Gustavo Magalhães de Oliveira, Decio Zylbersztajn and Maria Sylvia Macchione Saes
A trend toward higher quality has demanded more strategic investments in the transaction of coffee supply in Brazil. Instead of internalizing this transaction, one firm…
Abstract
Purpose
A trend toward higher quality has demanded more strategic investments in the transaction of coffee supply in Brazil. Instead of internalizing this transaction, one firm, illycaffè, has challenged the vertical integration assumption by adopting contracts to coordinate its supply. Aiming to investigate whether this firm is losing economic efficiency in terms of coordination, or whether it is being efficient due to a proper definition and allocation of property and decision rights, the purpose of this paper is to analyze the transaction attributes of illycaffè’s suppliers according to the vertical integration dilemma.
Design/methodology/approach
The research design is based on a survey of 105 coffee growers analyzed through probit regression. Using a transaction costs approach, the study empirically tests whether well-designed contracts can act as a hierarchy by following the efficient alignment hypothesis.
Findings
The results emphasize asset specificity, uncertainty and incentives as determinants for being an illycaffè supplier. In other words, these findings demonstrate that a well-designed contract can substitute a hierarchy based on transaction costs economics. It contributes by illustrating other coordination alternatives overlapping vertical integration, even in environments of high uncertainty and asset specificity, which encourages other private strategies based on allocation of property and decision rights of hybrid arrangements.
Originality/value
The study adopts a unique survey about transaction costs in the transactions of high-quality coffee supply in Brazil. The main contribution is to shed light on the cases where, how and why contracts can substitute the need for in-house production, and to guide private and public strategies using this background.
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Decio Zylbersztajn and Cláudio A. Pinheiro Machado Filho
Studies on competitiveness in agri‐food systems have been challenged by non‐standard approaches. Traditional studies are defined as the ones based on comparative costs and market…
Abstract
Studies on competitiveness in agri‐food systems have been challenged by non‐standard approaches. Traditional studies are defined as the ones based on comparative costs and market participation of countries or industries. Since comparative costs and market shares are distorted by subsidies, especially for agricultural products, traditional approaches show inconsistent results. Discusses competitiveness in a dynamic way, based on comparative capacity of agribusiness chain co‐ordination. In order to study the competitive structure of the meat system in Brazil, this study followed the methodology adopted by Farina and Zylbersztajn, applied to different food systems. The traditional studies are based on methodologies that do not make clear the specific aspects of coordination as a source of competitive advantages. Aims at reinforcing the relation between coordination and competitiveness. The main conclusion is the need to create coordination devices to attend the demands in terms of quality, traceability, standardization and certification which are key elements to building dynamic capabilities to the insertion of the region on the global beef market.
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The purpose of this paper is to help foster the global reach of Iberoamerican scholars, based on the author's own experiences and observations in the field.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to help foster the global reach of Iberoamerican scholars, based on the author's own experiences and observations in the field.
Design/methodology/approach
This is an inductive study trying to generate a framework of “academic positioning” using the author's own experience as an example.
Findings
This paper presents an analytical framework of “academic positioning” and derives some practical suggestions for young Iberoamerican scholars.
Originality/value
The paper offers an analytical framework that informs likely career paths for young Iberoamerican scholars.
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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.