Environmental values and customer-perceived value in industrial supplier relationships

Abstract

This study addresses a gap in the research on supply channel management by integrating environmental values and value creation in the context of buyer-supplier relationships. This study has two objectives: (i) to explore the environmental values structure of industrial customers, and (ii) to test the effect of environmental values on overall value perceptions. The effect of customer's environmental values on the supplier's environmental image and customer-perceived value is tested with structural equation modeling using the PLS method. The empirical analysis is based on a global sample of industrial companies that have a high impact on the environment (n = 121). Key findings of this study are that (i) customer environmental values consist of three domains: corporate stance, operational awareness and environmental competence; (ii) environmental values of the customer have an effect on supplier assessment in a competitive market; and (iii) industrial suppliers should contribute to customers' overall value expectations by building an image that is based on environmental competitiveness.