Sustainability in International Supply Chains

PART A – Literature Review (50% of marks)
Carry out a review of selected literature on the strategic role of supply chain management, and sustainable supply chain management, in particular examining the relationship between supply chain strategies, sustainability and performance using relevant criteria e.g. financial/economic. (You should draw insights from around 8 – 12 published journal articles, as well as more general sources such as textbooks for more fundamental operations management, strategic planning and (strategic) supply chain management principles.)

PART B – Case analysis (50% of marks)
Using good-quality secondary sources such as company reports, the trade press and the business press, identify, describe and analyze one case of a firm where sustainability in an internationally dispersed supply chain is an important issue. Examine the case using the key ideas from your literature review. The overarching question is – does the case that you examine confirm the trade-off argument and what is the role of supply chain strategy in managing this trade-off?
Case selection might be based on various factors, including but not limited to:
• prominent recent problems in the supply chain relating to sustainability,
• firms that particularly strongly emphasize their sustainability credentials or utilize innovative supply chain strategies
• firms or industries that you may know about or be interested in.