Brazilian logistics practitioners' perceptions on sustainability: an exploratory study

Abstract

PurposeConfronting globalization, logistics systems need to achieve greater efficiency in processes to be competitive. Competitiveness is not related only to economic aspects; companies need to perform their activities aligned to the triple bottom line concept. In this context, the main objective of this research is to analyze how Brazilian professionals think about sustainable logistics through an exploratory study.Design/methodology/approachA set of 33 indicators, compiled from a literature review, was used to develop a research instrument applied in a survey of 50 professionals working with logistics processes in Brazilian companies. First, the Cronbach's alpha was run to verify the questionnaire reliability. Respondents were grouped through cluster hierarchical analysis, and their answers were analyzed through TOPSIS technique.FindingsThe results from the sample analysis showed that Brazilian professionals think in the three dimensions of TBL when considering sustainable logistics systems; however, social aspects are relegated to a second level of importance when compared with environmental and economic indicators. In addition, it is possible to highlight that most important environmental aspects are directly related to economic objectives.Originality/valueThere are few studies examining sustainable logistics system in Brazilian companies that consider the purpose mentioned by evidencing originality in the same way as this current study. The results presented here can contribute to amplifying debates in the theme.

Supply Chain Practitioners’ Perception on Sustainability: An Empirical Study

“…By investigating the relative importance of these three dimensions of sustainability, this study makes important theoretical contributions to the field of supply chain management. Contrary to previous studies that suggested that supply chain practitioners give importance to only one or two dimensions of sustainability, considering the social indicators of sustainability in logistics as secondary, [25] the findings reported in this study suggest that all three dimensions of sustainability (environmental, social, and economic) are perceived as equally important by the majority of supply chain practitioners when it comes to the implementation of green supply chain practices. These findings are in line with the findings of another study, which concludes that the firm's environmental, social, and economic aspects need to be considered by the firm when reengineering or designing sustainable supply chain operations and improved decision-making and business performance [30,36].…”

“…These findings are in line with the results of research and that show that environmental sustainability indicators are directly related to the economic objectives. To achieve sustainable targets in the supply chain, it is also important to identify a correlation between the sustainability indicators of the supply chain [25].…”

“…Green HR Zaid et al [13] Green HR Baah et al [14] Green et al [15] JIT, TQM Carter et al [16] Montabon et al [17] Markman et al [18] Karmaker et al [19] Finances HE et al [20] Knowledge Management Radi et al [21] Social media analytics Dong et al [22] Behavioral aspect Kusi-Sarpong [23] Innovation Mgmt. Walker et al [24] UK Martins et al [25] Brazillion Ghoushchi et al [26] GP-DAE Chabra et al [27] Indian Halkos et al [28] CSR Chu et al [29] Organizational culture La Scalia et al [30] Ecological impact Plambeck et al [31] Clean energy Khan et al [32] Clean energy Helo et al [33] Clean energy Hojnik et al [34] Yachting Industry Stindt et al [35] Planning Vasileiou et al [36] Potatoes, UK Zailani et al [37] Malaysia Kalenoja et al [38] Clean energy Colicchia et al [39] Benchmarking Kim et al [40] Modica et al [41] Hospital Industry Cervellon et al [42] Fashion Industry Xu et al [43] Attitude & Behavior Ahmed et al [45] Manufacturing Industry Babu et al [46] Hotel Industry Lu et al [47] Container Terminal Gouda et al [48] OECD countries Harms et al [49] German Supplier Dev. Hong et al [50] Chinese Manufacturers Elumti et al [51] Compatibility…”

“…A few studies are present on the supply chain professionals' perception for the sustainability indicators. While adopting sustainable supply chain practices, the professionals give importance to the core indicators of sustainability, primarily environmental and economic, negating the other sustainability aspects to the second level and paying less attention to these [25]. However, studies suggest that it is imperative to consider all three sustainability indicators for optimum supply chain and organizational performance equally [26].…”

The application of Industry 4.0 technologies in sustainable logistics: a systematic literature review (2012–2020) to explore future research opportunities

“…Previous literature reviews have provided comprehensive insights into sustainable logistics planning (Brandenburg et al 2014;Qaiser et al 2017), green and sustainable logistics practices (Ren et al 2020;Dey et al 2011;Martins et al 2020), sustainable freight transport (Nenni et al 2019;Álvarez and de la Calle 2011), and knowledge management in sustainable logistics (Evangelista and Durst 2015). To improve the intelligence, agility, and efficiency of logistics activities, recent studies have put predominant emphasis on the adoption of new technologies, e.g., big data analytics (Chalmeta and Santos-deLeón 2020), blockchain (Reddy et al 2021), artificial intelligence (AI) (Riahi et al 2021;Tirkolaee et al 2021), internet of things (IoT) (Tijan et al 2019), and additive manufacturing (AM) (Khorram Niaki and Nonino 2017).…”