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. 2023 Mar 6;32(2):222–245. doi: 10.1007/s11518-023-5555-y

Contextual Relevance of Sustainable Supply Chain: Recycling, Philanthropy, or Both?

Fan Qin 1,✉, Yongjian Li 1, Qian Zhang 2
PMCID: PMC9987355  PMID: 37101537

Abstract

Many firms have already been actively or passively involved in sustainable supply chain management with the objective of improving the triple bottom line (TBL). But whether the limited funds should be allocated to both community responsibility activities (e.g., corporate philanthropy) and environmental protection activities (e.g., recycling) is a confusing question. This paper provides deep insights into the combination strategy of two corporate social responsibility (CSR) types in a two-tier sustainable supply chain by modeling analysis. The decision models in eight scenarios with different combinations of CSR types are proposed and applied for the determination of equilibrium scenarios. The paper’s findings highlight: under certain conditions, (1) the supply chain with two types of CSR is the equilibrium scenario and improves the TBL; (2) counter-intuitively, balancing short- and long-term benefits, firms are more willing to cooperate with partners with relatively low consumers sensitivity of CSR activities; (3) it is wise for the manufacturer to allocate more funding to environmental responsibility than to community responsibility. In addition, considering both short- and long-term benefits, comparing with the manufacturer, the retailer has a stronger incentive to improve recycling efficiency.

Keywords: Sustainable supply chain, corporate social responsibility, triple-bottom-line (TBL), recycling, corporate philanthropy

Footnotes

Fan Qin is currently a lecturer of the Department of Management Science and Engineering at Business School of Nankai University, China. She received her PhD degree from Nankai University, China. Her research interests include, but are not limited to, logistics and supply chain management, information management and information system, and operations management in platform economics.

Yongjian Li is currently a professor of Operations and Supply Chain Management and serves as Chair of the Department of Management Science and Engineering at Business School of Nankai University, China. He received his PhD degree from Nankai University, China in 2002. His research interests include logistics and supply chain management, operations management in platform economics, interface of marketing and operations management. He has published papers in many journals, including Production and Operations Management, Decision Sciences, International Journal of Production Research, IEEE Transactions, OMEGA-The International Journal of Management Science, and European Journal of Operational Research, etc.

Qian Zhang is currently working toward the Ph.D. degree in management science and engineering from College of Management and Economics, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China. Her research interests include supply chain management, platform economy, information asymmetry, and blockchain application in operation management.

Contributor Information

Fan Qin, Email: qinfan@nankai.edu.cn.

Yongjian Li, Email: liyongjian@nankai.edu.cn.

Qian Zhang, Email: zhangqian111553@163.com.

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