Flavia Cristina Silva, Fabio Ytoshi Shibao, Isak Kruglianskas, José Carlos Barbieri and Paulo Antonio Almeida Sinisgalli
In total, 19 practices of circular economy divided into three groups, internal environmental management, ecological design and investment recovery were studied in a local network…
Abstract
Purpose
In total, 19 practices of circular economy divided into three groups, internal environmental management, ecological design and investment recovery were studied in a local network composed of small companies and individual entrepreneurs related to common product and by-product flows. The paper aims to discuss these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
This research presents an applied nature, is characterized as exploratory and adopted the case study as a technical procedure using sources and methods of data collection. The primary data were collected through direct observation of the processes and semi-structured interviews with managers and owners.
Findings
The most widespread practices are related to product design. However, in most cases, the implementation was punctual and did not present continuous and corresponding actions, which highlights the embryonic contours of European Commission (EC) in the observed network. The practices from the management category were less observed, which revels the environmental variable is not included in the strategic business planning.
Research limitations/implications
The research documents the application of CE practices in a local network and brings this current paradigm shift to the Brazilian context.
Practical implications
To overcome barriers to the implementation of EC practices, it is suggested to restructure commercial relations, to formulate public policies and to develop infrastructures that facilitate the materiality of flows and the market.
Social implications
The study highlights the need of public policies that promotes cross-sectoral cooperation in accordance with NSWP objectives.
Originality/value
Despite the focus on EC implemented practices this study offers a framework of the research routes on the main barriers and suggests actions to overcome the challenges in the transition from the economy to the circular model.
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Taiguara de Freitas Langrafe, Simone Ruchdi Barakat, Fabricio Stocker and Joao Maurício Gama Boaventura
This paper aims to empirically verify whether the development of improved relationships between higher education institutions (HEIs) and their stakeholders based on the principles…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to empirically verify whether the development of improved relationships between higher education institutions (HEIs) and their stakeholders based on the principles of stakeholder theory creates more value.
Design/methodology/approach
The methods involve a quantitative approach, with the data collection being carried out through a survey of 88 heads of HEIs in Brazil. The paper uses the Spearman’s correlation coefficient to analyze the data and test the hypotheses.
Findings
The findings reinforce the arguments found in the stakeholder theory literature, in which relationships are based on the following principles: knowledge and information sharing, mutual trust, involvement in the decision-makin g process and alignment of stakeholders’ interests in the strategic planning process, all of which create more value for organizations.
Practical implications
This study seeks to improve the knowledge of stakeholder theory in relation to HEIs. It identifies the stakeholder relationships that create the most value and have the potential to generate a sustainable competitive advantage. The results can help managers to improve their relationships with stakeholders and may encourage the implementation of practices and policies that consider stakeholders’ influence on the strategic direction of HEIs.
Social implications
The studies present a social contribution by evidencing the importance of the development of best practices, processes and strategies in the management of educational institutions, which are important actors in the development of society.
Originality/value
The originality of this paper is that it empirically tests the principles of stakeholder theory and their relationships with value creation for organizations in the higher education context. Whilst stakeholder theory has been explored in multiples contexts, there is a lack of studies addressing stakeholder management in HEIs.
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Lara Cristina Francisco de Almeida Fehr and Welington Rocha
This paper aims to discuss the role of open-book accounting (OBA) and trust on buyer–supplier relationship satisfaction. The objective of this paper is to analyze how OBA and…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to discuss the role of open-book accounting (OBA) and trust on buyer–supplier relationship satisfaction. The objective of this paper is to analyze how OBA and trust influence satisfaction on the relationship between suppliers and buyers in the Brazilian automotive sector’s supply chain.
Design/methodology/approach
The research has been developed based on a qualitative strategy, characterized as explanatory. Data gathering has been conducted through document analysis and semi-structured interview, and content analysis has been used for discourse analysis.
Findings
Results show that OBA is unilateral, imposed by the auto manufacturer, representing a selective information process, as suppliers try to protect their information value as far as possible. Trust is partial and cooperation is not spontaneous, both driven by the search for benefits. OBA may yield a positive or a negative outcome with regard to the social and the economic overall satisfaction of suppliers, depending on how the information is used by auto manufacturer.
Originality/value
The main contribution of this article is to provide an understanding of the difficulties of applying the OBA in companies and of the factors that may influence its operation and performance, impacting on satisfaction and continuity of relationships. The paper also contributes with the proposal of a clearer and more objective definition of OBA. Being the intention that new research in this area can be developed from a delimited, clear and objective definition of OBA, allowing better understanding on the subject and comparison among research studies.
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Daniel Gama e Colombo and Helio Nogueira da Cruz
This paper evaluates the effects of tax incentives on business innovation in Brazil that were established by Law 11,196/05 (the “Fiscal Incentives Law”) to test whether they have…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper evaluates the effects of tax incentives on business innovation in Brazil that were established by Law 11,196/05 (the “Fiscal Incentives Law”) to test whether they have had a positive impact on beneficiary firms' innovation input and output and on their performance.
Design/methodology/approach
The policy impacts are estimated using microdata on 13,706 firms available in the 2008 and 2011 editions of the Brazilian Innovation Survey (PINTEC) and by applying propensity score matching with difference-in-differences.
Findings
The results suggest a positive and statistically significant impact of the policy on research and development (R&D) expenditures (average of approximately US$ 264,000 in 2011), the number of research staff (average of five researchers) and total employment (approximately 5% of the beneficiary firms' mean size). However, no impact was found on the overall spending on innovative activities, the percentage of sales and exports from new products, net revenue or net revenue per employee.
Practical implications
The findings provide empirical support in favor of tax incentives as a policy tool to boost business innovation in the country. However, the absence of significant effects on innovative activities expenditures and on most indicators of innovation output and firms' performance reveals shortcomings of the policy that need to be addressed.
Originality/value
The study complements and advances the findings of previous studies by assessing policy impact on total innovative activities expenditures and on innovation output and firm performance.
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Alvair Silveira Torres Jr., Ronaldo Akiyoshi Nagai and Reinaldo Corrêa Costa
Creating a new product or service promotes the status quo changes, seeking economic value and solving customer's urgent problems. Entrepreneurs play an important role in this…
Abstract
Purpose
Creating a new product or service promotes the status quo changes, seeking economic value and solving customer's urgent problems. Entrepreneurs play an important role in this changing process through start-ups and small and medium enterprises (SMEs), considered one of the leading forces driving an economy’s innovative and competitive power. However, despite the importance of entrepreneurs, public policies to foster entrepreneurship ecosystems could be ineffective in emerging countries. Therefore, action research proposes the qualification of entrepreneurs for the structuring of new businesses through remote orientation, connecting the country's main economic centers to emerging areas.
Design/methodology/approach
The study is qualitative research comprising two phases. The first phase consisted of four-month action research, connecting two researchers and three groups of specialists (from Sao Paulo), with three groups of entrepreneurs (located in Manaus in the Amazon region), through a remote orientation in entrepreneurship, lean start-up, lean product and process development (LPPD). The second phase, conducted by a third researcher, regards a case study grounded on interviews and data collection with the entrepreneurs to capture the outcomes of the remote orientation process.
Findings
The remote orientation helped shorten the geographical distance of Amazonas to approach the integration of business, research and knowledge exchange of such distinct areas in the same country. If a remote orientation program was established as public policy, it could enact subsequent cycles of the lean start-up model. Furthermore, the remote orientation could be an alternative to compose the training subsystem in the entrepreneurship ecosystem proposed by Isenberg (2011). On the other hand, a remote orientation could fail to shorten the distance of human values and beliefs, which cannot be neglected when facing a rich territory like the Amazon.
Research limitations/implications
Because of the chosen research approach, a qualitative and exploratory study based on a combination of action research, interviews and case studies, the results may lack generalizability. However, further studies can replicate the remote orientation process conducted in the region of Manaus – Amazon, to obtain distinct results regarding the advantages, disadvantages and effectiveness of remote orientation as entrepreneurship ecosystem’s human capital dimension development.
Practical implications
The outcomes of this research have the potential to start discussions regarding the adoption of remote orientation as a public policy to develop entrepreneurship skills in emerging regions, not only in Brazil but worldwide. The Brazilian case could be a relevant benchmark due to the large territory and economic and social disparities impacting education and entrepreneurship.
Social implications
Through start-ups and SMEs, entrepreneurship has innovation potential and is the most solid way to bring economic development. For emerging countries, it can be real game-changer in the economic order. The development of entrepreneurship skills through this remote orientation experience can help reduce the economic and social gaps in countries with relevant disparities like Brazil and other emerging countries.
Originality/value
This paper fulfills an identified need to “move the needle of entrepreneurship in the right direction” (Isenberg, 2010) by creating local solutions for global challenges. Policymakers and leaders need to continue the experiment and learn how to improve the entrepreneurship ecosystem. In this sense, the action research approach, combined with the remote orientation, proposes an alternative to promote changes in how human capital dimension can be developed in this challenging ecosystem.
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Renato de Oliveira Souza, Sandro Cabral and Priscila Fernandes Ribeiro
This paper aims to examine the effects on firms' outcomes of a new government regulation on the private security industry that aimed to enhance the selection and training…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine the effects on firms' outcomes of a new government regulation on the private security industry that aimed to enhance the selection and training processes for armed-private security officers.
Design/methodology/approach
By using human capital theory and using a data set built from various public sources, this study analyzes the effects of a new regulation implemented in 2013–2014 in Brazil mandating psychological assessments for hiring private security armed officers. Firm-level data and a Difference-in-Differences (DiD) identification strategy are used to investigate the effects on turnover and human capital outcomes.
Findings
The study identifies substantial changes resulting from the new government regulation in private security firms. While it has led to increased turnover rates, the regulation has also facilitated firms in enhancing the human capital composition of their workforce by enabling the recruitment of more experienced personnel.
Research limitations/implications
This research informs to current debates on the effects of policy interventions on firm's outcomes by showing how regulations aimed to improve the configuration of human capital can generate win-win situations for both firms and citizens, despite the short-term trade-offs between higher turnover rates and improved human capital outcomes.
Practical implications
Refining selection and training processes can enhance the workforce in private security firms by replacing less capable professionals with more experienced ones. Insights from this study offer guidance to policymakers and industry practitioners in shaping effective business and public policies.
Social implications
This study underscores the role of training and psychological assessments in enhancing the composition of human capital in the private security industry.
Originality/value
By highlighting the role of policy interventions in establishing barriers to unskilled workers engaging in hazardous activities, this study contributes to the burgeoning literature in strategic management on the interaction between policy interventions and firm outcomes.
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Gustavo Henrique Silva de Souza, Nilton Cesar Lima, Fernanda Cristina Barbosa Pereira Queiroz, Rafael Farias Gonçalves and Jamerson Viegas Queiroz
This article aims to develop a measure that assesses and maps the behaviors and traits of an individual with potential for innovation in the work context. To do so, it gathers…
Abstract
Purpose
This article aims to develop a measure that assesses and maps the behaviors and traits of an individual with potential for innovation in the work context. To do so, it gathers evidence of factor validity and internal consistency.
Design/methodology/approach
In the work context, innovation is often linked with the idea of intrapreneurship. Some experts have pointed out that intrapreneurial activities are essential for promoting innovation. However, it is not just about the activities – the key is to create an environment that supports innovation, fostering a culture where new ideas can thrive. To achieve the objectives of this research, we conducted two studies. The first study involved the construction of the innovation potential scale (IPS). In a theoretical, empirical way, the second study involved the administration of the IPS and a sociodemographic questionnaire to a sample of 621 Brazilians from 25 different occupations.
Findings
The results introduce a nine-item measure for the innovative behavior assessment, along with its validity and psychometric properties. Furthermore, the results suggest that innovation potential is a unidimensional construct. Moreover, the study highlights the role of intrapreneurship as an explanatory axiom. This concept helps to understand the entrepreneurial behavior of various professionals and managers within their work context.
Practical implications
This study contribute with as instrument that serves as a new powerful tool for understanding of the mechanisms that lead to innovation in the work context and stimulate the innovative potential of professionals and organizations.
Originality/value
This study helps fill gaps in the literature on self-report assessment of innovative behavior. The traits linked with the construct have a contingent nature and are only potential.
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Maria Gabriela Miranda and Renata Borges
Technology-based incubators depend on high-level knowledge to constantly meet the demands of the market. Incubators offer a variety of specialized services to help startups…
Abstract
Purpose
Technology-based incubators depend on high-level knowledge to constantly meet the demands of the market. Incubators offer a variety of specialized services to help startups increase the chances of crossing the valley of death. These services include infrastructure, access to a professional network of mentors and an intensive support of a consultant team to help with managerial and legal challenges. Therefore, it is critical to incubators to develop both highly skilled teams of consultants and social environment that facilitates communication. The purpose of this paper is to understand how innovation-oriented social networks created within technology-based incubators are shaped.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected in five incubators participating connected to federal universities from the state of Minas Gerais. The network attributes collected in the survey were placed in a matrix form. The mapping and measurement of the relationships between individuals were developed using the Ucinet software. Ucinet enables the analysis of attributes (attitudes, behaviors and characteristics) characterized as relational (contacts, ties and relationships). The software also includes the Netdraw network visualization tool, which enables the creation of matrices and graphical network maps. The measurements of centrality, closeness and intermediation were analyzed to assess the intra-organizational social network.
Findings
The results indicate that although the flow of communication does not follow the formal hierarchy, the interaction between team members to spontaneously exchange ideas, information and experiences is rare. The workers are so concerned about their timely tasks, that they have few opportunities to exchange information and knowledge. The coordination is carried out by university professors, who also perform other tasks (e.g. teaching, research and administration activities) besides those related to the incubators. The results also suggest that in the technology-based incubators studied, besides dealing in an innovative environment, the distribution of tasks and responsibilities are still rigid and traditional.
Originality/value
By analyzing the degree of the relationship between team members, the proximity and the level of intermediation of co-workers, it is possible to see how the incubators workers interact, thereby identifying the flow of information. This study offers implications for theory and practice. To the theory, this study adds to the discussion of intra-organizational social network of technology-based companies in the Brazilian context. To practitioners, this research sheds light on the importance of the social network built within the organization to promote effective communication and knowledge sharing.
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Celeste Eusébio, Maria João Carneiro, Mara Madaleno, Margarita Robaina, Vítor Rodrigues, Michael Russo, Hélder Relvas, Carla Gama, Myriam Lopes, Vania Seixas, Carlos Borrego and Alexandra Monteiro
Tourism may have important positive and negative economic, socio-cultural and environmental impacts. However, cultural and natural resources are also the base to the development…
Abstract
Purpose
Tourism may have important positive and negative economic, socio-cultural and environmental impacts. However, cultural and natural resources are also the base to the development of competitive destinations and changes in these resources can have an important impact on tourism development. Despite the considerable literature regarding the impacts of tourism, a limited number of studies examine the impact of the environment on tourism, specifically the impact of air quality (AQ). Therefore, this paper aims to review what is known about the impact of AQ on tourism demand, analysing the different methods and approaches used, as well as the results obtained.
Design/methodology/approach
A systematic literature review method was used to examine the state of the art in this topic and identify research gaps and new research directions. Only 26 papers were identified that examine the impact of AQ on tourism demand.
Findings
The majority of the studies were carried out in China and investigate the impact of AQ on tourism from the perspective of tourism demand. Both global (tourism demand) and individual (tourist perceptions) approaches have been used to investigate the impact of AQ on tourism.
Originality/value
This is the first systematic literature review on the impact of outdoor AQ on tourism demand. Moreover, this paper analyses the methods and approaches that have been used in the literature to examine the impact of outdoor AQ on tourism demand. The paper ends with a discussion on the identified research gaps concerning the influence of AQ on tourism development.
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Suelen dos Santos and Roberto Marx
The purpose of this article is to contribute to studies on organizational ambidexterity by analyzing how an incumbent company is managing its innovation structures and balancing…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this article is to contribute to studies on organizational ambidexterity by analyzing how an incumbent company is managing its innovation structures and balancing exploitation and exploration activities to generate value in a digital economy context.
Design/methodology/approach
The research was designed in a qualitative format through a single case study in a Brazilian financial institution, with semi-structured interviews conducted with internal and external players.
Findings
Based on the case study, two possible contributions emerged as results, to fill the research gap: the need to develop more complex innovation structures, which act in a way that is integrated to the ecosystem; and the establishment of an organizational function, with a specific mandate to seek innovation in new business platforms.
Originality/value
Although the theory gives evidence about the potential that ambidexterity represents for companies, ‘how’ to orchestrate the trade-offs to achieve it is not clear, particularly in regards to first steps toward ambidexterity. This work aims to contribute to fill this gap through an empirical study in a large Brazilian company, analyzing its trajectory toward ambidexterity.