The role of block chain technology in circular economy practices to improve organisational performance

Abstract

This paper aims to examine the role of blockchain technology for the circular economy to enhance organisational performance in the context of China–Pakistan-Economic-Corridor (CPEC). A close-ended questionnaire-based survey of manufacturing firms was administered to collect cross-sectional data from 290 respondents, which has been analysed through structural equation modelling. The circular economy approach in supply chain management offers environmental as well as economic benefits to the organisations. With the beginning of the Industry 4.0 era, there is an emphasis on technology in every field. A relatively recent phenomenon of blockchain technology promises lots of potential improvement in business operations. According to our results, with features such as visibility, transparency, relationship management, and smart contracting, blockchain technology was found to play a positive role in the circular economy. Furthermore, green practices were found to have a positive nexus with environmental and economic pathways to the firms’ performance, whereas environmental performance was also found to have a positive nexus with the economic health of the firm. Last but not the least, both environmental and economic performances were found to be the cause of a boost in organisational performance.