Barriers to and driving forces for energy efficiency in the portuguese industrial SMEs

Industry accounts for about one-third of global final energy use. However, despite the need for increased industrial energy efficiency, studies indicate that cost-effective energy efficiency measures are not always implemented, resulting in an ―energy efficiency gap‖, which is explained by the existence of barriers to energy efficiency. Considering that SMEs are usually less efficient than Large Enterprises (LEs), this study based on a survey among Portuguese industrial SMEs, investigates the barriers that are inhibiting the adoption of energy efficiency measures and how they vary over firm‘s characteristics and over sector. Additionally the study points some drivers that could overcome those barriers. The results support the existence of barriers to energy efficiency in Portuguese industry, where lack of capital and other investments priorities were considered the most important ones. Furthermore it concludes that factors related with public policy could overcome those barriers, suggesting the need of public intervention to increase the levels of energy efficiency in the Portuguese industry

Perspectives and approaches for the internet of things

Dissertação para obtenção do Grau de Mestre em Engenharia Electrotécnica e de ComputadoresThis thesis was developed based on a scenario in which a CEO of a certain company asked the author to conduct an exploratory work evaluating the potential opportunities and limitations of this emerging area described as the future of the Internet, the Internet of Things (IoT). The objective is thus to provide the reader with a wide view of the vital points for the implementation and exploitation of the IoT, a technology that promises to deliver a new and wider range of applications to the society. In this subject there is a need to gather and organize information produced by several researchers and contributors. Due to the fact of being a new area and researchers work independently of each other, the work is scattered and inconsistencies can be found among different projects and publications. As such, in a first stage some definitions are provided and an attempt to clarify concepts is made. To support and emphasize the exponential growth of IoT, a brief historical overview is provided to the reader. This overview is based on the new trends and expectations that arise every day through news, potential businesses and also in important tools such as Google Trends. Several examples of applications in the context of the IoT, illustrate the benefits, not only in terms of society, but also for business opportunities, safety, and well-being. The main areas of interest to achieve the IoT such as: hardware, software, modeling, methods of connection, security and integration are studied in this work, in order to provide some insight into current strong and weak points. As the Internet of Things become a matter of large interest, various research groups are active in exploring and organizing projects in this area. Some of these projects, namely the ones considered the most important, are also presented in this thesis. Taking into account the facts surrounding this new technology, it becomes quite important to bring them together, clarifying them and trying to open new perspectives for further studies and improvements. Finally, in order to allow a practical evaluation of the technology, a prototype is developed around the connection of an intelligent object – a small mobile robot – to the Internet. A set of conclusions and future work directions are then presented which take into account the findings of the bibliographic analysis as well as the acquired experience with the implementation of the prototype

Understanding the adoption and acceptance of RPA bots in modern workplaces : a mixed methods study

As automation technologies become more prevalent in workplaces, Robotic Process Automation (RPA) bots have emerged as valuable tools for optimizing productivity. However, the successful adoption of RPA bots extends beyond their technical capabilities. This thesis employs a mixed methods approach to explore the adoption and acceptance of RPA bots in modern workplaces. The quantitative analysis, guided by Wewerka's User Acceptance Model for RPA, reveals participants' consensus on the positive social influence, job relevance, and perceived usefulness of RPA bots. Trust and hedonic motivation variations highlight the importance of addressing concerns and enhancing enjoyment for widespread acceptance. The qualitative analysis uncovers diverse motivations for adopting RPA bots, emphasizing task automation, efficiency improvement, and positive impacts on work processes. Participants express overall satisfaction with training and support, minimal barriers to adoption, and recognition of the value of human skills. Looking ahead, participants envision increased automation and emphasize the need for ongoing training and skills development. This research provides insights into the acceptance, benefits, challenges, and future outlook of RPA bots in the modern workplace.À medida que as tecnologias de automação se tornam mais prevalentes nos locais de trabalho, os bots de Automação de Processos (RPA) surgem como ferramentas valiosas para otimizar a produtividade. No entanto, a adoção bem sucedida dos bots de RPA vai além de suas capacidades técnicas. Esta tese utiliza uma abordagem de métodos mistos para explorar a adoção e aceitação dos bots de RPA nos locais de trabalho modernos. A análise quantitativa, guiada pelo Modelo de Aceitação do Utilizador para RPA de Wewerka, revela o consenso dos participantes em relação à influência social positiva, relevância para o trabalho e utilidade percecionada dos bots de RPA. Variações na confiança e motivação hedónica destacam a importância de abordar preocupações e aprimorar a satisfação para uma aceitação generalizada. A análise qualitativa revela diversas motivações para a adoção dos bots de RPA, enfatizando a automação de tarefas, melhoria da eficiência e impactos positivos nos processos de trabalho. Os participantes demonstram satisfação em relação às formações e ao apoio recebidos, destacando a ausência de grandes obstáculos na adoção. Além disso, reconhecem o valor das competências humanas no uso dos bots de RPA. Olhando para o futuro, os participantes vislumbram um aumento na automação e enfatizam a necessidade de formação contínua e desenvolvimento de competências. Esta pesquisa oferece contributos sobre a aceitação, benefícios, desafios e perspetivas futuras dos bots de RPA no local de trabalho moderno

The relevance of corporate governance in the international new ventures' internationalization process

Mestrado Bolonha em Gestão e Estratégia IndustrialThis master's degree final work intends to focus on the importance of Corporate Governance (CG) in new internationalized companies, namely in International New Ventures (INVs). This choice is justified by the fact that there is literature that addresses the importance of Corporate Governance in the internationalization process in the context of multinational companies, but there is little literature that explores the role of Top Management Team (TMT) in new internationalized companies. The literature review allows us to explore the link between organizational factors and values and the impact they have on companies in the internationalization process. This work aims to understand the relevance of these companies’ TMT characteristics to follow specific strategies, such as strategic agility and international business model adaptation, and afterward assess the way these strategic aspects influence their performance during a context of crisis. Hence, the aim of this research is twofold: i) to study and understand the relevance of the characteristics of the INVs’ Top Management Team for their changes in strategy, during a period of crisis; and ii) to explore the way these strategic changes impact on the INVs’ international performance and survival to the crisis. The hypotheses for this study were tested by using the responses of 289 new ventures, to an online questionnaire combined with information obtained from Informa D&B. The results give empirical evidence to this study’s hypotheses. Therefore, support was found for the positive relationship between the TMT characteristics and strategic agility. Additionally, strategic agility would positively influence the outcomes of international performance and crisis survival, but was also critical to promote the international business model adaptation. These results make a clear contribution to international entrepreneurship literature, due to scarcity of studies that explore the INVs’ TMT influence on the strategies followed by those firms, and the subsequent impact on performance. The implications for international entrepreneurs and managers of INVs are to gain some knowledge about the importance of TMT characteristics such as diversity, cohesion and effectiveness as critical determinants of the strategy implemented by firms, namely the agility and adaptation to crisis events.Este trabalho final de mestrado pretende centrar-se na importância do Corporate Governance (Governo das empresas) em jovens empresas internacionalizadas, nomeadamente em International New Ventures (INVs). Esta escolha justifica-se pelo facto de existir literatura que aborda a importância do Corporate Governance no processo de internacionalização no contexto das empresas multinacionais, mas haver pouca literatura que explore o papel do TMT em jovens empresas internacionalizadas. A revisão de literatura permite explorar o elo entre os fatores e valores organizacionais e o impacto que têm nas empresas, ao nível do processo de internacionalização. Este trabalho visa compreender a relevância das características do TMT destas empresas, ao seguir estratégias específicas, tais como agilidade estratégica e adaptação do modelo empresarial internacional, e depois avaliar a forma como estes aspetos estratégicos influenciam o seu desempenho em contexto de crise. O objetivo desta investigação é duplo: i) estudar e compreender a relevância das características da governação empresarial dos INV para as suas mudanças estratégicas, durante um período de crise; e ii) explorar a forma como estas mudanças estratégicas têm impacto no desempenho internacional dos INV e na sobrevivência à crise. As hipóteses para este estudo foram testadas usando as respostas de 289 INVs, a um questionário online combinado com informações obtidas da Informa D&B. Os resultados fornecem evidências empíricas para as hipóteses deste estudo. Portanto, encontrou-se suporte para a relação positiva entre as características de TMT e agilidade estratégica. Além disso, verificou-se que a agilidade estratégica influencia positivamente os resultados de performance internacional e sobrevivência a crises, sendo também fundamental para promover a adaptação do modelo de negócios internacional. Os resultados trazem uma clara contribuição para a literatura de empreendedorismo internacional, devido à escassez de estudos que explorem a influência do TMT das INVs nas estratégias seguidas por essas empresas e por consequência o impacto no desempenho. As implicações para os empresários e gestores internacionais de INVs passam por adquirir algum conhecimento sobre a importância das características de TMT, designadamente a diversidade, a coesão e a eficácia, como sendo determinantes críticos da estratégia implementada pelas empresas, nomeadamente a agilidade e adaptação a eventos de crise.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio