Cement, as the main component of concrete, is a crucial industrial product for economic development and civilization. Nevertheless, its production is highly energy-intensive, environmentally polluting, and a source of extreme CO2 emissions. For success in the transition to the circular economy and accelerating sustainable manufacturing in the cement industry, understanding and addressing the main barriers are essential. Using the above point of view, this study intends to address the challenges and barriers of the cement industry in the transition to a circular economy, define the causal relationships between these barriers, and determine the necessary practical implications to overcome the barriers. Systematic literature review and focus group study results enable a holistic model that integrates research results and business practical criteria. The DEMATEL method is used for the clarification of causal relations between factors. A total of 18 barriers in 6 clusters have been revealed to be used for managerial implications to speed up the transition to CE applications in the cement business. Out of 18 barriers, 6 were effect groups, which were the outcomes due to the remaining 12 causing barriers. The top three cause factors are an unstable waste market, lack of management competencies, and unstable macroeconomic conditions, while the leading three effect factors are revealed as giving priority to other issues, insufficient organisational structures, and deviations in product quality. Although there are many studies on CE in cement, they are concentrated on technical and laboratory studies enabling the use of different alternative materials as inputs to the cement process. Studying and revealing the barriers holding back the cement sector in the transition to CE is this study’s core contribution, making it novel and unique. copyright