From the few to the many : Scaling up sustainability-oriented supplier development projects

Meng, Jia and Stevenson, Mark and Wilhelm, Miriam and Hendry, Linda (2025) From the few to the many : Scaling up sustainability-oriented supplier development projects. International Journal of Operations and Production Management. ISSN 0144-3577

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Abstract

Purpose To understand how sustainability-oriented supplier development (SSD) can be translated from a small-scale pilot project into a large-scale implementation across the supply base. Design/methodology/approach The research studies an exploratory single case of a social SSD project on occupational health and safety management. The pilot involved 4 suppliers, expanding to 100 suppliers (and up to 400 factories) in the scale-up phase. The research applies actor-network theory (ANT), focusing on translation (problematisation, interessement and enrolment), and integrates three medical science scale-up frameworks: the mechanistic, complexity-informed and social science-driven approaches. Findings Scaling up SSD project implementation requires a process view and a systemic approach that integrates elements of all three scale-up frameworks. Meanwhile, both the pilot and scale-up stages go through a translation process of (re-)problematisation, (re-)interessement and (re-)enrolment, whereby roles, responsibilities, and implementation actions are refined. A strong and sufficient interessement strategy is essential for aligning and engaging key actors throughout the project. To ensure long-term commitment and sustainability, inscription and irreversibility mechanisms must also be established. Research limitations/implications The research furthers our understanding of how sustainability practices can be cascaded to the supply base. By investigating a two-stage SSD project, the research substantiates the translation process that is central to ANT, demonstrating how it can recursively occur across stages. Meanwhile, the research highlights the need for a comprehensive approach that integrates both direct and indirect SSD practices. Practical implications Focal firms in supply chains should follow a processual and systemic approach to cascading sustainability practices while carefully selecting the most appropriate intermediary partner for delivering an SSD initiative. Moreover, a tailored strategy for engaging workers at different organisational levels of factories is needed. Originality/value The research contributes to the ANT literature by providing empirical evidence on how different groups of actors interact with and collectively affect project implementation. Moreover, the research sheds new light on the scale-up process for SSD projects that seek to engage with and impact the entire supply base, introducing scale-up frameworks that support a more process-oriented and systemic approach.