ISO 14000 certification and investments in environmental supply chain management practices: identifying differences in motivation and adoption levels between Western European and North American companies

The adoption of an environmental management system (EMS) such as ISO 14000 is generally assumed to be part of a wider effort to reduce the supply chain’s environmental impacts. EMS can be divided into externally certified systems such as ISO 14000 and investments in internal EMS programs. It has been suggested that the adoption and implementation patterns for these systems vary based on motivational differences. Furthermore, there is also evidence suggesting that these motivational differences might lead to differences in EMS investment patterns between organizations situated in North America and Western Europe. This research explores differences in EMS adoption and investments in North America and Western Europe to gain a greater understanding of companies’ environmental motivations. More specifically, through survey data this research explores the differences in ISO 14000 certification and environmental supply chain investment levels between Western European and North American companies. Our results indicate that ISO 14000 is universally adopted as part of wider efforts to reduce supply chain environmental impacts, not as a legitimating tool.