This paper uses data envelopment analysis (DEA) to examine the technical, pure technical, and scale efficiencies of 12 branches of the agricultural bank in Guilan province, Iran over the period of 2012-2016. The first results indicated that scale inefficiency contributed more to overall technical inefficiency than pure technical inefficiency over the studied period. Results of return to scale reveal that decreasing return to scale is the main form of scale inefficiency. Then, overall technical efficiency scores obtained from DEA was regressed over four factors determining bank efficiency (including bank size, profitability, capital adequacy, and liquidity) by the Tobit method. These four variables influenced efficiency differently. Branch size showed a negative, insignificant relationship with technical efficiency. So, it had no impact on efficiency. Profitability was the main parameter in branch efficiency following by liquidity. Profitability and liquidity influenced efficiency positively and significantly. In other words, larger and more profitable branches have higher technical efficiency. Manuscript profile

An important issue for suppliers, producers, and retailers who want to compete in a competitive environment is continuous performance improvement in a dynamic supply chain. Literature review on supply chain puts more emphasis on quantitative factors than other factors. In this research, we focus on quantitative factors which affect competitive advantages creation and investigation. Our goal is to examine the qualitative factors which affect the supply chain management (e.g. supply chain uncertainty, plant location, and manufacturing practices) based on performance evaluation models and at last we give some solutions to improve the performance. Questionnaire was used to collect data and regression statistical method to examine the research hypothesis. According to the results, plant location, supply chain uncertainty and manufacturing practices factors influenced petrochemical industry supply chain performance. Manuscript profile

The development and management of an effective and efficient supply chain involve the selection of the suppliers. Only economic criteria, including cost and delivery, once used to be considered in the process of supplier selection. But, they do not suffice for the evaluation of suppliers anymore due to the rapidly changing environment, and different perspectives are needed to be considered. The present paper aims to present a hybrid method based on fuzzy data envelopment analysis for sustainable supplier selection. At first, the criteria for sustainable supplier selection are derived from the relevant literature. Then, the hierarchy of the criteria and their preferential interrelations are specified by analytic hierarchy process. Eventually, the performance of the suppliers is evaluated using fuzzy data envelopment analysis. The presented DEA model has been inspired by the concept of ideal and anti-ideal decision-making units (DMUs) in the evaluation of cross-efficiency. According to this concept, a DMU is efficient if it is close to the ideal DMU’s performance and far from the anti-ideal DMU’s performance. Manuscript profile

Sustainable development is one of the most important issues that can be considered from different aspects and in different contexts including sustainable agriculture. This study aimed to investigate the main strategies related to sustainable development of rice production as an important agricultural product in Guilan Province using a SWOT analysis. To this end, different internal (strengths and weaknesses) and external (opportunities and threats) factors affecting rice production development were reviewed in the literature. Next, a questionnaire was designed based on the potential opportunities, threats, strengths and weaknesses in the literature and the initial interview of the experts; then, the experts were asked to determine the importance of factors on a five-point Likert type scale. The results showed that the rice production received the total scores of 2.14 and 2.24 for the External Factor Evaluation (EFE) matrix and the Internal Factor Evaluation (IFE) matrix, respectively, indicating the ineffectiveness of the industry’s strategies. These scores mapped the position of rice production in Guilan Province. Finally, a number of strategies for sustainable development of rice crop were outlined in order to reduce the weaknesses, avoid the threats, improve the strengths, and grasp the opportunities for the rice production of Guilan Province. Manuscript profile