The Critical Role of Procurement in the Emergence of Circular Business Models: Insights from Multiple Cases of Vietnamese Manufacturers

Although the contribution of the procurement function to the development of a circular business model (CBM) in organisations has been recently acknowledged by, for example, ensuring compliance with the principles of a circular economy (CE) and supplier management with the consideration of non-financial aspects, there is a lack of an in-depth study that comprehensively investigates the potential of procurement in the transition toward circularity. By adopting a qualitative research approach based on four Vietnamese manufacturers, this paper aims to explore the role of procurement in the transition toward the CBM. This research suggests several contributions of the procurement function for facilitating the implementation of a CBM, including supporting recyclability and reusability, reducing waste, and enhancing ethical standards while aligning with the enterprise’s competitive strategy. As a result of this research, a circular procurement framework is introduced, which could motivate future research to expand the procurement function's contribution further toward CBM implementation in an organisation.