Beyond the buyer-supplier relationship: a triadic perspective of decarbonization initiatives across the supply chain

This ongoing research investigates the triadic relationship among a buyer, a supplier, and a third-party logistics provider dealing with decarbonization initiatives. The reduction or elimination of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from various sources in the business environment has become a significant responsibility for firms. However, the greatest part of a firm’s environmental impact is not under its direct control, but it derives from activities and processes that happen along its entire supply chain; thus, collaboration and interactions among actors in a network are essential. This phenomenon includes multiple perspectives and externalities; thus, a grounded theory approach is deemed appropriate to investigate the triadic relationship. Accordingly, data is collected via interviews and analysed via fsQCA. This study aims at revealing rich insights about how organizations in a network strive to adopt and implement practices leading to net-zero goal, contributing to the development of both theoretical and managerial knowledge.