Search results

1 – 10 of over 3000
Per page
102050
Citations:
Loading...
Access Restricted. View access options
Article
Publication date: 14 January 2025

Deoclécio Junior Cardoso da Silva, Guilherme Paraol de Matos, Artur Roberto de Oliveira Gibbon, Claudimar Pereira da Veiga, Clarissa Stefani Teixeira, Luis Felipe Dias Lopes and Josep Miquel Pique

This research investigates the barriers impeding innovation within small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Brazil, exploring 54 innovation-related barriers categorized into…

53

Abstract

Purpose

This research investigates the barriers impeding innovation within small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Brazil, exploring 54 innovation-related barriers categorized into six distinct groups to offer substantial insights and analyses pertinent to the decision-makers, researchers and SMEs.

Design/methodology/approach

This research employed a mixed quantitative and exploratory approach, utilizing fuzzy Delphi, fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and fuzzy decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) methods. The fuzzy Delphi method confirmed the categories and barriers through quantitative analysis, the fuzzy AHP ranked the validated obstacles and the fuzzy DEMATEL method identified causal connections among the top-priority barriers.

Findings

Out of 54 barriers, 23 significantly impacted SMEs. The “Financing and Financial” category was the most significant barrier, with “Access to Financing” being the most critical impediment. The barrier with the most influence was “Instability of Fiscal Policies,” and the highest causal priority was “Survival of the Priority Business,” identifying the government’s unstable fiscal policy as the principal barrier confronting SMEs in Brazil.

Originality/value

The primary challenges for Brazilian SMEs center on financing, fiscal policies and maintaining ongoing operations. By addressing these barriers and fostering a resilient business environment, SMEs’ innovation capabilities and competitiveness can be enhanced, serving as key drivers for sustainable economic growth in fluctuating economic conditions. This study contributes to the literature by highlighting and validating the main barriers to SME innovation, providing highly relevant information about the innovation process.

Details

Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1462-6004

Keywords

Access Restricted. View access options
Book part
Publication date: 21 August 2017

Bruno Broucker, Kurt De Wit and Jef C. Verhoeven

This chapter discusses the implications of New Public Management (NPM) and of alternative theories on the higher education sector. Three clusters of alternative concepts and…

Abstract

This chapter discusses the implications of New Public Management (NPM) and of alternative theories on the higher education sector. Three clusters of alternative concepts and theories are identified, positioned in relation to NPM, and discussed. The chapter concludes that the different theoretical approaches: (1) cannot always be distinguished easily, (2) entail a risk of normativity due to the position of higher education in society, and (3) demonstrate that higher education policy and research are in need of a multi-theoretical approach that is able to put higher education back into its social, political, and economic context. By formulating research questions on the role of higher education and on the impact of former reforms, it is suggested that policy and research look further than the current concepts and theoretical approaches to build a new agenda for future.

Access Restricted. View access options
Article
Publication date: 1 March 2001

K.A. Marques, C.E Celli, J.H. Passoni, D. Teixeira, E. Bachiega, E.S. Vidal, W.M. Carvalho, M.L. Aguiar and J.R. Coury

The monitoring of respirable particulate matter (PM10) and of total carbon percentage (mass basis) in the atmosphere of São Carlos (SP) was performed in the period between…

741

Abstract

The monitoring of respirable particulate matter (PM10) and of total carbon percentage (mass basis) in the atmosphere of São Carlos (SP) was performed in the period between September 1997 and January 2000. São Carlos, located in the central region of the state of São Paulo, has a population of close to 180,000 inhabitants and about 500 industrial establishments of medium to small size, mainly dealing with metallurgy, textiles, food and ceramics. The equipment used for air monitoring was a high volume sampler (GVS‐GRASEBY/GMW) equipped with a one‐stage inertial separator for a 10μm particle cut diameter. The PM10 concentration was determined by gravimetry and the total carbon concentration by the Ströheim method. The results show a well defined seasonal dependence of both the PM10 and of the total carbon concentration. Higher concentrations of PM10 and carbon were observed in autumn and winter, which also coincided with low relative humidity and precipitation. The measured trends were compared with the PM10 data from the city of São Paulo in the same period and showed similar seasonal dependence. However, in relative terms, the PM10 concentration in São Carlos showed stronger seasonal dependence than in São Paulo.

Details

Environmental Management and Health, vol. 12 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0956-6163

Keywords

Access Restricted. View access options
Article
Publication date: 29 December 2022

Francisca Nathalia de Sousa Leite, Eduardo Rodrigues de Castro and Henrique Ryosuke Tateishi

Constrained input use and lower productivity of rural establishments may be associated with restricted or concentrated access to financial resources, especially in developing…

254

Abstract

Purpose

Constrained input use and lower productivity of rural establishments may be associated with restricted or concentrated access to financial resources, especially in developing countries. Meanwhile, agricultural activity entails risks associated with the volatility of net cash flows and external events, which may discourage riskier but higher return investments (e.g. technology). As rural credit can alleviate the former, and rural insurance may help alleviate the latter, the combination of both policies might endorse each other. The purpose of this study is to analyze the use of rural credit and rural insurance policies with respect to productivity and crop area, in São Paulo state, Brazil, using farmer's microdata from two surveys realized in 2007/08 and 2016/17.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses propensity score matching and the entropy balance approaches in a complementary way. This study compared three policy treatments – rural credit, rural insurance and both policies combined, against establishments that received neither one. The analysis considered sugarcane, grain and grape crops separately and employed farmer's microdata. Moreover, the analysis was stratified into two categories: establishments owned by family farmers and those that did not.

Findings

Rural credit policy is related to higher productivity and larger cultivated area for grains and only to larger area for grape crops in the last analyzed period (2016/17). Rural insurance, as a unique policy or combined with credit, is related to higher productivity and cultivated areas, for all analyzed crops, only in the second period (2016/17), as the policy became more accessible to farmers. Heterogeneity regarding crops and farmers might influence the effectiveness of these policies. Despite rural insurance being related to a better performance regarding the outcome variables, it still reaches a small share of farmers, especially when combined with credit.

Originality/value

Many studies about the effectiveness of rural credit in Brazil have been conducted throughout the years, while there have been fewer studies regarding rural insurance since it became an important policy in the mid-2000s. However, few studies have conducted an analysis comparing its individual and interactive influences, with such level of disaggregation, on a farm-level database, considering the heterogeneity of the data and the different categories of farmers.

Details

Agricultural Finance Review, vol. 83 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0002-1466

Keywords

Access Restricted. View access options
Access Restricted. View access options
Article
Publication date: 7 June 2022

Samuel Façanha Câmara, Felipe Roberto da Silva, Francisco Roberto Pinto and Marcelo de Oliveira Soares

This research aims to identify Brazil's socioeconomic vulnerability to wicked multi-problems arising from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) (2019–2020), from the most extensive…

130

Abstract

Purpose

This research aims to identify Brazil's socioeconomic vulnerability to wicked multi-problems arising from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) (2019–2020), from the most extensive (∼ 3,000 km) oil spill in tropical oceans (2019/2020) and from the highest rate of wildfires in the last decade.

Design/methodology/approach

To this end, the authors measured the socioeconomic vulnerabilities of the 27 Brazilian states to these multi-problems (COVID-19 + Oil Spill + wildFire), considering the effects of these events individually and together. In addition, the authors calculated the vulnerability indices using two variables: production value and number of jobs created by an economic activity.

Findings

Results show the states of São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Rio de Janeiro as the most susceptible, with a potential loss of 74.2% in production value and 47% in active employment relationships, caused by these overlapping events in time. The results also demonstrate that the country has failed in the coordination and management of these events (separately and jointly), showing difficulties especially in the stages of immediate response and recovery.

Originality/value

Regarding its contributions, this paper innovates by establishing an unprecedented overlap of wicked problems, linking this concept to the analysis of socioeconomic vulnerability of the affected communities, through a model that applies to other regions worldwide.

Peer review

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-09-2021-0536

Details

International Journal of Social Economics, vol. 49 no. 11
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0306-8293

Keywords

Access Restricted. View access options
Article
Publication date: 1 March 2006

Jamshed J. Mistry

The purpose of this paper is to utilize a cost and revenue driver model for commercial banking to examine the differential effects of the drivers within and between banking…

2916

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to utilize a cost and revenue driver model for commercial banking to examine the differential effects of the drivers within and between banking functions, and to examine the role of information technology (IT) in moderating the relationship between costs and cost drivers and revenue and revenue drivers.

Design/methodology/approach

The model is estimated on a cross‐sectional sample of 121 banks from the functional cost and profit analysis data set collected by the Federal Reserve Banks. Multivariate regression analysis with interaction terms is utilized to examine the differential impact of IT in two contrasting banking functions.

Findings

The results document the role of transactional IT on the cost driver relationships in the labor cost models in both the demand deposit and commercial loan functions. The role of strategic IT in the revenue driver models is documented for the demand deposit function but not for the commercial loan function.

Research limitations/implications

Only two banking functions are selected. Expanding the model and testing it on other banking functions may be useful.

Practical implications

By disaggregating the IT variable and incorporating IT in a cost and revenue driver model managers can utilize the model to examine the impact of IT in banking.

Originality/value

A model that disaggregates the IT variable by allocating support costs to functions and delineates links between IT variables and cost and revenue drivers in banking.

Details

Industrial Management & Data Systems, vol. 106 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-5577

Keywords

Access Restricted. View access options
Article
Publication date: 1 January 1993

Paul F. Takac

Aims to facilitate a clearer understanding of the issues involvedin formulating and implementing an electronic data interchange (EDI)strategy. In particular, analyses the…

127

Abstract

Aims to facilitate a clearer understanding of the issues involved in formulating and implementing an electronic data interchange (EDI) strategy. In particular, analyses the potential benefits to be derived from EDI implementation, outlining operational and management difficulties likely to arise as a result of implementation. Examines the inter – and intra‐organizational issues to which EDI gives rise. This involves a discussion of the relationship between EDI and related developments such as quick response (QR), just‐in‐time (JIT) and electronic funds transfer (EFT). Outlines the relationship between EDI and EFT, arguing that EDI‐EFT has the potential to redefine organizational cash management policies and strategies, particularly in relation to the “float”, as well as the relationship between organizations and their respective financial institutions. Concludes that EDI is both complex and costly to implement and careful cost benefit analyses as well as senior management support are required.

Details

Logistics Information Management, vol. 6 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0957-6053

Keywords

Access Restricted. View access options
Article
Publication date: 1 January 1993

Paul F. Takac

In their search for optimum performance and cost‐efficiency manyorganizations have been critically examining the value of the seeminglyever increasing cost of, and dependence on…

987

Abstract

In their search for optimum performance and cost‐efficiency many organizations have been critically examining the value of the seemingly ever increasing cost of, and dependence on, technology. In the course of examining possible alternative, and potentially more efficient, approaches to technology management, the concept of outsourcing has become widely discussed. In this context it has attracted high levels of interest among both industry and Government. In spite of this high level of interest and increasing willingness to consider outsourcing, a great deal of uncertainty exists among potential users regarding both the meaning and implications of entering into outsourcing arrangements. Intends critically to examine the concept, implementation and management issues related to outsourcing information technology services.

Details

Management Decision, vol. 31 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0025-1747

Keywords

Access Restricted. View access options
Article
Publication date: 1 November 1999

Mark R. Nelson

Retail banking in the USA is an industry in crisis. This message is repeated from the pages of industry journals to the annals of academic literature. Based on historical analysis…

2574

Abstract

Retail banking in the USA is an industry in crisis. This message is repeated from the pages of industry journals to the annals of academic literature. Based on historical analysis of the industry literature, introduces trends and patterns surrounding the interface between the marketing and information services functions within the industry. There is clear evidence that many banks lack alignment or integration between their marketing and information services functions. Improving this cross‐functional interface may lead to more effective use of information technology to support the marketing function in many banks. Provides a historical perspective of marketing and information technology evolution within this very information intensive industry, suggesting avenues for future research that arise from this perspective.

Details

International Journal of Bank Marketing, vol. 17 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0265-2323

Keywords

1 – 10 of over 3000
Per page
102050