No / Unethical business practices, the conduct of corrupt rulers and conflict entrepreneurs in conflict-prone societies have provoked genuine humanitarian concern from NGOs and activists who constitute the main driving force behind calls for ethical markets. However, powerful players, such as western multinational corporations and OECD governments, have been able to undercut campaigns for compulsory legal regulatory codes by promoting industry self-regulation and voluntary codes of conduct. This article assesses a number of these initiatives to control the trade in conflict goods and promote good resource governance. It concludes that current mechanisms constitute a weak attempt to control the negative impacts of the market and, by failing to tackle the real causes of instability, are inadequate for building a political economy of peace.

The purpose of the study was to explore specific buying practices of teenage girls and to determine the influence of age and employment on shopping patterns. The buying practices investigated included use of credit, apparel purchase price, purchasing of reduced merchandise, brand name preferences, utilization of store personnel and stores patronized. The data were collected by questionnaires administered to 205 high school girls in grades 9 through 12 enrolled in the two public high schools in Carrollton, Texas. Chi square tests of independence were computed along with descriptive statistics. Buying patterns of Carrollton teenagers were found to be similar to girls in other areas of the United States. A positive correlation was found between shopping patterns and student age and employment.

Problem – Companies are increasingly focusing on sustainability issues in response to internal and external pressure. Research on sustainable performance of focal companies is vast; however there is a lack of guidelines for managing sustainability in extended supply chains. Scholars claim a need for additional research on intra- and inter-organizational diffusion of best sustainable practices. Besides, the outcomes of sustainable sourcing practices are still uncertain. The gap between potential benefits of sustainable sourcing and actual performance is attributed to lack of capabilities, instruments, and efficient processes. Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore existing sustainable sourcing practices which are used by leading multinational companies. Based on the obtained knowledge we aim to develop a framework that will suite as a guideline for enforcing sustainable sourcing practices. Method – The research has been conducted through the method of grounded theory, enabling the researchers to constructively interpret data from documentary primary data and semi-structured interviews. This approach was utilized in order to explore what are the most common practices of managing sustainable sourcing applied by the companies awarded as Industry leaders by the Dow Jones Sustainability Index. Conclusion We found that a commonly accepted approach towards managing and enforcing sustainable sourcing is absent both in theoretical discourse and practice. However, the most frequently mentioned tools and approaches were defined. They include the adoption of suppliers’ code of conduct, establishment of dedicated sustainability departments, procurement personnel training, suppliers’ capability building, risk assessment and categorization of suppliers, IT platforms for information sharing, supplier self-assessment, audit, joint projects with suppliers, meetings and conferences, and suppliers’ scorecards. Finally, we developed a Sustainable Sourcing Enforcement framework which could serve as a guideline to enforce supplier’s commitment to act sustainably. The framework consists of five chronologically connected pillars: Objectives alignment, Commitment creation, Supplier selection, Ongoing development and Work with stakeholders.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T13:53:13Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 SemioPTS.pdf: 324761 bytes, checksum: 3a511c0e2de3c47eda8704cd52e0960d (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007-09-28 / This present study analyses the relationship between national culture and entrepreneurship, in order to contribute in understanding the impact and the influence of Brazilian culture under the business practices of foreign entrepreneur on the tourism area of Rio Grande do Norte state. Researchers in entrepreneurship field, such as Schumpeter (2005), Weber (2006), McClelland (1972), Murphy, Liao, Welsch (2006), Peyrefitte (1999), Blanchflower (1988), Filion (2000), among others, and in the national culture, high-lighting Caldas and Woods (1999), Hofstede (1997) and Barros and Prates (1996), are put together to create a starting point to this present research, that reaches out for a differential approach, in order to create a correlation between Brazilian culture and the foreign entrepreneur, who chose Rio Grande do Norte state to live and invest. It was observed that in the case of the Switzerland entrepreneur, where the cultural difference is more strong, either in Hofstede's perspective than in Brazilian s authors, the management practices are more negatively affected. The rationalization adopted by the entrepreneur and the employee s logic are in battle in a day-to-day operation of the company. In the case of the Argentinean entrepreneur, the cultural difference exists, but it does not impact as much, because of her personal characteristics and the similarities of Latin culture than surfaces the differences. Finally, this study showed the necessity of analyzing the enterprising regarding the cultural issue, in a way to highlight the different rationalities in different atmospheres where it is practiced the enterprise / O presente estudo analisa a rela??o entre cultura nacional e empreendedorismo, contribuindo para entender o impacto e a influ?ncia da cultura brasileira sobre as pr?ticas de neg?cio e de gest?o dos empreendedores estrangeiros no setor de turismo do estado do Rio Grande do Norte. Pesquisas no campo do empreendedorismo, com autores como Schumpeter (2005), Weber (2006), McClelland (1972), Murphy, Liao, Welsch (2006), Peyrefitte (1999), Blanchflower (1988), Filion (2000), entre outros, e no campo da cultura nacional, com destaque aos trabalhos de Caldas e Woods (1999), Hofstede (1997) e Barros e Prates (1996), somam-se para criar o ponto de partida para a presente pesquisa, que busca uma abordagem diferenciada, posto criar uma correla??o entre cultura brasileira e o empreendedor estrangeiro radicado no RN. Observou-se que no caso do empreendedor su??o, onde a diferen?a cultural ? mais significativa, tanto na perspectiva de Hofstede quanto dos autores brasileiros, as pr?ticas de gest?o s?o mais afetadas negativamente. As racionalidades adotadas pelo gestor e a l?gica adotada pelos empregados entra em choque no cotidiano da organiza??o. No caso da empreendedora argentina, a diferen?a, ainda que exista, n?o produz tanto impacto uma vez que as caracter?sticas pessoais da empreendedora e o compartilhamento de tra?os culturais latinos superam as diferen?as. Finalmente, o estudo evidenciou a necessidade de analisar o empreendedorismo ? luz das dimens?es culturais de forma a evidenciar diferentes racionalidades poss?veis nos diferentes espa?os sociais onde se d? a pr?tica de empreender

Orientador: Rui Seabra Ferreira Júnior / Resumo: A inclusão da universidade na díade indústria e governo tem se mostrado eficiente ao criar um ecossistema de inovação e empreendedorismo, apresentando soluções baseadas em conhecimento para os desafios socioeconômicos. Para isso, o aluno precisa se submeter a situações semelhantes ao que enfrentará na prática, para aprender solucionar problemas sob pressão interagindo com seus pares ou terceiros, aproveitar oportunidades, se inspirar e referenciar com as experiências de outros empreendedores, além de aprender com os próprios erros por meio do feedback de clientes. O objetivo da presente pesquisa foi desenvolver um guia de expressões para cientistas empreendedores que será disponibilizado on line por meio de um aplicativo para uso em diferentes plataformas e dispositivos. Parte das expressões foi listada de acordo com a experiência acadêmica e profissional dos autores, enquanto que outras foram sugeridas por profissionais da área de gestão e tecnologia, além das que surgiram com o decorrer do processo de análise bibliográfica. Todas elas foram referenciadas a partir de artigos científicos publicados em revistas eletrônicas, repositórios acadêmicos, sites de órgãos reguladores, agências promotoras e entidades de classes profissionais. O aplicativo que dá formato ao guia foi desenvolvimento pela equipe do Núcleo de Educação a Distância e Tecnologias da Informação em Saúde - NEAD.TIS da FMB/UNESP. Foi utilizado o acrônimo de Guia de Empreendedorismo para Cientistas Empreendedores... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: Inclusion of universities in the industry-government dyad has been showing itself efficient in creating an innovative and entrepreneurial ecosystem, presenting knowledge-based solutions for socioeconomic challenges. For such, students are required to experience situations comparable to those they are going to go through in practice, and then learn how to solve problems under pressure while collaborating with peers and third-parties, seizing opportunities, getting inspired and relating to the experiences of other entrepreneurs, as well as learning with their own mistakes though client feedback. The aim of the present study was to develop a guide of expressions for entrepreneur scientists, which will be made available online through an app accessible from various platforms and devices. Part of the expressions were listed according to the authors‟ academic and professional experience, while others were suggested by professionals of the field of management and technology, along with others that arouse from the process of bibliographical analysis. All of those were referenced from scientific papers published in digital journals, academic repositories, as well as websites of regulatory organs, promoting agencies and professional class entities. The app that shapes the guide was developed by the Center for Distance Education and Information Technology for Health (Núcleo de Educação a Distância e Tecnologias da Informação em Saúde - NEAD.TIS), at the State University of São Paulo – U... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

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Cette thèse part du constat que les cadres théoriques explicatifs des relations d’emploi sont plus adaptés au contexte occidental et ne permettent pas d’expliquer les réalités des pays en développement en général et de l’Afrique subsaharienne en particulier. Elle s’appuie sur les pratiques d’informalisation des emplois miniers par l’externalisation au Ghana et en Côte d’Ivoire pour proposer une théorie appropriée au contexte de l’Afrique de l’Ouest. La question principale de la recherche est la suivante : quelles logiques orientent les acteurs dans leur positionnement face au processus d’informalisation des emplois miniers en Afrique de l’Ouest ? De cette question principale ont découlé les questions secondaires à savoir : que comprendre de l’option des entreprises minières pour les pratiques d’informalisation des emplois? Comment expliquer les stratégies gouvernementales dans l’encadrement ou non de ces pratiques? Et que dire des stratégies de l’acteur syndical ou des communautés locales (autorités/chefferies traditionnelles) face à ces pratiques? Pour répondre à ces questions, la thèse s’est appuyée sur une comparaison des contextes coloniaux anglophone et francophone de l’Afrique de l’Ouest pour s'interroger sur l’influence des trajectoires et traditions institutionnelles sur les logiques des acteurs contemporains des relations d’emploi. Elle a mobilisé des ressources théoriques complémentaires issues de l’institutionnalisme historique, des variétés de capitalismes, de l’histoire des pays et des théories du système monde et du capitalisme périphérique. La méthodologie est quant à elle basée sur un devis qualitatif, avec une analyse multiniveau et des études de cas comparatives d’entreprises minières au Ghana et en Côte d’Ivoire. Au total, quatre entreprises minières à raison de deux par pays (une entreprise originaire du Canada et une autre originaire de l’Inde dans chacun des pays hôtes) ont été étudiées. Des entrevues ont été réalisées auprès de 33 personnes ressources identifiées au sein de ces entreprises et dans les institutions sectorielles et nationales des relations industrielles. Cette approche méthodologique a permis d’appréhender les contextes nationaux des relations d’emploi dans les deux pays étudiés, mais aussi les logiques mobilisées par les acteurs, aux échelles nationales et des entreprises, face aux pratiques d’externalisation des emplois. L’analyse des données collectées a permis de constater qu’au niveau des acteurs gouvernementaux des deux pays, la logique a évolué de l’organisation juridique autour de l’emploi formel à durée indéterminée comme norme à la déréglementation et à l’intégration des pratiques d’externalisation grâce aux réformes introduites dans le cadre des programmes d’ajustement structurel. Dans les deux pays, l’influence des organisations internationales notamment le FMI et la BM est déterminante dans l’adoption de cette posture idéologique de la régulation flexible des relations d’emploi. Les logiques patronales d’informalisation des emplois dans les deux pays s’inscrivent, quant à elles, dans des dynamiques de rationalisation de la gestion et donc de maximisation des profits. Toutefois, la thèse a permis de mettre en évidence un effet « pays d’origine de la mine » qui peut affecter la forme de la pratique d’externalisation adoptée, particulièrement en Côte d’Ivoire où les mécanismes de suivi de l’application de la loi ne sont pas aussi contraignants qu’au Ghana. Enfin, les logiques syndicales s’inscrivent davantage dans le cadre institutionnel national d’organisation de l’action syndicale. Au Ghana, la nature décentralisée de l’organisation syndicale est plus favorable à l’exclusion des travailleurs externalisés alors que le cadre centralisé ivoirien se prête davantage à l’unité d’action entre travailleurs externalisés et travailleurs de l’entreprise utilisatrice. En somme, la thèse soutient que pour comprendre les logiques d’acteurs syndicaux et gouvernementaux face aux pratiques d’informalisation des emplois, il convient de considérer le degré d’autonomie des États par rapport à l’influence des institutions internationales notamment la BM, le FMI et l’OIT. Au-delà de ces organisations, il importe aussi de savoir la façon dont le facteur colonial continue d'influencer les pratiques et logiques d’acteurs de ces pays notamment par le maintien des modèles juridiques hérités, l’utilisation par les tribunaux de la jurisprudence des anciennes puissances colonisatrices et l’alignement des pratiques institutionnelles contemporaines sur les modèles de ces anciennes puissances. Pour ce qui est des entreprises, les données de la thèse appuient l’idée que les pratiques d’externalisation s’inscrivent dans une logique de maximisation des profits, mais elles sont modulées en fonction du contexte national d’implantation des entreprises. Dans un environnement où il y a un mécanisme de suivi rigoureux de l’application des lois, toutes les entreprises ont tendance à avoir des pratiques similaires. En revanche, dans un contexte où le mécanisme de suivi est moins efficace et moins rigoureux on a tendance à observer des comportements d’entreprises qu’on peut relier à leurs pays d’origine. Finalement, les niveaux de responsabilités et la place accordés aux autorités locales dans les contextes nationaux peuvent entraîner l'implication plus ou moins importante de ces dernières dans les pratiques d’emploi. / This thesis starts from the observation that the theoretical frameworks explaining employment relations are more adapted to the Western context and make it difficult to explain the realities of developing countries in general and sub-Saharan Africa in particular. It draws on the practices of informalization of mining jobs through outsourcing in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire to propose an appropriate theory to the West African context. The main question of the research is the following: what logic guides the actors in their positioning facing the process of informalization of mining jobs in West Africa? From this main question arose secondary questions, like: What to understand from the practice of jobs informalization in the mining companies? How can we explain government strategies regarding the regulation or lack of regulation of these practices? And what can we say about the strategies of the union actor or local communities (traditional authorities/chiefdoms) regarding these practices? To answer these questions, the thesis relied on a comparison of the English-speaking and French-speaking colonial contexts of West Africa to question the influence of trajectories and institutional traditions on the logics of contemporary actors of employment relations. It mobilized complementary theoretical resources from historical institutionalism, varieties of capitalism, the history of countries and theories of the world system and peripheral capitalism. The methodology is based on a qualitative estimate, with a multilevel analysis and comparative case studies of mining companies in Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire. A total of four mining companies, two companies per country one from Canada and another one from India in each of the two countries, were studied. Interviews were conducted with 33 individuals selected within these companies and in sectoral and national industrial relations institutions. This methodological approach made it possible to understand the national contexts of employment relations in the two countries studied, but also the logics mobilized by the actors at the national and company levels, relating to jobs outsourcing. The analysis of the data collected has shown that at the level of the government actors of the two countries, the logic has evolved from the legal organization around formal permanent employment to deregulation and the integration of outsourcing practices through reforms introduced under structural adjustment programs. In both countries, the influence of international organizations, particularly the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, is decisive in the adoption of this ideological posture of flexible regulation of employment relations. The employers' logic of jobs informalization in the two countries is more in line with the dynamics of rationalization of management and therefore maximization of profits. However, the research has revealed a "country of origin effect" in those mining companies. This effect affects the form of the outsourcing practice adopted, particularly in Côte d'Ivoire where the mechanisms for monitoring the application of the law are not as restrictive as in Ghana. Finally, Union logics are aligned with the national institutional framework, which organize union action. In Ghana, the decentralized nature of union organization is more favorable to the exclusion of outsourced workers, while the Ivorian centralized framework lends itself more to unity of action between outsourced workers and workers from the mining company. Ultimately, the thesis argues that to understand the logics of union and government actors faced with the practices of informalization of mining jobs through outsourcing, it is appropriate to consider the degree of autonomy of countries in relation to the influence of international institutions, notably the WB, the IMF and the ILO. Beyond these organizations, it is also important to know the way in which the colonial factor continues to influence the practices and logic of actors, particularly through the maintenance of inherited legal models, the use by courts of case law of the former colonizing powers and the alignment of contemporary institutional practices on the models of these former powers. As for companies, the data from the thesis supports the idea that outsourcing practices are part of a profit maximization logic, but they are modulated according to the national context in which the companies are established. In an environment where there is a rigorous monitoring mechanism for law enforcement, all companies tend to have similar practices. On the other hand, in a context where the monitoring mechanism is less effective and less rigorous, we tend to observe behaviors of companies that can be linked to their countries of origin. Finally, the levels of responsibilities and the place granted to local authorities in national contexts can lead to more or less significant involvement in employment practices.

In the United States, 41% of small retail businesses fail to succeed for longer than 5 years. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore strategies small retail business owners used to remain sustainable for more than 5 years. The conceptual framework that grounded this study was Schumpeter's innovation theory. The sample size of this research included 4 successful retail business owners located in the southeastern region of the United States who have successfully started and managed their business activities for more than 5 years. Data were collected using semistructured face-to-face interviews with successful owners of small retail businesses and reviews of the organizations' internal documents. Data were coded, categorized, and labeled using coding techniques, and then validated using member checking. Data analysis processes included a thematic analysis method to identify emerging themes. The results of data analysis revealed 3 significant themes: passion and determination for doing business, market development and customer satisfaction, and business model innovation. The results indicated that the use of innovation theory enabled small retail business owners to develop innovative strategies to sustain the business for more than 5 years. The results also showed that innovation increases sales and profits for the longer term. The implications of this study for positive social change include the potential to create new jobs, enhance tax revenues and growth for governments, and improve social environments from revenue generated by employment.

Made available in DSpace on 2010-04-20T20:51:40Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 3 55331.pdf.jpg: 16269 bytes, checksum: f0c69377b02617fc91d41d9723dbb935 (MD5) 55331.pdf: 283282 bytes, checksum: 78689f7ce3b57f44fb77445beb18f317 (MD5) 55331.pdf.txt: 192216 bytes, checksum: 885fd6383405d255a946b158349539c9 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2005-11-04T00:00:00Z / Uma série de motivos tem elevado o tema da diversidade humana a um patamar de maior visibilidade e influência no cotidiano das organizações. Legislações decorrentes de mobilizações sociais, globalização das empresas, migrações em busca de emprego em países mais desenvolvidos, estruturas de trabalho multifuncionais e políticas de responsabilidade social corporativa são alguns dos fenômenos que justificam esse novo contexto. Este trabalho teve como proposta desenvolver uma análise comparativa entre a produção acadêmica e a prática empresarial voltada ao tema da diversidade. Para isso, foi elaborado um retrato desses dois universos, por meio de uma pesquisa sobre artigos acadêmicos a respeito de diversidade publicados em importantes periódicos acadêmicos e uma investigação sobre as abordagens adotadas por empresas privadas reconhecidas como avançadas nessa área. As análises indicam a existência de uma ambigüidade. Por um lado, tem-se uma relativa similaridade quanto ao conceito de diversidade adotado por cada uma das áreas pesquisadas. Por outro lado, a investigação indica um notório distanciamento, entre esses dois universos, quanto aos impactos resultantes da promoção de um ambiente de trabalho mais heterogêneo. Os acadêmicos concentram seus estudos na perspectiva de performance, balanceando potenciais benefícios com potenciais problemas da diversidade. As dimensões de justiça, no entanto, são delegadas a um plano secundário de importância. As empresas, por sua vez, dedicam a devida atenção a tais dimensões, ao mesmo tempo em que adotam um discurso simplista sobre performance - negligenciam os potenciais problemas decorrentes da diversidade, limitando-se a tratar de seus potenciais benefícios. Esse cenário aponta para a necessidade da construção de um modelo capaz de: a) contemplar as realidades estudadas e b) colaborar para a evolução e o amadurecimento das discussões científicas e práticas gerenciais relacionadas à diversidade. Ao final do trabalho, são apresentadas propostas preliminares de modelos conceituais que buscam agregar as referidas realidades. / For a variety of reasons, the issue of human diversity has achieved a high level of visibility and influence within day-to-day organizational life. Legislation resulting from social mobilization, corporate globalization, migration in search of employment in more developed countries, multifunctional work structures, and policies for corporate social responsibility are some of the phenomena that have contributed to this new reality. The present study is a comparative analysis of academic research and corporate practices which address the issue of diversity. These two universes were analyzed through a survey of academic articles published in leading management journals, and an investigation of approaches adopted by private companies recognized as advanced in this area. This analysis indicates that an ambiguity exists. On the one hand, there is a relative similarity between the concept of diversity adopted by each of the areas studied. But at the same time, the research results indicate a significant gap between these two universes in terms of the impacts of creating a more heterogeneous work environment. The academic studies focused on the issue of performance, balancing potential benefits with potential problems of diversity. Issues of justice, however, were given secondary importance. Companies, in contrast, pay considerable attention to issues of justice, while adopting a simplistic discourse in regards to performance (restricted to its potential benefits, and neglecting potential problems resulting from diversity). This situation suggests a need to develop a model capable of: (a) accounting for the realities analyzed and (b) contributing to the development and consolidation of research on diversity and to its management within corporations. This study concludes with some preliminary proposals for conceptual models aimed at accounting for the realities encountered.

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