Industry 5.0 and Triple Bottom Line Approach in Supply Chain Management: The State-of-the-Art

Abstract

Digital technologies could be key to solving several open issues in the context of supply chain management (SCM) and sustainable development. The purpose of this article is to investigate the linkage between digital technologies and sustainable practices in SCM. Through a systematic literature review, the article aims to identify which technologies favour sustainable emerging practices considering the triple bottom line (3BL) perspective. In particular, the following 11 technologies were considered: 3D printing, artificial intelligence, blockchain, computing, digital applications, geospatial technologies, Internet of Things, immersive environments, open and crowd-based platforms, proximity technologies and robotics. For the purpose of this research, 5011 peer-reviewed scientific articles were analysed and a comprehensive overview of the use of digital technologies in SCM to favour sustainable emerging practices was proposed. Therefore, four indices that measure the environmental, social, economic and total 3BL sustainability of each technology were used to assess sustainable emerging practices. This study could be useful for both academics and practitioners. For the former, it provides a comprehensive understanding of the application of digital technologies in sustainable emerging practices for SCM. It highlights potential research gaps by proposing scenarios of future research developments. For the latter, the article aims to identify opportunities for the implementation of digital technologies within own company to improve operations management and, at the same time, promote sustainable development.