Public Defence in Logistics, (e.g. MSc) Katie Kenny

The title of the doctoral thesis: Individual decision-making for social value: understanding behavior in purchasing and supply management

Doctoral student: Katie Kenny
Opponent: Professor Salomée Ruel, Excelia Business School 
Custos: Professor Katri Kauppi, Aalto University School of Business

Cost cutting is ingrained into buying functions via direct orders and incentive structures, which comes at a social cost. However, little is known about what drives decision makers to, alternatively, choose products with social value in mind. Supply managers do have agency in their boundary spanning roles and play a key role in sustainable supply chain decisions. This led Katie Kenny to ask the overarching question: What role can or do individuals play in achieving social outcomes at the supply chain level? In the first article, the mismatch between public healthcare goals and the practice of prioritizing cost efficiency in healthcare procurement was investigated. Unsurprisingly, managers are motivated by short-term financial incentives which prioritize cost over long-term impacts. As healthcare purchasing has increasingly become outsourced to professional purchasing organizations, the evidence highlighted a particular need for medical professionals to still be regularly part of these decisions. 
The second article explores the role of gender in purchasing decisions related to social sustainability. In a behavioral experiment using an agricultural supply chain context, female practitioners overall tended to make more sustainable decisions. However, one group was slightly more risk taking than male practitioners. It is still uncommon to find gender balanced supply management studies, making these findings more novel than they should be. 
The third article builds on empirical evidence of gender differences in social value behavior. To understand why, supply practitioners participated in q-sorting which measured whether they thought sustainable management behaviors reflected gender stereotypes.
Based on multiple rounds with different sample groups, sustainability management behaviors were more associated with femininity than masculinity. Additionally, female practitioners were more likely to recognize biases than males. Future research agendas are explored about how to better predict the sustainability benefits of gender equity in a field where it does not currently exist. The current lack of prioritization on social value and competencies needed for sustainability implementation has left organizations unprepared and unable to respond to growing regulatory and societal demands. Looking forward, this dissertation emphasizes the need for organizations to reevaluate purchasing policies and their management culture to better support sustainable decision making.

Keywords: sustainability, decision-making, social value, gender diversity and inclusion, purchasing and supply management, behavioral experiments, Q-sorting  

ZOOM: https://aalto.zoom.us/j/65794842546

Doctoral thesis available for public display 10 days prior to the defence at: will be informed later

Contact information: [email protected]