Towards a circular value chain: Circular economy strategies to facilitate circular business models : A case study of the value chain for electronic components

Sammanfattning: Purpose: This thesis aims to contribute to the literature on how the value chain for electronic components can be leveraged to obtain circular business models (CBM). By implementing activities in the value chain, circular economy (CE) can be enhanced and a circular value chain obtained. The purpose lies in mapping out activities in the value chain of electronic components and existing barriers to acknowledge where circularity can be increased by CE strategies. Based on this observation, the future path towards CBM will be facilitated. This thesis aims to answer the following research questions: What are the main barriers for a circular value chain in electronic components? and How can the transformation towards a CBM for electronic components be facilitated by a circular value chain?  Method: A qualitative case study has been carried out at Volvo CE. The study is of an abductive approach, where previous theories on CE strategies and value chains were utilised to understand how the transformation towards a CBM can be applied for electronic components. A literature review of the key concepts was conducted and primary data was collected through interviews and one focus group for validation. The data has been analysed through the use of a thematic analysis. Findings: Findings suggest that four areas are of high importance in a circular value chain for electronic components: management, technology department, suppliers relations and aftermarket. The main barriers hindering CE are insufficient objectives, inadequate external value chain integration, limited education, and inertia in technological development. Findings show that the barriers can be mitigated through enhancing CE in the following activities: strategy and organisational vision; cooperation and partners; education and qualifications; innovation and technical development. The result presents how the circular value chain is interconnected with a CBM, visualising how the key activities will facilitate the transformation towards a CBM.  Theoretical contributions & managerial implications: This thesis contributes to the scarcity of literature on value chains in electronic components and adds to research on the connection between value chains and circular business models. The thesis can act as guidance for managers when making the transformation towards a CBM, by highlighting how CE activities can be applied for a more circular value chain.  Limitations and future research: This is a single case study, making the study limited in how applicable the findings are to other industries and countries. Future studies can validate the result by examining value chains in similar companies, to improve the generalisability of our result. This thesis is limited to investigating the value chain from a strategic perspective and we acknowledge that a mapping of the operational value chain can be a matter for future research. We focus on collaboration, but operations that enhance CE in daily activities in production of electronic components are yet to be investigated.