Appendix A: Participant Information Sheet and Consent

Dear Participant,

My name is Sami, and I am a student at NUST, Islamabad. I am conducting this research for my
Masters Thesis and the data will be used solely for that purpose. The topic is “The impact of
Green Supply Chain Practices on Sustainable Performance: Mediating role of Supply Chain
Visibility and Supply Chain Coordination moderated by Digital Traceability”. The
questionnaire involves questions on key study variables, which are (1) Green Supply Chain
Practices, (2) Supply Chain Visibility, (3) Supply Chain Coordination, (3) Digital Traceability,
and (4) Sustainable Performance Indicators.

Your participation in this survey is highly valuable in providing insights for this research. Please
be assured that all the information you provide will be treated with the utmost confidentiality.
Your responses will be completely anonymous, and no personally identifiable information will
be collected.
Your participation is entirely voluntary, and you are free to exit the survey at any point without
any consequences.

I appreciate your time and willingness to contribute to this research.

Do you understand and agree to participate?

o Yes
o No

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 Appendix B: Questionnaire

Please provide the following information about your organization and your position.
1. Job Position:
a. Owner / Founder / CEO
b. Senior Management (Director, VP, General Manager)
c. Middle Management (Department Head, Manager)
d. Supervisor / Team Lead
e. Operational Staff
f. Other (please specify: ________)
2. Company Type:
a. Food & Beverage
b. Textile & Apparel
c. Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals
d. Electronics & Electrical
e. Automotive & Parts
f. Leather Good
g. Rubber Manufacturing
h. Other Manufacturing (please specify: ________)
3. Company Age:

Less than 5 years

5–10 years

11–20 years

More than 20 years

4. Company Size:
a. Small (1–49 employees)
b. Medium (50–249 employees)
c. Large (250+ employees)1-5 years

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 Green Supply Chain Practices
(Zsidisin and Hendrick, 1998; Walton et al., 1998; Carter et al., 2000; Zhu et al., 2008)
Please indicate the extent of Not at all Low Neutral High Very
involvement of your company in high
the following activities.

Green Purchasing

1. The company procures products

or components made from
recycled materials as part of its
purchasing decisions.
2. The company intentionally
sources reused or refurbished
materials or components from
suppliers.
3. The company requires or prefers
environmentally friendly
packaging (e.g., recyclable or
biodegradable) from suppliers.
4. The company has implemented
specific operational procedures to
reduce material waste during
procurement and production.
5. The company has a documented
green purchasing policy that guides
supplier selection and procurement
decisions.

Internal Environment Management

1. Senior management actively
promotes and allocates resources to
support green supply chain
initiatives.
2. Mid-level managers encourage and
monitor the implementation of green
supply chain practices in daily
operations.
3. Different functional departments
work collaboratively to identify and
implement environmental
improvements.
4. The company integrates
environmental objectives into total
quality management processes.
5. The company conducts regular
environmental compliance checks
and internal audits.

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6. The company has obtained ISO
14001 certification for its
environmental management
practices.
7. The company has a formal
Environmental Management System
(EMS) that is actively implemented
and reviewed.
8. Mid-level managers are held
accountable for environmental
performance targets related to supply
chain activities.

Cooperation with customers

1. The company collaborates with
customers to jointly design products
with reduced environmental impact.
2. The company works with customers
to improve production processes that
reduce emissions, waste, or resource
use.
3. The company engages customers in
developing or adopting
environmentally friendly packaging
solutions.

Eco-design
1. The company designs products so
that materials can be easily separated
and recycled at end of life.
2. The company uses life-cycle
assessment to evaluate the
environmental impact of our
products.
3. The company designs products to
enable reuse of components or
materials after initial use.
4. The company designs products to be
easy to repair, upgrade, or maintain,
extending product life.

Reverse Logistics
1. The company utilizes third-party
service providers to manage the
collection and return of used or
defective products.
2. The company has an information or
tracking system to monitor returned

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 products throughout the reverse
logistics process.
3. The company provides formal
warranty and product return
programs to facilitate product
recovery.
4. The company follows defined
procedures to dispose of waste and
production residues in an
environmentally responsible manner.
5. The company disassembles returned
products to recover reusable
components or materials when reuse
is not possible.
6. The company designs its products to
minimize consumption of energy.

Supply Chain Coordination

(Sanders, 2008)
Please indicate the extent of involvement Not Low Neutral High Very
of your plant in the following activities. at all high

External (buyer)
1. Our plant jointly develops long-term
strategic plans with key buyers to align
supply chain objectives.
2. Our plant collaborates with buyers when
planning new products, services, or
programs.
3. Our plant involves buyers early in
product conception and design
decisions.
4. Our plant regularly shares operational
information (e.g., demand, inventory,
capacity) with buyers.
5. Our plant uses integrated information
systems or shared databases to exchange
data with buyers.
6. Our plant coordinates production
planning and scheduling with buyers to
meet demand requirements.

Internal (supplier)
1. Our plant engages key suppliers in long-
term strategic planning activities.
2. Our plant works jointly with suppliers to
plan new products or operational programs.

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3. Our plant involves suppliers in early stages
of product conception and design.
4. Our plant shares relevant operational
information (e.g., forecasts, inventory
levels, delivery requirements) with
suppliers.
5. Our plant coordinates production planning
and material requirements with suppliers.
6. Our plant uses integrated information
systems or shared databases to exchange
information with suppliers.

Supply Chain Visibility

(Wei & Wang, 2010)
Please indicate the complete information Very Low Neutral High Very high
that you exchange with the supplier in low
the following areas.

Learning
1. We exchange performance evaluation
information with the supplier.
2. New ideas are generally shared with the
supplier.
3. Different knowledge can be acquired
from the supplier
4. Different points of view are discussed in
our regular meeting with the supplier.
5. New insights are developed through
the joint decision-making process with
the supplier.
6. We exchange documents containing
valuable knowledge, which help to
improve our supply chain performance
with the supplier.

Coordination
1. We exchange detailed ordering
information, including quantities,
specifications, and delivery dates.
2. We share real-time or updated shipping
and delivery status information with
suppliers.
3. We exchange payment and invoicing
information to support timely financial
transactions.
4. We share transportation schedules and
logistics plans with suppliers.

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5. We exchange material requirement
information to support production and
replenishment planning.
6. We share order forecasts and demand
projections with suppliers.
7. We exchange production schedules and
capacity information with suppliers.

Sensing
1. We receive early information from
suppliers about upcoming changes in
products or services.
2. We exchange information related to
promotional activities and marketing plans
that may affect demand.
3. We share information about market
demand trends and future forecasts with
suppliers.
4. We exchange information on changes in
customer preferences or shifts in market
demand.

Digital Traceability
(Zhou et al., 2023)
To what extent has your firm Not To Moderate Large Fully
implemented the following digital at some extent implement
traceability capabilities? all extent ed
1. Our firm has clear digital visibility of
processes involved in producing
products across the entire supply chain.
2. Our firm can digitally trace the origin
and source of purchased materials
throughout the supply chain.
3. Our firm can track products across
distribution channels and sales processes
in real time or near real time.
4. Our firm can rapidly exchange and
transmit traceability data with supply
chain partners.
5. Our firm can conduct fast and accurate
product recalls using digital traceability
systems when required.
6. Our firm maintains accurate, accessible,
and secure digital records for traceability
information.
7. Our firm uses integrated digital systems

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 to manage, analyze, and optimize
traceability data across all supply chain
stages.

Sustainable Performance Indicators

(Tundys & Wiśniewski, 2023)
Please indicate the current level of your Very Low Neutra High Very
company’s performance in the following low l high
areas.

Environment
1. Adoption of environmentally friendly
transport solutions (e.g., low-emission
vehicles, route optimization).
2. Implementation of energy-efficient and
eco-friendly storage and warehousing
practices.
3. Use of cleaner production technologies and
resource-efficient processes in
manufacturing.
4. Application of environmentally sustainable
practices in distribution activities.
5. Use of environmentally friendly transport
solutions by supply chain partners.
6. Adoption of eco-efficient storage and
warehousing practices by supply chain
partners.
7. Use of cleaner and resource-efficient
production practices by supply chain
partners.
8. Application of sustainable distribution
practices by supply chain partners.
9. Reduction in the percentage of returned
products due to environmental or quality
improvements.
10. Overall impact of environmental
accounting or ecological balance-sheet
results on company decision-making.

Economic
1. Impact of changes in the economic
environment on company cost efficiency
and profitability.
2. Impact of taxation and regulatory costs on
company financial performance.
3. Proportion of transportation costs relative
to total operating costs.

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4. Proportion of production costs relative to
total operating costs.
5. Proportion of recycling and waste-
management costs relative to total
operating costs.
6. Proportion of storage and warehousing
costs relative to total operating costs.

Social
1. Effectiveness of company practices
promoting diversity, equal opportunity, and
non-discrimination.
2. Level of corporate social responsibility
(CSR) engagement toward employees,
communities, and stakeholders.
3. Effectiveness of employee motivation and
incentive programs in improving well-being
and retention.