Short answer

When designing products and supply chains, prioritize collaborative buyer engagement and develop robust mechanisms to ensure genuine implementation of social sustainability, not just symbolic adherence.

Field: Innovation & Design
Source: Journal of Business Ethics (2018)
Method: Multi-case study
Sample: 7 suppliers
Evidence: Strong effect

Collaborative pressure from multiple buyers significantly enhances the adoption of socially sustainable practices by suppliers in challenging institutional environments. This innovation & design research insight is drawn from a 2018 study published in Journal of Business Ethics. Using Multi-case study with 7 suppliers, researchers explored how this design variable affects real-world outcomes. The key design takeaway: When designing products and supply chains, prioritize collaborative buyer engagement and develop robust mechanisms to ensure genuine implementation of social sustainability, not just symbolic adherence.

Study

Innovation & DesignHigh ImpactStrong effect

Horizontal Buyer Collaboration Drives Social Sustainability in Developing Country Supply Chains

Collaborative pressure from multiple buyers significantly enhances the adoption of socially sustainable practices by suppliers in challenging institutional environments.

Journal of Business Ethics · 2018

Key Findings

01Coercive, mimetic, and normative institutional pressures drive the adoption of socially sustainable practices.
02Horizontal collaboration between buyers intensifies coercive pressure and increases the consequences of non-compliance for suppliers.
03Decoupling of practices is influenced by firm-specific, supply chain, and environmental factors.

Application

Design takeaway

How to apply

When sourcing from developing countries, engage with other brands sourcing from the same suppliers to establish common ethical standards and monitoring protocols.

Project actions

01When researching ethical sourcing, consider the power dynamics between buyers and suppliers.
02Investigate how different types of pressure (rules, copying others, social norms) affect a company's behavior.

Method & Evidence

AimHow can institutional pressures, particularly horizontal collaboration among buyers, influence the implementation of socially sustainable practices in developing country supplier contexts?

MethodMulti-case study

ProcedureThe study analyzed seven apparel industry suppliers in Bangladesh, examining the institutional pressures (coercive, mimetic, normative) they faced regarding social sustainability and identifying factors contributing to the decoupling of stated practices from actual operations.

Sample7 suppliers

ContextApparel industry supply chains in developing countries (Bangladesh)

Variables

IVHorizontal collaboration between buyers, coercive pressure, mimetic pressure, normative pressure

DVImplementation of socially sustainable practices, decoupling of practices

CVSupplier context (developing country, apparel industry), firm-specific factors, supply chain factors, environmental factors

Strengths & Limitations

Strengths

+Provides a novel perspective on the role of horizontal buyer collaboration.
+Addresses the critical issue of decoupling in social sustainability practices.

Limitations

The study focuses on specific types of institutional pressures and may not capture all nuances of supplier behavior.

Reliability & validity

The multi-case study approach enhances external validity by examining multiple instances, while the focus on specific institutional pressures and decoupling factors provides internal validity.

Think critically

To what extent can the findings on horizontal buyer collaboration be applied to other areas of sustainability, such as environmental impact or fair labor practices?

Design Principles

"Collective stakeholder pressure is a powerful catalyst for embedding social sustainability in complex supply chains."

This insight is crucial for designers and businesses aiming for ethical supply chains. It suggests that a unified approach among stakeholders, rather than isolated demands, can be more effective in driving meaningful change and preventing superficial compliance.

What This Means for Your Design

If multiple companies that buy from the same factory work together, they can push the factory to be more socially responsible.

How to use in your project

1.Use this research to justify the importance of collaborative approaches in your design project's ethical sourcing strategy.

Add to My Project

Quick Cite

Paragraph starter

Research indicates that horizontal collaboration among buyers significantly enhances the implementation of socially sustainable practices in challenging institutional contexts, such as developing country supply chains. This collective pressure can overcome supplier resistance and mitigate factors that lead to superficial compliance, suggesting that a unified approach is more effective than isolated demands for ethical sourcing.

Source

Journal of Business Ethics

Implementing Socially Sustainable Practices in Challenging Institutional Contexts: Building Theory from Seven Developing Country Supplier Cases

journal · 2018

View source

Questions About This Research

What does the research say about horizontal buyer collaboration drives social sustainability in developing country supply chains?: When designing products and supply chains, prioritize collaborative buyer engagement and develop robust mechanisms to ensure genuine implementation of social sustainability, not just symbolic adherence. Evidence: Journal of Business Ethics (2018).
Why does "Horizontal Buyer Collaboration Drives Social Sustainability in Developing Country Supply Chains" matter for design?: This insight is crucial for designers and businesses aiming for ethical supply chains. It suggests that a unified approach among stakeholders, rather than isolated demands, can be more effective in driving meaningful change and preventing superficial compliance.
How can designers apply this research?: When designing products and supply chains, prioritize collaborative buyer engagement and develop robust mechanisms to ensure genuine implementation of social sustainability, not just symbolic adherence.
What were the main findings?: Coercive, mimetic, and normative institutional pressures drive the adoption of socially sustainable practices.. Horizontal collaboration between buyers intensifies coercive pressure and increases the consequences of non-compliance for suppliers.. Decoupling of practices is influenced by firm-specific, supply chain, and environmental factors.
What research method was used?: Multi-case study with 7 suppliers.
How strong is the evidence?: Evidence strength is rated Strong effect, based on a 2018 journal from Journal of Business Ethics.
What should I do differently in my next project?: When sourcing from developing countries, engage with other brands sourcing from the same suppliers to establish common ethical standards and monitoring protocols.
What are the limitations?: The findings are specific to the apparel industry in Bangladesh and may not be directly generalizable to other industries or geographical regions with different institutional frameworks.