Knowledge Agora

Title	Identifying barriers and good practices for implementing circular economy principles in small and medium enterprises
ID_Doc	28984
Authors	Palombi, G; Schiaroli, V; Fraccascia, L; Nonino, F
Title	Identifying barriers and good practices for implementing circular economy principles in small and medium enterprises
Year	2024
Published
Abstract	Recently, the new industrial paradigm of circular economy (CE) has acquired increasing attention. In a CE, the value of materials is preserved by keeping them for as long as possible in the economic system, overcoming the "traditional" linear model (take-waste-disposal). Despite its benefits in terms of sustainability, there are still numerous barriers to the implementation of CE principles for companies, and specifically, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) find it difficult to integrate CE principles within their business models due to a shortage of resources. Hence, a qualitative multiple-case study involving four Italian companies implementing CE principles is conducted. The findings contribute to the development of CE principles in SMEs by proposing good practices, such as encouraging SMEs to engage in research projects to secure initial investments, expanding suppliers' networks to reduce the risk of limited by-product availability, and implementing organizational training on CE to enhance employees' awareness and skills.
PDF

Similar Articles

ID	Score	Article
2965		Prieto-Sandoval, V; Jaca, C; Santos, J; Baumgartner, RJ; Ormazabal, M Key strategies, resources, and capabilities for implementing circular economy in industrial small and medium enterprises(2019)Corporate Social Responsibility And Environmental Management, 26, 6
1018		Prieto-Sandoval, V; Torres-Guevara, LE; Ormazabal, M; Jaca, C Beyond the Circular Economy Theory: Implementation Methodology for Industrial SMEs(2021)Journal Of Industrial Engineering And Management-Jiem, 14, 3
1853		Mura, M; Longo, M; Zanni, S Circular economy in Italian SMEs: A multi-method study(2020)
1728		Rizos, V; Behrens, A; van der Gaast, W; Hofman, E; Ioannou, A; Kafyeke, T; Flamos, A; Rinaldi, R; Papadelis, S; Hirschnitz-Garbers, M; Topi, C Implementation of Circular Economy Business Models by Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs): Barriers and Enablers(2016)Sustainability, 8, 11
3719		Dey, PK; Malesios, C; De, D; Budhwar, P; Chowdhury, S; Cheffi, W Circular economy to enhance sustainability of small and medium-sized enterprises(2020)Business Strategy And The Environment, 29, 6
3704		Kondala, M; Nudurupati, SS; Pappu, RP The challenges in adoption of circular economy in SMEs - a research agenda and way forward(2024)Benchmarking-An International Journal, 31, 5
658		Ormazabal, M; Prieto-Sandoval, V; Santos, J; Jaca, C Guiding SMEs Towards the Circular Economy: A Case Study(2020)
2889		Howard, M; Yan, XY; Mustafee, N; Charnley, F; Böhm, S; Pascucci, S Going beyond waste reduction: Exploring tools and methods for circular economy adoption in small-medium enterprises(2022)
2714		Sharma, NK; Govindan, K; Lai, KK; Chen, WK; Kumar, V The transition from linear economy to circular economy for sustainability among SMEs: A study on prospects, impediments, and prerequisites(2021)Business Strategy And The Environment, 30, 4
4175		Dey, PK; Malesios, C; Chowdhury, S; Saha, K; Budhwar, P; De, D Adoption of circular economy practices in small and medium-sized enterprises: Evidence from Europe(2022)