A supply chain model involves dynamic networks of purposeful coordination and cooperation among all chain partners. This multi-faceted issue arises from the execution of environmental operations in an organization. Environmental management principles involve how organizations pay attention to the environment and minimize its harmful effects. They also include policies and implementing protocols to minimize waste or greenhouse gases. These principles are usually presented in the form of standards, such as the international standard ISO14000. These standards provide a framework for organizations to implement an Environmental Management System (EMS) [22]. The GSC is a company’s responsibility from raw materials to final consumption and disposal [23]. Operational activities lead to the consumption of natural resources and the creation of carbon and inevitable pollution. According to the literature, the foremost objective of the GSC process is to excrete various types of waste and reduce ecological impacts at different stages [24]. Applying an environmental management strategy and approach makes a GSC out of a regular supply chain [25]. The literature also underlines the main contrast between a typical supply chain and a green one: the former focuses primarily on economic and commercial factors. In contrast, new supply chains mix profitability with accomplishing long-run environmental objectives [26]. Overall, the present article describes the GSC as environmental processes including reverse logistics, design, manufacture, consumption, and production [27], [9].

GSC integration concerns strategic cooperation between partners and companies and their collaborative management [8]. Internal integration is a strategic path by which companies implement environmental goals in their management strategies and processes. Using this method allows allocating companies’ internal resources in an electronic process. Accordingly, companies tend to execute environmental management throughout the organization’s operations and focus on its continuous tracking and monitoring. Green internal integration covers three major sectors: 1) merging ecological targets and authorities into business practices and managerial rewards, as well as maintaining a balance between business and ecological targets; 2) creating an integrated system that aligns environmental goals in the business decisions and human resources for its various purposes; and 3) interoperability, coordination, and cooperation across the supply chain network tiers as effective measures in reducing ecological pollutions. The green suppliers are integrated to regulate the relationship with suppliers based on the implementation of green management. As a result, the suppliers can develop the company’s sustainability approaches while participating in the realization of environmental goals [28], [29]. By analyzing the literature connected to GSC integration, the relevant research covers three main areas: The first category evaluates suppliers from an environmental point of view. It means that companies select suppliers according to environmental criteria. In this category, the regular performance of suppliers is evaluated according to environmental requirements [30]. The second category includes the development of ecological culture through the provision of targeted instructions and guidance, conducting workshops, conferences, and educational seminars and alerting suppliers, notifying them about the advantages of green production alternatives and technologies, and visiting sites of teams’ environmental suppliers to strengthen the green orientation in supply methods and direct them to develop environmental programs. The third category includes green cooperation with suppliers, in which the manufacturers call suppliers to take part directly in its environmental activities [31]. Chiou et al. [32] defined the supplier’s environmental guidance and assessment as a green supplier. According to the literature, the prime dimensions of this issue are the use of greenness of suppliers and green collaboration with them [33].

SCR specifies adaptability to recuperate from an unsatisfactory performance level to a planned performance level and aims to reduce the effects of disruption and recuperation as quickly as possible. Readiness, agility, and alertness are the three main components of SCR [34]. Adaptation speed takes many forms in the supply chain. In resilience, speed is regarded as the speed of recovery or adaptation after a disruption. Higher speeds lead to faster tactical, operational, and strategic decisions and faster adaptation to market changes [6], [35]. Regarding the importance of flexibility, the resilient supply chain is an essential topic in research in this field. SCR is the ability to proactively plan and design the supply chain network to anticipate unpredicted disruptions and give an adaptive response to the disruptions simultaneously by controlling the structures and functions. Beyond that, to a stable state or in case it is possible to reach a more favorable state, the result of resilience is gaining a competitive advantage. In this respect, Hamidieh and Arshadi [34] reinforce the SCR against the increasing uncertainty of demand by considering the safety stock in strategic warehouses and strategic inventory in the regional distribution hubs. Besides, these authors significantly reduce energy consumption in the field of network logistics. Shin and Park [36] have proposed a model based on leader interactions with supply chain members to describe the critical effect of supply chain leadership on resilience capabilities. Capabilities, including alertness, agility, flexibility, and efficiency, are the main dimensions of resilience. Qadir et al. [37] studied the impact of Industry 4 technologies on supply chain performance. They stated that supply chain visibility strengthens the SCR and applies a moderating impact between SCR and technologies related to Industry 4. Also, these technologies improve supply chain performance through SCR. Belhadi et al. [38] presented a model to study the impact of developing dynamic capabilities on the resilience and efficiency of the supply chain. These capabilities included sensing, reconfiguring, and resizing. They also stated that additional manufacturing technology lays the foundation for developing dynamic capabilities and provides a synergistic improvement of the SCR and efficiency. SCR relies on proactive and reactive approaches. Supply chains must enhance their compatibility capacity to be prepared for unexpected and hazardous events. Since the early 2000s, researchers have proposed procedures to advance resilience by upgrading versatility, efficiency, adaptability, and coherence [39].

According to the existing literature, while measuring the amount of profit, we assessed a four-point scale from Cheng and Lu [15] for the reactive and proactive aspects. In sample cases, we can again meet the customer’s needs to guarantee that the supply chain will always function properly.

Supply chain partners are better integrated. The supplier is at the beginning of the supply chain. In this regard, there are various methods for supplier management, such as evaluating and selecting suppliers [22], cooperating with suppliers, and increasing them [40]. However, most of these methods have focused on the manufacturers and do not consider the participation of suppliers. The consensus between the company and its suppliers has made the researcher consider the integration of green suppliers [41].

A company cannot achieve SCR independently because it needs suppliers’ support. In this study, we hypothesize that supplier integration positively affects proactive and RDs. Organizations need knowledge and data to develop creative ideas for ecological disasters [42]. From the knowledge-based perspective, information is the company’s primary resource and provides the basis for winning in the market. One of the main processes for GSI is to help companies coordinate the deployment of valuable resources and know-how across organizational boundaries [43].

Integrating suppliers encourages interaction. In addition, GSI helps settle disputes between the company and suppliers, thereby improving the company’s efficiency in dealing with environmental issues. Hence, companies can improve environmental issues with SCR and supplier integration.

With an increase in attention to environmental issues, there is a growing demand for environmentally friendly goods. Along with the environmental responsibility of the manufacturer, the environmental responsibility of companies has also become a principle for the supply chain. Companies may benefit from consumer rewards for supporting environmental programs in this respect. In practice, many retailers are responsible for environmental issues [44].

Research has shown that specific environmental ideas greatly encourage sustainable development. First, specific environmental ideas reinforce the sustainability approach throughout the GSC. These ideas are classified into three axes: 1) the development of new products with the ability to recycle; and 2) environmental innovations that lead the supply chain toward clean operations; and green process innovations that improve environmental performance [45]. Companies must adopt appropriate governance and regulations unless they cannot effectively foster environmental innovation through partnerships with green suppliers. Most companies prefer a controllable agreement because they can ensure cooperation with suppliers under different circumstances.

Furthermore, social responsibility programs in the GSC pursue integrating economic and social issues and developing environmental programs with stakeholders. Hence, environmental performance is considered the main approach to corporate social responsibility [46]. Environmental performance is formed based on the convergent development of the company’s economic and environmental interests, which creates a competitive advantage for companies in the market. Therefore, developing environmental performance evaluation criteria improves the position of the final product in the market. Regarding the mentioned points, organizations are trying to improve environmental performance based on the missions, goals, and environmental criteria according to the structure of their GSC.

Knowledge management is among the main factors of competitive advantage in economic enterprises. This concept includes a set of technologies and resources that transform information and data into sustainable value through transfer, production, combination, and organization [47]. However, its crucial effect on the supply chain is the effective organization of customer-supplier communication and support of decision-making processes, thereby leading to supply chain integration. The competitive advantage of organizations is directly influenced by knowledge creation, identification, sharing, and use of knowledge [48]. The creation and production of knowledge are among the primary processes of knowledge management in the supply chain. These factors are estimated based on the level of development of knowledge resources throughout the operational and task levels of supply chain networks. Overall, these resources are classified into two types: implicit and explicit.

Explicit knowledge is a piece of documented knowledge that can be accessed, transferred, coded, and recorded in databases. On the other hand, implicit (tacit) knowledge is rooted in the experiences, skills, and personal knowledge of the organization’s people. In general, four methods (i.e., socialization, externalization, internalization, and combination) have been proposed for creating and sharing knowledge [49]. Individual sharing and transfer of knowledge at the organizational level imply socialization. To facilitate knowledge dissemination at the organizational level, it is imperative to focus on externalizing knowledge. However, sorting and combining the applied sources of knowledge accelerates the process of creating and developing knowledge at the organizational level. Furthermore, shared across the supply chain network or organization and becomes a part of the knowledge of various organizational roles [50].

Improper sourcing, the bullwhip effect, and the destruction of supply chain integration are among the effects of non-optimal use of knowledge integration at different supply chain levels. Hence, combining and classifying knowledge improves supplier selection processes and develops optimal sourcing [51]. Thus, combining knowledge helps companies benefit more from integrating green suppliers. In this context, a firm’s knowledge seems to be an essential complement to the integrity of its green supplier. A company with a high ability to combine knowledge and GSI is more successful in SCR.

Lack of resources, environmental concerns, pollution, sustainable use of resources, and increasing customer awareness of environmentally friendly products encourage organizations to create GI and management [52]. GI is among the most severe types of environmental strategies. From an environmental perspective, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) are among the most critical industries in developing environmental concerns. Recent articles see GI as the kind of creativity that companies employ to redesign their products and customer service. They also continue production processes by minimizing negative ecological impacts [53]. Companies applying a green entrepreneurship approach create value for customers and environmentally friendly products and services through innovation. Entrepreneurial companies, such as SMEs, are committed to accepting risks to be the first companies to provide new products, services, and operational technologies. In other words, they have a positive attitude to accomplish innovative strategies. Organizations that employ green methods in their activities can move forward in the market by asking a higher price for their green products and entering newer markets in terms of strategic management [54].

GI enables companies, banks, and governments to harmonize their decision-making in acquiring knowledge from preparing this direction.

On the other hand, it patronizes manufacturers to possess long-term contracts with their suppliers based on mutual trust [55]. Organizations may exchange information relevant to green technology, contribute knowledge and GI in better formulation of green technology programs, and boost innovation to progress green products and services of companies. Supply chain partners may set forth different ideas, information, and resources. In other words, when companies are positive toward producing green products, GI can progress in the supply chain. Innovation can be achieved by redesigning processes and developing research and development measures, reducing transaction and tax costs for buying and importing green equipment and machinery, and developing environmental monitoring systems to recognize and monitor pollution and ecological hazards [56].

To show the available gaps in the literature and novelties of the current research model, Table 1 presents a more detailed classification of the literature.

As shown in Table 1, this paper examines the determinants of supply chain environmental performance with the presence of reactive and preventive dimensions of SCR. The conceptual model of the research, which is extracted from the theoretical foundations of the investigated research, is presented in the form of Fig. 1. This figure was prepared using the models of Ji et al. [42] and Farbod and Hamidieh [60]. Also, the hypotheses of this research are proposed in a model presented in Fig. 1.

H1. Green supplier integration positively affects the reactive and PDs of SCR.

H2. The Proactive Dimension (PD) of SCR positively affects environmental performance.

H3. The RD of SCR affects environmental performance.

H4. The reactive and PDs of SCR mediate between environmental performance and Green supplier integration.

H5. The combination of knowledge modulates the effects of Green supplier integration on the reactive and PDs of SCR.

H6. GI mediates between environmental performance and Green supplier integration.

This stage specifies whether the perceived variables accurately measure the theoretical concepts. For this purpose, the construct model validity is examined using two convergence and divergence validity criteria. Table 3 shows that the factor loads of variables’ all dimensions are greater than 0.4, suggesting the good validity of the Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and the well-explained structures of all dimensions.

Convergent validity criteria are extracted variance and Cronbach’s alpha. The values obtained from Tables 3 and 4 for these two indicators are greater than 0.5 and 0.7, respectively. On the other hand, the absolute value of the significant number obtained for all items is higher than 1.96, suggesting that the convergent validity of the research tool is within the acceptable range.

Divergent validity is evaluated using the Fornell and Lanker criterion. This criterion is calculated by putting the root of the extracted variance’s mean instead of 1 in the principal diameter of the correlation coefficient matrix. From Table 5, it is inferred that this value for each variable is greater than the correlation of one structure with others. Hence, the research tool has satisfactory divergent validity.

The desirability of the calculated composite reliability, factor loads, differential validity, and convergence validity proves the fit of the research measurement model.

This research applied variance-based structural equations and ANNRBF to fit the conceptual model. The analysis of variance-based structural equations showed that the variables of GI, knowledge composition, green supplier integrity, RDs, and resilience prevention had a direct and productive effect on environmental performance. After fitting the research model with the variance-based structural equation approach and the RBF neural network, GI had the highest impact on environmental performance in both approaches. Both approaches could predict environmental performance. RMSE criterion was used to evaluate the fitted model with these two approaches. Fig. 8 shows that RMSE is 0.015 for RBF and 0.547 for the variance-based structural equation. Hence, the neural network method can predict environmental performance with much less error and be used as an optimal model.