Evaluation of lean practices in warehouses: an analysis of Brazilian reality

© 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: This article aims to investigate the most applied lean warehouse practices in Brazilian warehouses. Design/methodology/approach: To perform this research, three phases were conducted: a literature review, a multiple case study, and an analysis of lean warehouses practices implementation by an engineering committee. Thus, both qualitative and quantitative approaches were used. Additionally, the study has an applied nature, with an exploratory and descriptive character. Findings: Results showed that regardless of the type of criterion used, the most implanted practices are those that do not involve investments in technology. On the other hand, practices like RFID and Cross Docking systems were not found in any of the operations, which shows numerous possibilities for improvement. Originality/value: The main contribution of this article is to initiate a debate about the management and productivity of Brazilian warehouses, a theme still little explored by the academic community despite the importance that the logistic scenario represents for Brazil as an emerging country and leader in Latin America, participating actively in several global supply chains

Critical analysis of organizational change process: evidences from a steel company

© 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the main factors that influence the organizational change in a steel company. Design/methodology/approach: The methodological procedures used were literature review and survey. The literature review allowed the listing of 24 factors and these factors were grouped into three constructs (Behavioral Aspects, Cultural Aspects and Management Aspects). The survey allowed the quantification of each factor based on information provided by employees who work in the mentioned company. The data collected were analyzed using the Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling technique. Findings: For the Behavioral Aspects, the following factors were validated: fear of the unknown; insecurity and anxiety; stress and feeling of suffering. For the Cultural Aspects the following factors were validated: multiculturalism in the company; low degree of risk acceptance and low performance acceptance; excessive concerns about consensus. Finally, for the Management Aspects, the following factors were validated: lack of clarity in communications; lack of alignment of goals; lack of leadership engagement. Originality/value: The results are valuable for the company studied and for other managers interested in subject. The findings presented here can broaden the debate about this topic and contribute with professionals that wish to evaluate the mentioned factors

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) practices developed by Brazilian companies: an exploratory study

© 2017 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. In a world where companies have major influence over the economy, politics, and environment, they must be held accountable for their actions. With this in mind, the publication of sustainability reports is in a company’s best interest, since the disclosure of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and sustainable practices can bring enormous advantages, largely related to a company’s image. The amount of information presented in sustainability reports turns them into valuable sources for research data, allowing analyses related to CSR and management practices, stakeholder relations, language used, among others. However, there is no a paper in the literature that analyzes theses information jointly for the Brazilian companies, and then we decided to explore this theme. This research aimed to identify advances and gaps of CSR practices performed by Brazil companies, through the analysis of 30 sustainability reports published between 2014 and 2015. The main findings indicate that, in general, the analyzed companies are experienced in sustainability reporting; however, there is still room for improvements, including a better mapping and reporting of practices involving the integration of CSR to organizational structure, stakeholder engagement, and continuous improvement practices

An analysis of the difficulties associated to sustainability insertion in engineering education: Examples from HEIs in Brazil

This paper aims to understand how the difficulties associated with the inclusion of sustainability in engineering education are related. From the literature review, eleven difficulties were compiled and posteriorly, a panel of experts was conducted to divide them into two groups, namely “difficulties associated with structure and planning” and “difficulties observed in didactic practice”. These groups were used as a basis of a survey, involving Brazilian lecturers who work with sustainability in engineering courses. The collected data were analysed through Structural Equation Modelling, using Partial Least Squares method. The validation of the model was divided into nine different steps. A causal relationship between the two groups was verified through the present research, that is, the greater the difficulties associated with the structure and planning, the greater will be the difficulties observed in didactic practice. The results of this paper may be used by researchers in their future studies and by lecturers and coordinators as a guide to the inclusion of sustainability in engineering education

Evaluation of the integration level of quality and environmental management systems in a tire manufacturer

Purpose: This article aims to evaluate the integration level of a quality management system (QMS) and an environmental management system (EMS) in a tire manufacturer and propose a guide to evaluate the integration of these systems in companies. Design/methodology/approach: The methodological strategies used in this research were literature review; and case study, with interviews to verify professionals' perception about benefits from integration. Data from interviews were analyzed through Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS). Findings: The results showed that the studied company has a simple level of integration, observing only some low intensity benefits. Thus, it was recommended that the company partially integrate its management systems (MSs) before evolving into something more complex. The literature and the findings of case study were used as basis for proposing a guide to evaluate MS integration. Originality/value: Lessons learned throughout the study and the suggested guide can support other companies to assess the integration level of their QMS and EMS. Thus, the findings presented here can be useful for researchers and managers

An assessment of the integration between corporate social responsibility practices and management systems in Brazil aiming at sustainability in enterprises

The concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) is associated with the idea that every organization should integrate environmental, economic and social issues as part of their organizational philosophy. In companies with a higher degree of development in terms of CSR, sustainable practices are integrated into management systems. When focusing on Latin America, this integration may be at its first steps, but there is a vacuum in the literature in this field. Based on this reality, this paper aims to evaluate the integration between CSR practices and management systems in companies in Brazil based on experts’ perceptions. Employing a conceptual model covering how stakeholder demands are incorporated in organizational practices using a continuous improvement approach, we performed a survey with experts in the area. Results revealed opportunities for improvements in all CSR practices evaluated, most of which were considered by the experts to have been implemented only superficially. In a comparative analysis, two practices stood out in relation to the others: reporting of CSR results to stakeholders and evaluation of the performance of CSR activities using pre-established indicators. Practices associated with planning of CSR activities are the most superficially implemented, adversely affecting CSR performance. The authors believe that the findings of this study could be useful for business managers and academics as guidance towards improved CSR efforts

Implementing social projects with undergraduate students: an analysis of essential characteristics

© 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: This study aims to analyse the essential characteristics for the success of social projects developed with undergraduate students of higher education institutions (HEIs). Design/methodology/approach: A case study was conducted to verify the main characteristics of projects in a social entrepreneurship initiative. These features were used to perform a survey with experts to understand which of these items are essential for social projects success, through Lawshe’s method. Findings: Of the ten items evaluated, two were considered essential by the experts: “Proper alignment between project scope and actual local community needs” and “Good level of interaction between students participating in the project and the local community”. Practical implications: These findings can be useful for professors and coordinators to prepare future projects in HEIs. They may also be advantageous for researchers who may use them as a starting point for future studies. Originality/value: The novelty of this study is the methodological approach used: a case study of projects in a social entrepreneurship initiative in a relevant Brazilian university; and a Lawshe’s method analysis of responses of experts in social projects developed in HEIs. The findings can greatly contribute to the debates in this field. No similar research was found in the literature

Implementation of cleaner production: A ten-year retrospective on benefits and difficulties found

leaner production is a fast-growing area with numerous important developments seen over the years,which have led to substantial improvements, both in technological, process and organization terms. Yet there is a paucity of literature organizing the body of knowledge on the benefits and difficulties seen inthis field. Thus, following a systematic literature review protocol, this paper provides a ten-year state-of-the-art analysis on the benefits and difficulties faced in the implementation of cleaner productionstrategies, and outlines some means via which they may be addressed. Main results point out thatcompanies and governments have been able to successfully reap both tangible and intangible benefits after Cleaner Production implementation as its appeal to attract customers and reap reputation gain increases, for example. However, the results also show a series of difficulties that remain and hinders the widespread advancement of this methodology

Analysis of the perception of engineering students regarding sustainability

© 2019 This research aims to evaluate the engineering students' perception regarding sustainability. For this, a survey was developed based on sustainability parameters from a detailed analysis of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and the Brazilian Institute of Corporate Governance (BICG). The parameters were initially divided into seven groups: Financial and Productivity Aspects (FPA); Concern With Employees (CWE); Support for Local Communities (SLC); Ethical and Corporate Governance Issues (ECI); Environmental Aspects (ENA); Sustainable Aspects in the Operations Network (SON); Customers, Development of New Products and Services (CPS). The survey was conducted with engineering undergraduate students from two Brazilian universities. The data were analyzed through structural equation modeling technique, namely the PLS-SEM algorithm. The collected 162 answers enabled the validation of the model tested, and showed that the students, in general, do not consider SLC and CWE when they are analyzing sustainability. Additionally, the most important construct was the CPS. This is an exploratory study and we believe that these findings may contribute to expand the debate about the sustainability insertion in engineering courses, helping educators in their didactic activities. There were not found similar studies in the literature, which highlight the originality of the research. The statistical validation of the results and the contribution to expand the debate regarding sustainability in engineering education justify the value of this study

Industry 4.0 and corporate sustainability: An exploratory analysis of possible impacts in the Brazilian context

This paper aims to analyse the impacts of Industry 4.0 on corporate sustainability, considering the Brazilian context. From a literature review, 12 impacts were identified and used to structure a questionnaire. This questionnaire was applied in a survey with experienced Brazilian researchers. The data was analysed using Hierarchical Cluster Analysis, Descriptive Statistics and TOPSIS, which allowed for impact ordering. It was evidenced that all the presented impacts will be evident in the Brazilian context in a ten-year horizon. Of these impacts, six stand out: 1) the reduction of job offers for manual and repetitive activities and the emergence of new, high value-added professions; 2) the emergence of innovative business; 3) the reduction of work accidents due to the expanded use of robots in dangerous tasks for humans; 4) problems with the employees’ qualification pace in the required modernisation changes; 5) the integration of all value chain activities, allowing for a better analysis of environmental, social and economic impacts; and 6) improvements in physical and cognitive ergonomics due to the use of sensors. These findings can contribute to the expansion of the debates related to the theme and can be used as a base for defining future industrial policies in Brazil