This study sheds light on the sustainable competitive advantage of automotive firms in the U.S. It investigates the presence of sustainability for these firms by evaluating economic, social and environmental factors. In this study, we used data from 12 U.S.-based automotive firms. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first time that a relative multi-dimensional approach is used to measure the sustainability of automotive firms. A novel modified generalized directional distance function data envelopment analysis (GDDF DEA) program was used to measure efficiency and assess sustainability. Sustainable are the firms that achieve efficiency, which draws both on economic (i.e., total assets, inabilities, profits) and environmental variables (i.e., CO2 emissions), and are qualified in the social dimension (i.e., customers’ satisfaction) of sustainability. The results illustrate that five out of twelve automotive firms are deemed sustainable. Also, the environmental dimension of automotive firms’ operations is their major weakness towards the achievement of sustainability. Among the sample firms, Ford and General Motors are in need of the most significant modifications in their operations to become sustainable as their environmental performance is considerably weak.
Volume 12 | 02-Special Issue
Pages: 926-949
DOI: 10.5373/JARDCS/V12SP2/SP20201151