Responsible Digitalization in Supply Chain Management

Dear Colleagues,

Today’s digital transformation is on the agenda of people, firms, stakeholders, and governments. However, the general enthusiasm to pursue a digital transformation process is seldom preceded by a comprehensive analysis of the related implications. All transformations and technological revolutions occurring after the 1950s have created great prosperity, progress, and value. However, several unintended consequences have simultaneously followed, including climate change and global warming, pollution, and overflowing plastic in oceans, to mention a few. Therefore, the current digital transformation could have similar effects if left unchecked. To date, the popularity of the phenomenon along with its current diffusion speed have not been followed by a comprehensive analysis of the real implications, especially in terms of corporate social responsibility (CSR).

One important dilemma arises within this framework: Can digitalization be responsible? In this sense, De Giovanni (2020) has developed the concept of responsible digitalization, which consists in the capacity to engage in digital transformation without underperforming in terms of economic, environmental, and social performance (triple bottom line). Therefore, digitalization is responsible when digital technologies are used to pursue CSR targets, such as promoting people and planet development, preserving human rights and environmental health, reducing harmful emissions and their environmental impact, ensuring the fundamental principles of law and democracy, pursuing societal privacy and protection, and reducing poverty, unfairness, and inequality. Providing an answer to the previous question is not a trivial task because the literature has investigated digitalization and CSR as separated topics. Accordingly, this Special Issue of Logistics seeks to develop research, theory, and knowledge around the concept of responsible digitalization and evaluate its implementation in supply chain (SC) management with a particular emphasis on the emerging trade-offs.

Recent research has highlighted the difficulties of implementing digital transformation processes in SCs, whose large-scale complexity and operational focus can divert strategies from CSR targets. For example, a farmer who invests in robotics can achieve positive benefits for the environment by reducing production waste and the energy used over the SC. However, recent estimates show that a crop-harvesting robot can replace up to 30 human workers. Therefore, robotics may generate important social “rebound effects” that any digital transformation process cannot disregard. Similarly, Industry 4.0 technologies can ensure a lower scrap rate, high saturation of manufacturing equipment, low waste, and superior energy efficiency (Müller et al., 2018). However, production systems using robotics and big data can become highly capital-intensive, which may result in overall higher energy consumption (Indri et al., 2018). Furthermore, the use of big data requires data centers to consume around 200 terawatt-hours annually, more than the energy consumption of some countries (e.g., Argentina, Ukraine, Thailand), half of the electricity used for transport worldwide, and around 1% of global electricity demand (Lovell, 2018).

According to the described framework, digital technologies can have an uncertain and questionable effect on CSR, which requires an accurate and rigorous analysis of both benefits and drawbacks along the supply chain. This Special Issue of Logistics looks at contributions connecting the topics of supply chain management and responsible digitalization by investigating a variety of digital technologies. A potential but not exhaustive list of digital technologies to be analyzed within the framework of supply chain management and responsible digitalization includes:

• Blockchain technology;
• Artificial intelligence;
• Big data and cloud computing;
• 3D printing;
• Supply chain tower;
• Mobile apps;
• Cyberphysical systems;
• Internet of Things;
• Advanced human–machine interfaces;
• Augmented reality/wearables.

From 15 April 2021 to 31 December 2021, all submissions (once accepted after peer review) to Logistics will be published free of charge. To take advantage of this opportunity, please submit before the deadline.

This call is open for all types of methodologies including quantitative methods, experiments, theoretical models, simulations, etc.

References

De Giovanni, P. (2020). Smart Supply Chains with vendor managed inventory, coordination, and environmental performance. European Journal of Operational Research.

Loven, J. (208). Big data: A big energy challenge? Australian Energy Council. October 2018
Müller, J. M., Kiel, D., & Voigt, K. I. (2018). What drives the implementation of Industry 4.0? The role of opportunities and challenges in the context of sustainability. Sustainability, 10(1), 247.

Indri, M., Grau, A., & Ruderman, M. (2018). Guest editorial special section on recent trends and developments in industry 4.0 motivated robotic solutions. IEEE Transactions on Industrial Informatics, 14(4), 1677-1680.

Prof. Dr. Pietro De Giovanni
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All papers will be peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Logistics is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• blockchain technology
• artificial intelligence
• big data and cloud computing
• 3D printing
• supply chain tower
• mobile apps