Supporting Supply Chain Innovation and Sustainability Practices through Knowledge and Innovation Management

Abstract

This paper extends exploratory research on the contribution of knowledge and innovation management (KIM) to innovation and sustainability activities across a number of small to medium size Australian food and beverage exporters in Australia as part of a longitudinal research project. Recent trends in sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) in global supply chains sees a greater focus on achieving more social and transformational forms of sustainability, rather than traditional economic or environmental approaches. Applying a framework of sustainability-oriented innovation, analysis of eight case study organizations revealed that innovation practices across these firms largely reflected an economic focus on sustainability, followed by some activities in the environmental domain. However, more transformative forms of innovation, such as those addressing social/community concerns, were lagging. Although further research is recommended, we offer some propositional speculation on why successful SMEs with a strong reputation for innovation are still driven predominantly by financial considerations.