Supporting decision‐making for recycling‐based investments

The increasing demand for environmentally friendly products and the introduction of tougher environmental laws have encouraged firms to consider the adoption of recycling issues as one of the most effective solutions for reducing their impact on the environment. Unfortunately, many companies delegate decision‐making on recycling issues at an operational level. This attitude presents some problems as it could lead companies to neglect many effects resulting from the adoption of recycling‐based investments. The objective of this paper is to suggest a conceptual model aimed at supporting managers in the integration of recycling issues into the overall process of strategy formation; in particular, the designed approach is divided into two main phases: the identification of the main recycling‐based programmes and the definition of a framework, based on both physical and accounting measures, aimed at assessing the effectiveness of different recycling initiatives according to the main priorities of the decision‐maker.