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ABSTRACT EXPLORING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SUPPLY NETWORK CONFIGURATION, INTER-ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION SHARING AND PERFORMANCE By MARCIA DALEY August 2008 Committee Chair: Dr. Subhashish Samaddar Major Department: Decision Science Critical to the success of a firm is the ability of managers to coordinate the complex network of business relationships that can exist between business partners in the supply network. However many managers are unsure on how best to leverage their resources to capitalize on the information sharing opportunities that are available in such networks. Although there is significant research on information sharing, the area of inter-organizational information sharing (IIS) is still evolving and there is limited research on IIS in relation to systemic factors within supply networks. To help fill this gap in the literature, a primary focus of this dissertation is on the relationship between the design of the supply network and IIS. The design of the supply network is characterized by the supply network configuration which is comprised of (1) the network pattern, (2) the number of stages in the supply network, and (3) where the firm is located in that supply network. Four different types of IIS are investigated, herein. These types of IIS are a function of the frequency with which information is shared and the scope of information shared. Type 1 (Type 2) IIS is the low (high) frequency state where only operational information is shared. Similarly, Type 3 (Type 4) is the low (high) frequency state where strategic information is shared. The argument is that the type of IIS varies depending on the configuration of the supply network and that this relationship is influenced by the coordination structure established between firms in the network. The second focus of this dissertation deals with the relationship between IIS and performance. Research findings on the benefits to be gained from IIS have been ambiguous, with some researchers claiming reduced cost in the supply network with IIS, and others finding minimal or no benefits. To add clarity to these findings, the role that uncertainty plays in the relationship between IIS and performance is examined. The thesis presented is that the positive relationship between IIS types and the performance of the supply network is impacted by process uncertainty (i.e. the variability in process outcomes and production times), and partner uncertainty. Social network theory and transaction cost economics provide the theoretical lens for this dissertation. A model is developed and will be empirically validated in a cross-sectional setting, utilizing a sampling frame randomly selected and comprised of supply management executives from various industries within the United States.

<p>This dissertation explores the potential contributions of the mechanisms for early warning and intelligence sharing to regional security in Africa. The Continental Early Warning System (CEWS) and the Committee on Intelligence and Security Services of Africa (CISSA) are centrally concerned with the dissemination of information to enable decision-making on continental security. The main focus of the dissertation is on the manner in which the information generated by the CEWS and CISSA can contribute to regional security. In order to analyse the potential contribution of the CEWS and CISSA to regional security, a sound theoretical framework is proposed so as to explore how and why states choose to cooperate, as well as addressing multifaceted cooperation and integration at inter-state, government department and nonstate levels. Constructivist interpretations of international cooperation are utilised to explore the role of ideas, meanings and understandings in shaping behaviour. The focus is placed on the manner in which interaction as provided for by the CEWS and CISSA can shape understandings of reality and potentially impact on the definition of actors&rsquo / interests. This is based on the assumption drawn from security community and epistemic community theory that, enabling the creation of shared meanings and shared knowledge there is the potential for both the CEWS and CISSA to have a positive influence on the choices that stakeholders take in favour of peaceful change.</p>

Diss.--Berlin FU, 2004. / Literaturverz. S.261-283.

The Northern Triangle area made up by El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras faces a growing gang phenomenon responsible for the growth of violence and instability in the region. Many factors have contributed to the rise of gangs in the region, however, I argue that the deportation of Central American immigrants who became active gang members in the United States play a significant role in the growth of gangs. I analyze the impact of the lack of collaboration between the United States and the nations of the Northern Triangle, especially in the lack of reintegration programs and the other factors that could have influenced or spurred the escalation of gang activity such as a failed recovery process following the civil wars of the 1970s and 1980s and the state repression policies. Furthermore, I assess how the lack of collaboration between the United States and Northern Triangle region in the deportation of criminal immigrants has impacted the transnationalization of the two largest Central American gangs, Mara Salvatrucha and Barrio 18. Due to the lack of quantitative data on gang size and membership, I conduct my analysis utilizing various studies that have been conducted in the three nations and data regarding homicide and deportation rates. Ultimately, I find that while the U.S. deportees played an important role in altering the characteristics and nature of Central American gangs, a variety of other factors were significant in their growth. Additionally, I find their assignation as Transnational Criminal Organizations premature and inconclusive due to their weak organizational and communication structure. Finally, I question whether gangs are truly the cause of high levels of violence in each of the nations of the Northern Triangle, determining that the Central American gang phenomenon cannot be assessed or treated as a singular issue. Instead, it is imperative to acknowledge the conditions at play in each country.

Background: Today’s organizations operate in a competitive and dynamic business environment in which the attainment of economic, social and environmental sustainability targets has become crucial for firms. Supply chain collaboration is considered as a strategic issue for the fulfillment of these targets. Thus, studies on supply chain collaboration for sustainability have increased, especially for manufacturing firms. However, there is a lack of research of the perspective of logistics service providers in this context, requesting scientific investigations. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to explore vertical supply chain collaboration between logistics service providers and their partners with regards to improving economic, environmental and social sustainability at logistics service providers. Method: Within this multiple case study and a deductive research approach, qualitative data from three logistics service providers is gathered by conducting interviews and analyzed. Firstly, each individual case is investigated by using an explanation building, and thereafter compared and generalized by means of a cross-case analysis. Findings and Conclusion: Considering the improvement of sustainability at logistics service providers, the research reveals that economic, environmental and social sustainability can be improved by vertical supply chain collaboration jointly conducted by logistics service providers and their key suppliers as well as key customers. However, strong interdependencies between the three sustainability dimensions are noticeable as they overlap in-between. Besides, the findings indicate that the executed vertical supply chain collaboration practices mostly have the potential to improve economic sustainability at logistics service providers. Environmental and social sustainability are less improved or sometimes even negatively affected.

Le développement des technologies de l’information et de la communication que connait notre siècle a grandement facilité les pratiques d’échanges d’informations au sein des chaînes logistiques. Ces pratiques ont pu ainsi évoluer vers de nouvelles formes de collaborations entre entreprises, telles que le Partage d’Informations (PI) et le Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI). Le VMI est un mécanisme de coordination dans lequel le fournisseur a la responsabilité de la gestion des stocks de son client. Ce mécanisme repose sur plusieurs principes parmi lesquels un partage d’informations très développé entre les parties qui s’y engagent. Le PI et le VMI sont adoptés par les entreprises pour permettre une augmentation des profits et une réduction des coûts. Toutefois, leurs résultats sont mitigés et nécessitent encore un approfondissement de leur compréhension. La contribution de cette thèse se situe dans l’analyse des impacts de ces mécanismes sur des chaînes logistiques où tous les maillons sont des entreprises de production dont les efficacités peuvent être différentes. Pour ce faire, plusieurs scénarios ont été étudiés sur des chaînes logistiques constituées de trois échelons, chaque échelon peut appartenir à quatre classes d’efficacité. Ces chaînes peuvent répondre à deux types de demande du marché final ; une demande stable ou une demande variable. De plus, plusieurs mécanismes de coordination sont étudiés : les mécanismes de gestion standard, de partage d’informations entre deux échelons, de partage d’informations entre trois échelons, de VMI entre deux échelons, puis de VMI étendu aux trois échelons. L’outil utilisé pour mener ces expérimentations est le logiciel de simulation à évènements discrets Arena. L’interprétation des résultats a montré que le mécanisme de coordination avec partage d’informations n’a pas eu d’amélioration très significative sur les résultats. En effet, puisque les entreprises ont des capacités de production finies, la disponibilité de l’information n’a pas permis d’obtenir des résultats différents. Le VMI, de son côté, a pu réaliser des réductions des stocks et des coûts de la chaîne logistique. Ces réductions ont été plus importantes chez les chaînes logistiques dont les maillons sont de faibles efficacités. Chez ces dernières, ce sont les deux parties concernées par le VMI (le fournisseur et le donneur d’ordres) qui ont tiré des avantages du VMI. Chez les chaînes logistiques constituées de maillons de haute efficacité, le VMI a permis une réduction des coûts moins importante, car ces chaînes logistiques sont déjà de performance élevée. Pour celles ci, c’est le client qui a tiré profit du VMI, alors que le fournisseur VMI a subi une augmentation des coûts suite à l’augmentation de la fréquence de transport qu’a impliqué ce mécanisme. / The advent of new information and communication technology has greatly facilitated the information exchange practices within supply chains. These practices recently evolved into new forms of collaborations between companies such as Information Sharing (IS) and Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI). The VMI is a coordination mechanism where the supplier is responsible for the inventory management of his customer. This mechanism is based on several principles, including developed information sharing between involved parties. The use of IS and VMI allow companies to increase profits and reduce costs. However, the results about the benefits from their use remain not clear. This motivates the need for new assessments and a better understanding of their effects. This thesis main contribution lies in the analysis and comprehension of IS and VMI’s impacts on supply chains. Especially, we address the issue of supply chains where tiers are production companies with different effectiveness levels. The examined scenario is based on a three tiers supply chain where each tier can belong to four effectiveness classes. The supply chain can respond to two types of end market demands: stable demands or fluctuant demands. In addition, several coordination mechanisms are studied: (i) standard management mechanism, (ii) information sharing between two enterprises, (iii) information sharing between three enterprises, (iv) VMI and (v) Extended VMI to all the three enterprises. The tool used to conduct these experiments is the discrete event simulation software “Arena”. The interpretation of the results showed that the IS coordination mechanism has not very significant improvement. Indeed, as companies have finite capacity, the availability of information did not yield better results. Whereas, the VMI could achieve reductions in both inventory and supply chain costs. In addition, VMI improved profits of the two parties, the vendor and the customer. Finally, the advantages of VMI appear to be stronger when the overall supply chain is less effective.

Dans cette thèse, nous nous sommes intéressés au mode d’exploitation de la demande prévisionnelle pour le pilotage des flux amont dans un contexte de production de masse de produits fortement diversifiés et de dispersion géographique des unités de production. Lorsque l’information prévisionnelle est mal exploitée, des phénomènes, similaires à l’effet coup de fouet connu en chaîne logistique aval, apparaissent en chaîne logistique amont altérant durablement sa performance. Dans le but de contrer certains des mécanismes à l’origine de ces phénomènes, nous avons proposé une adaptation de la MRP permettant d’exploiter au mieux l’information prévisionnelle. L’adaptation de la MRP repose sur une méthode de calcul des besoins basée sur l’exploitation statistique des nomenclatures de planification et la diffusion d’informations sur les niveaux de recomplètement le long de la chaîne logistique amont. Cette approche a été testée avec succès sur plusieurs cas d’application dans l’industrie automobile / In this PhD dissertation, we investigated the way of exploiting the demand forecasts for the upstream flow management in a context of mass production of highly diverse products and of geographical dispersion of the production units. When the forecasts are poorly exploited, phenomena similar to the well-known bullwhip effect in the downstream supply chain appear in the upstream supply chain altering permanently its performances. In order to counter some of the mechanisms underlying these phenomena, we proposed an adaptation of the MRP to perform the exploitation of the forecasted demand. The adaptation of the MRP is based on a calculation method that uses the planning BOM for calculating and transmitting replenishment levels along the upstream supply chain. This approach has been successfully tested on several application studies in the automotive industry

Submitted by Maike Costa (maiksebas@gmail.com) on 2016-02-12T14:10:58Z No. of bitstreams: 1 arquivototal.pdf: 4021623 bytes, checksum: 88358a309d43748bcf7bb4aa423419a0 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-02-12T14:10:58Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 arquivototal.pdf: 4021623 bytes, checksum: 88358a309d43748bcf7bb4aa423419a0 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-12-14 / A library is a type of information unit and, as such, it is influenced by market, globalization and technologies as well. Thus, it can make use of technological influence in order to guarantee quality as to the offered services. Nowadays, several virtual resources can be used by libraries. Digital Information and Communication Technologies (TDIC’s) can serve as a strategic alternative towards an effective and personalized communication between the library and its users, and simultaneously, relationship marketing by means of such tools. The main purpose of this study is to create – in a collective action with librarians who work at library groups that give support to the health area at UFPB – a digital tool which enables optimization in the information sharing of the mentioned number of libraries with its users. To achieve such a goal, the research is taken as research-action. Therefore, it is focused on a collaborative action between the researcher-author and the participant researchers. The research field was represented by four libraries which are part of the UFPB’s Library System (SISTEMOTECA): the Specialized Library of the Medical Science Center (CCM), the Specialized Library of the Health Science Center (CCS), the Specialized Library of Lauro Wanderley University Hospital (HULW) and the Specialized Library of the Nursery Technical School (ETE). The research’s participants were formed by 06 (six) managers of the cited libraries. To sum up, with the outcome, it was possible to perceive that among the four information units, three of them did not have any online communication tool. For this reason, in a collaborative action, the chosen social media to be applied and to improve the present context – among so many tool varieties – was the Fan Page, due to the fact that a great deal of users, within the library group, is connected to this communication channel. Besides that, guidelines were designed to direct a collective action among the studied libraries. Through all readings carried out to develop this study, it was possible to realize that a good communication, in present times, ought to be redesigned with the adding of the TDCIs. Moreover, not only is this an operational process, but it is also a management strategy which can guarantee the effectiveness of information dissemination, since that it sets an innovative way of communication. To conclude, libraries need to be continuously adapted to the described modern communication arenas, thus, updating their communicative practices. / A Biblioteca é um tipo de unidade de informação e como tal sofre influências do mercado, da globalização e das tecnologias, com isso, ela pode fazer uso dessa influência tecnológica para garantir a qualidade na prestação de seus serviços. Atualmente diversos recursos virtuais podem ser utilizados pelas bibliotecas. As Tecnologias Digitais de Informação e Comunicação (TDIC's) podem funcionar como alternativa estratégica para uma comunicação efetiva e personalizada da biblioteca com seus usuários, bem como a prática do marketing de relacionamento por meio dessas ferramentas. O objetivo geral deste estudo é criar em uma ação coletiva com os bibliotecários que atuam no conjunto de bibliotecas que prestam apoio aos cursos da área de saúde da UFPB, uma ferramenta digital que possibilite otimização no momento da socialização de informações do conjunto de bibliotecas para os usuários. Para o alcance do objetivo a pesquisa se classifica como pesquisa-ação, sendo assim, a sua natureza está pautada em uma ação colaborativa entre a pesquisadora autora e pesquisadores participantes. Logo, o campo da pesquisa foi representado por quatro bibliotecas que fazem parte do Sistema de Bibliotecas (SISTEMOTECA) da UFPB: Biblioteca Setorial do Centro de Ciências Médicas (CCM), Biblioteca Setorial do Centro de Ciências da Saúde (CCS), Biblioteca Setorial do Hospital Universitário Lauro Wanderley (HULW) e Biblioteca Setorial da Escola Técnica de Enfermagem (ETE). Os participantes da pesquisa foram formados pelos coordenadores das respectivas bibliotecas. Totalizando um universo de 6 (seis) pesquisadores participantes. Constatou-se, mediante os resultados, que das quatro bibliotecas, três não possuíam nenhuma ferramenta de comunicação online. Diante dessa constatação, em uma ação colaborativa foi escolhida a mídia social que iria compor e melhorar o atual cenário, diante de tantas possibilidades de ferramentas optou-se pela Fan Page, pelo fato de um grande percentual dos usuários do conjunto de bibliotecas estarem conectados à esse canal de comunicação. Decidiu-se também elaborar diretrizes que pudessem nortear um trabalho em conjunto entre os bibliotecários. Observamos por meio das leituras que realizamos para compor este estudo, que uma boa comunicação nos dias atuais passa por uma reformulação com a inserção das TDICs, não se constituindo apenas um processo operacional, mas uma estratégia de gestão que pode garantir a eficácia da disseminação das informações, estabelecendo uma forma inovadora de se comunicar. Logo, conclui-se que emerge a necessidade das bibliotecas estarem continuamente se adequando a esses espaços comunicacionais modernos, reconfigurando suas práticas comunicativas.

Submitted by FABIANA DA SILVA FRANÇA (fabiana21franca@gmail.com) on 2017-12-07T12:21:09Z No. of bitstreams: 1 ArquivoTotal.pdf: 2207635 bytes, checksum: 866c67cae38f232c134e9d55b5dde979 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-12-07T12:21:09Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 ArquivoTotal.pdf: 2207635 bytes, checksum: 866c67cae38f232c134e9d55b5dde979 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-03-31 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES / The sharing of information and knowledge is known as a human behavior, which is made possible by means of the dialogue among the individuals, in their environments of coexistence. Within organizations, this practice allows the synergy of information and the creation of new knowledge, resulting in innovation and improvements for the development of organizational processes. In this scenario, the information and communication technologies are considered as virtual environments that can subsidize the sharing among the individuals and result in new possibilities of coexistence in the organizations. Considering that this practice involves a set of intervening aspects - facilitators or inhibitors -, especially when mediated in virtual environments, it is analyzed the information and knowledge sharing in the virtual community of SIGAA, among the agents of the Federal University of Paraíba. Methodologically, the research is configured as a case study of the descriptive type, whose corpus is constituted by the virtual community environment and the people management agents. For data collection, it is used the form instruments, field diary, and questionnaire. For the analysis of the data, it is made an interpretation of the results from the quantitative and qualitative methods, through the techniques of content analysis and discourse analysis of the collective subject. And about the results concerning the resources available for the sharing in the virtual community, it is inferred that, although this environment has computational applications designed to subsidize the information and knowledge sharing, it must be available other types of resources that can help the practice of this behavior only at the tacit level, in order to promote the socialization of the individuals' experiences. With regard to the use of these resources for the sharing, it is observed that there was no continuity with the passage of time, resulting in a decrease in the frequency of users' participation. It is also noted that knowledge sharing practices did not present a high percentage in relation to the total of identified records, revealing that there is a preference for shares that involve the flows of formal informational (information). It is concluded that the intervening aspects of sharing among agents in this virtual environment, while involving facilitators, such as motivation to share and satisfaction of the individuals regarding the use of this mechanism, also present some inhibitors that need to be overcome, among them, the relationship among the agents, the culture and structure of the organization, and the understanding of these collaborators regarding the use of available resources. As recommendations, it is suggested initiatives that can involve, in an integrated way, the culture and structure of the organization, the agents and the resources of the virtual community. / O compartilhamento de informações e conhecimentos é compreendido como um comportamento humano, que se viabiliza por meio do diálogo entre os sujeitos, em seus ambientes de convivência. No âmbito das organizações, essa prática permite a sinergia das informações e a criação de novos conhecimentos, resultando em inovação e melhorias para o desenvolvimento dos processos organizacionais. Nesse cenário, as tecnologias de informação e comunicação são consideradas como ambientes virtuais que podem subsidiar o compartilhamento entre os sujeitos e resultar em novas possibilidades de convivência nas organizações. Por considerar que essa prática envolve um conjunto de aspectos intervenientes - facilitadores ou inibidores -, sobretudo quando mediada em ambientes virtuais, analisa-se o compartilhamento de informações e conhecimentos na comunidade virtual do SIGAA, entre os agentes de pessoas da Universidade Federal da Paraíba. Metodologicamente, a pesquisa configura-se como um estudo de caso do tipo descritivo, cujo corpus é constituído pelo ambiente da comunidade virtual e pelos agentes de gestão de pessoas. Para a coleta de dados, utiliza-se dos instrumentos formulário, diário de campo e questionário. Para a análise dos dados, realiza-se a interpretação dos resultados a partir dos métodos quantitativo e qualitativo, por meio das técnicas de análise de conteúdo e análise do discurso do sujeito coletivo. Quanto aos resultados acerca dos recursos disponíveis para o compartilhamento na comunidade virtual, infere-se que, apesar de esse ambiente dispor de aplicações computacionais projetadas para subsidiar o compartilhamento de informações e conhecimentos, é necessário que sejam disponibilizados outros tipos de recursos que possam auxiliar a prática desse comportamento apenas no nível tácito, no intuito de promover a socialização das experiências dos sujeitos. No que concerne ao uso desses recursos para o compartilhamento observa-se que não houve uma continuidade com o passar do tempo, resultando em diminuição na frequência da participação dos usuários. Também nota-se que as práticas de compartilhamento de conhecimento não apresentaram um percentual elevado em relação ao total de registros identificados, revelando que há uma preferência por compartilhamentos que envolvem fluxos informacionais formais (informação). Conclui-se que os aspectos intervenientes ao compartilhamento entre os agentes, nesse ambiente virtual, ao mesmo tempo que envolvem facilitadores, tais como, motivação para compartilhar e satisfação dos sujeitos quanto ao uso desse mecanismo, também apresentam alguns inibidores que precisam ser contornados, entre eles, o relacionamento entre os agentes, a cultura e a estrutura da organização e o entendimento desses colaboradores quanto ao uso dos recursos disponíveis. Como recomendações, sugere-se iniciativas que possam envolver, de maneira integrada, a cultura e a estrutura da organização, os agentes e os recursos da comunidade virtual.