Contribution of green manufacturing for realizing business performance in Indian small and medium scale organizations (SME’s)

Abstract

Purpose The current manuscript is focused on evaluating the capabilities of green practices that affect various business performance (BP) parameters of small and medium scale Indian manufacturing enterprises (SME’s). This study aims to obtain multiple significant factors that influence the implementation of green practices. Design/methodology/approach The manuscript focuses on statistical testing of responses obtained from 168 Indian SMEs to determine the relationship between input parameters and BP parameters. This paper starts with deploying tests such as Cronbach alpha and inter-item covariance test to obtain confidence in data collected, followed by various statistical tests such as Pearson correlation, multiple regression, canonical correlation to extract various significant factors the study. Further Games-Howell post hoc test is deployed to evaluate the significant improvements in BP gained over a reasonable duration of time. Finally, a discriminant validity test is used to find out the success or failure of the organizations that participated in the survey. Findings This research contributes to the holistic effect of green manufacturing (GM) toward gaining improvements in terms of different BP parameters taken for the study. It has been found that various input factors such as customer attributes, adoption of new technology, social pressure and government pressure are the main parameters for GM implementation. Further, it is observed that those at the maturity phase of GM implementation are reaping higher benefits than the organizations at the transition and stability phase. Originality/value The current study has been accomplished in Indian SME manufacturing organizations to investigate the effects of GM implementation in the organization. Although research findings imply the effective use of green practices within the organization to reap BP parameters and improve the market’s competitive image, the study cannot be generalized and can be used as an insight for both academicians and end-users in understanding the overall achievements of GM.