Marketing budget optimisation: key metrics and trends, according to specialists

The importance of marketing budget optimisation is undeniably growing. A survey by Gartner showed that marketing budgets increased to 12% of company revenue in 2016, from 11% in 2015 (Marketing Weekly News, 2016). Not only are marketing budgets increasing, but advancements in data collection and analytics deliver firms a whole new array of marketing information to interpret, opening new possibilities to marketing budget optimisation. However, despite the growth in investment, most of the existing literature regarding the subject is still debating concepts and definitions (Gao, 2010), reducing its utility to managers that seek streamlined and practical information to apply to their companies. This leads to the objective of this dissertation, which is to gather and analyse the opinions of marketing specialists regarding key metrics and trends related to marketing budget optimisation, according to the type of company. Through a Real-Time Delphi methodology used to gather the opinions of specialists on the matter, this dissertation came to several interesting conclusions. The main conclusion is that the topic of marketing budget optimisation is non-consensual, due to its complexity and scope. This means that the type of company alone was not enough to reach a consensual conclusion among specialists, as other criteria such as the market that the company operates in, its competition, product lifecycle, and objectives are also considered crucial. Despite these shortcomings, several key metrics were identified according to the chosen types of company, and trends were identified in marketing budget optimisation such as programmatic marketing, earned media, and marketing automation.A importância da otimização do orçamento de marketing está indubitavelmente a crescer. Um estudo da Gartner mostrou que os orçamentos de marketing aumentaram de 11% das receitas das empresas em 2015, para 12% em 2016 (Marketing Weekly News, 2016). A juntar a isto, os avanços na recolha de dados dão às empresas todo um novo conjunto de informação, abrindo as portas à otimização do orçamento de marketing. Contudo, apesar do crescimento em investimento, a literatura atual ainda debate conceitos e definições (Gao, 2010), reduzindo a sua utilidade para os gestores que procuram informação mais prática para aplicarem nas suas empresas. Isto leva-nos ao objetivo desta dissertação, recolher e analisar as opiniões dos especialistas de marketing relativamente às métricas e tendências da otimização do orçamento de marketing de acordo com o tipo de empresa. Através de uma metodologia Real-Time Delphi para recolher as opiniões dos especialistas, esta dissertação chegou a várias conclusões interessantes. A principal conclusão é que o tema é não-consensual, devido à sua complexidade e extensão. O tipo de empresa não foi suficiente para chegar a uma conclusão consensual entre os especialistas, pois outros critérios como o mercado, competição, ciclo de vida do produto e objetivos também foram considerados cruciais. De qualquer modo, várias métricas-chave foram identificadas de acordo com o tipo de empresa escolhido e identificaram-se tendências na otimização do orçamento de marketing como o marketing programático, earned media e automação do marketing

SARS-CoV-2 introductions and early dynamics of the epidemic in Portugal

Genomic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 in Portugal was rapidly implemented by the National Institute of Health in the early stages of the COVID-19 epidemic, in collaboration with more than 50 laboratories distributed nationwide. Methods By applying recent phylodynamic models that allow integration of individual-based travel history, we reconstructed and characterized the spatio-temporal dynamics of SARSCoV-2 introductions and early dissemination in Portugal. Results We detected at least 277 independent SARS-CoV-2 introductions, mostly from European countries (namely the United Kingdom, Spain, France, Italy, and Switzerland), which were consistent with the countries with the highest connectivity with Portugal. Although most introductions were estimated to have occurred during early March 2020, it is likely that SARS-CoV-2 was silently circulating in Portugal throughout February, before the first cases were confirmed. Conclusions Here we conclude that the earlier implementation of measures could have minimized the number of introductions and subsequent virus expansion in Portugal. This study lays the foundation for genomic epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 in Portugal, and highlights the need for systematic and geographically-representative genomic surveillance.We gratefully acknowledge to Sara Hill and Nuno Faria (University of Oxford) and Joshua Quick and Nick Loman (University of Birmingham) for kindly providing us with the initial sets of Artic Network primers for NGS; Rafael Mamede (MRamirez team, IMM, Lisbon) for developing and sharing a bioinformatics script for sequence curation (https://github.com/rfm-targa/BioinfUtils); Philippe Lemey (KU Leuven) for providing guidance on the implementation of the phylodynamic models; Joshua L. Cherry (National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health) for providing guidance with the subsampling strategies; and all authors, originating and submitting laboratories who have contributed genome data on GISAID (https://www.gisaid.org/) on which part of this research is based. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not reflect the view of the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Health and Human Services, or the United States government. This study is co-funded by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia and Agência de Investigação Clínica e Inovação Biomédica (234_596874175) on behalf of the Research 4 COVID-19 call. Some infrastructural resources used in this study come from the GenomePT project (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-022184), supported by COMPETE 2020 - Operational Programme for Competitiveness and Internationalisation (POCI), Lisboa Portugal Regional Operational Programme (Lisboa2020), Algarve Portugal Regional Operational Programme (CRESC Algarve2020), under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), and by Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Mediating role of physical fitness and fat mass on the associations between physical activity and bone health in youth

© 2020 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis GroupWe aimed to assess if the relationship between VPA and bone health is simultaneously mediated by PF and fat mass in adolescents. Bone health was assessed by quantitative ultrasound (QUS) in 412 participants (221 girls) aged 10–18 years. VPA was assessed by accelerometry and PF was measured using specific protocols from FITescola®. Fat mass (%) was assessed using two skinfolds (triceps and calf). Parallel mediation analysis was performed by Hayes’ PROCESS (V.3.3-model 4) for SPSS. We observed that in boys, handgrip mediated the associations of VPA with speed of sound on the third distal radius (R-SoS). While, speed at 20 m and handgrip mediated the relationship of VPA with speed of sound on the tibial midshaft (T-SoS). Body fat (%) only acted as a mediator when handgrip integrates the mediation model. For girls, the only mediating variable for the relationship between VPA and R-SoS or T-SoS was the PACER test. Handgrip, speed and fat mass (%) in boys, and cardiorespiratory fitness in girls mediates the relationships between VPA and bone health assessed by QUS. Promoting muscular fitness and cardiorespiratory fitness and decrease of fat mass through VPA in adolescents may be an important strategy to improve bone health.DHN is supported by a grant from Comité Olímpico de Portugal (doctoral scholarship – COP). Pedro Júdice is supported by a grant (SFRH/BPD/ 115977/2016) from the FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia. Miguel Peralta is supported by a grant (SFRH/BD/122219/2016) from FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia. This work was supported by a national grant through the FCT—Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia within the unit I&D 472 (UID/DTP/00447/2019), Faculty of Human Kinetics of University of Lisbon.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

António Rodrigues (1954-2008): In Memoriam

O presente número da revista Arte Teoria é um número atípico. Por várias razões: em primeiro lugar, porque é o primeiro que não tem o Prof. Doutor José Fernandes Pereira como director.Com efeito, no momento em que iniciamos uma nova etapa, não podemos deixar de lhe prestar a mais absoluta homenagem e expressar apenas um desejo: que a sua ausência institucional não seja demasiado notada, e que a qualidade e dinâmica que imprimiu à revista possam continuar, bem como o seu apoio prestigiado, tanto a nível pessoal como universitário. Em segundo lugar, porque se trata de uma homenagem in Memoriam ao colega e amigo Prof. Doutor António Rodrigues, professor da Faculdade de Belas Artes, historiador e crítico de arte, que desapareceu acerca de dois anos, vítima de doença, e que pelo seu inesperado, nos deixou a todos incrédulos e demasiado tristes. O resultado do nosso esforço de preservação de alguma da memória que o António representou, está à vista: a forma admirável e solícita como os seus amigos responderam, só os prestigia e diz muito acerca do homenageado.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

O inventário nacional do património geológico : abordagem metodológica e resultados = The national inventory of geological heritage : methodological approach and results

A existência de um inventário nacional de património geológico é fundamental para se poderem implementar estratégias de geoconservação. Este trabalho apresenta a metodologia usada no desenvolvimento do mais completo inventário de geossítios. realizado até ao momento em Portugal, assim como os principais resultados obtidos. O inventário vai integrar o Sistema de Informação do Património Natural e o Cadastro Nacional dos Valores Naturais Classificados, ambos geridos pelo Instituto de Conservação da Natureza e da Biodiversidade

Characterisation of microbial attack on archaeological bone

As part of an EU funded project to investigate the factors influencing bone preservation in the archaeological record, more than 250 bones from 41 archaeological sites in five countries spanning four climatic regions were studied for diagenetic alteration. Sites were selected to cover a range of environmental conditions and archaeological contexts. Microscopic and physical (mercury intrusion porosimetry) analyses of these bones revealed that the majority (68%) had suffered microbial attack. Furthermore, significant differences were found between animal and human bone in both the state of preservation and the type of microbial attack present. These differences in preservation might result from differences in early taphonomy of the bones. © 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved

Brazilian Flora 2020: Leveraging the power of a collaborative scientific network

International audienceThe shortage of reliable primary taxonomic data limits the description of biological taxa and the understanding of biodiversity patterns and processes, complicating biogeographical, ecological, and evolutionary studies. This deficit creates a significant taxonomic impediment to biodiversity research and conservation planning. The taxonomic impediment and the biodiversity crisis are widely recognized, highlighting the urgent need for reliable taxonomic data. Over the past decade, numerous countries worldwide have devoted considerable effort to Target 1 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC), which called for the preparation of a working list of all known plant species by 2010 and an online world Flora by 2020. Brazil is a megadiverse country, home to more of the world's known plant species than any other country. Despite that, Flora Brasiliensis, concluded in 1906, was the last comprehensive treatment of the Brazilian flora. The lack of accurate estimates of the number of species of algae, fungi, and plants occurring in Brazil contributes to the prevailing taxonomic impediment and delays progress towards the GSPC targets. Over the past 12 years, a legion of taxonomists motivated to meet Target 1 of the GSPC, worked together to gather and integrate knowledge on the algal, plant, and fungal diversity of Brazil. Overall, a team of about 980 taxonomists joined efforts in a highly collaborative project that used cybertaxonomy to prepare an updated Flora of Brazil, showing the power of scientific collaboration to reach ambitious goals. This paper presents an overview of the Brazilian Flora 2020 and provides taxonomic and spatial updates on the algae, fungi, and plants found in one of the world's most biodiverse countries. We further identify collection gaps and summarize future goals that extend beyond 2020. Our results show that Brazil is home to 46,975 native species of algae, fungi, and plants, of which 19,669 are endemic to the country. The data compiled to date suggests that the Atlantic Rainforest might be the most diverse Brazilian domain for all plant groups except gymnosperms, which are most diverse in the Amazon. However, scientific knowledge of Brazilian diversity is still unequally distributed, with the Atlantic Rainforest and the Cerrado being the most intensively sampled and studied biomes in the country. In times of “scientific reductionism”, with botanical and mycological sciences suffering pervasive depreciation in recent decades, the first online Flora of Brazil 2020 significantly enhanced the quality and quantity of taxonomic data available for algae, fungi, and plants from Brazil. This project also made all the information freely available online, providing a firm foundation for future research and for the management, conservation, and sustainable use of the Brazilian funga and flora