A fuzzy goal programming approach for selecting sustainable suppliers

Purpose Due to the ever increasing concern toward sustainability, suppliers nowadays are evaluated on the basis of environmental performances. The data on supplier’s performance are not always available in quantitative form and evaluating supplier on the basis of qualitative data is a challenging task. The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework for the selection of suppliers by evaluating them on the basis of both quantitative and qualitative data. Design/methodology/approach Literature on sustainability, green supply chain and lean practices related to supplier selection is critically reviewed. Based on this, a two phase fuzzy goal programming approach integrating hyperbolic membership function is proposed to solve the complex supplier selection problem. Findings Results obtained through the proposed approach are compared to the traditional models (Jadidi et al., 2014; Ozkok and Tiryaki, 2011; Zimmermann, 1978) of supplier selection and were found to be optimal as it achieves higher aspiration level. Practical implications The proposed model is adaptive to solve real world problems of supplier selection as all criteria do not possess the same weights, so the managers can change the criteria and their weights according to their requirement. Originality/value This paper provides the decision makers a robust framework to evaluate and select sustainable supplier based on both quantitative and qualitative data. The results obtained through the proposed model achieve greater satisfaction level as compared to those achieved by traditional methods.