Title: Sustainability metrics for a supply chain: the case of small and medium enterprises

Authors: Mohd Nishat Faisal

Addresses: Department of Management and Marketing, College of Business and Economics, Qatar University, P.O. Box 2713, Doha, Qatar

Abstract: Using digraph and matrix method this research enunciates a simple method to quantify supply chain sustainability for small and medium enterprises. It proposes a numerical index which can be used to measure sustainability for different supply chains in actual practical settings. This approach also provides the opportunity to visualise variable interdependencies at system level and also presents a method to compare supply chains on sustainability dimension. The research would help to understand the dynamics between different variables and sub-variables of a sustainable supply chain and more importantly it would facilitate organisations to identify the areas in which the supply chain is lacking and need immediate attention to improve the overall supply chain sustainability. Numerical assessment of supply chain sustainability by transforming it in an index is a unique attempt in the area of supply chain management.

Keywords: sustainability metrics; supply chain management; SCM; graph theory; small and medium-sized enterprises; SMEs; sustainable development; supply chain sustainability; sustainable supply chains.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSOM.2012.049710

International Journal of Services and Operations Management, 2012 Vol.13 No.3, pp.392 - 414

Published online: 23 Aug 2014 *

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