•  
  •  
 

Abstract

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals have been widely adopted and implemented by organizations worldwide. However, with 17 goals and 169 targets, the decision on what to focus on and invest in are not trivial tasks. This research focuses on a major Tier-1 automotive supplier, here identified as CMF. With annual sales of 16 billion euros (2021), one in every three vehicles in the world is equipped with some form of CMF technology. The objective of this research was to evaluate CMF’s value chain and understand the challenges and opportunities related to the United Nations 17 Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs). To fulfill this goal considering that sustainability is better understood when evaluated across the supply chain, we investigated 41 companies that were part of CMF’s supply chain, including 14 customers that together represented about 70% of CMF’s revenue, 14 suppliers, 9 competitors, and 4 other OEMs indirectly related to CMF’s supply chain. A mixed-methods approach was adopted. Primary data was collected involving interviews and site visits in the US and Europe. Thousands of pages of companies’ reports were used as secondary data and analyzed using qualitative and quantitative approaches. Results show that CMF’s customers focus mostly on SDGs #7 (71%), #9 (71%), and #13 (71%). Suppliers’ main focus was on SDGs #12 (77%), #13 (69%), #11 (38%), and #3 (38%). CMF’s competitors’ main focus was on SDGs #13 (88%), #12 (77%), and #6 (66%). Taking all of that into consideration as well as CMF’s strategic position within its value chain, we provided recommendations for CMF going forward to focus on three main SDGs. With respect to aligning specific goals highlighted throughout the supply chain, SDG 13 Climate Action is the area of highest overlap. Considering CMF’s strategy to become a leader in sustainability across the supply chain, SDG 4 Quality Education and SDG 17 Partnerships for the Goals were also identified as the main focus.

Download
COinS