more holistic view of the pattern of currently discussed themes and challenges may be beneficial in increasing the absorptive capacity of industrial and business practitioners, by accumulating and assimilating external knowledge, when they design and operationalize innovative strategies in developing sustainable supply chains.

This article may increase awareness about the social responsibilities of supply chains actors and stakeholders in different scales. It may also guide managers, decision makers and practitioners to better understand the difficulties, obstacles or dilemmas that can hinder the sustainable development of supply chains. The results section presents a framework driven from the emerged themes, and the discussion section provides propositions for tackling the challenges and opportunities for further research.

The purpose of this paper is to compile a set of articles tackling supply chain issues in BOP contexts that address both demand and supply. Solutions are needed for global sustainability problems from medical aid and food availability to the ability to participate in supply chains for the global poor.

The accepted articles in the special issue used a range of qualitative and quantitative methodologies to answer research questions in a variety of base of the pyramid (BOP) contexts. These approaches and results distinguish between demand (BOP market) and supply, or base of the chain (BOC), perspectives.

The findings in the eight accepted marticles are interesting and applicable across different BOP contexts. Compilation of the articles into the special issue and the accompanying editorial led to a comprehensive future research agenda that addresses demand-side issues by investigating the customers in BOP markets, and supply-side issues focusing on the suppliers and intermediaries (BOC) who supply BOP markets. Future research ideas include a focus on supply chain design issues situated at the intersection of the demand (BOP) and the supply (BOC) concerns that address the needs of the world’s poorest populations.

All of the selected articleshave societal implications related to addressing the needs of BOP populations. Many of these articles also have economic and environmental implications, the other two pillars of the triple bottom line. The detailed future research agenda developed in this editorial presents implications for researchers working in emerging and BOP communities to push research forward and further develop the foundational literature in the BOP context.

From a practical standpoint, each of the eight articles presents ideas for businesses that help address the needs of the global poor while enhancing global sustainability performance. The editorial summarizes these implications and provides new directions and examples of success in the BOP context. Managers are provided with techniques to address the supply and demand side of these growing markets.

The overall conceptual framework and positioning of the final papers into the BOP market, BOC suppliers and a combination of the two is novel and helps provide guidance to both scholars and managers.

The aim of this paper is to propose a simulation study of the “steel supply chain” to demonstrate the effect of inventory management and demand variety on the bullwhip effect mitigation.

The relevant literature is reviewed, and then the simulation model proposed.

This study identifies reasons for sharing information under varying levels of demand and some variants, and demonstrates the benefits of mitigating the bullwhip effect by applying a design of experiment. It is shown that the information sharing is able to mitigate the bullwhip effect in the steel supply chain by extending the order interval and minimising the order batch size.

This study explores the factors associated with the bullwhip effect. This research is focused on built‐to‐order simulation, so the results are only oriented on the basis of orders; hence a simultaneous order‐ and forecast‐based steel supply chain should be carried out in the future.

This framework is expected to provide a convenient way to measure the optimum inventory level against a limited level of demand uncertainty, and thus enterprises can promote the supply chain coordination.

An innovative simulation model of the “steel supply chain” is proposed, which includes information sharing in the simulation model. Furthermore, dynamic scheduling is shown by applying a continuous ordering and order prioritization rule to replace traditional scheduling methods.

While the world grappled with the COVID-19 pandemic and its externalities, scientists have recommended that the global community brace against potential future pandemics. The need to build resilient systems has never been this urgent. The world, especially emerging economies, faces acute food insecurity, high food prices, failing health infrastructure and rampant misinformation spread, among others. Since blockchain technology (BCT) has been discussed in the supply chain resilience context, and it offers the potential to develop resilient systems, we aim to outline the potential of BCT to help build resilience against ongoing and future pandemics. Mainly, we focus on BCT for healthcare management, disruption management of food supply chains, human resource management, modern education and certification and governance and administration.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the differences between Finnish and Russian, namely Karelian, food industry supply chains. The main objective is to find out the reasons for low productivity in Russian food industry from supply chain management (SCM) point of view.

Case study method is used to compare the Russian and Finnish food industry supply chains. The comparison is carried out by using SCM scorecard. Furthermore, the comparison is supplemented with the data from non‐structured interviews with Russian food industry company managers. Altogether data from eight food industry companies in the Republic of Karelia, Russia, are gathered and four managers are interviewed. The results of the companies' SCM scorecard analysis are compared to the results of almost 100 Finnish food industry companies.

The research suggests that based on the SCM scorecard the differences between Finnish and Russian food industry companies' operational methods are modest. The difference in productivity can be rather explained by the differences in operating environment and the level of technology in use. Logistics costs for companies in Russia are estimated to be double compared to Finnish companies. Poor road conditions and underdeveloped 3PL are considered as main reasons of high‐logistics costs.

Considering the relatively low number and small size of the companies interviewed and taken part in the scorecard evaluations, more systematic research in the field is required. In addition, it should be mentioned that all interviewees seemed to be suspicious about intentions of the Finnish interviewer. Two interviewees openly asked if the research was aimed at commercial spying.

Considering the state, size and growth potential of Russian food market, the lack of research in the field is remarkable. This paper aims to bring new valuable information for both practitioners and academics while creating ground for future research in the field.

Due to wider acceptance of information technology (IT) and e-commerce among the consumers, firms belonging to agri businesses are rapidly redefining IT-driven stakeholders' centric completive strategy for their supply chain. This has forced the firms to understand the stakeholders' information needs and quality they expect from the electronic supply chains. Thus, the present study focusses on developing an information quality framework that ensures the success of stakeholders' centric e-agri supply chain. The study also attempts to investigate the interrelationship between formative endogenous latent variables, i.e. value of information (VoI), e-platform responsiveness (RESP), e-platform aesthetics (SAE), e-platform ease of use (EoU) and fulfillment of expectation (FoE) used in the developing the proposed framework.

Survey based data are obtained from 280 respondents using semistructured questionnaire to validate the proposed theoretical framework. The structural equation modeling is performed using IBM Statistical Product and Service Solutions (SPSS) 16.0 and Analysis of Moment Structures (AMOS) 24.0 package to establish structural model by accommodating determinants of information quality framework identified from extent literature. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) is employed to examine the robustness of manifesting variables that define the latent constructs. The robustness measuring items of constructs are also ensured through specified criteria of reliability, convergent validity and discriminant validity. At last the one-way ANOVA and post-hoc analysis are employed to investigate the stakeholders’ group difference on each study construct.

The results infer the impact RESP, VoI, SAE and EoU on the fulfillment of expectation (FoE). After applying the bootstrapping technique, it was observed that all causal relationships as proposed in hypotheses H1, H1a, H1b, H2, H3 and H4 have gained significant empirical support, thus verify the framework applicable to e-agri supply chain as the study outcome. Addition to this, SAE mediates relationship of RESP and VoI. The RESP and SAE have an indirect positive effect on “EoU.” Findings also suggest that the intermediaries expect better e-platform responsiveness and value of information from e-agri supply chain as compared to farmers and end consumers.

The findings of the study emphasized on the importance of five exogenous variables for e-agri supply chain in order to achieve stakeholders' expectation fulfillment on the information delivered through e-agri supply chain. The study is of great significance to the practitioners and management professionals by aiding strategic worth of market expansion by maximizing users' base by developing, deploying and facilitating a responsive and resilient stakeholders' centric e-agri supply chains. The study provides insights to the cross-domain researchers, firms, managers and policymakers to capture detailed and deeper understanding on the system design, stakeholders' behavior and in policy formulation so as to suggest remedial measures to strengthen the stakeholders' belief on relying e-agri supply chain.

The study considers the empirical model that shows the determinants and their relationship in the “information quality framework” as unique and novel contribution in the context of e-agri supply chain. The framework determines the quality and efficacious use of information that regulates the effectiveness of e-platform from stakeholders' perspective. The investigated constructs and their relationship depict their importance in creating systematic value chain of information across the supply chain.

The purpose of this paper is to address the potential impacts of Industry 4.0 on human resource management (HRM) – with a particular focus on employment, job profile and qualification and skill requirements in the workforce – which can have implications for supply chain management (SCM). Consequently, exploratory relationships among Industry 4.0, HRM and SCM are presented based on a systematic review.

To explore Industry 4.0 literature and its impact on employment, the authors used a systematic literature review to identify, classify and analyze current knowledge, flagging trends and proposing recommendations for future research in this area. Using the Web of Science database, the authors utilized co-citation software to visualize the networks which emerged from recurrent terms and which were then used to develop the categories of analysis.

The authors can affirm that the literature in this field is in a transition process, from the early studies of German academics to the current development of new impacts worldwide. Industry 4.0 is the central theme of the literature analyzed and is accomplished through the development of employment, qualifications, skills and learning frameworks. The results reveal that most papers are conceptual, with quantitative studies still lacking. Developed countries have a leading role in terms of research production, while Latin America and Asia are far behind. Clustering reveals four dominant themes (educational changes, employment scenario, work infrastructure resources and work meaning and proposal). The first refers to labor changes around working conditions, the work environment and new skills which are required. The second main theme concerns the potentially unstable shift in the labor market has toward a high-level context. The third is about the technical interface of humans and machines, and finally, the fourth understands the German industry as a starting point for global industrial improvements and work proposal changes. Furthermore, socio-technical systems cover the implications of HRM for SCM in three different dimensions: qualification and education (human competences), collaboration and integration of SCM (organizational competences) and data and information management (technical competences).

An original research agenda for further development of the topic. Additionally, the implications of the findings for SCM practitioners are presented.

SCM managers can benefit from the results of this paper by developing adjusted polices for organizational and human aspects. Specially about training programs to improve technology skills and education programs for cyber-human new plataforms.

So far, Industry 4.0, HRM-related topics and implications for SCM have generally been considered separately. This paper elucidates the few important studies on the impacts of Industry 4.0 on human-related topics, such as the labor market, building a research framework using the main contributions highlighted in the literature. An original research agenda is presented, as well as potential implications for SCM.