Corporate Sustainability Performance in the perspective of TQM, Technology Management and QEHS Management System Standards

Abstract

Sustainability - an endeavor to stable, durable and eternalness performance - has become a renowned and most important fact, recognized and consciously emphasized by various international agencies, interested parties and consumers, that has caused extra pressure in widening the organization’s purpose to make productive use of input resources to create value and benefits for its constituents and stakeholders, of current and future generation, without harming the environment or society. Corporate sustainability management makes sight to grow business activities, by balancing the complementary and competing interests of key stakeholders, in three dimensions; economic, social and environmental; to lead superior and long-term success. Literature suggests that Corporate Sustainability Performance (CSP) can be substantiated with the very foundation of TQM or Business Excellence Models. Authors have also contrasted the principles and practices of three international management system standards (MSSs); i.e. ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001; in fulfilling requirements related to Quality, Environment and Health & Safety (QEHS) to attain goals of three pillars of sustainability performance. Moreover, the ever growing industrial and technological advancement, in the world, creates new and diversified risks and challenges for the organizations, and for the environment, that can be dealt with attention to dimensions of Technology Management (TM). Managing technology entails production and use of alternatives which are economically and environmentally viable for the benefit of society. In literature, TQM and TM have been treated in separate fashion, and only little research is available that combines the both. This is a novel research study that co-aligns TQM and TM to empirically investigate their association and impact on sustainability performance while taking into account the contributing role of QEHS MSS. The study initially establishes research objectives and questions, and develops ten hypotheses, and then adopts a positivism philosophy, deductive approach, quantitative method and questionnaire based survey strategy for data collection from 209 organizations, of different sectors, sizes and locations, in Pakistan. Normality, homogeneity, reliability and validity of data is confirmed prior performing data analysis. Factor analysis, structural equation modeling (SEM) and path analysis techniques through sophisticated statistical softwares (Minitab, SPSS and AMOS) have been used for data analysis and relationship measurement of the factors. Results of the study reveal that TQM iv significantly impacts CSP and each dimension of sustainability, whereas TM significantly impacts economic sustainability only. It is also found that TQM mediates relationship between TM and CSP, whereas QEHS MSSs has no moderated mediation effect in the relationship but significantly contributes in achieving higher sustainability performance. After discussion, the study also proposes a six-step strategy to implement sustainability practices, and then highlights some valuable findings, conclusions, recommendations and limitations at the end. The study contributes to literature as it empirically investigates the association between the contemporary concepts, particularly in the context of a developing country, and suggests an implementation framework for attaining corporate sustainability performance. Key Words: TQM, technology, sustainability, corporate sustainability performance, management system standards