Top management role in ensuring sustainable supply chain management practices : exploratory review of literature

Abstract

Purpose: Top management plays a crucial role in implementing Sustainable Supply Chain Management (SSCM) practices, especially in developing countries, by driving performance, securing resources, and promoting necessary changes. This study explores how top management's commitment and strategic leadership impact SSCM adoption and implementation in developing countries like Ghana, where SSCM adoption rates are low and empirical research is lacking.

Method: Using a qualitative research design and a systematic literature review from the SCOPUS database, the study analyzes peer-reviewed studies from 2010 onwards.

Results and Conclusion: Findings reveal that top management's commitment to sustainability fosters organizational responsibility, innovation, and compliance with ethical standards, encouraging proactive approaches to opportunities, market adaptation, and green practices.

Research Implication: These insights provide practical recommendations for improving performance, building trust, and achieving sustainable development goals, contributing significantly to the understanding of SSCM practices and their positive impact on organizational performance.

Originality/Value: By leveraging empirical work this study builds analytical patterns on issues that relate with management roles and sustainable supply chain management. The standardized assessment of the issues provides a trustworthy result as this study does not entirely rely on the exclusive opinion of the researchers but is based on standard deduction of the role of managers in ensuring the adoption of sustainable supply chain management within industries.