Sustainable supply chain management practices, dynamic capabilities and competitive advantage: Evidence from Bangladesh ready‐made garments industry

Abstract

The ready-made garments (RMG) production industry in Bangladesh has achieved a major presence in the global fashion apparel supply chain particularly due to the competitive advantage (CA) primarily attributed to its' large pool of low cost labor. However, the competitiveness of this industry is under threat from other emerging economies that are rapidly becoming lower cost production sources. As a result the Bangladesh RMG sector is under pressure to find alternate sources of CA by introducing sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) practices along with improving the dynamic capabilities (DC) of the RMG manufacturers. However, the extant literature indicates that there is a dearth of sufficient empirical evidence on whether SSCM practices in combination with improvements in management and technological capabilities of such enterprises leads to gains in CA. In order to address the aforesaid gap, this study draws on the integration of the SSCM practices view and the DC view, to propose a set of relationships that posit that environmental, social, and economic sustainability measures of SSCM practices along with management and technological capabilities will have a significant influence on CA. The hypotheses are tested by applying structural equation modeling on a sample of 345 export-oriented RMG manufacturers in Bangladesh. The findings indicate that influence of social sustainability, along with management and technological capabilities, on CA is positive and significant. While the relationship between environmental and economic sustainability and CA were not significant.

Mediating role of internationalization readiness in the adoption of social sustainability practices: Evidence from Vietnamese handicraft companies

“…When it comes to internalizing the export strategies, market pressures fundamentally lead to a higher level of SSP adoption. This full mediation is driven by the fact that the public and the customers in foreign markets are increasingly concerned about the social issues of the export countries (Uddin et al, 2023;Zhu et al, 2013). Customers are willing to pay higher prices for environmentally and socially friendly products (Tran et al 2018;Zhu et al, 2011).…”

“…This study leverages the stakeholder theory and incorporates the RBV theory to examine the organizational improvements brought by SSP adoption and internationalization readiness. The improvements can include boosted revenue, reduced costs, improved quality, increased market share, strengthened reputation, and enhanced customer and employee satisfaction (Mani & Gunasekaran, 2018; Nakamba et al, 2017; Uddin et al, 2023).…”

“…vious research byYuen et al (2017),Annunziata et al (2018),Li et al (2020), andUddin et al (2023). It shows that SSP adoption is positively linked to boosted revenue, improved product quality, increased market share, strengthened reputation, and enhanced customer and employee satisfaction.…”

Análisis Comparado De Competitividad Regional: En Base a Un Índice Compuesto Respecto Del Ranking Nacional Peruano

“…Sin embargo, los beneficios del capital social se distribuyen de manera desigual entre las empresas: las más pequeñas, menos productivas, menos capitalizadas y de baja tecnología se benefician más al operar en ecosistemas con un fuerte capital social (Ganau y Rodríguez-Pose, 2023). Además, hay pruebas empíricas que contrastan en años recientes que la competitividad por obtener mano de obra barata disminuye la sostenibilidad (Uddin et al, 2023). Aunque, paradójicamente, la incertidumbre del mercado podría beneficiar a las empresas y hacer que los precios sean menos volátiles (Shao et al, 2022).…”

A comprehensive framework for the sustainability indicators in the textile industry of developing countries

“…From the social point of view, while attention to social sustainability can provide a significant competitive advantage to the industry (Uddin et al, 2023), sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) "No Poverty" (SDG 1) and "Reduced Inequalities" (SDG 10) have received the least attention in textile industry leading to unfair wages, child labor, unfair working hours, and safety and health issues (Cai & Choi, 2020).…”