Sustainable E-commerce: Logistics & Supply Chain Analysis Study

This essay examines sustainable logistics within the electronic marketplace, addressing challenges arising from e-commerce growth and increased freight volumes in urban areas. It highlights the need for sustainable supply chain practices, including the integration of electric vehicles and collaboration among stakeholders. The study analyzes how companies can implement strategies like recycling policies, digital offices, waste energy reduction, and offset service charges to minimize their environmental impact. Furthermore, the essay explores factors influencing customer avoidance of e-banking in Oman and proposes solutions for creating a more sustainable e-commerce society by focusing on environmental, economic, and social sustainability dimensions.

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Abstract
The main aim of this current study is to bring to attention several sustainable conclusions for
logistics in urban regions. The contemporary issues for logistics in urban areas created through
the riese of freight quantities because of the improvement of the e-commerce, it is recognized by
the strategy laid out. To achieve them, organizations’ sustainable cultures shall be evaluated in
this study. Applying techniques of literature analysis and encounters from the continuing study
projects, this study discusses the urban circulation are yet thought little of component towards
more proficient transport forms; consequently financial benefit for organizations, towards the
lessening of an organization’s track what's more, even an improved benefit level for the
consumers
Task 1
1. Introduction
Sustainable urban logistics have gotten more consideration in the past era because of the ongoing
improvement in freight amount in e-commerce. Similarly, the internet has played a bigger role
through online shopping that has become a contemporary retail channel that is in the
arrangement with the world pattern of urbanization; it has resulted to improved business traffic,
congestions and thus pollution in locations with high population rates. Several organizations
already have brought sustainable proposals to lessen their environmental footprints both
regarding the sustainable manufacture and sustainable supply (Gielens et al., 2018, p. 132).
Concurrently new introduced electric powertrains in cars offer a straight chance to discharge free
transportation. Nevertheless, the innovation is mostly not considered with organizations
sustainable ideas, yet. The current study highlights major impacts and issues of e-commerce and

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a strategy directed to the sustainable urban logistics through applying electric automobiles and
through the additional incorporation of all stakeholders within the transport procession, which
communicates with organizations’ sustainable schemes.
E-commerce Challenges
Globally, e-commerce has gone through volatile development over the past decade, including in
Bank’s customer nations among the 30 most essential markets for e-commerce. According to
IPSOS (2017), China, India, and Indonesia are some of the countries with the highest frequency
of online shopping globally, among shoppers PR, N. (2013).
E-commerce presently gives off an impression of being one of the fastest creating notice
channels for different sorts of things and services for customers. Consumers that participate in
retail e-commerce exchange are never again limited by store hours, geographic marketing
regions, or index mailing records.
In addition, in light of the change of correspondence development, adaptable electronic business
(web based business) and online long range informal communication will rapidly get in
importance. Portable action to online business areas has extended from 3% to right around 37%
over the latest four years. Online long range interpersonal communication is progressing
comparatively, in 2015, 5% of all online retail pay is assessed to be inferable from electronic
informal communication, addressing a sizeable $14 billion. Additionally, cross-periphery
electronic shopping is worth $105 billion out of 2013 with 94 million clients routinely obtaining
from abroad locales. By 2018, this will augment just about 200% to $307 billion with 130
million cross-edge online clients (Themistocleous et al., 2015, p. 475).

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The purposes of the expressed advancements in web-based commerce are better costs, greater
assurance, solace, and time reserves. Regardless, on the grounds that the online stuffs are more
likely than not going to be packaged autonomously and hard to return them, a further addition of
web shopping will provoke more transports and a growing freight volume in a nearby area. It
may have some negative effects like stop up issues, common concern and action security et
cetera. To handle this issue, viable urban coordination courses of action are required in the
downtown territories
Indisputable from detached plans of activity, electronic business is portrayed by higher instinct,
all the live long day availability and subsequently an extended hugeness of coordination frames.
The key structures of various associations are not satisfactory to manage the new troubles.
Quick and adaptable deliverables: A positive movement (or return) experience is essential with a
particular true objective to make customers unwaveringness to e-retailers. Stresses with transport
remain an obstruction for clients shopping on the web for physical items, especially when
wanting to shop cross-edge. Also, versatility in movement region and flexibility in transport
availabilities are winding up logically material to buyers. Also, tends to help faster transportation
modes can grow fuel use exponentially and may provoke inefficiently utilized transport limits.
Home delivery: The basic result of electronic business is the changed sink of transport chains.
Significantly bundled shipments to retailers are substituted with far less bundled shipments to
end purchasers. Subsequently, retailer and creator ought to reconfigure their set up coordination
structures from joined shipments to little packages. This change is routinely censured for causing
extended action.

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Reverse co-ordinations: The increasing confronts backward co- astounding rate is in Germany
where 77% of online customers have arrived. The way it supports the exceptional yield rate in
Germany that most returns are complementary, particularly in the design section (Christopher,
2016, p. 25). Thus, web-based business advancement can't overlook proficient activities of invert
co-ordinations
The worldwide pattern of urbanization is disturbing the difficulties in online business. Because
of the expanded cargo volumes, the larger part of all descends in web-based business caused
transport chains are situated in town zones. Littler part extent and expanded cargo volumes are
progressively causing blockages and contamination in regions with the thick populace.
Accordingly, the overall population requests to limit the urban access of cargo vehicles, bringing
about a bottleneck for the further advancement of internet business. The coordination requires a
reasonable arrangement.
Sustainable Supply Chain Practices
Utilizing the Framework for Managing Sustainable Supply Chain Practices as a foundation,
information from 6 organizations was gathered to comprehend better which methodologies and
applications have been executed to conquer the manageability issues into their coordinations
forms created by web-based business activities. The chosen organizations are incorporated
moreover in the Newsweek Green Ranking or the Global Social Ranking, speaking to,
consequently standards of the shopper products manufacturing (Ramanathan, Bentley & Pang,
2014, p. 236). Data concerning organizations' application in the direction of a more manageable
production network was sought in their site and also accessible free self-distributions.

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The discoveries gave some intriguing bits of knowledge about the present conduct of
organizations from customer products industry, particularly the absence of specific speculations
that may bring about more practical activities while considering the difficulties escalated by
web-based business (Najjar et al., 2017, p. 12). The main finding was an absence of community-
oriented activities with providers, notwithstanding the way that the selected organizations put
fundamentally in provider determination and evaluate practices, for example, expecting them to
consent to particular maintainability rules. A few changes were unmistakable, for example, the
utilization of "near-shoring" or "back shoring" which intends to return tasks to their nation of
origin or nearer to home. This system enables lessening expenses and general outflows from
inbound to transport. Hide the more, rehearses identified with the administration were
tremendous (Garvey & Bolton, 2017, p. 290). All organizations have clear natural and social
benchmarks, for example, set of principles, and oversee maintainability, however, particular
divisions or cross utilitarian advisory groups. The interests in workers' preparation compensate
frameworks as indicated by their outcomes and corporate social advantages were broadly
announced. A large portion of the organizations is globally confirmed which may require the
foundation of estimation frameworks able to quantify hazard and wellbeing and also control the
KPIs and inward change targets. As activities are developed because of online business
exchange, clients are requesting more straightforwardness in organizations' tasks. An entrenched,
corporate administration framework assist firms with standardizing methods, increment control
and along these lines meet the requests

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Task 2
How Muscat can be made sustainable e-commerce society
Sustainability exists in three dimensions. These include environmental, economic, and social
sustainability. The concern, in this case, is how to make Oman’s e-commerce retail a more
sustainable. First and foremost, it is important to note that four features should be put into
consideration before embarking on the task of making the society a sustainable one (Akyelken,
2011, p. 548). These four features include creating value, creating balance, take accountability,
and being transparent. These four factors indicate that it is worth an organization taking a look at
the goods or services they provide. Durability, purpose, longevity, and reusability ought to all
bypass the sustainability test. Besides, how it is manufactured, designed or created also have a
say in the manner individual make e-commerce retail extra sustainable? Also, the logistics,
operations, and shipping linked to organizations business can have enormous influence
on sustainability too.
To make e-commerce more sustainable, some simple tools and actions need to be implemented.
These include recycling policies, the digital office, reduce waste energy, and reduce packaging,
creating an offset service charge option at the checkout, embracing the lessons learned and best
practices of the circular economy and scaling the effect (Thamsatitdej et al., 2017, p. 330).

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a) Recycling Policies
There are various policies that organizations can embark on to reduce the wastage levels every
day. One of the fastest means or solutions to invest in recycling bins in the workplace for paper
waste, plastic, drinks, cans, cartridges, toners a glass. An important tip is take away personal bins
under employee members’ desk and has a single recycling and waste stations. Employees will
have to do away with the character of just throwing litters away without considering how they
dispose of the waste at their workstations (Hazen, 2014, p. 377). It is a habit that is practiced in
homes, why is it difficult to implement it at the office?
b) The digital office
Improvements in innovation are also assisting to reduce the quantity of waste that comes from
papers being used in the office. As a result, it helps the organization in their bid to become more
ecologically friendly. For instance, through the application of cloud computing services such as
Dropbox, organizations can lower the quantity of paper they are consuming by keeping
documents and forms electronically (Gechevski et al., 2016, p. 70). Information can be safely
saved and backed up remotely which can then be accessed by staffs wherever they are. Through
doing away with the need for corporeal paperwork, this strategy assists to lower operating costs
and increase productivity.
c) Reduce waste energy
Lowering the quantity of energy that is consumed in the place of work also goes a long way to
lowering an organization’s carbon hoof marks. Making slight adjustments such as switching off
machines when not in operation and embarking on low energy lighting and lowering the high

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temperature in the office can considerably decrease energy bills. Besides, they can subsequently
make an organization more energy proficient.
d) Reducing Packaging
Packing is one of the areas that have a lot of issues, especially with manufacturing industries.
Companies should use less packaging materials on the products and consumers as well should
reuse the materials specifically materials for cushioning. It is also advisable to return the
packaging materials to the local shipping stores for recycling. These wastes include corrugated
and other materials such as polyethene films.
e) Creating an offset service charge
Giving online shoppers an optional offset charge is one of the major ways to offset certain
connected footprints amassed from the manufacturing and buying of the organization’s product
(Paulraj, Chen & Blome, 2017, p. 255). The organization needs to settle on a reputable carbon
offset project to distribute the funds collected. It is a significant way to illustrate clients that the
business is committed to making an effect alongside.
Task 3
Factors that are involved in customers avoiding E-Banking in Oman
The rapid development of the Internet and its application daily has risen and increased the
demand for online services in each sector. It is a fresh movement that has shaped the market and
the business connections between organizations and people (Morali & Searcy, 2013, p. 650).
Interest in electronic commerce and the electronic marketplace has been widely emphasized in

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other regions and yet there are various interesting improvements taking place in the Arab Gulf
area, and it has gotten little attention.
E-commerce has experienced different challenges in Gulf region, specifically Oman due to the
following reasons;
Majority of the mobile phone users are not aware of the concept of the M-commerce services due
to lack of publicity as well as marketing campaigns to make them known to the public. Similarly,
very many people are unaware of the advantages that come with e-commerce service. Also,
many users are not comfortable making use of their phones and are not even enthusiastic or have
no interest to attempt the newly introduced service (Ahmad et al., 2017, p. 577). On the other
hand, the slow response from the network service providers is also a contributing factor that
discourages the users in making good use of e-commerce services. Lastly, it comes with a cost,
for instance, when sending an SMS or MMS to access the services may seem expensive to some
users thus making them avoid the use of e-banking.
Conclusion
The rising significance of this delivery channel results in enlarged freight quantities, especially in
urban areas, thus increased congestion and affluence in those locations while sustainability is
becoming more significant to the consumer. Based on the discussion given in this study, there
are indications of ease of application, importance, safety, and trust which are all positively
influencing the adoption and application of e-banking services in Oman. The presence of these
powerful factors will have a say toward promoting the notions of the end-users to take up the

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accessible online services which will give confidence to numerous users to do nearly all of the
business online, and that will assist several stakeholders to hoard moment in time and efforts.

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