Lean logistics and corporate green practices: messianic methodologies for achieving business excellence in the logistics industry via green stakeholder satisfaction

Purpose: This study aims to explore how logistics firms exploit lean logistics and corporate green practices as significant catalysts for achieving business excellence via the mediation roles of green internal stakeholder satisfaction and green external stakeholder satisfaction. 

Design/methodology/approach: Questionnaire is used in garnering data from 137 Ghanaian logistics firms. Structural equation modeling, particularly partial least squares, was applied to test all hypotheses. 

Findings: The results confirm the notion that although lean logistics has positive effect on business performance, the effect is insignificant; hence, it is the concurrent implementation of lean logistics and corporate green practices that leads to superior business performance. The mediation analysis further confirms that both green internal stakeholder satisfaction and green external stakeholder satisfaction are significant precursors through which logistics firms can achieve superior business performance when lean logistics and corporate green practices can influence business performance. 

Research limitations/implications: Data is collected from logistics firms from a single country. Hence, the results obtained cannot be imported to reflect the general occurrence in other geographical settings. 

Practical implications: This study informs managers of logistics firms that lean and green strategies are compatible when implemented together; hence, it should not be treated in isolation. Managers are further enlightened that in their pursuit of business excellence, there is a need to prioritize green internal stakeholder satisfaction and green external stakeholder satisfaction via prudent investment in lean and green practices. 

Originality/value: The research model proposed in this study magnifies the literature on lean and environmental management via bridging the literature gap concerning the interrelationship between lean logistics, corporate green practices, green internal stakeholder satisfaction, green external stakeholder satisfaction and business performance.