Linkages between big data analytics, circular economy, sustainable supply chain flexibility, and sustainable performance in manufacturing firms

ABSTRACT

The digital supply chains enabled by Big Data Analytics (BDA) capabilities have become a business significance to develop a competitive and sustainable supply chain. The implementation of BDA for sustainable supply chains introduces various organisational challenges for the manufacturing firms demanding complementary capabilities. This study presents an investigation of the linkages between BDA capabilities, circular economy (CE) practices, and sustainable supply chain (SSC) flexibility on the SSC performance. Based on a survey of 320 manufacturing organisations, the study presents very interesting results. It is revealed that the BDA does not have a direct effect on sustainable performance. The CE practices and SSC flexibility are significant mediating variables between the BDA capabilities and SSC performance. The BDA is found to drive the implementation of CE practices. Further, CE practices are found to develop SSC flexibility with the BDA complementing these flexibilities.

KEYWORDS:

• Big data analytics
• circular economy
• supply chain flexibility
• supply chain performance
• sustainable

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

T. C. Edwin Cheng

T.C. Edwin Cheng is Dean of PolyU Business School, Fung Yiu King – Wing Hang Bank Professor in Business Administration, and Chair Professor of Management at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. He obtained a B.Sc.[Eng] (first class honours) from the University of Hong Kong; an M.Sc. from the University of Birmingham, UK; and a Ph.D. and an Sc.D. from the University of Cambridge, UK. He has previously taught in Canada, England, and Singapore. Prof. Cheng’s research interests are in Operations Management and Operations Research. He has published over 800 SCI/SSCI papers in such journals as California Management Review, Journal of Operations Management, Management Science, MIS Quarterly, Operations Research, Organization Science, and Production and Operations Management. He has co-authored 15 books published by Chapman and Hall, McGraw-Hill, and Springer. He received the Outstanding Young Engineer of the Year Award from the Institute of Industrial Engineers, USA, in 1992 and the Croucher Award (the top research award in Hong Kong) in 2001. He was elected Academician of The International Academy for Systems and Cybernetic Sciences in 2016 and Fellow of Hong Kong Academy of Engineering Sciences in 2018. According to Google Scholar, he has received over 43,000 citations and his h-index is 97. A registered professional engineer and a seasoned management consultant, Prof. Cheng has over the years secured more than US$5 million in research funding from both public and private sectors to support his diverse research programmes.

Sachin S. Kamble

Sachin S. Kamble is Professor of Strategy at EDHEC Business School, France. He has over 20 years of academic experience and is associated with leading manufacturing organisations in India, as a consultant and trainer. His research interest is inclined towards understanding the impact of emerging technologies such as Blockchain, Industry 4.0 and Big Data Analytics on sustainable supply chain performance. His-work has been published in high impact journals such as International Journal of Production Economics, International Journal of Production Research, Computers in Industry, and Production Planning and Control.

Amine Belhadi

Amine Belhadi is a researcher in Industrial Engineering at Cadi Ayyad University, Morocco. Amine is an Industrial Engineer. He works currently as associate consultant in chemical sector. His expertise area is the Industrial Engineering particularly Lean Manufacturing, Supply Chain Management, Industry 4.0 and Sustainability. His publications have appeared in international peer reviewed journals including many prestigious journals like International Journal of Production Research, Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Journal of Small Business Management, Computers and Industrial Engineering, Production Planning and Control and Journal of Cleaner Production.

Nelson Oly Ndubisi

Prof. Nelson Oly Ndubisi is a professor of Management in the Department of Management and Marketing at Qatar University, Doha, Qatar. His research has appeared in numerous top quality journals such as the International Journal of Production Research, International Journal of Production Economics, Industrial Marketing Management, Journal of Business Research, Journal of Small Business Management, Production Planning & Control, Psychology & Marketing, Review of Marketing Research, and Technological Forecasting and Social Change. He is a recipient of several awards for excellence in research and teaching innovation. Nels is the President of the Global Entrepreneurship, Innovation & SME Academy and Chair of the Global Conference on SME, Entrepreneurship and Service Innovation.

Kee-hung Lai

Kee-hung Lai is a Professor in the Department of Logistics and Maritime Studies at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. He has published over 160 papers in reputable journals including the International Journal of Production Research and achieved an h-index of 71 according to Google Scholar. His is Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Shipping and Trade.

Manoj Govind Kharat

Manoj Govind Kharat is a researcher in Strategy, Supply Chain Management, and Sustainability at the National Institute of Industrial Engineering (NITIE), Mumbai. His research interests are on Strategic Management, Supply Chain Management and Business Sustainability. He has written several publications and book chapters and has presented papers and articles at major international conferences. He has also been involved in several research/consultancy projects.