This diploma thesis deals with problems which often occur during implementation of kaizen philosophy into economic practice in Czech environment. Many Czech companies that adopted this philosophy do not reach such good results, compared to companies in Japan. Czech employee's do not accept it in good way. Thus the target of this thesis is to find out possible causes of this unfavourable situation. In theoetical parts, kaizen phiosophy and other related factors such as organizational culture are described. Furthermore, most frequent kaizen practice and its most important effects are described well as a brief history of it in Japan, USA, and Czech. Real implementations of kaizen in three companies in Czech Republic are analyzed in empirical part of this thesis. Most important points of this part are qualitative research (interviews with employees of these three companies) and quantitative research (questionares were filled by employees in one of these firms). The outputs of the thesis are general as well as specific suggestions for these three companies.

Syftet med studien är att utveckla ny kunskap om behovet som finns för energidata i ett industriföretag som verkar inom järn- och stålsektorn. Studien bidrar på så sätt till en djupare förståelse för faktorer som begränsar eller ökar en organisations förmåga att använda energidata. Användning av energidata har hög verksamhetsrelevans inom vald näringslivsgren eftersom det finns en konkurrensfördel i att ständigt effektivisera resurs- och energianvändningen i produktionsprocesser. Studien angriper energidata ur ett holistiskt perspektiv och utreder behovet i tre olika organisationsnivåer i delar av en energiintensiv produktionsprocess. Genom tillämpning av en kvalitativ metod, och tre åtskilda semistrukturerade djupintervjuer söktes svar på vad som begränsar eller hjälper en organisations medarbetare att bli mer engagerade i arbetet med energieffektivisering med hjälp av energidata. Resultatet visar att det finns ett behov av att synliggöra och visualisera energidata på arbetsplatsen för att öka allmänintresset för organisationens energianvändning. En respondent anser att energinyckeltal ökar i relevans och ger ett ökat engagemang om det anpassas till den mottagare som adresseras. Vidare ansåg en av respondenterna att ledningen borde öka efterfrågan av energidata för att förmedla att organisationens energikostnad prioriteras. En tydligare efterfrågan från ledningen skulle på så vis kunna stimulera till en ökad användning av energidata i det ständiga förbättringsarbetet. Fortsatt forskning behövs för att utveckla kartläggningsmetodiken ytterligare med målet att kunna generalisera behovet på organisationen som helhet. I en sådan forskningsstudie vore det lämpligt att genom en kvantitativ metod utforma en enkät som grundar sig i den empiri som inhämtats i föreliggande studie, för att sedan samla data ur en representativ population av organisationens medarbetare. / The purpose of the study is to identify, analyse and present an organisational need of energy data in an industrial company operating in the steel sector. Thus, the researcher develops an in-depth understanding of factors that cause limitations or increase an organisation's ability to use energy data. The business relevance of using energy data is significant in order to create competitive advantages and continuously improve the resource efficiency in energy-intensive manufacturing processes. The study was carried out using a qualitative method and it approaches energy data from a holistic perspective, auditing its use or not use in three organisational levels within an energy-intensive manufacturing process. To collect empirical data, three semi-structured interviews were carried out to find out what limits or helps an organisation's employees to become more involved in energy issues by the means of energy data. The results highlight the need to visualize energy data in the working place area as a way to increase public interest in the organisation. Furthermore, respondents felt that the energy performance indicators must be adapted to specific functions in order to gain relevance and increase the commitment of employees. One of the respondents expressed that top management should request energy data more often to give a clear signal that the organisation's energy cost is highly prioritized. A clear demand from management would thus encourage co-workers to use energy data in a continuous improvement process. The results of the study cannot be applied to all employees within each organisational level of the company. Through the qualitative method, the author developed a unique understanding of how energy data are used in the specific situation of three respondents. This knowledge opens the way to increase the validity of future studies. Further research should aim to generalize the needs of the organisation as a whole. In such a research study, it would be appropriate to use a quantitative method to design a questionnaire based on the empirical data gathered in this study.

A elitização da universidade pública brasileira é a preocupação central desta investigação. Com os programas de inclusão social, tem-se possibilitado maior representatividade de alunos em condições socioeconômicas desfavoráveis nestas instituições. Na Universidade de São Paulo USP, locus escolhido para esta pesquisa, o Programa de Inclusão Social INCLUSP, desde 2007, tem favorecido a entrada de alunos que cursaram todo o ensino médio em escolas públicas, majoritariamente constituída por alunos em condições menos favorecidas da sociedade brasileira. Teve-se como objetivo trazer elementos que possibilitassem pensar a docência universitária no sentido de favorecer trajetórias acadêmicas de sucesso destes alunos, entendidas como possibilidade de formação profissional, científica e política, função que atribuímos à universidade pública, que se entende concretizar-se na promoção do ensino profissional indissociado da pesquisa e da extensão. Para tanto, realizou-se a coleta de dados por meio de dois questionários abertos, respondidos por escrito pelos sujeitos, em momentos diversos. Com o primeiro questionário buscou-se identificar dificuldades de alunos ingressantes que cursaram todo o ensino médio comum em escolas públicas. Na segunda etapa, intentou-se perceber a permanência ou não das dificuldades apontadas no ano seguinte ao ingresso e a forma como os sujeitos lidavam com estas dificuldades. A coleta de dados ocorreu em três cursos da USP que apresentaram maiores índices de evasão de alunos que cursaram o ensino médio comum público, entendida como uma forma de exclusão. Foram identificadas como principais dificuldades acadêmicas, que se constituem em entraves a uma trajetória de sucesso: a exiguidade do tempo e sua má gestão; a opção por uma abordagem superficial de aprendizagem; a quantidade e complexidade dos conteúdos; o desânimo frente a situações de insucesso; dificuldades de convivência acadêmica. A partir do estudo foi possível apontar como demandas à docência a necessidade de reflexões sobre a função social da universidade e sobre a baixa representatividade de alunos em condições socioeconômicas desfavoráveis, especialmente, nos cursos mais prestigiados; identificar e refletir sobre as dificuldades dos ingressantes, tendo-se em conta a diversidade entre os cursos e entre os sujeitos-alunos; considerar aspectos relativos à gestão do tempo como conteúdos de ensino, versando sobre o como e o que estudar e aprender considerando que estes se encontram em processo de afiliação e de construção de novas formas de se relacionar com o saber; de repensar sobre as funções das atividades avaliativas, a organização do currículo e de atividades de aprendizagem e, a importância do professor criar possibilidades ou atividades que favoreçam a convivência acadêmica, contribuindo para integração e afiliação do ingressante. Tais demandas indicariam a necessidade de uma formação contínua de professores universitários, especialmente pela exigência de pouca ou nenhuma formação pedagógica para a docência neste nível de ensino, no sentido da formação de docentes reflexivos no âmbito do conceito de desenvolvimento profissional docente, favorecendo a constituição de bases pedagógicas para que o professor tenha referências mais amplas para sustentar o trabalho de ensinar. / The concentration of Brazilian public universities on the elite is the central concern of this research. Inclusion programs have provided the possibility of a greater representation of students in unfavorable socioeconomic conditions in these institutions. At the University of São Paulo USP, chosen locus for this research, the inclusion program INCLUSP, has, since 2007, favored the admission of students who studied their entire high school in public schools, which, in Brazil, are majorly composed of students in societys less favorable conditions. An objective of this research is to provide elements that promote university teaching in the sense of favoring a successful academic career for these students, which is understood as the possibility of professional, scientific and political education, role which we attribute to public universities and is perceived to be realized by the promulgation of professional teaching coalesced with research and extension. For that purpose, data was collected through two open questionnaires, which were answered in writing by the subjects of this research at different moments. The first questionnaire looked to identify the main difficulties that freshmen students who attended public high schools have in their first year at the university. The second stage sought to establish whether the difficulties brought up during the first stage lasted through the year following the subjects admission or not, and how they had dealt with these difficulties. The data collection occurred in three courses of the University of São Paulo which presented lower retention of students who attended public high schools, which is interpreted as a form of exclusion. The main academic difficulties that were identified, which constitute barriers to a successful trajectory, were: the exiguity of time and its bad management; the choice of a superficial approach to schooling; the quantity and complexity of contents; the frustration when confronted with unsuccessful situations; and difficulties with academic daily life. From the study it was possible to extract as demands of the teachers the necessities: of reflecting about the social function of the university and the low representation of students in unfavorable socioeconomic conditions, especially in more prestigious courses; of identifying and reflecting about difficulties freshmen students have, keeping in mind the differences between courses and subjects-students; of considering aspects of time management as teaching contents, emphasizing how and what to study and learn considering that the students are in a process of affiliation and construction of new forms of relating to knowledge; of rethinking about: the function of evaluative activities, how the curriculum and the learning activities are organized and the importance of the professor creating possibilities and activities that favor the academic daily life, contributing to the affiliation and integration of the newcomer. Such demands indicate the need of continuous development of university professors, especially due to the low requirement of pedagogical formation of teachers in this level of teaching, as to create reflective teachers, favoring the construction of pedagogical bases so that the professor has more ample references to support the work of teaching.

El presente trabajo de investigación tiene como objetivo desarrollar una mejora en el proceso comercial de ventas de un dealer (distribuidor) PYME del mercado de medios de pago del sector financiero. Se ha iniciado el trabajo con la descripción del mercado, giro del negocio y el proceso a estudiar. Seguidamente de los 5 capítulos que se van a desarrollar en el trabajo y se muestran a continuación: En el primer capítulo se verá el marco teórico donde se define conceptos actuales de mejora continua, metodologías, productividad, etc. En el segundo capítulo se analizó los problemas existentes en la empresa identificando como principal problema el incumplimiento de la cuota mínima en las ventas establecidas y junto a ello se encontró las causas raíces que se analizaran en este capítulo. En el tercer capítulo se dieron las propuestas de solución entre las que encontramos realizar la documentación del proceso comercial, diseñar manuales del proceso de ventas, estandarizar la metodología de trabajo, diseño de indicadores comerciales e implementación de un sistema de ventas. En el cuarto capítulo se realizó el plan piloto aplicado con 20 ejecutivos de ventas con la metodología de trabajo remoto, con el objetivo final incrementar la productividad llegar al cumplimiento de las cuotas individuales y el cumplimiento del objetivo en general como distribuidor. Finalmente, en el quinto capítulo se detallan las conclusiones y recomendaciones que resultan como parte de la mejora continua que se le dará al proceso comercial de ventas de la empresa. / The objective of this research work is to develop an improvement in the commercial sales process of a SME dealer (distributor) in the financial sector's means of payment market. Work has begun with the description of the market, business line and the process to be studied. Following the 5 chapters that will be developed at work and are shown below : In the first chapter we will see the theoretical framework where current concepts of continuous improvement, methodologies, productivity, etc. are defined. In the second chapter, the existing problems in the company were analyzed, identifying as the main problem the breach of the minimum quota in the established sales and, together with this, the root causes that were analyzed in this chapter were found. In the third chapter, the solution proposals were given, among which we find the documentation of the commercial process, design manuals of the sales process, standardize the work methodology, design of commercial indicators and implementation of a sales system. In the fourth chapter, the pilot plan applied with 20 sales executives was carried out with the remote work methodology, with the final objective of increasing productivity, reaching the fulfillment of individual quotas and the fulfillment of the general objective as a distributor. Finally, the fifth chapter details the conclusions and recommendations that result as part of the continuous improvement that will be given to the company's sales commercial process. / Tesis

Vad som kännetecknar ett bra ledarskap har intresserat människor i alla tider. För att kvalitetsarbetet ska förbli framgångsrikt krävs det ett starkt och engagerat ledarskap för att åstadkomma en kultur avseende kvalitetsutveckling. Fokus för den här studien är ledarskap och delaktighet som har sina teoretiska grunder i offensiv kvalitetsutveckling. Syftet med detta examensarbete är att undersöka hur ledarskapet påverkar medarbetarnas delaktighet i samband med förbättringsarbete i en organisation. Metoden som användes i denna undersökning var semistrukturerade intervjuer. För att uppnå studiens syfte valde författaren att intervjua fyra ledare som har flera års erfarenhet av ledarskap. Man kunde konstatera att tidigare forskning överensstämmer med resultat i undersökningen. Undersökningen visar att ledarens viktigaste uppgift är att motivera och positivt påverka medarbetarnas delaktighet i det dagliga arbetet, genom att kommunicera, vägleda, stödja samt ge återkoppling syftar även till ansvar och befogenheter. Resultatet visar också att alla beslut inte går att ändra eller påverka av medarbetarna eftersom beslut styrs av lagar och förordningar. Den studerande organisationen har en ledningsstruktur och hierarki som bestäms av gällande lagar. / What characterizes leadership in particular has intrested people for decades. For quality work to be successful there are requirements needed such as strong and committed leadership which later achieves a culture for quality development. The main focus for this study is leadership and participation from the theoretical origins in offensive quality development program. The purpose of this examination work is to study how leadership affects employees participation in different aspects in addition to work improvement in an organisation. The methods used in this examination were semi-structured interviews. The author chose to interview four different leaders who all had years of experience in the topic leadership to achieve the purpose of this study. It could be stated that the previous research is consistent with the results of the examination. The study shows that a leader's most important task is to motivate and positively influence employees' participation in daily work by communication, guiding, supporting and giving feedback in addition to giving out both responsibility and authority. The results revealed that not all decisions can be changed or affected because of the employees because decisions are controlled by laws and regulations. The studies organization has shown that it has a leadership structure and hierarchy determined by applicable laws. / <p>2021-06-06</p>

This document deals with process approach and it´s use in measuring companies performance. It presents an overview of individual approaches, from traditional containing only financial indicators to modern ones using non-financial indicators and incorporating into the measurement the areas related to customers employees and more. The work also mentions the Quality Management System contained in ISO 9001: 2015 and it´s approach to performance measurement. The chapter about metrics covers performance measures, in particular key performance indicators, their purpose, properties and distribution. Here are also presented the procedures for their determination and the pitfalls to be taken into consideration in their selection and use. Next chapters are devoted to the compilation of a metric system of specific companies.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship of two significant concepts withinthe manufacturing industry. Namely, the widely popular Lean production and the arising Industry 4.0. The lack of a common framework concerning their relationship requires further exploration, as stated by several researchers. For companies to stay competitive within a changing market it is of importance to adapt to new technologies, indicating that the understanding of this relationship is essential, as Lean production is extensively used in industries today. To increase the understanding of the concepts and their relationship three research questions were formulated, as followed: RQ 1: How can Industry 4.0 support Lean production? RQ 2: How can Lean production support the implementation of industry 4.0? RQ 3: What are the challenges of implementing Industry 4.0 in Lean production? The study was conducted using qualitative research methods such as the narrative literature review and thematic analysis, allowing for the identification of themes and structuring of the study in a narrative approach. Second-hand data was collected through academic databases using search terms highly relevant to the research questions. The theoretical framework of the study provides a foundation for the understanding of the concepts. Whereas the results are centered around the relationship of Industry 4.0 and Lean production with themes relevant to the research questions and subthemes to follow. The analysis highlights important aspects of the results in relation to the theoretical framework, while also discovering insights connecting the research questions together. The conclusion presents aspects of how Industry 4.0 technologies can support Lean production through factors such as increased continuous improvement, support of people, improved JIT, Kanban, maintenance and communications. Where the general benefits will be productivity, quality and speed of introducing new products, adapting to high variability of market demand. Furthermore, describing how Lean production can support the implementation of Industry 4.0, as the degree of Lean maturity directly influences the efficiency of Industry 4.0 implementation. The employment of Lean principles such as continuous improvement, focus on people and standardization can result in a more effective implementation and utilization of Industry 4.0. Challenges of implementing Industry 4.0 in Lean production such as the risk of counterproductive implementation because of the lack of common framework, limitations of certain Lean practices, Lean professionals and ICT professionals limited knowledge of eachother's fields and the understanding of how to apply Industry 4.0 based on lean principles. Lastly, recommendations are offered for companies aspiring to implement Industry 4.0, as they should evaluate their current level of Lean maturity in order to understand when it is most efficient to incorporate the new technologies. Companies seeking to aid their Lean objectives should concentrate on technologies such as IoT and CPS as they seem to have the most positive impact on Lean. In addition, recommending further research regarding the relationship of Industry 4.0 readiness and Lean maturity, exploring which degree of Lean maturity to efficiently integrate and utilize certain Industry 4.0 technologies and when to implement certain Industry 4.0 technologies to aid the advancement of Lean maturity.

Det primära syftet med studien var att undersöka hur ett medelstort företag upplever självutvärderingsverktyget språngbrädan. Syftet var också att bidra med kunskap om forskningsläget kring språngbrädan. En mixad metod användes där datainsamlingen genomfördes genom en enkät på ett urval av företaget. Första delen av enkäten utgjorde en lättversion av språngbrädan som användes för självutvärdering av verksamheten, därigenom fick respondenterna uppleva verktyget. Andra delen av enkäten utgjorde en utvärdering av hur språngbrädan upplevs, med både skalfrågor och öppna frågor. Resultatet visar att en övervägande del är positiva till språngbrädan och kan tänka sig fortsätta använda verktyget. En övervägande del är neutrala i frågan huruvida språngbrädan behöver utvecklas och anpassas efter den egna verksamheten, och huruvida det finns fördelar och nackdelar. Resultatet visar också att språngbrädan är väldigt outforskat där endast en vetenskaplig artikel identifierades. Slutsatsen är att det behövs fler studier där deltagarna informeras om arbetssättet självutvärdering / The primary purpose of the study was to investigate how a medium-sized company experiences the self-assessment tool - the springboard. The purpose was also to contribute with knowledge about the research that has been conducted on the springboard. A mixed method was used where the data collection was conducted on a sample of the company's operations through a survey. The first part of the survey constituted a light version of the springboard that was used for self-assessment of the business, thereby letting the respondents experience the tool. The second part of the survey was an evaluation of how the tool is experienced, with both rating questions and open questions. The result shows that the majority is positive to the springboard and can imagine continuing to use the tool. A majority is neutral to the question of whether the springboard needs to be developed and adapted to its own business, and whether there are advantages and disadvantages. The result also shows that the springboard is very unexplored where only one scientific article was identified. The conclusion is that more studies are needed, where the participants are informed about the method of self-assessment and about the tool prior to the study, in order to obtain more comprehensive data. / <p>2019-06-27</p>

Magister Commercii - MCom / Political and economic sanctions between 1970 and 1994 isolated the inward-oriented economy of South Africa from global trends. A variety of factors, such as a challenging new global competitive environment, production overcapacity, falling protectionist tariff barriers in a period of liberalisation, world-class manufacture and globalisation, are contributing to the reform of the economy and the automotive industry. The South African automotive industry therefore faces a major reform in trade policy. The South African government introduced the Motor Industry Development Plan (MIDP) in 1995, to create the necessary levels of competitiveness, promote world class manufacture practices, increase levels of investments and exports that would consequently lead to the successful reconstruction and development of this sector of the South African economy. Subsequent research has shown that the successful adoption of world-class manufacture (or lean production) processes in the South African automotive industry is necessary not only for survival, but also for increased competitiveness of the industry and the improved economic performance of automotive firms. However, complicated links exist between the adoption of world-class manufacture for improved levels of operational competitiveness. for firm-level success, on the one hand, and long-term sustainability of the industry, on the other hand. Combined firm level economic success and long-term sustainability of the industry depend on factors such as international trends, connectivity to global value chains, modern technological capabilities, lean production and enterprise systems, substantial investments, increased exports, world-wide quality standards, as well as customer satisfaction, human resource development, advanced education, skills development, worker participation, government policy and institutional support. This is borne out by a recent study of the auto component sector, utilising a lean , production 'market driver' toolkit. The study found that although component manufacturers significantly improved their operational competitiveness, they have not necessarily experienced improved economic performance levels. More important is connectedness and integration into global value chains, via intermediaries, mergers and acquisitions. The changing political economy of automotive value chains is also important in shaping fum-level operational success and industry sustainability. In this research paper, we review global automotive industry trends which influenced the introduction of the government's visionary MIDP. We then discuss their impact on the performance of the South African assembly and component sectors at industry and finn level. This leads to a series of recommendations for improved performance to world-class manufacture, world-wide quality standards and global competitiveness

Magister Commercii - MCom / Political and economic sanctions between 1970 and 1994 isolated the inward-oriented economy of South Africa from global trends. A variety of factors, such as a challenging new global competitive environment, production overcapacity, falling protectionist tariff barriers in a period of liberalisation, world-class manufacture and globalisation, are contributing to the reform of the economy and the automotive industry. The South African automotive industry therefore faces a major reform in trade policy. The South African government introduced the Motor Industry Development Plan (MIDP) in 1995, to create the necessary levels of competitiveness, promote worldclass manufacture practices, increase levels of investments and exports that would consequently lead to the successful reconstruction and development of this sector of the South African economy. Subsequent research has shown that the successful adoption of world-class manufacture (or lean production) processes in the South African automotive industry is necessary not only for survival, but also for increased competitiveness of the industry and the improved economic performance of automotive firms. However, complicated links exist between the adoption of world-class manufacture for improved levels of operational competitiveness. for firm-level success, on the one hand, and long-term sustainability of the industry, on the other hand. Combined firm level economic success and long-term sustainability of the industry depend on factors such as international trends, connectivity to global value chains, modern technological capabilities, lean production and enterprise systems, substantial investments, increased exports, world-wide quality standards, as well as customer satisfaction, human resource development, advanced education, skills development, worker participation, government policy and institutional support. This is borne out by a recent study of the auto component sector, utilising a lean , production 'market driver' toolkit. The study found that although component manufacturers significantly improved their operational competitiveness, they have not necessarily experienced improved economic performance levels. More important is connectedness and integration into global value chains, via intermediaries, mergers and acquisitions. The changing political economy of automotive value chains is also important in shaping fum-level operational success and industry sustainability.