Critical success factors of customer involvement in greening the supply chain: an empirical study

The role of customers and their involvement in green supply chain management (GSCM) has been recognised as an important research area. This paper is an attempt to explore factors influencing involvement of customers towards greening the supply chain (SC). Twenty‐five critical success factors (CSFs) of customer involvement in GSCM have been identified from literature review and through extensive discussions with senior and middle level SC professionals. Interviews and questionnaire‐based survey have been used to indicate the significance of these CSFs. A total of 478 valid responses were received to rate these CSFs on a five‐point Likert scale (ranging from unimportant to most important). Statistical analysis has been carried out to establish the reliability and to test the validity of the questionnaires. Subsequent factor analysis has identified seven major components covering 79.24% of total variance. This paper may help to establish the importance of customer role in promoting green concept in SCs and to develop an understanding of factors influencing customer involvement ‐ key input towards creating 'greening pull system' (GPSYS). This understanding may further help in framing the policies and strategies to green the SC.