Circular Business Models and Strategies - The Key to Sustainable Business and Innovative Supply Chains

The circular economy can protect companies against resource scarcity and price volatility, creating opportunities for the development of innovative and efficient methods of production and consumption. It also involves the creation of local jobs, opportunities for social integration, energy savings and the prevention of irreversible damage, as a result of consuming resources faster than the Earth's resilience.

The concept of circular economy has recently emerged as a political goal, in a context of rising resource prices and climate change. However, the idea is more often criticized, questioned than celebrated. In a circular economic model, waste becomes a resource to be recovered and revalued through recycling and reuse. In this context, 5 circular economy models are emerging and spreading rapidly in organizations, namely: circular supply chains, recovery and recycling, product life cycle extension, shared platforms and product as a service. However, companies looking to adopt these circular models will have to develop new business models at the expense of linear thinking. Such models help companies to improve differentiation, in reducing costs, in generating new revenues, in reducing risks as well as in reducing the impact on the supply of virgin resources.

The adoption of these five circular business models has grown substantially in the past decade, although there are still many perspectives for change. Initially, innovation via the circular business model was driven by start-ups. Now, large multinationals are making grandiose moves well illustrated by a joint study by Accenture and the United Nations Global Compact, which found a third of global CEOs looking to employ circular economy models.

This Research Topic seeks to contribute to the advancement of knowledge and theory in building a circular economy. Focusing on using risk management artifacts, digital transformation mechanisms, and supported circular supply chains.

Manuscripts should focus on the following topics, but not limited to:

• Circular Economy Transformation in supply chains and organizations

• Circular business model in supply chains and organizations

• Digital transformation and circular economy;

• Industry 4.0 and circular economy

• Artificial intelligence and digital economy

• Finance supply chain management and circular economy

• Resource recovery and circular economy

• Social aspects of circular economy

• Contributions of circular economy to sustainable development goals

• Platform economy

• Implementing circular economy • Sharing platforms

The Research Topic welcomes both theoretical submissions (include literature reviews) and empirical research (such as, survey research, case studies, ethnography, action research, event studies, interviews, design science or experiments) with a clear theoretical and empirical contribution.