Fostering low-carbon production and logistics systems: framework and empirical evidence

This work proposes and empirically tests a new framework for evaluating the relationship between stakeholder pressures, the adoption of low-carbon operations practices and firms’ carbon performance. It seeks to expand upon stakeholder theory and the natural-resource-based view (NRBV) to understand further the role of operations management in a low-carbon environment. Our theoretical hypotheses were tested through the Partial Least Squares method with bias-corrected and accelerated (BCA) bootstrap confidence intervals. The key findings encapsulate a mixture of expected and unexpected research results: (i) stakeholder pressures influence both barriers and motivators for decarbonising operations management practices; (ii) a variety of barriers and motivators significantly affect the adoption of low-carbon operations management practices; (iii) developing positive relationships with stakeholders is important to overcome barriers from the external environment and enhance organisational competitiveness; (iv) low-carbon operations management has an overall effect on firms’ carbon performance; However, unexpectedly: (v) firms seem to face difficulties in understanding stakeholder pressures when developing low-carbon products and logistics, due to a lack of awareness of the sources of barriers to the adoption of low-carbon management practices; (vi) in terms of stakeholders, competitors tend to exert significant pressure towards the adoption of low-carbon operations, while government does not; (vii) more research is necessary to better understand the apparent weak link between low-carbon logistics and firms’ low-carbon performance.