Costs and Benefits of Privatization: Evidence from Brazil

Although the Brazilian privatization program has been a sweeping endeavor involving more than 100 firms and billions of dollars, most of the studies have been published only in Brazil, and in Portuguese. This paper is the most comprehensive study to date in terms of the companies covered, and includes the most recent data. It looks at the results of privatization in Brazil for a broad range of economic variables to answer the question: Has the widespread popular discontent with the program been justified? The paper also examines the effects of privatization on aspects that affect the development of financial markets, including minority shareholder rights. It concludes with recommendations for democratizing capital ownership through public offers in which workers would be entitled to participate using public sector liabilities such as FGTS deposits.

Marine algal (seaweed) flora of Terceira Island, Azores

BACKGROUND: As for many other Azorean Islands, the macroalgal flora of Terceira (belonging to the central group of the archipelago) is poorly known, the published information reflecting occasional collections of sporadic visitors to the island. In order to overcome this and contribute to improve the knowledge of Azorean macroalgal flora at both local and regional scales, a thorough investigation was conducted. Both collections and presence data recordings were undertaken at the littoral and sublittoral levels down to approximately 40 m around the island, covering a total area of approximately 49 km2. This paper lists the taxonomic records and provides information on each species’ ecology and occurrence on the Island’s littoral. NEW INFORMATION: A total of 418 specimens (including taxa identified only to genus level) belonging to 147 taxa of macroalgae, comprising 95 Rhodophyta, 33 Chlorophyta and 19 Ochrophyta (Phaeophyceae) are registered. Of these, 113 were identified to species level (73 Rhodophyta, 24 Chlorophyta and 16 Ochrophyta), encompassing 35 new records for the Island (27 Rhodophyta, 6 Chlorophyta and 2 Ochrophyta). Most species are native, including the Macaronesian endemisms Codium elisabethiae O.C.Schmidt, Millerella tinerfensis (Seoane-Camba) S.M.Boo & J.M.Rico and Phyllophora gelidioides P.Crouan & H.Crouan ex Karsakoff. Eight species are introduced and 15 have uncertain origin.This research was supported by the project “CAMAG/TER - Caracterização das massas de água costeira da Ilha Terceira”, funded by the Azores Regional Government and lately by the project “ACORES-01-0145-FEDER-000072” funded the Operational Programme Azores 2020 (85% ERDF and 15% regional funds). Afonso Prestes was supported by a PhD grant (M3.1.a/F/083/2015) awarded by Fundo Regional da Ciência e Tecnologia (FRCT).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Overcoming inertia : drivers of the outsourcing process

Almost all managers have directly or indirectly been involved in the practice of outsourcing in recent years. But as they know, outsourcing is not straightforward. Outsourcing inertia, when companies are slow to adapt to changing circumstances that accommodate higher outsourcing levels, may undermine a firm’s performance. This article investigates the presence of outsourcing inertia and the factors that help managers overcome it. Using statistical evidence, we show that positive performance effects related to outsourcing can accumulate when circumstances change. This is then followed by rapid increases in outsourcing levels (i.e. outsourcing processes). We investigate what gives rise to these outsourcing processes through follow-up interviews with sourcing executives, which suggest five drivers behind outsourcing processes: managerial initiative (using outside experience); hierarchy (foreign headquarters); imitation (of competitors and of similar firms); outsider advice (from external institutions); knowledge sources (using external information). These five drivers all offer scope for managerial action. We tie them to academic literatures and suggest ways of investigating their presence and impact on the outsourcing process. Overall, we conclude that while economizing factors play a key role in explaining how much firms outsource, it is socializing factors that tend to drive outsourcing processes

Marine algal flora of Pico Island, Azores

BACKGROUND: The seaweed flora of Pico Island (central group of the Azores archipelago) has attracted interest of researchers on past occasions. Despite this, the macroalgal flora of the island cannot be considered well-known as published information reflects only occasional collections. To overcome this, a thorough investigation encompassing collections and presence data recording was undertaken. Research under the Campaigns "AÇORES/89", "PICO/91", "PICOBEL/2007" and "LAUMACAT/2011" covered a relatively large area (approximately 39 km2) around the island, encompassing the littoral and sublittoral levels down to about 40 m around the Island.This paper improves the knowledge of the Azorean macroalgal flora at local and regional scales by listing taxonomic records and providing information on the ecology and occurrence of each species present on the Island's littoral. NEW INFORMATION: A total of 4043 specimens (including taxa identified only to genus level) belonging to 303 taxa of macroalgae are registered, comprising 197 Rhodophyta, 53 Chlorophyta and 53 Ochrophyta (Phaeophyceae). From these, 225 were identified to species level (142 Rhodophyta, 41 Chlorophyta and 42 Ochrophyta), encompassing 110 new records for the island (69 Rhodophyta, 20 Chlorophyta and 21 Ochrophyta), three Macaronesian endemisms (Botryocladia macaronesica Afonso-Carillo, Sobrino, Tittley & Neto; Laurencia viridis Gil-Rodríguez & Haroun; Codium elisabethiae O. C. Schmidt), 14 introduced and 25 species with an uncertain status.This research was supported by the project “PICOBEL: Coastal benthic communities of Pico Island: characterization and monitoring”, funded by the Azores Regional Government and lately by the project “ACORES-01-0145-FEDER-000072” funded the Operational Programme Azores 2020 (85% ERDF and 15% regional funds). Afonso Prestes was supported by a PhD grant (M3.1.a/F/083/2015) awarded by Fundo Regional da Ciência e Tecnologia (FRCT).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Marine algal flora of Formigas Islets, Azores

BACKGROUND: The oldest reference to marine life in Formigas Islets (oriental group of the Azores archipelago) goes back to the 16th century. Nevertheless, their macroalgal flora is poorly known, the published information mainly resulting from occasional collections of sporadic visitors. To overcome this and contribute to the knowledge of Azorean macroalgal flora at both local and regional scales, a thorough investigation was conducted in 1990 and 1991 under two expeditions promoted by the Marine Biology Research Group of the Department of Biology, University of the Azores. Collections and presence data recordings were undertaken at the littoral and sublittoral levels down to approximately 40 m, in an area of approximately 0.04 km2. This paper lists the taxonomic records and provides information regarding each species’ ecology and occurrence on the Islets’ littoral. NEW INFORMATION: A total of 320 specimens are registered (including taxa identified only at generic level) belonging to 90 taxa of macroalgae, from which 70 were diagnosed at species level. The confirmed species comprise 39 Rhodophyta, 12 Chlorophyta and 19 Ochrophyta (Phaeophyceae), distributed in 22 orders (13 Rhodophyta, 3 Chlorophyta and 6 Ochrophyta) and 37 families (24 Rhodophyta, 6 Chlorophyta and 7 Ochrophyta). Sixty-one species represent new records for the Islets, from which Botryocladia macaronesica Afonso-Carrillo, Sobrino, Tittley & Neto and Laurencia viridis Gil-Rodriguez & Haroun are Macaronesian endemisms. Most species are native to the Azores, but six have an uncertain origin and four are introduced (the Rhodophyta Asparagopsis armata Harvey; Laurencia dendroidea J.Agardh; Neoizziella divaricata (C.K.Tseng) S.-M.Lin, S.-Y.Yang & Huisman and the Ochrophyta Hydroclathrus tilesii (Endlicher) Santiañez & M.J.Wynne).This research was mainly supported by the projects Expeditions “SANTA MARIA and FORMIGAS/90” and “FORMIGAS/91” and lately by the project “ACORES-01-0145-FEDER-000072” funded the Operational Programme Azores 2020 (85% ERDF and 15% regional funds). Afonso Prestes was supported by a PhD grant (M3.1.a/F/083/2015) awarded by Fundo Regional da Ciência e Tecnologia (FRCT).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio