# Critical Factors for Green Public Procurement: The Case of Greece
## 5 Discussion  
The Grey DEMATEL analysis provided the importance order of each factor and classified them into \"cause\" and \"effect\" groups. Significant research implications can be derived from the cluster of the cause factors as they have a high impact on the implementation of GPP. If the cause group factors are the first to be improved by the decisionmakers, they can improve the effect group factors.  
Figure 4: Overall DEMATEL prominence–causal graph.  
The survey revealed that there are four main factors that influence the implementation of green contracts in Greek public organizations: K2 \"Government incentives on green policy\", K6 \"Clear strategies and goals\", K8 \"Employee empowerment and motivation\", and K13 \"Energy consumption\". These factors are termed Key Success Factors and it is possible for top management to solve the prevailing problems in GPP by concentrating on them.  
Government policy regarding GPP is one of the most important factors in facilitating green procurement. When a government incentivizes the procurement of green goods or services, it can ensure the satisfactory implementation of green policies in public procurement. Government funding to support initiatives for sustainable public procurement, to invest in environmentally friendly products, and to develop training programs for public sector personnel are initiatives that will contribute to this direction.  
Along with government initiatives, the setting of clear goals and strategies for green procurement is a key factor. Setting specific targets, which are measurable and have time limits, makes a decisive contribution to the implementation of green policies. In the Greek public sector, during the implementation of the NAP for GPP, there was a trial period during which the application of green criteria was not mandatory. In this case, the results were not very encouraging.  
The empowerment and motivation of employees was also highlighted as an important success factor. Employees are the driving force for organizations to achieve the goals set by management. Therefore, empowered employees, who should also be well trained, will be able to implement GPP practices, promote sustainable choices, and carry out intensive market research to identify suppliers of green products.  
Directly related to these factors, energy consumption is a major driver in an organization's adoption of green procurement. The increase in energy costs and the reduction in available resources, combined with the need for public organizations to reduce their operating costs, can lead to a search for sustainable solutions.  
The results also show that legislation (K1), organizational culture (K4), and organizational size (K7) can be considered cause factors, with a lower interaction rate than the aforementioned ones. Organizational culture had the lowest interaction rate. CF's \"Senior management\" (K5), \"Knowledge of environmental impact of products\" (K9), and \"Degree of centralization of procurement\" (K3) are relatively less influenced but are also vital, as they lie close to the cause group, as reflected in Figure 4. The factor \"Employee empowerment and Motivation\" (K8) often affects the risk associated with \"Senior management support, commitment and involvement\" (K5), as they are on the borderline of the cause-and-effect groups, respectively.  
Finally, the present study's results concerning the Greek public sector have to be interpreted with caution and should not be hastily generalized. Each country's framework provides information on how procurement bodies and other stakeholders operate [55]. For example, there are different ways of creating a legal basis for GPP depending on a country's legal system and traditions [56].