Conference Agenda

Reverse logistics in the form of product returns severely impact ecological systems, deplete natural resources and exacerbate climate change. Approximately 25% of all returned goods ultimately end up in landfills. In e-commerce, return rates can soar to 30%, presenting a critical financial and operational challenge for online retailers.

Because generous return policies serve as vital risk-reduction mechanisms for consumers and offer retailers a distinct competitive advantage, outright banning returns is unfeasible. Therefore, the viable path forward is to mitigate the negative environmental externalities of these policies. While existing reverse logistics literature predominantly adopts an operations- or retailer-centric perspective, this study addresses a critical gap by integrating the under-researched consumer standpoint into sustainable supply chain discourse.

Grounded in the Techniques of Neutralization Theory, this study examines how consumers utilize neutralization techniques, cognitive rationalizations that justify deviant behaviors and mitigate guilt, to excuse frequent product returns despite being aware of their environmental degradation. Incorporating return policy type (lenient vs. restrictive) as a categorical moderator, empirical data was collected via two distinct questionnaires from 348 consumers with active product return experience (160 under lenient policy conditions; 188 under restrictive conditions).

Partial Least Squares (PLS) structural equation modeling reveals that personal return rationales (e.g., impulse buying, change of mind) trigger a wider array of neutralization techniques than product-related rationales (e.g., defects, poor quality). Across both policy frameworks, personal rationales led consumers to actively invoke condemning the condemners (arguing that the accusers have ulterior motives and thus in no position to make the accusation), denial of injury (arguing that no harm is associated with the return), metaphor of the ledger (arguing that return is fine because enough good deeds on environment protection have already been done), and defense of necessity (arguing that the return is necessary) techniques. Conversely, product-related rationales only prompted the defense of necessity technique under restrictive policy environments.

Furthermore, PLS-multigroup analysis (PLS-MGA) demonstrates that the influence of personal rationales on condemning the condemners and denial of injury is significantly stronger under lenient return policies than restrictive ones.

This study contributes to sustainability and behavioral literature by extending the Techniques of Neutralization Theory to the domain of green reverse logistics. It shifts the analytical focus from macro-level supply chain mechanics to micro-level consumer psychology, illustrating how corporate policy environments influence moral disengagement. By identifying policy leniency as a structural catalyst for cognitive rationalization, the study clarifies the socio-psychological barriers to sustainable consumer behavior and eco-responsible supply chains.

For e-retailers and supply chain managers aiming to build environmental resilience, these findings demonstrate that overly lenient return policies inadvertently alleviate consumer guilt regarding carbon footprints and waste. To counter this, managers should design targeted digital nudges, such as real-time environmental impact prompts during the online return process, to disrupt consumer rationalizations. Furthermore, strategically tightening policies for impulse-driven purchases while maintaining flexibility for genuine product defects can structurally reduce return volumes without eroding core customer goodwill.

Corporate Purpose has gained substantial attention as a strategic lever for employee engagement and organizational resilience. Yet a critical question remains underexplored: how do employees actively contribute to shaping Corporate Purpose, and what role does motivation play in driving this contribution? This question carries particular urgency for logistics and supply chain organizations, where persistent workforce shortages, high turnover rates, and structurally fragmented workforces make employee identification with organizational values both a strategic imperative and a persistent challenge.

Existing research has predominantly treated Corporate Purpose as a top-down managerial declaration, examining its effects on employees rather than employees' active role in shaping it. Where co-creation has been studied, it has remained conceptually underdeveloped, with employee involvement treated as a monolithic construct without differentiation between its individual and collective dimensions. This paper addresses this gap by examining how employee motivation drives two distinct forms of Corporate Purpose co-creation and how these in turn contribute to Purpose Strength at the organizational level.

Drawing on a quantitative survey of 188 employees across industries and hierarchical levels, the study tests a structural model. Corporate Purpose Strength is operationalized through the Purpose Strength Index (PSI) by Lleo et al. (2021). The model differentiates between individual co-creation (employees' personal contributions to shaping Corporate Purpose) and collective co-creation (collaborative, cross-hierarchical processes through which Corporate Purpose is jointly developed and reinforced).

The findings reveal that motivation is the central driver of Purpose Strength, both directly and through two sequential co-creation pathways. Motivation first activates individual co-creation, which in turn strongly predicts collective co-creation - suggesting that individual engagement may function as a precondition for collective purpose-shaping to emerge. Both co-creation forms contribute independently to the Purpose Strength. Together, these results indicate a sequential logic: motivation activates individual co-creation, which enables collective co-creation, both of which reinforce Corporate Purpose Strength. For organizations seeking to strengthen Corporate Purpose, this implies that collective participation cannot be mandated top-down, rather it must be preceded by individual motivation and personal engagement.

For organizations with structurally diverse and geographically dispersed workforces, such as those in logistics and supply chain management, the sequential model offers actionable guidance, building individual motivation and engagement is the necessary first step before collective Purpose co-creation mechanisms can take effect.

Motivation - Retail supply chains are increasingly characterized by volatility, complexity, and susceptibility to disruptions on demand and supply sides, particularly in the globalized and complex domain of grocery products. Macro-level crises such as geopolitical uncertainties, extreme weather events, and pandemics have become the new normal, amplifying vulnerabilities associated with micro-level supply chain disruptions. The importance of resilience management is highlighted by supply chain disruptions affecting 85.7% of German grocery retailers in 2024 and global out-of-stock costs of USD 1.2 trillion.

Background - To efficiently maintain high levels of resilience, grocery retail logistics requires a detailed understanding of relevant mechanisms. While extant studies have primarily concentrated on organizational and structural mechanisms, such as technological systems, standardized processes, and strategic sourcing practices, these factors alone cannot fully explain resilience outcomes. Recent research indicated that human-level factors constitute a further key determinant. Employees contribute to resilience through disruption sensing, decision-making, information sharing, and adaptive action. However, effective transmission of human-level factors into resilience outcomes is highly contingent upon organizational conditions in which they are embedded. Organizational conditions may unlock or constrain the extent to which human-level factors contribute to supply chain resilience. How this interplay between organizational conditions and human-level factors shapes supply chain resilience has so far received limited attention.

Methodology - The present study follows a qualitative, exploratory research design and draws on 41 semi-structured empirical interviews conducted with managers, employees, and further key actors across German grocery supply chains. The interviews have been analyzed using the Gioia methodology.

Results - Findings reveal that human-level factors constitute a central foundation of supply chain resilience, while organizational conditions shape whether these human-level factors can be effectively translated into resilience. Specifically, organizational conditions influence the development, maintenance, and activation of relevant human-level factors, including situational awareness, adaptive decision-making, coordination, and learning capabilities. The results further indicate that resilience is not determined by the mere presence of favorable organizational conditions. Rather, a small number of unfavorable organizational conditions can overshadow the cumulative impact of all favorable conditions by constraining relevant human-level factors. Favorable organizational conditions are characterized by high information availability and quality, clear responsibilities, decision-making autonomy, effective coordination mechanisms, and a strong learning culture. In contrast, rigid structures, ambiguous roles, restricted discretion, technological shortcomings, resource limitations, and weak error- and learning-oriented cultures inhibit employees' ability to perceive disruptions, coordinate responses, and adapt effectively, thereby reducing overall supply chain resilience.

Implications - This study advances theoretical understanding of supply chain resilience by highlighting a human-centric and context-sensitive perspective. It demonstrates that resilience is shaped not only by the presence of human-level factors, but also by organizational conditions through which these factors become effective. It offers an integrated perspective linking human-level factors with workplace environments, managerial orientations, and communication practices, contributing to a more integrated perspective on resilience in grocery retail logistics towards conceptual foundations in supply chain management. From a managerial perspective, organizations should design supportive organizational conditions that allow human-level factors to contribute effectively to resilience during disruption situations.