A SAP-LAP linkages framework for integrating Industry 4.0 and circular economy

2019 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chetna Chauhan ◽  
Abhishek Sharma ◽  
Amol Singh
Keyword(s):  
Circular Economy ◽  
Industry 4.0 ◽  
Business Models ◽  
New Paradigm ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Physical Systems ◽  
Strategic Issues ◽  
Advanced Technologies ◽  
Top Managers ◽  
Process Learning

Purpose In the recent years, the two increasingly popular topics, namely, Industry 4.0 and circular economy (CE) have attracted the attention of many academicians and practitioners. However, the connection between CE and Industry 4.0 has not been much investigated in the literature. Motivated by this gap, the purpose of this paper is to integrate these two streams and attempt to understand the new paradigm of Industry 4.0 for resolving the issues pertaining to CE principles. Design/methodology/approach The study uses situation, actor, process, learning, action, performance (SAP-LAP) linkages framework to analyze the applications of Industry 4.0 mechanisms in realizing the issues of current CE business models. This is done through the interpretation of the cross-interaction and self-interaction relationships among the different interfaces/elements of SAP-LAP. Findings The results suggest that top managers are the most essential actors for integrating the use of Industry 4.0 to achieve sustainability, in the light of CE. In addition, advanced technologies such as Internet of Things and cyber-physical systems are the most important Industry 4.0 actions that help in improving the CE performance parameters. Research limitations/implications This qualitative study is an attempt to analyze and assess the strategic issues pertaining to Industry 4.0 standards in CE. The study identifies learnings (challenges/opportunities) and the corrective actions which are imperative toward achieving CE principles. This study will guide managers and policymakers to understand the importance of implementing Industry 4.0 for accomplishing CE principles. Originality/value This study integrates two important streams of literature – Industry 4.0 and CE. Thus, this paper offers insights about the importance of Industry 4.0 standards in achieving CE principles.

Emerging Industrial Revolution: Symbiosis of Industry 4.0 and Circular Economy: The Role of Universities

2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 505-525 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seeram Ramakrishna ◽  
Alfred Ngowi ◽  
Henk De Jager ◽  
Bankole O. Awuzie
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Industry 4.0 ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Industrial Revolution ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Fourth Industrial Revolution ◽  
New Jobs

Growing consumerism and population worldwide raises concerns about society’s sustainability aspirations. This has led to calls for concerted efforts to shift from the linear economy to a circular economy (CE), which are gaining momentum globally. CE approaches lead to a zero-waste scenario of economic growth and sustainable development. These approaches are based on semi-scientific and empirical concepts with technologies enabling 3Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle) and 6Rs (reuse, recycle, redesign, remanufacture, reduce, recover). Studies estimate that the transition to a CE would save the world in excess of a trillion dollars annually while creating new jobs, business opportunities and economic growth. The emerging industrial revolution will enhance the symbiotic pursuit of new technologies and CE to transform extant production systems and business models for sustainability. This article examines the trends, availability and readiness of fourth industrial revolution (4IR or industry 4.0) technologies (for example, Internet of Things [IoT], artificial intelligence [AI] and nanotechnology) to support and promote CE transitions within the higher education institutional context. Furthermore, it elucidates the role of universities as living laboratories for experimenting the utility of industry 4.0 technologies in driving the shift towards CE futures. The article concludes that universities should play a pivotal role in engendering CE transitions.

“Enabling circular business models in the fashion industry: the role of digital innovation”

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Phuc Hong Huynh
Keyword(s):  
Business Model ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Digital Technologies ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Chain Model ◽  
Fashion Industry ◽  
Digital Innovation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Radical Innovations

PurposeDigital innovation and circular business model innovation are two critical enablers of a circular economy. A wide variety of digital technologies such as blockchain, 3D printing, cyber-physical systems, or big data also diverges the applications of digital technologies in circular business models. Given heterogeneous attributes of circular business models and digital technologies, the selections of digital technologies and circular business models might be highly distinctive within and between sectorial contexts. This paper examines digital circular business models in the context of the fashion industry and its multiple actors. This industry as the world’s second polluting industry requires an urgent circular economy (CE) transition with less resource consumption, lower waste emissions and a more stable economy.Design/methodology/approachAn inductive, exploratory multiple-case study method is employed to investigate the ten cases of different sized fashion companies (i.e. large, small medium-sized firm (SME) and startup firms). The comparison across cases is conducted to understand fashion firms' distinct behaviours in adopting various digital circular economy strategies.FindingsThe paper presents three archetypes of digital-based circular business models in the fashion industry: the blockchain-based supply chain model, the service-based model and the pull demand-driven model. Besides incremental innovations, the radical business model and digital innovations as presented in the pull demand-driven model may be crucial to the fashion circular economy transition. The pull demand–driven model may shift the economy from scales to scopes, change the whole process of how the fashion items are forecasted, produced, and used, and reform consumer behaviours. The paths of adopting digital fashion circular business models are also different among large, SMEs and startup fashion firms.Practical implicationsThe study provides business managers with empirical insights on how circular business models (CBMs) should be chosen according to intrinsic business capacities, technological competences and CE strategies. The emerging trends of new fashion markets (e.g. rental, subscription) and consumers' sustainable awareness should be not be neglected. Moreover, besides adopting recycling and reuse strategies, large fashion incumbents consider collaborating with other technology suppliers and startup companies to incubate more radical innovations.Social implicationsAppropriate policies and regulations should be enacted to enable the digital CE transition. Market patterns and consumer acceptances are considered highly challenging to these digital fashion models. A balanced policy on both the demand and supply sides are suggested. The one-side policy may fail CBMs that entail an upside-down collaboration of both producers and consumers. Moreover, it is perhaps time to rethink how to reduce unnecessary new demand rather than repeatedly producing and recycling.Originality/valueThe pace of CE research is lagging far behind the accelerating environmental contamination by the fashion industry. The study aims to narrow the gap between theory and practice to harmonise fashion firms' orchestration and accelerate the transition of the fashion industry towards the CE. This study examines diverse types of digital technologies in different circular business models in a homogeneous context of the fashion industry with heterogeneous firm types.

How leadership matters in organizational innovation: a perspective of openness

2018 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao Jia ◽  
Jin Chen ◽  
Liang Mei ◽  
Qian Wu
Keyword(s):  
Transformational Leadership ◽  
Leadership Styles ◽  
Transactional Leadership ◽  
Organizational Innovation ◽  
Innovation Performance ◽  
Hierarchical Regression ◽  
New Paradigm ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Top Managers

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to answer the following two questions: What are the influences of the top managers’ different leadership styles on organizational innovation? What is the mechanism by which the different leaderships exert different effects on organizational innovation? Design/methodology/approach To test the hypothesized model, a data set based on 133 MBA part-time students from Tsinghua University and Zhejiang University in China was built, after interviewing several top managers as a pilot study. With the help of SPSS macro, hierarchical regression and bootstrapping analysis, the paper analyzes the effects of two leadership styles on innovation performance, through the mediation mechanism of openness involving open breadth and open depth. Findings The results indicate that transformational leadership enhances, while transactional leadership reduces, the organizational innovation performance. The openness breadth and openness depth not only mediate the beneficial effect of transformational leadership on innovation, but also mediate the deleterious effect of transactional leadership on innovation. Originality/value This study empirically explores the different functions of transformational leadership and transactional leadership for leading organizational innovation performance. Furthermore, a new form of organization is an open design or strategy that allows more external knowledge and resources to be absorbed, which is claimed as a new paradigm for organization innovation. This study integrates the concepts of breadth of openness and depth of openness on the basis of open innovation literature, as an intermediate mechanism to explain the different effects of the two forms of top managers’ leadership.

Procurement 4.0: factors influencing the digitisation of procurement and supply chains

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 965-984 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florian Bienhaus ◽  
Abubaker Haddud
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chains ◽  
Industry 4.0 ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Industrial Revolution ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Procurement Process ◽  
Enabling Technologies ◽  
The Impact

Purpose While digitisation is a key driver of the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0); organisations have different approaches to deal with this topic to get a clearer picture of the opportunities and challenges concerning the digital transformation. The purpose of this paper is to identify the impact of digitisation on procurement and its role within the area of supply chain management. The research will also explore potential barriers to digitising procurement and supply chains and ways to overcome them. Finally, the significance of potential enabling technologies to the digitisation will also be examined. Design/methodology/approach A quantitative approached utilising an online survey was used to collect the primary data for this study. Data were collected from 414 participants directly involved with procurement or related business functions and work for different organisations in different industries. The survey included eight items about the impact of digitisation on organisational performance in the area of procurement and supply chains; ten items related to key barriers to digitisation of organisations and ways to overcome them; and seven items about enabling technologies to leverage procurement procedures and processes digitisation. All of these items utilised the Likert five-point level of agreement scale. Findings The findings indicate that digitisation of procurement process can yield several benefits including: supporting daily business and administrative tasks, supporting complex decision-making processes, procurement will become more focussed on strategic decisions and activities, procurement will become a strategic interface to support organisational efficiency, effectiveness, and profitability, and supporting the creation of new business models, products, and services. The authors were also able to confirm that there are barriers to digitising procurement process and supply chains and such barriers found in existing procedures, processes, capacities, and capabilities. Finally, the significance of a number of enabling technologies to the digitisation process was revealed. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study of its kind with participants located world-wide. Industry 4.0 as a topic had been explored within different business areas and functions but very limited research specifically explored potential impact, barriers, and enabling technologies of procurement 4.0. The results can be beneficial for organisations already implemented Industry 4.0 or planning to do so. The study can also benefit academic scholars interested in the researched topic, business professionals, organisations within different sectors, and any other party interested in understanding more the concept of procurement 4.0.

Redesigning Business Models With Circular Economy

2020 ◽  
pp. 121-153
Author(s):  
Francesca Ceruti ◽  
Laura Gavinelli ◽  
Angelo Di Gregorio ◽  
Marco Frey
Keyword(s):  
Circular Economy ◽  
Business Performance ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Environmental Strategy ◽  
New Paradigm ◽  
Work Plan ◽  
Doing Business

In the last decades, circular economy has become a key in the academic and managerial studies. While there are plenty of contributions on circular economy like environmental strategy, a less developed line of studies is that analyzing circular economy as a new way of doing business. In this context, Italy has initiated the necessary reforms for the transition to the circular economy in 1997, but it is only in 2017 that it has adopted a work plan on that. The chapter presents the evidence of a CAWI interview investigating if the Italian firms are adopting the principles of circular economy and if this affects their competitiveness and business performance. The research contributes to the understanding of this new paradigm by getting into detail with the motivations that drive Italian enterprise to adopt the principles of circular economy, the actions they are taking to be circular economy-oriented, and the possible relationship between the adoption of the circular economy principles and their business performance.

Industry 4.0 and digital supply chain capabilities

2019 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maciel M. Queiroz ◽  
Susana Carla Farias Pereira ◽  
Renato Telles ◽  
Marcio C. Machado
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Industry 4.0 ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Integrative Framework ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Narrative Literature ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Shed Light

Purpose The Industry 4.0 phenomenon is bringing unprecedented disruptions for all traditional business models and hastening the need for a redesign and digitisation of activities. In this context, the literature concerning the digital supply chain (DSC) and its capabilities are in the early stages. To bridge this gap, the purpose of this paper is to propose a framework for digital supply chain capabilities (DSCCs). Design/methodology/approach This paper uses a narrative literature approach, based on the main Industry 4.0 elements, supply chain and the emerging literature concerning DSC disruptions, to build an integrative framework to shed light on DSCCs. Findings The study identifies seven basic capabilities that shape the DSCC framework and six main enabler technologies, derived from 13 propositions. Research limitations/implications The proposed framework can bring valuable insights for future research development, although it has not been tested yet. Practical implications Managers, practitioners and all involved in the digitalisation phenomenon can utilise the framework as a starting point for other business digitalisation projects. Originality/value This study contributes to advancing the DSC literature, providing a well-articulated discussion and a framework regarding the capabilities, as well as 13 propositions that can generate valuable insights for other studies.

Cognitive biases of consumers as barriers in transition towards circular economy

2019 ◽  
Vol 57 (4) ◽  
pp. 921-936 ◽  
Author(s):  
Poonam Singh ◽  
Elisa Giacosa
Keyword(s):  
Business Model ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Cognitive Biases ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Effective Interventions ◽  
Free Transition ◽  
Conceptual Paper ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify the cognitive biases of consumer and explain how they are creating barriers in transition towards circular economy (CE). Design/methodology/approach This is a conceptual paper which adopts a consumer-centric conceptualization of CE by focussing on cognitive biases as an underlying and unifying mechanism which is creating barriers in the adoption of CE. This conceptualization explains consumers’ non-adoption of circular business model, highlight synergies across disconnected theories and streams of research originating in different disciplines and at the individual, societal and cultural levels of analysis. Findings The findings of this paper suggest that circular business models are not fulfilling the psychological, social and cultural needs of the consumers and that in turn lead to barriers in diffusion of the CE. Consumers have a negative connotation with the different circular business model due to their cognitive biases. Practical implications The paper details about key implications to design effective interventions to modify consumer behaviour in the desired direction for hassle-free transition to CE from the linear economy. Originality/value This paper offers a shift in CE research from a deterministic approach to conceptualising consumers to a positivist approach to conceptualising consumers.

Diving into emerging economies bottleneck: Industry 4.0 and implications for circular economy

2019 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Luciana Oranges Cezarino ◽  
Lara Bartocci Liboni ◽  
Nelson Oliveira Stefanelli ◽  
Bruno Garcia Oliveira ◽  
Lucas Conde Stocco
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Emerging Economies ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Industry 4.0 ◽  
Emerging Countries ◽  
Management Decision ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Regulatory Policies ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose In this paper, the authors aim to explore the relationship between the concepts of Industry 4.0 and circular economy (CE) as a contribution to the management decision on emerging countries. By analyzing the trends of scientific production to ascertain the interface of both constructs, the purpose of this paper is to identify limitations for Industry 4.0 and CE implementation in Brazil, as well to present an original framework and strategic pathways to overcome limitations for emerging countries. Design/methodology/approach Supported in the Brazilian case, the authors draw a framework using the structuralism approach to indicate pathways for the strategic positioning of emerging economies that consider their limitation and potential for competitive advantage. By understanding country-related limitations such as social and economic contingencies, the authors conceive a structure of implications for Brazil’s capacity to develop CE in the digital era. Findings Results show that Brazil has a reasonable, institutional and stable environment, as well as strong regulatory policies for solid waste that can stimulate CE in the country. However, it requires more communication between actors, especially public and private institutions, performing long-range relationships. Also, the country requires consolidation of industrial policies and investments in the remanufacturing process in the supply chain. Likewise, despite Brazil’s ability to take advantage of CE’s benefits, the country presents a huge lack of qualification to fulfill the competences that the digitization process demands. Economically, Brazil has been fighting against an economic crisis since 2014 that has limited general investments, especially in the industrial sector. Industry presents low performance and decreasing GDP participation, which leads to constant overseas production transfer as a consequence of the workforce’s high costs. Research limitations/implications The authors can affirm that Brazil is far behind developed countries in searching for the capacity to provide CE through technological industrial change. The main problems are related to the lack of articulation of public and private spheres to promote new digital business models. Therefore, the structured framework enables managers and public agents to provide solutions and to properly address supply chain bottlenecks in emerging economies. Originality/value Exploring the relationship between the concepts of Industry 4.0 and CE through the specific lens of the structuralist method, this work can contribute to the management decision on emerging countries, looking into four important perspectives: political, economic, social and technological.

Human capital in top management teams seen through the lens of senior human resources managers

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 571-590 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natalia Garcia-Carbonell ◽  
Fernando Martin-Alcazar ◽  
Gonzalo Sanchez-Gardey
Keyword(s):  
Human Capital ◽  
Human Resources ◽  
Top Management Teams ◽  
Top Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Strategic Issues ◽  
Top Managers ◽  
Highly Skilled ◽  
Human Resources Managers ◽  
Strategic Issue

Purpose Despite the strong influence of Hambrick and Mason’s (1984) seminal work, the effects of top management team (TMT) characteristics on strategic processes remain unclear. This study aims to go beyond the traditional upper echelon theory and to propose a human capital taxonomy of TMTs from the perspective of top human resources managers. Design/methodology/approach The research integrates arguments from the strategic human capital and strategic issue diagnosis literatures. An exploratory cluster analysis was conducted in an attempt to describe different human capital typologies in TMTs in a sample of 120 Spanish companies. Findings The exploratory analysis showed three distinct human capital profiles: “technocratic teams”, “highly skilled teams” and “operational teams”. In addition, this paper provides preliminary results about the effects of each profile in the above taxonomy on strategic issue diagnostic processes, suggesting that “highly skilled teams” present the most appropriate combination of human capital attributes. Practical/implications This analysis provides a guide for top managers regarding the human capital needs they may face when interpreting strategic issues in strategy formation processes. Originality/value This paper makes a twofold contribution to the extant literature: proposing an analysis of TMTs’ human capital from a synergistic perspective (“human capital profiles”) instead of using the traditional “more is better” approach and providing preliminary explanations about how those human capital combinations contribute to success in the strategic issue diagnosis process.

Industry 4.0 will arrive unevenly

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Industry 4.0 ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Capital Expenditure ◽  
Intelligent Manufacturing ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Production Distribution ◽  
New Business ◽  
Production Flexibility ◽  
Smart Factories ◽  
New Business Models

Subject Outlook for industry 4.0. Significance Dubbed variously 'Industry 4.0', 'intelligent manufacturing' or the 'internet of everything', cyber-physical systems that control the flow of materials, products and information are starting to transform industrial production and supply chains. They will eventually disrupt business models and challenge policymakers. Impacts Improved production flexibility and vertical integration with customers should facilitate bespoke manufacturing ('mass customisation'). Entire value chains will vertically integrate, embracing product design, procurement, production, distribution, sales and maintenance. Horizontal integration around smart factories will create new business models based on manufacturing as a service (MaaS). Pay-by-use and subscription-based MaaS could upend traditional models for financing capital expenditure on plant and equipment.

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