Paulo Sampaio, Pedro Saraiva and António Guimarães Rodrigues
ISO 9001 certification is nowadays considered to be one of the most effective tools that can be adopted for guiding the management of Quality Systems. The stunning growth observed…
Abstract
Purpose
ISO 9001 certification is nowadays considered to be one of the most effective tools that can be adopted for guiding the management of Quality Systems. The stunning growth observed by these standards all over the world confirms a strong polarization of enterprises' interest in this practice. Owing to the wide incidence of this phenomenon, a deep investigation of ISO 9001 diffusion over time is of mandatory importance. The research here reported covers the development of statistical models in order to characterize the ISO 9001 certification evolution on a country basis, as well as worldwide.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on the pioneering results obtained by Saraiva and Duarte, an attempt is now made to: identify clusters of countries, according to their ISO 9001 evolution patterns; characterize the worldwide ISO 9001 certification evolution; identify which are the main evolution perspectives for ISO 9001 diffusion; identify significant variables that may influence ISO 9001 quality management systems diffusion; develop mathematical models in order to characterize the ISO 9001 certification evolution on a country‐by‐country basis.
Findings
The research carried out allowed one to analyze the worldwide evolution of ISO 9001 certification and suggest new prediction models for the diffusion of quality management systems certification at different geographical realities.
Originality/value
This paper covers the development of statistical models in order to characterize the ISO 9001 certification evolution on a country basis, as well as worldwide.
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Paulo Sampaio, Pedro Saraiva and António Guimarães Rodrigues
Despite all the studies carried out in order to analyze the impact of quality management systems implementation and certification over companies' financial performance…
Abstract
Purpose
Despite all the studies carried out in order to analyze the impact of quality management systems implementation and certification over companies' financial performance, conclusions reached so far have been of a contradictory nature. Some authors conclude that there is a positive relationship between ISO 9001 certification and companies' financial improvement, while others do not find evidence to support such a relationship. Overall, no consistent evidence could therefore be found in the literature concerning the ISO 9001 impact over companies' business financial performance. This work aims to provide a contribution in this area.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a public database of Portuguese companies' financial information, this paper describes the results obtained from studying the economic impact of quality management systems, based on a statistical analysis.
Findings
The results suggest that companies with higher financial performance do present a greater propensity to implement and certify their quality management systems. The ISO 9000 implementation motivation is a critical success factor in the impact of the quality management system over the company economic performance and, for some financial indicators, non‐certified companies do present, on average, higher performance than those that are certified.
Originality/value
This paper aims to provide an important contribution to the worldwide research related to the quality management systems impact over companies' financial performance.
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Paulo Sampaio, Pedro Saraiva and António Guimarães Rodrigues
The majority of ISO 9001 certification research studies conducted so far are supported by survey methodologies and descriptive statistics. As such, they express conclusions that…
Abstract
Purpose
The majority of ISO 9001 certification research studies conducted so far are supported by survey methodologies and descriptive statistics. As such, they express conclusions that are mainly derived from opinions and perceptions about the subject. Thus, it is common to find in the open literature references that point out the highly subjective results derived from such studies (often of somewhat contradictory nature). This paper tries to compile the main conclusions that ISO 9001 research studies have tried to address, with the aim of describing the quality management systems literature state‐of‐the‐art.
Design/methodology/approach
In order to achieve this objective, an exhaustive literature review of ISO 9000 studies was carried out. For that purpose approximately 100 articles were analysed, which were sorted in the following categories, according to the used methodology: surveys; analysis of financial indicators; case studies; interviews; literature review; and statistical data analysis.
Findings
This paper reflects an exhaustive literature review, which allowed the identification of a group of issues that ISO 9001 research studies have tried to address, as well as the most commonly used methodologies employed and main conclusions reached so far by the different authors. Then using such a state‐of‐the‐art as a starting point, it pointed out a number of questions that seem to be relevant but have not been so far addressed in the open literature in terms of providing clear and precise answers, as well as others that are at the core of the authors' future work in this area.
Originality/value
The value of the paper is to point out and to compile the main conclusions reached by the different authors and researchers in the most important ISO 9001 issues addressed in the open literature.
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Barbara de Lima Voss, David Bernard Carter and Bruno Meirelles Salotti
We present a critical literature review debating Brazilian research on social and environmental accounting (SEA). The aim of this study is to understand the role of politics in…
Abstract
We present a critical literature review debating Brazilian research on social and environmental accounting (SEA). The aim of this study is to understand the role of politics in the construction of hegemonies in SEA research in Brazil. In particular, we examine the role of hegemony in relation to the co-option of SEA literature and sustainability in the Brazilian context by the logic of development for economic growth in emerging economies. The methodological approach adopts a post-structural perspective that reflects Laclau and Mouffe’s discourse theory. The study employs a hermeneutical, rhetorical approach to understand and classify 352 Brazilian research articles on SEA. We employ Brown and Fraser’s (2006) categorizations of SEA literature to help in our analysis: the business case, the stakeholder–accountability approach, and the critical case. We argue that the business case is prominent in Brazilian studies. Second-stage analysis suggests that the major themes under discussion include measurement, consulting, and descriptive approach. We argue that these themes illustrate the degree of influence of the hegemonic politics relevant to emerging economics, as these themes predominantly concern economic growth and a capitalist context. This paper discusses trends and practices in the Brazilian literature on SEA and argues that the focus means that SEA avoids critical debates of the role of capitalist logics in an emerging economy concerning sustainability. We urge the Brazilian academy to understand the implications of its reifying agenda and engage, counter-hegemonically, in a social and political agenda beyond the hegemonic support of a particular set of capitalist interests.
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Luiz Antonio Felix Júnior, Wênyka Preston Leite Batista da Costa, Luciana Gondim de Almeida Guimarães, Glauber Ruan Barbosa Pereira and Walid Abbas El-Aouar
The participation of society is a valuable aspect of the governability of cities, for it strengthens the citizens’ collaborative component. Such participation, which is seen as…
Abstract
Purpose
The participation of society is a valuable aspect of the governability of cities, for it strengthens the citizens’ collaborative component. Such participation, which is seen as social, is considered an essential element for the design of a smart city. This study aims to identify the factors that contribute to social participation in the definition of budgetary instruments’ planning.
Design/methodology/approach
Concerning the methodological instruments, this study is characterised by a quantitative and descriptive approach and uses a multivariate data analysis with a sample of 235 respondents.
Findings
The study’s findings identified a framework that portrays elements that collaborate with the social participation in the definition of the public administration’s budgetary instruments, which are considered as elements that are able to develop the role of the popular participation and are characterised by the definition of a smart city by enabling more assertiveness in society’s needs.
Practical implications
Identification of a framework that brings out elements that are able to develop the popular participation in the definition of budgetary instruments. Then, one scale of elements that contribute to social participation in the definition of the public administration’s budgetary instruments theoretically represented and statistically validated, thus contributing to the continuity of studies on social participation.
Social implications
Through studies on social participation in budgetary planning, it is possible to guarantee a better allocation of public resources through intelligent governability.
Originality/value
The research can bring theoretical elements about social participation in the definition of budget instruments for a statistical convergence through the perception of the sample.
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Ana C. Lopes, Álvaro M. Sampaio and António J. Pontes
With the technological progress, high-performance materials are emerging in the market of additive manufacturing to comply with the advanced requirements demanded for technical…
Abstract
Purpose
With the technological progress, high-performance materials are emerging in the market of additive manufacturing to comply with the advanced requirements demanded for technical applications. In selective laser sintering (SLS), innovative powder materials integrating conductive reinforcements are attracting much interest within academic and industrial communities as promising alternatives to common engineering thermoplastics. However, the practical implementation of functional materials is limited by the extensive list of conditions required for a successful laser-sintering process, related to the morphology, powder size and shape, heat resistance, melt viscosity and others. The purpose of this study is to explore composite materials of polyamide 12 (PA12) incorporating multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) and graphene nanoplatelets (GNP), aiming to understand their suitability for advanced SLS applications.
Design/methodology/approach
PA12-MWCNT and PA12-GNP materials were blended through a pre-optimized process of mechanical mixing with various percentages of reinforcement between 0.50 wt.% and 3.00 wt.% and processed by SLS with appropriate volume energy density. Several test specimens were produced and characterized with regard to processability, thermal, mechanical, electrical and morphological properties. Finally, a comparative analysis of the performance of both carbon-based materials was performed.
Findings
The results of this research demonstrated easier processability and higher tensile strength and impact resistance for composites incorporating MWCNT but higher tensile elastic modulus, compressive strength and microstructural homogeneity for GNP-based materials. Despite the decrease in mechanical properties, valuable results of electrical conductivity were obtained with both carbon solutions until 10–6 S/cm.
Originality/value
The carbon-based composites developed in this research allow for the expansion of the applicability of laser-sintered parts to advanced fields, including electronics-related industries that require functional materials capable of protecting sensitive devices against electrostatic discharge.
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Margarida Rodrigues and Mário Franco
This study aims to list indicators to allow construction of a ranking for environmental sustainability in towns and cities, in relation to energy and water consumption and the…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to list indicators to allow construction of a ranking for environmental sustainability in towns and cities, in relation to energy and water consumption and the prevention, production and management of waste. A systematization of theoretical and empirical indices was elaborated, focused on this dimension.
Design/methodology/approach
The results allow presentation of a ranking supported by multivariate statistical techniques – Exploratory Factor Analysis and Principal Component Analysis – confirming its scientific quality and robustness, with this being the main contribution of the study.
Findings
The analysis of the ranking revealed the great heterogeneity of towns and cities in Portugal, with the city of Lisbon and the town of Sardoal in the Top 20, suggesting that the achievement of the goal of environmental sustainability is proactively associated with the ability to articulate resources with infrastructure and the strategic and political will applied, being essential the appeal to the individual awareness of each citizen, even if the design of green infrastructures does not depend on citizens’ behavior. This means that redesigned green infrastructures may exist, but their success depends. In addition, cities are increasingly moving toward a circular economy articulated holistically with open and participatory governance.
Practical implications
The empirical evidence obtained in the Portuguese context provides some implications for practice, by showing it is possible to counteract the negative effects of rapid urban growth and its environmental consequences in urban and non-urban areas.
Originality/value
The main contribution and innovation of this study lie in the presentation of empirical evidence that the population density of a city or town does not have a cause–effect relationship with its level of environmental sustainability.
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Raysa Palheta Borges, Wladimir Colman de Azevedo Junior, Marcos Antônio Souza dos Santos and Marcos Rodrigues
Resources provided by The Northern Brazilian Constitutional Financing Fund (FNO) aim to promote regional development to economically and socially backward regions through…
Abstract
Purpose
Resources provided by The Northern Brazilian Constitutional Financing Fund (FNO) aim to promote regional development to economically and socially backward regions through subsidized financial resources for economic activities, including agriculture. This study aims to determine whether rural credit and the FNO were able to produce structural changes in the distribution of financial resources and thus contribute to economic growth in Northern Brazilian municipalities.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper used inequality indexes and the Local Indicator of Spatial Association to verify the credit concentration and the spatial presence of clusters. To analyze the role of credit in promoting agricultural growth, this paper estimated an ordinary least squares regression with panel data for 450 municipalities during 1995–2017.
Findings
The results highlighted that rural credit, including the FNO, is essential to incentivizing agricultural production and increasing rural income. However, the financial resources are mostly captured by a small share of municipalities, spatially clustered in the expanding agricultural frontier of Pará, Tocantins and Rondônia states. Low-Low clusters are mainly present in the Western Amazonian region and are subject to structural and institutional constraints that reduce their demand for credit. The FNO resources proved insufficient to reduce financial inequality between Brazil’s northern municipalities.
Originality/value
This study demonstrates that the FNO’s policies are failing to reduce the concentration of financial resources in Amazonian agriculture. The results emphasize the importance of credit for development and, consequently, reducing inequality, which leads to a higher demand for financial resources by farmers. Implications include supporting economic agents with infrastructure and technical assistance, as well as improving farmers’ access to the banking system.
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Filipe Carvalho, Pedro Domingues and Paulo Sampaio
The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, it aims at the identification and assessment of the commitments towards sustainable development (SD) communicated to all interested…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, it aims at the identification and assessment of the commitments towards sustainable development (SD) communicated to all interested parties (stakeholders) by top management; and second, mapping the profile of the organisations which prominently communicate those commitments.
Design/methodology/approach
The research methodology was supported on the content analysis of the organisations’ statements (disclosed on the institutional website) that sustain the strategy and policies (organisational culture). A total of 540 certified Portuguese organisations in Quality, Environment and Occupational Health and Safety (QEOHS) comprised the sample.
Findings
According to this research, it is possible to identify three main commitments towards SD addressing customers (consumers), human resources (employees) and continuous improvement. Furthermore, results suggest that commitments towards customers and human resources fit properly into the theoretical assumptions of the stakeholder theory and, in turn, the commitment towards continuous improvement fits accurately into the assumptions of the “normative isomorphism” of the institutional theory. Moreover, the results pointed out the characteristics of Portuguese organisations (QEOHS) that prominently communicate commitments towards SD: large business volume, located in Lisbon or Setubal, fall within the public business sector, are members of the BCSD Portugal and publish annual reports on the institutional website.
Research limitations/implications
Solely organisations operating in Portugal and simultaneously encompassing three certified management subsystems (against the clauses of ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 standards) were considered throughout this study. So it is not possible to ascertain at which extent the conclusions are valid. However, although the statistical generalisation of the results may be precluded, there is not any peculiar reason preventing the analytical generalisation, namely, in organisations operating in countries with similar macro-characteristics of Portugal.
Originality/value
To the best of authors’ knowledge this is the first time that such a comprehensive, detailed and thorough analysis of the communicated commitments towards SD is carried out regardless the activity sector. The conclusions from this paper are useful both for practitioners and scholars. On one hand companies have now information on the more often communicated statements, while on the other hand academics and scholars will benefit from this research and hopefully be able to replicate it in other contexts.
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Maria Teresa Gomes Leão and Filipa Aguiar Brandão
This study aims to illustrate the potential of the many centuries-old universities buildings, in European cities, in a historical, architectural, aesthetic and symbolic dimension…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to illustrate the potential of the many centuries-old universities buildings, in European cities, in a historical, architectural, aesthetic and symbolic dimension to diversify and differentiate urban tourist destinations supply.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a qualitative study supported by the analysis of public and classified documents, for which the main source is based on webography, and by conducting interviews.
Findings
The deficit of cultural tours, in the dimension of built heritage, is identified as one of the weaknesses of the city of Porto, as tourist destination, to be overcome. The interviewees are unanimous in recognizing the cultural, architectural and aesthetic impact of the historic buildings of the University of Porto, and most of them strongly agree with the integration of this legacy into the tourist offer of the city. The strategic sense of the heritage is emphasized, because of its location in charismatic areas of the city. The practice of effective networking, however, falls short of what is required to achieve ambitious and consistent objectives.
Research limitations/implications
The practice of effective networking, however, falls short of what is required to achieve ambitious and consistent objectives.
Originality/value
Emphasis is placed on the cities’ built heritage as a type of heritage that defines their uniqueness. The dissemination of cultural itineraries, which allows tourists and the community itself a broader and deeper cultural knowledge, contributes to the effective understanding of historic cities’ tourism. Given the scarcity of studies on the relationship between historic university buildings and tourism, the relevance of research focuses on highlighting the contribution of these cultural elements, through a network-based dynamic, to urban tourism destinations’ attractiveness. In particular, the University of Porto's potential for the integration of structured tourism products that contribute to the diversification and differentiation of the city of Porto as a destination is illustrated.