Large Brazilian Companies Research Articles

Open innovation, crowdsourcing, and knowledge from the crowd: an exploratory study of sustainable company growth

Crowdsourcing and open innovation can leverage collective knowledge from different sources in a dynamic process which is fundamental to the creation of new knowledge within the company. This study aims to analyse the dynamics process of knowledge acquisition from open innovation and crowdsourcing platforms and management of the new knowledge in social, environmental and economic activities of the company, to achieve sustainable growth. An exploratory research was carried out in a large Brazilian company that pursues crowd-sourced knowledge and combines this with the company existing expertise to the development of new ideas and strategies. The study finds that, even though the application of knowledge acquired through open innovation and crowdsourcing still represent a challenge, once requires a cross-functional flexibility and openness in companies, the new knowledge can ensure the sustainable company growth.

Antecedents of IT Governance Effectiveness: An Empirical Examination in Brazilian Firms

ABSTRACTAlthough some authors have stated that effective IT governance is crucial for any organization to achieve its corporate goals, little empirical research is available supporting the assumptions regarding the factors that determine the effectiveness of IT governance. This paper analyzes the main IT governance domains (i.e., IT strategic alignment, IT risk management, IT value delivery, IT resource management, and IT performance management) and the presence of several IT governance mechanisms that constitute antecedents of IT governance effectiveness. We used partial least squares (PLS) structural equation modeling to test our hypotheses based on survey data from 87 large Brazilian companies. Our results show IT strategic alignment, IT value delivery, IT risk management, and IT performance management have a positive and significant impact on the effectiveness of IT governance. Further, we found associations of structural, procedural, and relational mechanisms with the main IT governance domains suggesting their adoption can improve IT governance within organizations.

Sociotechnical regimes, technological innovation and corporate sustainability: from principles to action

ABSTRACTIncreased environmental and social responsibility awareness, while producing unique opportunities for sustainability-oriented innovations, has generated important challenges for companies. The path to sustainability requires corporate strategies that guarantee profitability, managing simultaneously environmental and social responsibilities. An attempt is made to provide an understanding of sustainable development thinking in business, discussing how the combination of the transition management, adaptive planning and sociotechnical approaches can contribute towards an effective implementation of sustainability-oriented innovations in business context. The article proposes a conceptual model, which incorporates this contribution, developed through a four-year action-research project carried out within a large Brazilian energy company – Petrobras. The authors argue that the adoption of the proposed model by other large firms operating in different societal sectors might trigger organisational changes related to current corporate practices of technological innovation management.

Capital budgeting practices by large Brazilian companies

This article aims to analyze the use of capital budgeting practices by large Brazilian companies. The survey technique was used for data collection in 51 companies traded on the Stock Exchange. Descriptive statistics were applied, aiming to improve the basis for discussions. The correlation was used to assess the theoretical assumptions of the research. The results show that companies adopt especially the Payback Period, the Net Present Value and the Internal Rate of Return in the assessment of capital budgeting, with scenario and sensitivity analyses to examine the investment risk. The assessment of theoretical assumptions developed in the study has shown that there is no relationship of cause and effect among the variables to explain the use of more sophisticated budgeting practices. Based on similar studies, it is concluded that there is a general trend of increasing sophistication in the various stages of investments budget in large Brazilian companies.

TI VERDE: MITO OU REALIDADE NA INDÚSTRIA DIGITAL BRASILEIRA

This article aims to determine which green IT practices large Brazilian companies of the digital industry show in their sustainability reports and websites. Documentary research was conducted based on the following criteria: energy efficient hardware purchase; power management technology, energy saving, consolidation and virtualization, temperature reduction in data centers; use of thin clients, recycling and disposal equipment; life cycle, savings in paper consumption and awareness of its employees, suppliers and customers on the Green IT theme. As a result, it was found that, among the four Brazilian companies listed in Bovespa as part of the digital industry, only two show explicit concern about Green IT practices and believe this is an important issue for their shareholders.

Corporate Political Strategies and State Owned Enterprises (SOEs)

Management literature is replete with cases of companies that use competitive strategies in the markets in which they operate. However, organizational success often depends on other variables, such as political action, which has been neglected in more detailed studies in strategy literature in general. Researchers such as Epstein (1969), Mizruchi (1992), Schuler (1996), Hillman and Hitt (1999), Blumentritt (2003), Boddewyn (2003), Hadani (2007) and Tian, Hafsi & Wu (2009) have stressed the importance of political strategies, claiming that organizational decisions and actions are influenced in practice by them. In the competitive international markets corporations use political strategies to influence stakeholders in order to conquer segments of the market that they focus on and also to prevent from other adverse interests. In this context, home country governments also assist domestic MNC's international ventures using their state owned enterprises (SOEs). This paper aims to examine the political strategies practiced by a Brazilian multinational engineering company in its international operations in its dealings with home country state owned enterprises. The methodology employed was the single case study, using a qualitative approach for data collection and analysis at a large Brazilian multinational engineering company. The findings revealed that political strategies directed at SOEs from home governments are critical to a company's internationalization process.

The Brazilian Sector of Electricity Transmission: Entrance of Spanish Companies

The first period of the history of Brazilian electrical transmission between the beginning of the demand for electricity from the 1920s to the privatization of the 1990s was marked by broad participation of large state Brazilian companies in electricity transmission sector. In the second period, mainly from political, economic and legislative 1990s, it was possible to become the most competitive and interesting sector to domestic and foreign entrepreneurs. Under a solid scenario legal, political, economic and fiscal, Spanish companies with protection of his government and focused on expanding the market, till them largely European, come explore the Brazilian energy market actively participating in the public service concession auctions of transmission promoted by National Electricity Agency (ANEEL).

Estrutura de propriedade e disclosure econômico e socioambiental nas maiores empresas do Brasil

A evidenciação das práticas sustentáveis tornou-se importante na busca por vantagens competitivas, possibilitando o atendimento às expectativas dos diversos stakeholders. Assim, o estudo tem por objetivo investigar a relação entre a estrutura de propriedade e o disclosure voluntário econômico e socioambiental nas maiores empresas brasileiras, analisando a concentração acionária e a identidade do acionista controlador. Para a análise, foram consideradas as perspectivas econômica, social e ambiental abordadas tanto de forma individual quanto conjunta. A amostra reúne 47 empresas das 100 maiores companhias abertas listadas na BM&FBOVESPA, conforme a revista Exame Melhores e Maiores, edição 2013. A pesquisa possui caráter descritivo e abordagem quantitativa dos dados, empregando a Regressão Linear Múltipla como método estatístico. A análise descritiva das perspectivas do disclosure (econômico, social, ambiental e sustentabilidade) evidenciou que o aspecto ambiental apresentou menor média de divulgação. As organizações de controle estatal destacaram-se com maior média em três dos quatro níveis de disclosure: econômico, social e de sustentabilidade. Quanto à aplicação do teste estatístico, os modelos de regressão não apresentaram significância estatística, indicando que, para as empresas da amostra, a estrutura de propriedade não exerce influência sobre o disclosure econômico e socioambiental.

Windows of opportunities and technological innovation in the Brazilian pharmaceutical industry.

The Brazilian pharmaceutical industry is heavily dependent on external sources of inputs, capital, and technology. However, the emergence of technological opportunities and the development of biotechnology and the decline of the patent boom and resulting advances by generic drugs have opened windows of opportunities for the local industry. The article examines the Brazilian industry's innovative behavior vis-à-vis these opportunities, showing that although the industry as a whole invests little in innovation, a few large Brazilian companies have expanded their market share and stepped up their investments in research and development, supported by public policies for innovation. Resumo: A indústria farmacêutica brasileira caracteriza-se pela grande dependência de fontes externas de insumos, capital e tecnologia. O surgimento de oportunidades tecnológicas, associadas ao desenvolvimento da biotecnologia e ao fim do boom das patentes com o consequente avanço dos medicamentos genéricos, entretanto, vem abrindo janelas de oportunidades para a indústria local. Este artigo examina o comportamento inovador da indústria brasileira à luz dessas oportunidades, revelando que, embora o conjunto da indústria mantenha baixos níveis de investimentos em inovação, um pequeno grupo de grandes empresas nacionais vem ampliando sua participação no mercado e intensificando seus investimentos em pesquisa e desenvolvimento, apoiados por políticas públicas de inovação.

A maturity model for enterprise risk management

The enterprise risk management has been a recurring theme on the agenda of organizations. The competition is increasingly established among the supply chains of organizations. In this sense, it is appropriate that this research aims to analyze the enterprise risk management in the supply chain of Brazilian companies. As a conceptual framework, it has been adopted three theoretical pillars, namely, New Institutional Economics, Supply Chain and Enterprise Risk Management. The research was divided into three stages: interviews with experts on the subject, survey with managers of large Brazilian companies, and validation of the proposals from the analysis of the results with the same experts. The analysis of results was established mainly by the use of multivariate statistical techniques such as correspondence analysis, factor analysis, cluster analysis and multinomial logistic regression. As a result of the study, it was presented a proposal of model for an enterprise risk analysis, as well as a proposal of model for analysis of the level of maturity in enterprise risk management in the supply chain of large Brazilian companies.

Criteria selection for evaluation of ERP systems implementation in large Brazilian companies

Purpose– This paper aims to identify criteria that can be used in assessing the successful implementation of ERP (enterprise resource planning) in large companies.Design/methodology/approach– Based on a systematic review conducted in 74 selected articles from a survey performed in Scopus bases and Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) Web of Science, an initial set of 34 criteria was defined and used for evaluating the implementation of ERP systems. This set was submitted to a sample of 111 experts in ERP for evaluation via electronic forms provided through the EncuestaFácil site. The collected data were treated by applying the Content Validity Ratio (CVR) method. The criteria selection is based on the integration of two methodological approaches: systematic review and the application of CVR method for validation of ratings issued by experts.Findings– As a result of the research, 25 criteria were identified and validated to evaluate the implementation of ERP systems, focusing on large Brazilian companies.Practical implications– The research results can be very useful to managers using ERP systems and have significant utility for organizations that develop ERP systems.Originality/value– According to studied literature, no previous study has used this integration in the identification of criteria for assessing the implementation of ERP systems in large Brazilian companies. On the other hand, the use of these two approaches assured confidence in the validity of the findings.

Exploring Information Technology and Supply Chain Governance

The aim of this study is to investigate how information technology (IT) investment supports and relates to SCG and its conceptions (transactional and relational. The authors conducted exploratory case studies in two large Brazilian companies and two major suppliers, interviewing top supply chain executives. In the first case, they identified a more relational type of governance that was mainly based on the company's relationship with its suppliers which was driven by the desire to achieve a greater market share. IT investments focused on sales and operations planning projects where all systems were being integrated. In the second case, they identified transactional governance as the predominant form. This reflects the presence of a great number of suppliers, low partnership and low supply on time delivery rate. IT investments are being made to achieve more relational governance through expenditure on e-procurement and greater integration with their suppliers using ERP.

The effect of justice in the history of loyalty: A study in failure recovery in the retail context

The process of justice means the handling of complaints, and includes the series of events related to the procedure for recovering any failures that have occurred. The main purpose of this study is to identify the role of perceived justice in its constitution dimension, as an antecedent of loyalty in a scenario of failure recovery service. We carried out a survey among 604 consumers from a database of a large Brazilian retail company. Through structural equation modeling, we identify the relationships between justice and satisfaction, and perceived quality and trust. In addition, we identify how these constructs relate to loyalty after the failure has been recovered.

The Use of AHP for IT Project Priorization – A Case Study for Oil & Gas Company

Abstract As market dynamics and complexity increase, the selection of IT projects, which are important to align enterprise operations and strategy, face challenges from cost-benefit related conception, to criteria for project definition. This research has the objective to present a case study for the process of adoption of a multi-criteria method through AHP – Analytic Hierarchy Process by a large Brazilian multinational company in the oil & gas segment. The authors prepared a descriptive qualitative research based on survey data from semi-structured interviews with key company professionals involved throughout the implementation process. The results obtained indicated that the company, based on a medium to long term strategic plan passed by the realignment in the criteria of the decision-making model, through the enhancement of demand and project portfolio prioritization under IT. The study also aims to explore from company's senior management expectations up to the details on the challenges encountered during implementation and use of the method chosen by the corporation.

A Influência da Responsabilidade Social Corporativa na Imagem de Marca: Um Estudo em Empresas Brasileiras do Setor de Cosméticos

Este estudo tem como tema a influncia da Responsabilidade Social Corporativa (RSC) na imagem de marca (IM) e na reputao corporativa (RC) de empresas brasileiras do setor de cosmticos. O foco da pesquisa foi investigar a percepo dos consumidores universitrios pertencentes s classes A/B sobre as aes de RSC de duas grandes empresas brasileiras de cosmticos. O objetivo foi comparar as percepes dos consumidores e apontar as diferenas entre as duas empresas. O desenvolvimento deste estudo ocorreu em duas etapas: a primeira etapa envolveu reviso bibliogrfica, verificando as teorias e pesquisas publicadas sobre responsabilidade social corporativa, IM e RC. A segunda etapa envolveu a coleta de dados por meio de uma survey com consumidores de duas grandes empresas brasileiras de cosmticos que publicam relatrios sociais com metodologia GRI. Os resultados demonstraram que a RSC tem influncia positiva na IM, porm tal influncia demonstrou-se significativa apenas para uma das marcas estudadas, sendo moderada para a segunda. Entre as contribuies deste trabalho esto a reviso de literatura sobre o tema, os apontamentos da influncia dos subconstrutos e variveis da RSC na IM e RC e as diferenas da percepo do consumidor para cada uma das marcas estudadas, bem como as recomendaes para estudos futuros.

Competency mapping in project management: An action research study in an engineering company

The present study proposes a seven-step method for the project management competency map. Additionally, the method helps to evaluate and design evolution trajectories based on organisational experience and challenges. This methodological approach merges literature reviews with qualitative and quantitative research methods. Data were collected in a large Brazilian engineering company through the analysis of documentation, behavioural event interviews, self-assessment surveys and statistical analyses. The proposed method is simple, replicable and insightful for managers across all industries and consists of the following: a description of competence and performance criteria, an assessment process, a diagnosis of the current proficiency level, the identification of competence levels that differentiate professional categories, the establishment of expected profiles, a gap analysis and the association between experience and competency development.

Knowledge management barriers, practices and maturity model

Purpose – This paper aims to discuss the barriers and practices associated with knowledge management (KM), which is characterized as an important management tool to add value to products and services of companies and, thus, allow them to become more competitive and unique, of large Brazilian companies. Design/methodology/approach – As a conceptual framework, the author adopted the main theories on KM to extract the barriers and practices included in the literature, aiming to confirm them through quantitative research with managers from large Brazilian companies. Based on the responses obtained, the author conducted several multivariate analyses, including descriptive analysis, factor analysis, cluster analysis and multinomial logistic regression. Findings – In addition to presenting the main barriers and key practices associated with KM, our main result also presents a model for the evaluation of the level of maturity in KM based on the practices adopted by large Brazilian companies. Originality/value – The main result presents a model for the evaluation of the level of maturity in KM based on the practices adopted by large Brazilian companies.

Understanding the genesis of green supply chain management: lessons from leading Brazilian companies

This work discusses the internal structuring processes of leading companies when adopting green supply chain management (GSCM) practices. A multiple case study approach was adopted as the research methodology, with four large Brazilian companies that are leaders in their market segments. The introduction of green products is a key step towards initiating concern for the environment among suppliers and customers. This study's results show the importance of having green teams, a dedicated functional area, and/or green jobs that support the discussion of environmental management among a business and beyond. The practical results of this study offer new insights into the behavior of companies that are adopting GSCM practices, thereby generating new evidence for the extension of GSCM theory.

Characterization of the adoption of environmental management practices in large Brazilian companies

Abstract Many studies in literature discuss the drivers to implementing environmental management systems and some of them appraise the characteristics of companies that are implementing these systems and related practices. The goal of this paper is to characterize groups of Brazilian companies with similarities in terms of their adopted environmental management practices. To achieve this objective, a cluster analysis was applied to identify and characterize groups of companies with similar environmental management practices. The practices considered for clustering were: organization of environmental management, adopted procedures, information policy, consumption of natural resources, waste treatment, and additional environmental actions (those not classified in the previous categories). Overall results showed that companies with the best environmental performance belong to the group of largest companies and most of them are in the industrial sector. Environmental practices with the best performance in this group comprised the consumption of natural resources and waste treatment. The environmental practices with the worst performance in all groups were in the additional environmental actions category, comprising the use of renewable energy sources, the development of projects to obtain carbon credits, and the adoption of Green Seal certification for neutralizing carbon.

Organizational Culture, Organizational Structure and Human Resource Management as Bases for Business Process Orientation and their Impacts on Organizational Performance

This article presents the main findings of a survey conducted with the aim of describing the interplay of the variables organizational structure, organizational culture and human resource management — considering the assumptions of the business process orientation (BPO) approach— and of identifying the relationship between these constructs and organizational performance, based on the four critical dimensions of the balanced scorecard technique: financial, customer/market, processes/capabilities and learning/growth. We used data from a sample of 368 medium and large Brazilian companies. By means of structural equations modeling we analyzed the associations between the constructs of the proposed nomothetic model. The results point to the existence of positive and statistically significant associations between the constructs investigated, except for the relationship between organizational structure and organizational performance. The results, including with respect to the relatively weak association between elements of organizational structure and performance, suggest that BPO initiatives can have a strong effect on organizational performance, adding to discussions of the theme.