A Novel Framework for Quantifying the Social Sustainability of RFID Deployments

Abstract

While the economic and environmental impacts of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) deployments have been extensively studied, their effects on employee working conditions, remain largely unexplored in the literature. This paper addresses this gap by proposing a methodology to quantify the social sustainability of RFID deployments. The methodology employs two key indicators derived from a questionnaire administered to employees utilizing RFID technology in their daily tasks. The first indicator, adapted from the Net Promoter Score (NPS), measures employees’ propensity to recommend RFID implementation. The second is an analytic index, based on a modified Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS), which assesses the impact of RFID systems on four pillars: empowerment, enrichment, engagement, and manage & control. A case study of a fashion retail company that implemented RFID technology across its retail stores and headquarters validates the methodology. Results demonstrate that RFID deployment led to significant improvements in all four dimensions, notably increasing employee satisfaction, collaboration, support, commitment and productivity. Indeed, results show that employees who are using RFID in their daily work would recommend the adoption to friends and colleagues who do not. This general-purpose framework can be applied to any organization implementing RFID technology, providing a valuable and extensible tool for assessing the ‘People Return on Investment’ (PROI).