Sustainability as a dynamic organizational capability: A systematic review and a future agenda toward a sustainable transition

Sustainability is a managerial trend that plays an important role in the contemporary organizational strategy. A company's capability to make sustainability more dynamic and integrated with strategies, transforming it into a business asset, has yet to be studied. This process of adaptation is reflected through innovative practices. However, there is still a gap between these practices and the organization's strategies and capabilities. The aim of this work was to conduct a systematic literature review of the dynamic capabilities for sustainability. Afterward, it was possible to systematize the available knowledge, assessing the current lack of research integrating both themes. The mainstream literature was classified and coded, resulting in a framework for what has been done to date, with recommendations to guide future research. Results show that more research is needed on dynamic capabilities for sustainability, especially in emerging economies in general. Future studies should also consider mixed methodologies and comparative perspectives in multiples sectors or in the services sector. There's also space to discuss managerial innovations toward sustainability through research alliances between different institutions around the world. In short, there are few studies that connect both themes- corporate sustainability and dynamic capabilities-and for this reason there is an opportunity for future studies seeking to identify what kind of dynamic capabilities can be developed to more effectively overcome the emerging sustainability challenges

Resource planning strategies for healthcare systems during a pandemic

We study resource planning strategies, including the integrated healthcare resources’ allocation and sharing as well as patients’ transfer, to improve the response of health systems to massive increases in demand during epidemics and pandemics. Our study considers various types of patients and resources to provide access to patient care with minimum capacity extension. Adding new resources takes time that most patients don't have during pandemics. The number of patients requiring scarce healthcare resources is uncertain and dependent on the speed of the pandemic's transmission through a region. We develop a multi-stage stochastic program to optimize various strategies for planning limited and necessary healthcare resources. We simulate uncertain parameters by deploying an agent-based continuous-time stochastic model, and then capture the uncertainty by a forward scenario tree construction approach. Finally, we propose a data-driven rolling horizon procedure to facilitate decision-making in real-time, which mitigates some critical limitations of stochastic programming approaches and makes the resulting strategies implementable in practice. We use two different case studies related to COVID-19 to examine our optimization and simulation tools by extensive computational results. The results highlight these strategies can significantly improve patient access to care during pandemics; their significance will vary under different situations. Our methodology is not limited to the presented setting and can be employed in other service industries where urgent access matters

Putting environmental technologies into the mainstream: Adoption of environmental technologies by medium-sized manufacturing firms in Brazil

The aim of this research is to analyze how critical success factors (CSFs) can influence the adoption of environmental technologies by Brazilian manufacturing companies. In terms of conceptual background, this research fits within the context of environmental management in corporate organizations, focusing on the adoption of environmental technologies in the manufacturing context and their critical success factors. In terms of methodology, this research is based on a case study conducted on two medium-sized industrial companies located in Brazil (company “Alfa” and company “Beta”). The results show the emergence of a new CSF called employee empowerment, which derives from learning and benchmarking initiatives. Two CSFs can be highlighted as the most relevant and unanimously present in both company “Alpha” and company “Beta”: support from senior management and employee empowerment through learning and benchmarking. In addition, communication and cultural organizational changes were relevant CSFs, especially for Beta. Furthermore, there is a potential synergistic relationship between CSFs and the maturity level of environmental management. For example, Beta was positioned on a more advanced environmental level as well as had greater intensity in terms of CSFs than Alpha. This work can be considered one of the first researches relating CSFs and the adoption of environmental technologies in medium-sized firms in Brazil

A three-phase heuristic approach for reverse logistics network design incorporating carbon footprint

Reverse logistics (RL) is emerging as a significant area of activity for business and industry, motivated by both commercial profitability and wider environmental sustainability factors. However, planning and implementing an appropriate RL network within existing supply chains for product recovery that increases customer satisfaction, decreases overall costs, and provides a competitive advantage over other companies is complex. In the current study, we developed a mixed integer linear programming (MILP) model for a reverse logistics network design (RLND) in a multi-period setting. The RL network consists of collection centres, capacitated inspection and remanufacturing centres and customer zones to serve. Moreover, the model incorporates significant characteristics such as vehicle type selection and carbon emissions (through transportation and operations). Since the network design problems are NP-hard, we first propose a solution approach based on Benders decomposition (BD). Then, based on the structure of the problem we propose a three-phase heuristic approach. Finally, to establish the performance and robustness of the proposed solution approach, the results are compared with benchmark results obtained using CPLEX in terms of both solution quality and computational time. From the computational results, we validated that the three-phase heuristic approach performs superior to the BD and Branch &Cut approach

Litsea Deccanensis Ameliorates Myocardial Infarction in Wistar Rats: Evidence from Biochemical and Histological Studies

The present study was designed to evaluate the cardioprotective effects of methanolic extract of Litsea deccanensis (MELD) against isoproterenol-induced myocardial infarction in rats by studying cardiac markers, lipid peroxidation, lipid profile, and histological changes. Male Wistar rats were treated orally with MELD (100 and 200 mg/kg) daily for a period of 21 days. After 21 days of pretreatment, isoproterenol (100 mg/kg) was injected subcutaneously to rats at an interval of 24 h for 2 days to induce myocardial infarction. Isoproterenol-induced rats showed significant (P < 0.05) increase in the levels of serum creatine kinase, lactate dehydrogenase, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, and lipid hydro peroxides. The serum lipid levels were altered in the isoproterenol-induced myocardial infarcted rats. The histopathological findings of the myocardial tissue evidenced myocardial damage in isoproterenol-induced rats. The oral pretreatment with MELD restored the pathological alterations in the isoproterenol-induced myocardial infarcted rats. The MELD pretreatment significantly reduced the levels of biochemical markers, lipid peroxidation and regulated the lipid profile of the antioxidant system in the isoproterenol-induced rats. An inhibited myocardial necrosis was evidenced by the histopathological findings in MELD pretreated isoproterenol-induced rats. Our study shows that oral pretreatment with MELD prevents isoproterenol-induced oxidative stress in myocardial infarction. The presence of phenolic acid and flavonoid contents were confirmed by preliminary phytochemical tests. The reducing power and free radical scavenging activities of the MELD may be the possible reason for it pharmacological actions

Selecting green suppliers based on GSCM practices: Using Fuzzy TOPSIS applied to a Brazilian electronics company

Due to an increased awareness and significant environmental pressures from various stakeholders, companies have begun to realize the significance of incorporating green practices into their daily activities. This paper proposes a framework using Fuzzy TOPSIS to select green suppliers for a Brazilian electronics company; our framework is built on the criteria of green supply chain management (GSCM) practices. An empirical analysis is made, and the data are collected from a set of 12 available suppliers. We use a fuzzy TOPSIS approach to rank the suppliers, and the results of the proposed framework are compared with the ranks obtained by both the geometric mean and the graded mean methods of fuzzy TOPSIS methodology. Then a Spearman rank correlation coefficient is used to find the statistical difference between the ranks obtained by the three methods. Finally, a sensitivity analysis has been performed to examine the influence of the preferences given by the decision makers for the chosen GSCM practices on the selection of green suppliers. Results indicate that the four dominant criteria are Commitment of senior management to GSCM; Product designs that reduce, reuse, recycle, or reclaim materials, components, or energy; Compliance with legal environmental requirements and auditing programs; and Product designs that avoid or reduce toxic or hazardous material use. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Randomized Clinical Trial of High-Dose Rifampicin With or Without Levofloxacin Versus Standard of Care for Pediatric Tuberculous Meningitis: The TBM-KIDS Trial

Background. Pediatric tuberculous meningitis (TBM) commonly causes death or disability. In adults, high-dose rifampicin may reduce mortality. The role of fluoroquinolones remains unclear. There have been no antimicrobial treatment trials for pediatric TBM. Methods. TBM-KIDS was a phase 2 open-label randomized trial among children with TBM in India and Malawi. Participants received isoniazid and pyrazinamide plus: (i) high-dose rifampicin (30 mg/kg) and ethambutol (R30HZE, arm 1); (ii) high-dose rifampicin and levofloxacin (R30HZL, arm 2); or (iii) standard-dose rifampicin and ethambutol (R15HZE, arm 3) for 8 weeks, followed by 10 months of standard treatment. Functional and neurocognitive outcomes were measured longitudinally using Modified Rankin Scale (MRS) and Mullen Scales of Early Learning (MSEL). Results. Of 2487 children prescreened, 79 were screened and 37 enrolled. Median age was 72 months; 49%, 43%, and 8% had stage I, II, and III disease, respectively. Grade 3 or higher adverse events occurred in 58%, 55%, and 36% of children in arms 1, 2, and 3, with 1 death (arm 1) and 6 early treatment discontinuations (4 in arm 1, 1 each in arms 2 and 3). By week 8, all children recovered to MRS score of 0 or 1. Average MSEL scores were significantly better in arm 1 than arm 3 in fine motor, receptive language, and expressive language domains (P < .01). Conclusions. In a pediatric TBM trial, functional outcomes were excellent overall. The trend toward higher frequency of adverse events but better neurocognitive outcomes in children receiving high-dose rifampicin requires confirmation in a larger trial. Clinical Trials Registration. NCT02958709

Reverse logistics and closed-loop supply chain:A comprehensive review to explore the future

AbstractBased on environmental, legal, social, and economic factors, reverse logistics and closed-loop supply chain issues have attracted attention among both academia and practitioners. This attention is evident by the vast number of publications in scientific journals which have been published in recent years. Hence, a comprehensive literature review of recent and state-of-the-art papers is vital to draw a framework of the past, and to shed light on future directions. The aim of this paper is to review recently published papers in reverse logistic and closed-loop supply chain in scientific journals. A total of 382 papers published between January 2007 and March 2013 are selected and reviewed. The papers are then analyzed and categorized to construct a useful foundation of past research. Finally, gaps in the literature are identified to clarify and to suggest future research opportunities