Effect of the Sustainable Supply Chain on Business Performance - The Maquiladora Experience

Mexican maquiladoras have a complex and intensive supply chain, importing raw materials from other countries and exporting finished products. This paper presents a structural equation model with three independent variables related to supply chain sustainability (Inbound sustainability, Internal sustainability, and Outbound sustainability) and two variables focused on external entity integration (Supplier integration and Customer integration). These variables are linked to three dependent sustainability indicators (Business performance, Social performance, and Environmental performance). The model’s hypotheses were validated using the partial least squares technique in WarpPLS v.7r software, based on data from 187 responses from managers and engineers in the Mexican maquiladora industry. The research aims to understand the relationships among variables to enhance performance through sustainable activities. The findings show that, due to the maquiladora industry’s nature, Supplier integration does not moderate the relationship between Inbound sustainability and Internal sustainability, and Customer integration does not moderate the relationship between Internal sustainability and Outbound sustainability. However, Business performance is highly influenced by Social performance, Environmental performance, Internal sustainability, and Outbound sustainability.