Evaluating sustainability in organisations with a fuzzy logic approach

Purpose - To determine whether the organisations more strategically committed to its stakeholders present better social and financial performance and, based on this relationship, know the state of the art of the Spanish sectors’ approach to the sustainable development. Design/methodology/approach - This paper analyses the sustainability approach of a sample of 52 Spanish listed firms. This process is based on the study of different indexes generated in order to evaluate the company’s commitment through its stakeholders, the social and financial performance of these organisations, and the relationship between them. Previous results showed a positive and not significant relationship between these variables and a positive financial performance. This paper replicates a former research by introducing a fuzzy- logic- based methodology in order to generate the aforementioned indexes. Findings -The current results support the conclusions formerly obtained and simultaneously demonstrate that the big Spanish companies are at an incipient stage of development of a clearly sustainability - oriented management. Research limitations/implications - The unavailability of a long series of organisations sustainability information is an obstacle for a broader analysis. This research could motivate the usefulness of the fuzzy logic methodology for analysing the business sustainability approach and to develop studies on the corporate social performance. Originality/value - The use of fuzzy logic methodology for the generation of indexes related to the organisations social responsibility and sustainability result

Assessment of Sustainable Development

The objective of this paper is to introduce fuzzy set theory and develop fuzzy mathematical models to assess sustainable development based on context-dependent economic, ecological, and societal sustainability indicators. Membership functions are at the core of fuzzy models, and define the degree to which indicators contribute to development. Although a decision-making process regarding sustainable development is subjective, fuzzy set theory links human expectations about development, expressed in linguistic propositions, to numerical data, expressed in measurements of sustainability indicators. In the future, practical implementation of such models will be based on elicitation of expert knowledge to construct a membership function. The fuzzy models developed in this paper provide a novel approach to support decisions regarding sustainable development.agriculture;assessment;fuzzy set theory;sustainable development

Scenario of the organic food market in Europe

Scenario analysis is a qualitative tool for strategic policy analysis that enables researchers and policymakers to support decision making, and a systemic analysis of the main determinants of a business or sector. In this study, a scenario analysis is developed regarding the future development of the market of organic food products in Europe. The scenario follows a participatory approach, exploiting potential interactions among the relevant driving forces, as selected by experts. Network analysis is used to identify the roles of driving forces in the different scenarios, and the results are discussed in comparison with the main findings from existing scenarios on the future development of the organic sector

Evaluation of Corporate Sustainability

As a consequence of an increasing demand in sustainable development for business organizations, the evaluation of corporate sustainability has become a topic intensively focused by academic researchers and business practitioners. Several techniques in the context of multiple criteria decision analysis (MCDA) have been suggested to facilitate the evaluation and the analysis of sustainability performance. However, due to the complexity of evaluation, such as a compilation of quantitative and qualitative measures, interrelationships among various sustainability criteria, the assessor’s hesitation in scoring, or incomplete information, simple techniques may not be able to generate reliable results which can reflect the overall sustainability performance of a company. This paper proposes a series of mathematical formulations based upon the evidential reasoning (ER) approach which can be used to aggregate results from qualitative judgments with quantitative measurements under various types of complex and uncertain situations. The evaluation of corporate sustainability through the ER model is demonstrated using actual data generated from three sugar manufacturing companies in Thailand. The proposed model facilitates managers in analysing the performance and identifying improvement plans and goals. It also simplifies decision making related to sustainable development initiatives. The model can be generalized to a wider area of performance assessment, as well as to any cases of multiple criteria analysis

The evaluation of E-business related technologies in the Railway Industry

For the purposes of this paper, e-business is defined as: "the performance, automisation and organisation of transactions, or chains of them, and the gathering and publishing of data, electronically over a communication protocol" Little research has been conducted either into how e-business technology can be successfully evaluated, or into the associated costs and benefits specifically related to the transportation and railway industries. Based upon a review of the current literature and a series of interviews held with railway operators, track managers and transportation customers from the Australian Fortune 100, the paper puts forward a framework for the evaluation of e-business investments within the railway industry. The research reported here is aimed at developing a flexible interface that enables the decision maker to assess and evaluate a wide variety of complex interacting variables. The proposed approach uses a variety of evaluation methods, as opposed to searching for a single "best" approach. Additionally, an attempt is being made to include the complex interaction between the implementation of the new technology and the changing organisational setting. A model is proposed using fuzzy logic to handle incomplete and uncertain knowledge; as well as to combine criteria within a conceptual model from which "real-worth" evaluations can be performed. This model provides a systematic approach to guide the decision maker in the deployment of e-business and emerging technologies in the industry. After discussing the main findings from a literature review on the use of evaluation frameworks in IT related projects, the paper deals with the proposed framework in detail. The use of empirical data, which was obtained transportation customers to help define the main framework factors, is also discussed. Finally, the paper summarises the main implications for rail freight of customers’s perceptions and stated needs in the e-business domain

The Assessment of Real Estate Initiatives to Be Included in the Socially-Responsible Funds

The acknowledgment of the ongoing economic and financial crisis involving real estate, creates the need to formulate proposals and scenarios (in real estate) with the characteristics of socially responsible investments. These kind of investments aim towards “sustainable” development both environmentally (safeguarding the shortage of resources such as land, energy, and natural elements), and socially (protecting the population and raising its level of well-being) according to so-called “ethical finance”, instead of a mere “speculative” investment. Effectively, real estate is still an investment sector only marginally explored by the socially-responsible funds. Based on these premises, this paper will: (i) briefly analyze the nature of socially-responsible investments, setting their characteristics apart from “traditional investments”; and (ii) propose a possible procedure (of the multi-criteria type) which aims to assess socially-responsible investments in real estate. This will be applied to a case study regarding a social housing initiative in the municipality of Anguillara Sabazia (Rome, Italy)

Service Quality and Customer Loyalty in a Post-Crisis Context. Prediction-Oriented Modeling to Enhance the Particular Importance of a Social and Sustainable Approach

Research into the influence of service quality on customer loyalty has typically focused on confirming isolated direct causal influences regarding particular dimensions of quality, usually undertaken in the context of positive, firm-customer relations. The present study extends analysis of these factors through a new lens. First, the study was undertaken in a market context following a crisis that has had far-reaching consequences for customers’ relational behaviors. We explore the case of the Spanish banking industry, a sector that accurately reflects these new relational conditions, including a rising demand for more socially responsible banking. Second, we propose a holistic model that combines the effects of four key factors associated with service quality (outcome, personnel, servicescape and social qualities). We also apply an innovative predictive methodological technique using partial least squares (PLS) and qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) that enables us not only to determine the direct causal effects among variables, but also to consider different scenarios in which to predict customer loyalty. The results highlight the role of outcome and social qualities. The novelty of the social qualities factor helps to underscore the importance of social, ethical and sustainable practices to customer loyalty, although personnel and servicescape qualities must also be present to improve the predictive capability of service quality on loyalty

Corporate Social Responsibility: from Construct to Praxis.

Aquesta tesi és organitzada en un compendi de tres articles, cada uns dels quals avança en el nostre coneixement sobre la responsabilitat social corporativa (RSC), des del constructe fins a la pràctica professional. Primerament, l'article 1, titulat "Construint La Torre de Babel: Una Aproximació Mitjançant Lògica Difusa" (escrit conjuntament amb el Dr. Josep Mª Lozano i F. Di Lorenzo), proposa i prova una aproximació epistemològica difusa per contestar a la pregunta: " Pot i hauria d'existir una definició de responsabilitat social? ". Emprant la teoria sobre conjunts difusos per a l'anàlisi sistemàtica de definicions en el camp de l'empresa i societat, demostra com aquestes definicions estan vinculades a les 3 metàfores més citades en el camp de l'empresa i societat (responsabilitat social de l'empresa (RSC), sostenibilitat corporativa (SC) i ciutadania corporativa (CC)). A continuació, l'article 2, titulat "Tipologia En Quatre Cel.les De Les Barreres i Oportunitats Clau Per a La Acció Social en les PYMEs" (escrit conjuntament amb el Dr. Josep Mª Lozano), és una revisió de literatura sobre " Quines són les barreres i oportunitats per a les PYMEs en el seu compromís amb l'acció socialment responsable (ASR)?". Aquest article proposa, partint de l'heteronimia de la notabilitat dels seus stakeholders, una tipologia de 4 classes de PYMEs en base el seu ASR. Finalment, l'article 3, titulat "Safari de Casos de Millors Pràctiques en ASR: utilitzant els prismàtics de l'orientació social de l'empresa (OSR) per identificar la RSC", és un estudi de casos multimètode, sobre la qüestió de " Com es veu la RSC a nivell empresarial? ". Les conclusions d'aquest estudi suggereixen que els dominis de la RSC són jeràrquics en la seva relació, amb l'econòmic com a base. A més, l'àmbit dels principis empresarials en matèria de RSC varia segons la seva àrea d'influència i el sentit del deure moral. En particular, l'estudi crida l'atenció sobre el domini discrecional com a factor diferencial entre les millors pràctiques en ASR i els casos de pràctiques habituals. Per acabar, aquest article construeix en la teoria sobre ASR mitjançant la integració de l'OSR i la seva reorientació per incloure el context de les PYMEs. D'aquesta forma, aquesta tesi doctoral obre diverses oportunitats per a noves línies d'investigació amb la teoria de lògica de conjunts difusos, la de RSC, CC. CS i PYMEs, i la teoria de OSR i ASR.Esta tesis está organizada en un compendio de tres artículos, cada uno de los cuales avanza en nuestro conocimiento sobre la responsabilidad social corporativa (RSC), desde el constructo hasta la práctica profesional. Primeramente, el artículo 1, titulado "Construyendo La Torre de Babel: Una Aproximación Mediante Lógica Difusa" (escrito conjuntamente con el Dr. Josep Mª Lozano y F. Di Lorenzo), propone y prueba una aproximación epistemológica difusa para contestar a la pregunta: "¿Puede y debería existir una definición de responsabilidad social?". Mediante la utilización de la teoría sobre conjuntos difusos para el análisis sistemático de definiciones en el campo de la empresa y sociedad, demuestra como estas definiciones están vinculadas a las 3 metáforas más citadas en el campo de la empresa y sociedad (responsabilidad social de la empresa (RSC), sostenibilidad corporativa (SC) y ciudadanía corporativa (CC)). A continuación, el artículo 2, titulado "Tipología En Cuatro Celdas De Las Barreras y Oportunidades Clave Para La Acción Social en las PYMEs" (escrito conjuntamente con el Dr. Josep Mª Lozano), es una revisión de literatura sobre "¿Cuales son las barreras y oportunidades para las PYMEs en su compromiso con la acción socialmente responsable (ASR)?". Este artículo propone, en base a la heteronimía de la notabilidad de sus stakeholders, una tipología de 4 clases de PYMEs en base su ASR. Finalmente, el artículo 3, titulado "Safari de Casos de Mejores Prácticas en ASR: utilizando los prismáticos de la orientación social de la empresa (OSE) para identificar la RSC", es un estudio de casos multi-método, sobre la cuestión de "¿Cómo se ve la RSC a nivel empresarial?". Las conclusiones de este estudio sugieren que los dominios de la RSC son jerárquicos en su relación, con el económico como base. Además, el ámbito de los principios empresariales en materia de RSC varía según su área de influencia y el sentido del deber moral. En particular, el estudio llama la atención sobre el dominio discrecional como factor diferencial entre las mejores prácticas en ASR y los casos de prácticas habituales. Para terminar, este artículo construye en la teoría sobre ASR mediante la integración de la OSR y su reorientación para incluir el contexto de las PYMEs. De esta forma, esta tesis doctoral abre varias oportunidades para nuevas líneas de investigación con la teoría de lógica de conjuntos difusos, la de RSC, CC. CS y PYMEs, y la teoría de OSE y ASR.This thesis is organized in a compendium of three articles, each of which furthers our knowledge of the corporate social responsibility (CSR) from construct to practice. Firstly, article 1, entitled Constructing The Tower Of Babel: Towards A Fuzzy Logic Approach (co-authored with Dr. J.M. Lozano and F. Di Lorenzo) proposes and tests a fuzzy epistemological approach to answering the question "Does and can a definition for social accountability exist?". By employing fuzzy set theory for a systematic analysis of definitions within the business and society field demonstrates how they are linked to the 3 most cited metaphors (CSR, corporate sustainability (CS) and corporate citizenship (CC)) in the business and society field. Secondly, article 2, A Four-Cell Typology of Key Social Issue Drivers and Barriers of SME Social Performance (co-authored with Dr. J.M. Lozano) is a literature review of "What are the drivers and barriers to enterprise engagement in socially responsible action?". This article develops a small and medium sized enterprises (SME) four-cell ideal type of social issues management (SIM) response typology based on a proposed heteronomy of stakeholder salience. Thirdly, article 3, called A CSP Best Practice Case Safari: Using CSO Binoculars To Identify CSR, is an explanatory multi-method embedded multiple-case study design addressing the question of "What does corporate social responsibility at enterprise level look like?". The findings of this study suggest that the CSR domains are hierarchical in their relationship with the economic domain as a basis. Moreover that the scope of enterprise principles varies depending on their particular CSR domain influence and moral duty affiliation. In particular, the study calls attention to the discretionary domain as the differentiating factor between corporate social performance (CSP) best-practice and normal practice cases. Finally, this article builds CSP theory by integrating corporate social orientation (CSO) and reorienting it for the SME context. Therefore this thesis opens up several new lines of research opportunities for fuzzy set theory, CSR, CC, CS and SME theory, CSO and CSP theory

From governance to meta-governance in tourism?: Re-incorporating politics,interests and values in the analysis of tourism governance

Despite its theorization in the political and policy sciences in the early 1990s, the concept of metagovernance has gained relatively little recognition in tourism studies. Nevertheless, its significance in the political sciences and policy literature, especially as a result of the perceived failure of governance systems following the recent global financial crisis, has only served to reinforce its relevance. Metagovernance addresses some of the perceived failures of traditional governance approaches and associated interventions, and has enabled the understanding of central-state led regimes of shadowed hierarchical authorities and local-level micro-practices of social innovation and self-government. In contrast, tourism studies have tended to restrict study of the political dimension of tourism governance and the role of the state under the traditional parallelism between government and governance. Examination of how governance is itself governed enables a better understanding of the practices of planning and policy making affecting tourism and destinations. In particular, the applications of concepts of governance are inextricably linked to a given set of value assumptions which predetermine the range of its application. A short example of the application of the metagovernance paradigm is provided from the New Zealand context. It is concluded that governance mechanisms are not value-neutral and instead serve to highlight the allocation of power in a destination and the dominance of particular values and interests