Economic and environmental benefits of performance management controls in human service transportation planning

Abstract

Sustainability strategies are being implemented in organizations as best practices demonstrate that these initiatives not only provide environmental and social benefits but also financial benefits (Nawaz & Koç, 2019). The problem addressed is that community-based human service organizations often rely upon their own vehicles or the personal vehicles of their employees to transport clients, but the skills and resources to apply and implement sustainable transportation best practices are lacking (Busko & Saltzman, 2021). The purpose is to demonstrate how the application of process mapping and systems approach can reduce fuel usage and greenhouse gas emissions, and save time and financial costs which can, in turn, be used to improve the quality of life of those served by these organizations. The methodology is a qualitative grounded theory approach applied by conducting a textual analysis of conceptual approaches that could be applied to transportation in this industry. The results demonstrate that if human service organizations adopt process mapping and systems approach for their transportation, economic and environmental benefits can be achieved. The conclusion reviews the findings and recommendations. This research is relevant because small businesses and nonprofit organizations need to be lean to stay competitive and to provide the best services to their clients.