SUSTAINABLE PURCHASING AND SUPPLIER SELECTION THROUGH IMPLEMENTATION AND PERFORMANCE EVIDENCE A CRITICAL INTEGRATIVE REVIEW

Abstract

Sustainable purchasing involves organizations needing to capture supplier assessment requirements in actions that drive positive environmental, social and business results. This article critically reviews the published literature related to supplier selection, supplier management and supplier performance taking into consideration manufacturing supply chains and implications for Pakistan. There is a purposeful analysis of credible journal sources between decision models, observational studies, qualitative case studies and previous syntheses. The analysis finds a separation of evidence when looking at developing a supplier scorecard and making a procurement decision and further improvement. The selected literature gives considerable focus to environmental outcomes and the social outcomes are explicit with benefits apportioned among parties – buyers and suppliers. Pakistan evidence should lead to further research on green purchasing and organizational capabilities, but far from an overall causal conclusion, there are variations depending on outcomes and research designs. The article builds an integrative framework of the criteria, selection, implementation/verification, and suggests non-compensatory criteria, supplier development and context. The main takeaway for purchasing managers is to integrate proportionate evaluation with believable information, realistic improvement programs and monitoring the results. The results of the review can be called analytical propositions, as it does not provide an exhaustive census of the field.