Environmentally-conscious supply chain management

Extensive vertical disintegration in the computer industry over the past decade has widely dispersed manufacturing activities both organizationally and geographically. Although most major computer companies have made significant strides towards proactively monitoring and managing their own internal environmental performance and have begun to integrate design-for-environment programs into their new product development processes, management of suppliers for environment soundness remains a challenge. These design-based organizations often have little direct interaction with, much less control over, their diffuse supply network making it difficult to completely understand the full set of issues associated with being environmentally-sound or to manage the overall system for environmentally-conscious performance. In this research, we explore the key issues associated with environmentally-conscious supplier management through specific examination of selected firms in the computer industry, and postulate approaches to better understand and manage environmental programs in dispersed networks.