Environmental management systems: Implications for operations management and firm performance

To date, definitional ambiguity surrounds Environmental Management Systems (EMS). This research defines the construct of an EMS and tests several posited relationships to operations management and firm performance. With research in the area of environmental business being relatively new, this dissertation develops a new and strong theoretical foundation for the EMS construct.;The objectives of the research are to define an EMS and test the direct and indirect effects between the status of an EMS and firm performance. These objectives will be accomplished through the exploration of the following research questions. (1) Is there an EMS construct? (2) What is the impact of EMS on operations performance?;Working from the existing theory of industrial organizations, the resource based view of the firm and corporate social performance, the research presented in this dissertation posits and tests several theoretical linkages between the EMS construct, uncertainty, environmental practices, and firm performance. In addition to investigating theoretical linkages between EMSs and firm performance, the expected scholarly contribution includes building theory by answering the following subordinate, but critical questions: (1) What are the sources of uncertainty for the development of an integrated EMS? (2) What is the relationship between EMSs and environmental practices a firm pursues? For the context of this research, the environmental practices will be limited to design, manufacturing, and waste practices. The mediated relationships between EMSs and perceived firm performance demonstrate interesting indirect relationships that have not yet been explored. (3) Is an integrated EMS an example of resource productivity? (4) How do factors such as end sales (% of sales to end consumer), amount of export, European exports, ownership, and resources (size, sales, etc.) impact the "State of the EMS"?;A multi method approach operationalizes and tests EMS relationships with uncertainty, environmental practices, and firm performance. The primary approach to testing relationships is that of structural equations modeling using survey data. The survey is complimented with follow up interviews and field visits with managers at eight firms.;The results of this research are of interest to both academic colleagues and managers in the field in that it eliminates confusion about what exactly is an EMS, and demonstrates both direct and indirect relationships to operations performance such as lower costs, improved quality and flexibility. The results presented in this dissertation demonstrate the development of a new theory, which explains how EMS, as a new operations management capability, leverages firm performance. The results suggest that efforts should be coordinated to take advantage of the benefits of EMSs, while also objectively assessing the environmental options available to a firm.