Purpose

An increasing number of last mile deliveries (LMDs) pose many sustainability challenges that retailers and logistics service providers (LSPs) can address. Using cognitive frames (CFs) as a lens, this study explored how retail and LSP managers make sense of sustainable LMDs.

Design/methodology/approach

The methodological approach used is a multiple embedded case study. The data were obtained from interviews with retailers and LSPs, supplemented with secondary data for triangulation.

Findings

The findings present the operational aspects of LMDs that managers associate with sustainability and indicate that retail and LSP managers frame sustainability primarily as emission reduction. Managers indicate an externalization of responsibility and a compartmentalization of the supply chain, in which social sustainability is not associated with the last mile. Most managers indicate hierarchical CFs regarding sustainability, in which sustainability is an important topic but is subordinate to economic interests.

Practical implications

Collaboration between retailers, LSPs and other stakeholders is viewed as challenging but could alleviate some of the sustainability shortcomings and aid in the paradoxical framing and inclusion of social issues.

Originality/value

A conceptualization of managerial CFs for sustainable LMDs, together with empirical frame indicators and three propositions, is presented, providing novel insights into how paradoxical CFs could make LMDs more sustainable. This approach illuminates the possibilities for how to untangle the operational manifestations of managerial framing and adds to the empirical exploration of CFs in supply chain management.

中文翻译：

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探索零售和物流服务提供商经理如何理解最后一英里交付的可持续性

目的

越来越多的最后一英里配送 (LMD) 带来了许多零售商和物流服务提供商 (LSP) 可以解决的可持续发展挑战。本研究以认知框架 (CF) 为视角，探讨了零售和 LSP 管理者如何理解可持续 LMD。

设计/方法论/途径

使用的方法是多重嵌入案例研究。这些数据来自对零售商和 LSP 的采访，并补充了三角测量的二手数据。

发现

研究结果展示了管理者将 LMD 的运营方面与可持续性联系起来，并表明零售和 LSP 管理者将可持续性主要视为减排。管理者指出责任外部化和供应链分割，其中社会可持续性与最后一英里无关。大多数管理者都指出了关于可持续性的等级CF，其中可持续性是一个重要主题，但服从于经济利益。

实际影响

零售商、LSP 和其他利益相关者之间的合作被认为具有挑战性，但可以缓解一些可持续性缺陷，并有助于自相矛盾的框架和包容社会问题。

原创性/价值

提出了可持续 LMD 的管理 CF 的概念，以及经验框架指标和三个命题，为自相矛盾的 CF 如何使 LMD 更具可持续性提供了新颖的见解。这种方法阐明了如何理清管理框架的运作表现的可能性，并增加了供应链管理中 CF 的实证探索。