Environmental practices and performance and their relationships among Kosovo construction companies: a framework for analysis in transition economies

The environment is an issue of growing global importance and economies in transition need to find a balance between economic growth and sustainable development. This study assessed the relationship between green supply chain management (GSCM) practices, pressures and environmental performance in Kosovo's construction industry. A cross-sectional survey design was employed in a sample of 124 Kosovo construction companies. A structured questionnaire was developed based on previous research and assessed GSCM practices, pressures and company performance, as well as respondent and company characteristics. The findings from the regression analysis revealed that GSCM practices and pressures significantly predicted the GSCM performance of the companies. However, GSCM pressures did not moderate the effects of GSCM practices on company performance. Environmental performance of Kosovo construction companies is predicted GSCM practices and regulatory pressures. This research is one of the few studies which examines the relationships between environmental practices and performance in companies in the South-East European region.

[1]  Joseph Sarkis,et al.  Quantitative models for performance measurement systems—alternate considerations , 2003 .

[2]  C. McCrudden Using public procurement to achieve social outcomes , 2004 .

[3]  Joyce Thomson,et al.  Sustainable procurement in practice: Lessons from local government , 2007 .

[4]  Edgar Göll,et al.  Institutions for a sustainable development—experiences from EU-countries , 2008 .

[5]  Qinghua Zhu,et al.  Green supply chain management in China: pressures, practices and performance , 2005 .

[6]  P. Allen,et al.  Understanding Policy Implementation Processes as Self-Organizing Systems , 2008 .

[7]  B. Deacon,et al.  Social Policy and International Interventions in South East Europe , 2007 .

[8]  Paul Humphreys,et al.  The green initiative: improving quality and competitiveness for European SMEs , 1997 .

[9]  Ellen van Bueren,et al.  Establishing sustainability: policy successes and failures , 2007 .

[10]  Jette Steen Knudsen,et al.  Sustainable competitiveness in global value chains: how do small Danish firms behave? , 2006 .

[11]  G. Atkinson Sustainability, the capital approach and the built environment , 2008 .

[12]  M. Carbone Mission Impossible: the European Union and Policy Coherence for Development , 2008 .

[13]  S. West,et al.  Multiple Regression: Testing and Interpreting Interactions. , 1994 .

[14]  Charles J. Kibert,et al.  Developing indicators of sustainability: US experience , 1998 .

[15]  Christian N Madu,et al.  A hierarchic metric approach for integration of green issues in manufacturing: a paper recycling application. , 2002, Journal of environmental management.

[16]  J. Wettestad,et al.  Is EU enlargement bad for environmental policy? Confronting gloomy expectations with evidence , 2007 .

[17]  Charles J. Kibert,et al.  Construction ecology and metabolism: natural system analogues for a sustainable built environment , 2000 .

[18]  Karen Manley,et al.  Key influences on construction innovation , 2004 .

[19]  R. Klassen,et al.  EXTENDING GREEN PRACTICES ACROSS THE SUPPLY CHAIN: THE IMPACT OF UPSTREAM AND DOWNSTREAM INTEGRATION , 2006 .

[20]  Lutz Preuss,et al.  The Green Multiplier: A Study of Environmental Protection and the Supply Chain , 2005 .

[21]  R. F. Poist,et al.  Green perspectives and practices: a “comparative logistics” study , 2003 .

[22]  R. F. Poist,et al.  Role and relevance of logistics to corporate environmentalism , 1995 .

[23]  P. Rao Greening the supply chain: a new initiative in South East Asia , 2002 .

[24]  Raymond J. Cole,et al.  Reconciling theory and practice of life-cycle costing , 2000 .

[25]  Chris Fortune,et al.  Sustainable development policy perceptions and practice in the UK social housing sector , 2007 .

[26]  M. Helms,et al.  Performance measurement for green supply chain management , 2005 .

[27]  W. Ascher Policy sciences contributions to analysis to promote sustainability , 2007 .

[28]  Qinghua Zhu,et al.  The moderating effects of institutional pressures on emergent green supply chain practices and performance , 2007 .

[29]  Panayiotis H. Ketikidis,et al.  INNOVATIVE MEASURES FOR GREEN SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT IN SOUTH-EAST EUROPE , 2007 .

[30]  Hannes R. Stephan,et al.  The European Union in global environmental governance: Leadership in the making? , 2007 .

[31]  Samir K. Srivastava,et al.  Green Supply-Chain Management: A State-of-the-Art Literature Review , 2007 .

[32]  K. Green,et al.  Green purchasing and supply policies: do they improve companies’ environmental performance? , 1998 .

[33]  Eva Sterner ‘Green procurement’ of buildings: a study of Swedish clients' considerations , 2002 .

[34]  Grace Ding,et al.  Developing a multicriteria approach for the measurement of sustainable performance , 2005 .

[35]  K. Lai,et al.  Green supply chain management implications for "closing the loop" , 2008 .

[36]  Keith Hutchinson,et al.  Sustainable construction: some economic challenges , 2000 .

[37]  Raymond J. Cole,et al.  Building environmental assessment methods: redefining intentions and roles , 2005 .

[38]  Qinghua Zhu,et al.  Integrating Environmental Issues into Supplier Selection and Management , 2001 .

[39]  Jan Rotmans,et al.  The Scene Model: Getting A Grip On Sustainable Development In Policy Making , 2005 .

[40]  Michael T. Schaper,et al.  Small Firms and Environmental Management , 2002 .

[41]  M. Conner,et al.  The Theory of Planned Behaviour , 2004 .

[42]  Paul Bowen,et al.  Sustainable construction: principles and a framework for attainment , 1997 .