Enablers of sustainable supply chain management and its effect on competitive advantage in the Colombian context

Abstract

This article aims to evaluate whether the enablers top and middle management support and strategic purchasing facilitate the development of sustainable supply chain practices, as well as the effect of the latter on competitive advantage (CA). Partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) was applied to test the proposed model based on a sample from companies operating in Colombia. The main hypotheses of the research were supported, implying that a suitable combination between internal enablers and the adoption of sustainable supply chain practices is important to pursue competitive advantage. However, the hypothesis for the expected effect of environmental practices wasn’t supported, suggesting that there is a win-win perspective between social practices in supply chains and competitive advantage in the context of emerging economies. And the analysis of the non-supported hypothesis is one of the contributions of the article.