Selection of strategy for reverse logistics implementation
Journal of Global Operations and Strategic Sourcing
ISSN: 2398-5364
Article publication date: 17 December 2021
Issue publication date: 7 March 2023
Abstract
Purpose
Reverse logistics has attracted many industries due to product recalls, enormous waste generation, competitive reasons, vast opportunity in the waste management market, and to get the maximum value out of waste recovery. Selection of the right implementation strategy is vital for reverse logistics to function efficiently. Therefore, this research aims to evaluate the criteria for selecting reverse logistics strategy and help to choose the preferred strategy for its implementation.
Design/methodology/approach
Three reverse logistics implementation strategies, namely, in-house, joint venture and outsourcing, are proposed. A novel hybrid fuzzy analytical hierarchy process (F-AHP) and fuzzy measurement of alternatives and ranking according to COmpromise Solution (F-MARCOS) based framework is developed to fulfil the research objective. A survey is performed on Indian manufacturing industry to demonstrate the applicability of the proposed framework.
Findings
The result shows that government policy and regulations, reverse logistics risks and reduced emission have prime importance for a manufacturing industry which needs to implement reverse logistics into its supply chain. Outsourcing is the preferred reverse logistics strategy followed by joint venture and in-house that a manufacturing firm in India can implement.
Research limitations/implications
The research results are based on the responses of the survey received. This research considers various industry sectors to test the applicability of the framework. However, for actual implementation, this survey must first be limited to a particular industry as the results will apply to that industrial sector only.
Practical implications
This developed framework simplifies the procedure of selecting the strategy when the industry needs to implement reverse logistics. For industries working with a smaller set of criteria, this framework is a powerful and dynamic approach for reducing and choosing the most pertinent one that helps accomplish their objectives of reverse logistics implementation strategy selection.
Originality/value
Based on the literature and current applicability of reverse logistics, this research proposes three models to implement reverse logistics in Indian industries. A novel hybrid F-AHP and F-MARCOS based framework is developed to handle the selection of suitable reverse logistics strategy.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
Declaration of Interest: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
Citation
Prajapati, H., Kant, R. and Shankar, R. (2023), "Selection of strategy for reverse logistics implementation", Journal of Global Operations and Strategic Sourcing, Vol. 16 No. 1, pp. 1-23. https://doi.org/10.1108/JGOSS-04-2021-0034
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited