scholarly journals Multinational Enterprises, Employee Safety and the Socially Responsible Supply Chain: The Case of Bangladesh and the Apparel Industry

2018 ◽  
Vol 123 (3) ◽  
pp. 489-528 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas A. Hemphill ◽  
George O. White
Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (16) ◽  
pp. 5307
Author(s):  
Ricardo Borges dos Santos ◽  
Nunzio Marco Torrisi ◽  
Rodrigo Palucci Pantoni

Every consumer’s buying decision at the supermarket influences food brands to make first party claims of sustainability and socially responsible farming methods on their agro-product labels. Fine wines are often subject to counterfeit along the supply chain to the consumer. This paper presents a method for efficient unrestricted publicity to third party certification (TPC) of plant agricultural products, starting at harvest, using smart contracts and blockchain tokens. The method is capable of providing economic incentives to the actors along the supply chain. A proof-of-concept using a modified Ethereum IGR token set of smart contracts using the ERC-1155 standard NFTs was deployed on the Rinkeby test net and evaluated. The main findings include (a) allowing immediate access to TPC by the public for any desired authority by using token smart contracts. (b) Food safety can be enhanced through TPC visible to consumers through mobile application and blockchain technology, thus reducing counterfeiting and green washing. (c) The framework is structured and maintained because participants obtain economical incentives thus leveraging it´s practical usage. In summary, this implementation of TPC broadcasting through tokens can improve transparency and sustainable conscientious consumer behaviour, thus enabling a more trustworthy supply chain transparency.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 3237
Author(s):  
Pyounggu Baek ◽  
Taesung Kim

As ethical management, corporate social responsibility (CSR), and corporate sustainability (CS) are increasingly permeating business discourse, contemplating the role of human resources (HR) in helping organizations with socially responsible management is a proactive acceptance of stakeholders’ expectations while reinforcing the field’s identity and contribution. In response, the we examined the HR policies and practices of 46 multinational enterprises (MNEs) listed on the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) World 2018/2019 to add new insights to the literature and inform the HR field on how to move forward with socially responsible HR. Content analysis and inductive conceptualization of the MNEs’ HR activities produced a triangular pyramid for socially responsible HR, constructed with eight major themes at the individual, organizational, and institutional levels. Building on the findings, we suggest implications for practice and research, and conclude with urging the HR community to demonstrate leadership in setting the agendas and facilitating change toward socially responsible management.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhenfang Li ◽  
Jia Yuan ◽  
Bisheng Du ◽  
Junhao Hu ◽  
Wenwen Yuan ◽  
...  

Online shopping for customized garments has become the fastest-growing field of the Chinese eBusiness market. Most consumers not only limit themselves to buying standardized garments but also want to buy garments customized to their preferences. This phenomenon has pushed the fashion textile and apparel industry to change its supply chain operations to meet the customization demand. Besides, the fashion textile and apparel industry also want to study how different channel factors will affect consumers' perceived value and further influence consumers' purchasing decisions. We initiated this study and empirically tested more than 200 experienced consumers. This study collaborated with a fashion textile and apparel company that aims to implement customized product lines soon. Based on the perceived value theory and risk management theory, we investigated whether product involvement and channel identification on supply chain design will affects potential customized product consumers' purchasing decisions. The findings reveal that channel recognition affects consumer decisions by having a positive impact on their perceived value. The perceived risk and shopping channel involvement of consumers have a negative impact on their perceived values and channel selections. In addition, product involvement has a moderating effect on the relationship between channel's perceived risk, perceived values, and channel selections as well.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jitong Li ◽  
Karen K. Leonas

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to (1) identify the sustainable practices developed by the textile and apparel industry and (2) investigate the gaps and opportunities in the sustainability implementation process by quantitively analyzing the sustainability topics and the relevant topic trends.Design/methodology/approachThis study employed text mining techniques. A total of 1,168 relevant magazine articles published from 2013 to 2020 were collected and then categorized according to their tones. In total, 36 topics were identified by reviewing the sustainability issues in the industry. The frequency of each topic mentioned in the articles and the correlation coefficients between topics' frequencies and published time were calculated. The results were used to examine if the three sustainability dimensions (environment, society, economy) were equally addressed and identify opportunities in the sustainability implementation process.FindingsThere were much fewer social and economic topics than environmental topics discussed in the articles. Additionally, there were not enough practices developed to reduce microfiber pollution, improve consumers' knowledge of sustainability, offset the carbon footprint, build a transparent, sustainable supply chain and avoid animal cruelty.Originality/valueThere is a lack of research focusing on the whole supply chain and sustainability when investigating sustainable practices and topic trends. This study fills a part of the gap. The results can be used by industrialists to identify sustainable practice opportunities and better manage their sustainable supply chains. Researchers can utilize the results to compare the topics in the industry with the topics studied in academia.


2010 ◽  
pp. 1924-1934
Author(s):  
Yue Wang

Research on international subcontracting has been policy-oriented and industry-focused. There is a lack of understanding of the phenomenon from strategic management and international business perspectives. This article conceptualizes international subcontracting as a type of relational contract formed by buyers and suppliers from different countries, aiming to facilitate the sourcing of products or components with buyer-specific requirements. It builds a transaction cost model for studying the strategic choice of international subcontracting as an intermediate governance structure, sitting between arm’s length outsourcing arrangement and vertically integrated multinational enterprises (MNEs). A set of propositions are developed to aid future empirical research and to provide managers with some guidelines for organizing supply chain across borders. The model also allows managers to examine the complex nature of a range of subcontracting relationships and identify the specific mechanisms that can be used to preserve and manage the dyadic principal-subcontractor exchanges.


2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 369-386 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bader Al-Esmael ◽  
Faisal Talib ◽  
Mohd. Nishat Faisal ◽  
Fauzia Jabeen

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine variables and their relationships that hinder socially responsible behaviours in the supply chain of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). countries. Design/methodology/approach The study uses the mixed-method approach that includes the survey method and soft mathematical modelling. Empirical data were collected from 130 SMEs and their suppliers based in Qatar and Oman. Furthermore, to understand the barriers and their interrelationships, interpretive structural modelling approach is applied. Findings The results of empirical study reveal lack of coherence among SMEs and their suppliers in prioritising social responsibility issues in their supply chain. The hierarchy-based model reveals that shortages of incentive, short-term objectives, the lack of cooperation and willingness among supply chain partners, constraints (financial, managerial and technological) and the pressure from customers were the independent barriers and have strong driving power. Research limitations/implications The findings of this study are expected to provide an insight to further improve and promote socially responsible supply chain in emerging economies in Gulf region. Future research could compare the socially responsible activities of SMEs from different Gulf countries and expand the understanding of the barriers that outline the responses of suppliers situated in different Gulf economies. Originality/value The results contribute to the field of supply chain sustainability as the first academic attempt to shed light on how SMEs in GCC are dealing with supply chain social responsibility issues and one of the few in the emerging economy perspective that probes the key role of barriers to improve the socially responsible behaviour of Gulf-based SMEs.


2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 56-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xueli Zhan ◽  
Qin Zhang ◽  
Wenfeng Xie

In this article, the authors mainly investigate the dynamic performance of VMI-APIOBPCS (Vendor Manage Inventory-Automatic Pipeline Inventory and Order Based Production Control System) in the apparel industry. With the increasing importance of supply chain system integration, VMI-APIOBPCS can integrate various kinds of elements in the real operation, which is proved to be very effective in solving complex problems. Apparel supply chains have relatively more complicated dynamic behaviors because of the factors like volatile demand, the strong seasonality of sales and the large number of items with short life cycle or lacking historical data. In order to clear these behaviors, and come up with new ideas to solve present difficulties, the authors apply classic control theory to build up the model of VMI-APIOBPCS in apparel supply chain. They then analyze the dynamic performance of apparel supply chain and use Routh-Hurwitz Stability Criterion to analyze the stability on the expectation that the outcomes of our research can be useful in the practical occasions.


2011 ◽  
Vol 81 (18) ◽  
pp. 1871-1892 ◽  
Author(s):  
ZX Guo ◽  
WK Wong ◽  
SYS Leung ◽  
Min Li

This paper presents a systematic review on the state-of-art of artificial intelligence (AI) applications in the apparel industry. The existing literature is reviewed based on different research issues and AI-based methodologies. The research issues are categorized into four categories on the basis of the operation processes of the apparel industry, including apparel design, manufacturing, retailing, and supply chain management. This paper shows that research on AI applications in the apparel industry is still limited by analyzing the limitations of previous studies and research challenges. Finally, suggestions for further studies are offered.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document