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This paper aims to investigate the impact of supply chain disruptions on the operations and sales performance of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and the adoption of “green” technology during the COVID-19 pandemic in Davao Region, Philippines.

A business impact survey was conducted among 113 MSMEs in Davao Region through the Regional Inclusive Innovation Center participated by the industry, government and the academe from October–December 2020. The impact of supply chain disruptions on the status of business operations was determined using ordered logit regression, while the impact on sales performance during the lockdown and new normal periods were modeled using logit regression. The technology upgrading plans of the MSMEs, including the adoption of “green” technology, were also determined.

This study found that the extent of disruption in processing the goods and services resulted in a negative impact on business operations, and the disruption of the availability of raw materials negatively affected the sales performance during the lockdown period. Moreover, around 20%–33% of MSMEs experiencing heavy supply chain disruptions had a plan to upgrade their business processes by adopting “green” technology.

MSMEs need to establish strategic collaboration among the different stakeholders through public, private, non-government institutions and academe collaboration to enhance the capabilities of MSMEs in handling supply chain disruptions and pursuing technology upgrading.

This paper is among the early studies of the impact of COVID-19 to supply chains in the Philippines focusing on the MSMEs.

Current catch documentation and traceability practices in the Philippines are paper-based. However, with technological advancements, a shift toward electronic documentation has become a global trend to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. This study aims to determine the factors influencing fishers' preference for a mobile traceability platform and identify the challenges in achieving a digital tuna supply chain in Davao Region, Philippines.

A survey of 178 tuna fishers was conducted in select sites in Davao Region using a semi-structured questionnaire. Factors influencing fishers' preference for a mobile traceability platform were identified using logistic regression.

Results revealed that one-third of the fishers (34.5%) preferred a mobile traceability platform. Membership in organizations and higher educational attainment increased the preference for a mobile traceability platform. Meanwhile, respondents' knowledge was associated with a preference for paper-based traceability. This association between knowledge and preference was in the context of catch recording performed by government agencies and fisherfolk associations in landing sites. Intensified support aimed at increasing the fishers' literacy and access to technological devices, including the internet and smartphones, is emphasized to provide them with the basic requirements for participating in mobile traceability systems. Moreover, several challenges in implementing digital traceability beyond fisherfolk were identified.

This study amplifies the need for infrastructure and legislation to support the implementation of a digital tuna supply chain and eliminate IUU fishing.

This paper aims to determine pathways leading to enterprise profitability during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines.

The study (N = 272) was participated by 228 micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and 44 large enterprises. Configurational analysis using the fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis was used in modelling combinations of firm characteristics and organizational resilience attributes that could lead to enterprise profitability.

Using the Benchmark Resilience Tool of Resilient Organisations, the study showed that three main attributes of organizational resilience (leadership and culture, networks and relationships, and readiness to change) played significant roles in enterprise profitability. Other conditions of varying influence on profitability included costs, sales, number of employees and the number of years in operations of an enterprise. For MSMEs, profitability can be achieved if all resilience attributes are present, while for large enterprises, the absence of some resilience attributes can be compensated by other attributes such as low decline in sales, low employee reduction, and more years in operation.

While the COVID-19 pandemic’s impacts have been far-reaching, the MSMEs and large enterprises are more likely to be profitable if they have used the three organizational resilience attributes. Moreover, these attributes do not only improve firm profitability and the overall enterprise performance during the present pandemic but also prepare them for future shocks.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, modelling antecedents of enterprise profitability using configurational analysis is the first in the Philippines.