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Social enterprises in supply chains: driving systemic change through social impact

Annachiara Longoni (ESADE Business School, Ramon Llull University, Barcelona, Spain)
Davide Luzzini (EADA Business School, Barcelona, Spain)
Madeleine Pullman (University of Sussex, Brighton, UK)
Stefan Seuring (Chair of Supply Chain Management, Faculty of Economics and Management, University of Kassel, Kassel, Germany)
Dirk Pieter van Donk (Department of Operations, Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands)

International Journal of Operations & Production Management

ISSN: 0144-3577

Article publication date: 9 April 2024

Issue publication date: 4 September 2024

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to provide a starting point to discuss how social enterprises can drive systemic change in terms of social impact through operations and supply chain management.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper reviews existing literature and the four papers in this special issue and develops a conceptual framework of how social enterprises and their supply chains create social impact and further enable systematic change.

Findings

Our paper finds that social impact and systemic change can be shaped by social enterprises at three different levels of analysis (organization, supply chain and context) and through three enablers (cognitive shift, stakeholder collaboration and scalability). Such dimensions are used to position current literature and to highlight new research directions.

Originality/value

This paper proposes a novel understanding of operations and supply chain management in social enterprises intended as catalysts for systemic change. Based on this premise we distinguish different practices and stakeholders to be considered when studying social impact at different levels. The conceptual framework introduced in the paper provides a new pathway for future research and debate by scholars engaged at the intersection of social impact, sustainable operations and supply chain management.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

This paper forms part of a special section “Towards Systemic Change: How Can Operations and Supply Chain Management of Socially Driven Enterprises Contribute to Change Making”, guest edited by Davide Luzzini.

Citation

Longoni, A., Luzzini, D., Pullman, M., Seuring, S. and van Donk, D.P. (2024), "Social enterprises in supply chains: driving systemic change through social impact", International Journal of Operations & Production Management, Vol. 44 No. 10, pp. 1814-1830. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOPM-10-2023-0835

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2024, Emerald Publishing Limited

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