Application of ISM to Identify the Contextual Relationships between the Sustainable Solutions Based on the Principles and Pillars of Industry 4.0: A Sustainability 4.0 Model for Law Offices

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

The paper deals with identifing of sustainable solutions based on the Industry 4.0 principles in services. The Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) was used as a research  methodology. There were identified and analyzed factors related to I4.0 that have positively impacted the sustainability of organizations in innovation and competitive advantages. I can state that the used research methods are appropriate and correspond to the expected results.

In order to improve the quality of the paper, I suggest editing the text with a reference to the citation so that the new paragraph in the text does not start with e.g. [24] applied..., or parentheses with literature citations should not be placed at the beginning of the sentence.

Furthermore, I propose to modify the first column of the Table 1 for the sake of clarity: each new pillar of Industry 4.0 should always be placed in a new line.

Author Response

We would like to thank you very much for your comments and contributions.

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 2 Report

This paper aims to identify sustainable solutions based on the principles and pillars of Industry 4.0 in services, specifically in the context of a law firm. The authors use Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) to identify the contextual relationships between these solutions. The research is classified as exploratory and qualitative. The authors discuss the importance of prioritizing these solutions to achieve positive results in the organization. They also note that there are few studies relating Industry 4.0 technologies to sustainability in the service sector, making it challenging for companies to prioritize the most important factors in their competitive strategies. Overall, the paper provides a conceptual model of Sustainability 4.0 for service companies and highlights the potential benefits and challenges of using Industry 4.0 technologies to achieve sustainability goals in services.

The findings of this work are that Industry 4.0 technologies can be used to achieve sustainability goals in the service sector, specifically in the context of a law firm. The authors propose a conceptual model of Sustainability 4.0 for service companies and highlight the potential benefits and challenges of using Industry 4.0 technologies to achieve sustainability goals in services. They also identify the contextual relationships between these solutions using Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) and provide insights into how organizations, in particular law firms, can adopt more sustainable practices in their operation.

The contribution of this work is that it provides a strategic reference for companies that wish to adopt Industry 4.0 technologies in a more sustainable way. The paper highlights the importance of prioritizing sustainable solutions to achieve positive results in the organization and offers a conceptual framework for Sustainability 4.0. The authors also note that there are few studies relating Industry 4.0 technologies to sustainability in the service sector, making this work a valuable contribution to the field.

Overall, the paper provides a valuable contribution to the field of sustainability and Industry 4.0 in the service sector. However, there is room for improvement in terms of methodology, practical implications, and limitations:

1. The sample size of the study is limited to a single law firm manager. Future research recommendation should discuss this issue and suggest involving a larger sample size to increase the generalizability of the findings.

2. The paper could benefit from a more detailed explanation of the ISM methodology used to identify the contextual relationships between sustainable solutions of I4.0. This would help readers better understand the methodology and its limitations.

3. The paper could provide more specific examples of how Industry 4.0 technologies can be used to achieve sustainability goals in the service sector. This would help readers better understand the practical implications of the proposed conceptual framework.

4. The paper could benefit from a more detailed discussion of the potential challenges and limitations of using Industry 4.0 technologies to achieve sustainability goals in the service sector. This would help readers better understand the potential risks and trade-offs involved in adopting these technologies.

5. The paper could provide more specific recommendations for how organizations can adopt more sustainable practices in their operation. This would help readers better understand how to apply the proposed conceptual framework in practice.

6. Last, please provide your main/sub research questions within the paper.

Overall, the paper is written in a formal and technical style, which may require some effort to comprehend for readers who are not experts in the field.

Author Response

We would like to thank you very much for your comments and contributions.

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 3 Report

This paper applies Industry 4.0 to the service sector, which has certain novelty. Although a framework based on the ISM model is presented in this paper, the relevant description is not specific and has not been well integrated with the law firm that is the subject of this study.

 

1.     In line of 457-459, the authors said that “The validation of the model by the experts takes place in a process of exchanging knowledge and experiences on a message exchange platform, after the agreement process of all experts, the model was validated.” The description here is too general. Specific examples should be provided to explain in detail how to validate the model.

2.     In Table 1, the roles of each sustainable solution (SS) in the specific service industry, such as the law firms in this study, and how to quantify them, require specific description and analysis.

 Minor editing of English language required

Author Response

We would like to thank you very much for your comments and contributions.

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Round 2

Reviewer 2 Report

The authors have already addressed all of my critics correctly. Hence, I suggest that the paper can be published in the Sustainability journal.

Reviewer 3 Report

All the issues raised by the reviewers have been addressed. The manuscript can be accepted for publication as it is now.