Strategic Management Report: Ethical Manufacturing and Supply Chain

This report analyzes the contemporary strategic management challenges faced by clothing manufacturing corporations, particularly in the context of ethical practices and sustainable supply chain management. The report highlights the pressure on US-based companies to avoid outsourcing to developing nations, emphasizing the importance of addressing issues like employment laws, sweatshop production, and unsafe working conditions. It examines the evolving customer perspectives, with a growing preference for ethically produced goods, especially among millennials. The implementation of Sustainable Supply Chain Management (SSCM) policies is presented as a key strategy for avoiding unethical practices, with guidelines from organizations like the ILO and United Nations. The report also discusses the increasing scrutiny from governments in developing nations, which are imposing stricter laws and penalties on companies that engage in unethical practices. The evaluation of several sources, including studies by Ma, Lee & Goerlitz (2016), Islam, Haque, Dissanayake, Leung & Handley (2015), Khurana & Ricchetti (2016), and others, supports the report's arguments. The report emphasizes the importance of mandatory disclosures, transparency in operations, and the adoption of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) structures to resolve the issues raised in the case study.

Contemporary
Strategic
Management

Change in regulations
 The case study highlights the requirement of change in
regulations to avoid unethical manufacturing
procedures.
 Clothing manufacturing corporations in the United
States are facing pressure on an international level to
avoid outsourcing their process to developing nations
(Ma, Lee & Goerlitz, 2016).
 They have evaluate factors such as employment laws,
exploitation, sweatshop production and unsafe working
conditions.
 Mandatory disclosures and transparency in operations
have imposed an obligations on major corporations in
the US (Islam, Haque, Dissanayake, Leung & Handley,
2015).

Customer Perspective
 The perspective of customers have changed
towards expensive clothes which are produced
unethically in the US.
 73 percent millennial prefer to pay extra for
sustainable products (Curtin, 2018).
 It has become socially unacceptable to wear
clothes which are manufactured through
unethical mediums.
 The case study highlight that although some
benefits are received by workers, however,
these unethical practices are detrimental in the
long run (Ukoha, 2013).

Sustainability Supply Chain
Management (SSCM)
 Implementation of SSCM policies enable
corporations in avoiding unethical practices in
supply chain (Khurana & Ricchetti, 2016).
 International Labour Organisation (ILO) and
United Nations has provided various guidelines
for companies relating to labour conditions,
human rights, health and safety, child labour
and others (MacCarthy & Jayarathne, 2012).
 A burden has imposed on large clothing
manufacturers which operates in the US such as
Zara, H&M and GAP to adopt this strategy.

Stricter Laws by local
governments
 The governments in developing nations are
becoming more stricter to avoid unethical
practices of international corporations.
 They impose penalties and fines on companies
that engage in child labour, unhealthy working
conditions, and exploitation of labour.
 It has become mandatory to implement
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) structure
in companies (Perry, Wood & Fernie, 2015).
 Compliance with these policies would assist in
resolving the issues raised in the case study.

Evaluation of Sources
 The study of Ma, Lee & Goerlitz (2016) is good as per the
CRAP test because it is recent, reliable, credentials and
purposed to evaluate unethical practices of clothing
brands.
 It highlights the pressure which is imposed on clothing
brands to ensure that they comply with ethical
manufacturing process.
 Islam, Haque, Dissanayake, Leung & Handley (2015)
showed that mandatory compliance with regulations has
become important for organisations. This information is
current and reliable.
 As per Ukoha (2013), the changing perspective of
customers is the key to avoid unethical practices which
highlight credentials from clothing brands that outsource
their work.

Evaluation of Sources
 Khurana & Ricchetti (2016) highlighted the
importance of SSCM and it role in clothing industry to
avoid unethical practices.
 As per CRAP test, this study is current, reliable,
reputable and without biases.
 As per McCarthy & Jayarathne (2012), corporations
can achieve success while adopting this model which
makes it a win-win situation for everyone. This study
is not current, however, it is based on facts.
 According to Perry, Wood & Fernie (2015), the
government of developing nations are becoming
aware in order to avoid unethical practices by
multinational brands.

References
 Curtin, M. (2018) 73 Percent of Millennials are Willing to Spend More Money on
This 1 Type of Product. Retrieved from https://www.inc.com/melanie-curtin/73-
percent-of-millennials-are-willing-to-spend-more-money-on-this-1-type-of-
product.html
 Khurana, K., & Ricchetti, M. (2016). Two decades of sustainable supply chain
management in the fashion business, an appraisal. Journal of Fashion Marketing
and Management, 20(1), 89-104.
 Ma, Y. J., Lee, H. H., & Goerlitz, K. (2016). Transparency of global apparel supply
chains: Quantitative analysis of corporate disclosures. Corporate Social
Responsibility and Environmental Management, 23(5), 308-318.
 MacCarthy, B. L., & Jayarathne, P. G. S. A. (2012). Sustainable collaborative
supply networks in the international clothing industry: a comparative analysis
of two retailers. Production Planning & Control, 23(4), 252-268.
 Perry, P., Wood, S., & Fernie, J. (2015). Corporate social responsibility in
garment sourcing networks: Factory management perspectives on ethical trade
in Sri Lanka. Journal of Business Ethics, 130(3), 737-752.
 Ukoha, C. (2013). Business ethics, corporate social responsibility and the
outsourcing of garment production: Theoretical perspectives. Business &
Management Review, 3(2), 10-13.