Identifying and prioritising effective service delivery drivers' in selected civil construction companies are more than merely satisfying customers' need. By successfully identifying and prioritising effective service delivery drivers within the selected civil construction companies, the companies will be able to achieve competitive advantage above their competitors. This study, by using a questionnaire as a measurement instrument, established that a gap currently exist between what civil construction companies, their employees and their customers regards as effective service delivery drivers within the civil construction industry. By closing this gap, the civil construction companies will be able to generate or maximise profits for their shareholders as there will be common understanding of the level of performance to meet the customer's expectations. The company will also have engaged employees as they would know what is expected from them on a daily basis. The study further highlights the benefits of managing these identified service delivery drivers and elaborate on the factors needed to successfully manage a service level agreement between a civil construction company and their customers. Civil construction companies however will have to revisit these drivers on a continuous basis as client satisfaction is associated with continuous improvement, permanent assessment of service delivery drivers and the service delivery standards. In essence, there are still a lot of challenges and opportunities when it comes to quality service delivery drivers in the civil construction industry. Each company needs to conduct a SWOT analysis to evaluate their competitiveness within the industry. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.

Identifying and prioritising effective service delivery drivers' in selected civil construction companies are more than merely satisfying customers' need. By successfully identifying and prioritising effective service delivery drivers within the selected civil construction companies, the companies will be able to achieve competitive advantage above their competitors. This study, by using a questionnaire as a measurement instrument, established that a gap currently exist between what civil construction companies, their employees and their customers regards as effective service delivery drivers within the civil construction industry. By closing this gap, the civil construction companies will be able to generate or maximise profits for their shareholders as there will be common understanding of the level of performance to meet the customer's expectations. The company will also have engaged employees as they would know what is expected from them on a daily basis. The study further highlights the benefits of managing these identified service delivery drivers and elaborate on the factors needed to successfully manage a service level agreement between a civil construction company and their customers. Civil construction companies however will have to revisit these drivers on a continuous basis as client satisfaction is associated with continuous improvement, permanent assessment of service delivery drivers and the service delivery standards. In essence, there are still a lot of challenges and opportunities when it comes to quality service delivery drivers in the civil construction industry. Each company needs to conduct a SWOT analysis to evaluate their competitiveness within the industry. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.

A Fuzzy Preference Framework for the Graph Model for Conflict Resolution (FGM) is developed so that real-world conflicts in which decision makers (DMs) have uncertain preferences can be modeled and analyzed mathematically in order to gain strategic insights. The graph model methodology constitutes both a formal representation of a multiple participant-multiple objective decision problem and a set of analysis procedures that provide insights into them. Because crisp or definite preference is a special case of fuzzy preference, the new framework of the graph model can include---and integrate into the analysis---both certain and uncertain information about DMs' preferences. In this sense, the FGM is an important generalization of the existing graph model for conflict resolution. One key contribution of this study is to extend the four basic graph model stability definitions to models with fuzzy preferences. Together, fuzzy Nash stability, fuzzy general metarationality, fuzzy symmetric metarationality, and fuzzy sequential stability provide a realistic description of human behavior under conflict in the face of uncertainty. A state is fuzzy stable for a DM if a move to any other state is not sufficiently likely to yield an outcome the DM prefers, where sufficiency is measured according to a fuzzy satisficing threshold that is characteristic of the DM. A fuzzy equilibrium, an outcome that is fuzzy stable for all DMs, therefore represents a possible resolution of the conflict. To demonstrate their applicability, the fuzzy stability definitions are applied to a generic two-DM sustainable development conflict, in which a developer plans to build or operate a project inspected by an environmental agency. This application identifies stable outcomes, and thus clarifies the necessary conditions for sustainability. The methodology is then applied to an actual dispute with more than two DMs concerning groundwater contamination that took place in Elmira, Ontario, Canada, again uncovering valuable strategic insights. To investigate how DMs with fuzzy preferences can cooperate in a strategic conflict, coalition fuzzy stability concepts are developed within FGM. In particular, coalition fuzzy Nash stability, coalition fuzzy general metarationality, coalition fuzzy symmetric metarationality, and coalition fuzzy sequential stability are defined, for both a coalition and a single DM. These concepts constitute a natural generalization of the corresponding non-cooperative fuzzy preference-based definitions for Nash stability, general metarationality, symmetric metarationality, and sequential stability, respectively. As a follow-up analysis of the non-cooperative fuzzy stability results and to demonstrate their applicability, the coalition fuzzy stability definitions are applied to the aforementioned Elmira groundwater contamination conflict. These new concepts can be conveniently utilized in the study of practical problems in order to gain strategic insights and to compare conclusions derived from both cooperative and non-cooperative stability notions. A fuzzy option prioritization technique is developed within the FGM so that uncertain preferences of DMs in strategic conflicts can be efficiently modeled as fuzzy preferences by using the fuzzy truth values they assign to preference statements about feasible states. The preference statements of a DM express desirable combinations of options or courses of action, and are listed in order of importance. A fuzzy truth value is a truth degree, expressed as a number between 0 and 1, capturing uncertainty in the truth of a preference statement at a feasible state. It is established that the output of a fuzzy preference formula, developed based on the fuzzy truth values of preference statements, is always a fuzzy preference relation. The fuzzy option prioritization methodology can also be employed when the truth values of preference statements at feasible states are formally based on Boolean logic, thereby generating a crisp preference over feasible states that is the same as would be found using the existing crisp option prioritization approach. Therefore, crisp option prioritization is a special case of fuzzy option prioritization. To demonstrate how this methodology can be used to represent fuzzy preferences in real-world problems, the new fuzzy option prioritization technique is applied to the Elmira aquifer contamination conflict. It is observed that the fuzzy preferences obtained by employing this technique are very close to those found using the rather complicated and tedious pairwise comparison approach.

My study has questioned recognized factors of news valuation in the context of Costa Rican newspapers, with the aim at getting greater understanding in how news are valued in Costa Rican newspapers and what factors contribute to making an event the main article of an issue. My research therefore is a snapshot at how the news valuation process is conducted in Costa Rica at the moment. I furthermore went on to do a quantitative content analysis containing five theories of factors of news valuation, that I have theorised myself as a result of my research containing recognized factors of news valuation.   The data has been selected through a random selection process, and then collected via the national library in San José, Costa Rica. I then went on to carry through a quantitative content analysis, containing 46 variables from recognized factors of news valuation and an additional five variables from my own theories, on the selected samples.   The variables in my analysis to a great extent tried questioning the theories of Judy McGregor, Henk Prakke, Håkan Hvitfelt and Galtung and Ruge.   The results show that some of the theories created by mentioned scholar do apply in the news valuation process in Costa Rican newspapers. It furthermore show that some factors, mentioned by the same scholar, to have great impact in the news valuation process does not at all impact the news value of an event in Costa Rican newspapers. This study shows that there is cultural and geographical differences in how events are valued as newsworthy or not, and that the factors that are acknowledged as determining of news value in one region or country, may in fact not at all apply in another part of the world.   The results of my own theories show that there are differences in what factors that affect the news valuation process. My theories state that there are other factors that affect news values and that there can be opposing factors depending on in what country/region/journalistic area the news are valued.

The current scenario of the Brazilian electricity sector, through the constant and recent regulatory changes imposed by ANEEL in recent years, aims to ensure continuous improvement in quality standards in the provision of electricity, significantly increased surveillance on the power quality delivered to consumers. Following this guideline, ANEEL established X Factor, which set the minimum volume of investments required to electricity distribution companies. In 2010, through the PRORET ANEEL established a new methodology for the calculation of the X Factor, including the Q component, relating to quality of service, setting a milestone in the recent regulatory history of the Brazilian electricity sector, as it allows for the first time gains the annual tariff adjustment or loss according to the performance measured in the year. In this context of regulatory innovations and increasing demands with performance standards and levels of investment made on the electrical system, the correct and efficient use of increasingly scarce resources to improve and expand the electrical system are presented as a vital challenge to financial health of companies. This paper presents a methodology for prioritizing investments in primary networks of electricity distribution, involving two consolidated methodologies aid to decision-making high complexity (AHP and PROMETHEE) and operations research methods to optimize the planning of improvement works to be held in short-term horizon, with direct reflection on regulatory issues, seeking still accommodate regional characteristics of the company and the ability to execute works of each region. / O atual cenário do setor elétrico brasileiro, através das constantes e recentes alterações regulatórias impostas pela ANEEL nos últimos anos, tem como objetivo garantir a melhoria contínua nos padrões de qualidade no fornecimento de energia elétrica, aumentado significativamente a fiscalização sobre a qualidade da energia entregue aos consumidores. Seguindo esta diretriz, a ANEEL instituiu o Fator X, que define o volume de investimentos mínimos exigidos às empresas de distribuição de energia elétrica. Em 2010, através do PRORET a ANEEL estabeleceu uma nova metodologia para o cálculo do Fator X, incluindo o componente Q, referente à qualidade do serviço prestado, configurando como um marco no recente histórico regulatório do setor elétrico brasileiro, pois permite pela primeira vez ganhos no reajuste tarifário anual ou perdas de acordo com o desempenho medido no ano. Neste contexto de inovações regulatórias e exigências cada vez maiores com os padrões de desempenho e níveis de investimentos realizados no sistema elétrico, a aplicação correta e eficiente dos cada vez mais escassos recursos disponíveis para melhoria e ampliação do sistema elétrico se apresentam como um desafio vital à saúde financeira das empresas do setor elétrico. Este trabalho apresenta uma metodologia para priorização de investimentos em redes primárias de distribuição de energia elétrica, associando duas consolidadas metodologias de auxílio à tomada de decisões de elevada complexidade (AHP e PROMETHEE) e métodos de pesquisa operacional para otimização no planejamento de obras de melhoria a serem realizadas no horizonte de curto prazo, com reflexo direto nas questões regulatórias, buscando ainda contemplar características regionais da empresa e a capacidade de execução de obras de cada região.

Företags intressenter ställer allt högre krav på företagens hållbarhetsarbete, där de miljömässiga, sociala och ekonomiska aspekterna är i centrum. För att företag ska kunna visa att de fullföljer ansvaret kring arbetet med hållbarhet, upprättar företagen en hållbarhetsredovisning, där främst riktlinjer från Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) används. I GRI är en av principerna intressentinkludering, som innebär att företag ska föra en dialog med intressenter, för att på så sätt få ta del av intressenters åsikter och genom detta bidra till en mer användbar och trovärdig hållbarhetsredovisning. Med utgångspunkt i företags intressentdialog och vad som tidigare studier behandlar inom ämnet, har denna studie förklarat hur svenska börsnoterade företag identifierar, prioriterar och involverar intressenter i hållbarhetsredovisningen, samt hur företagens intressenter inverkar på hållbarhetsredovisningar.   För att uppfylla studiens syfte samt besvara dess problemformuleringar har studien utförts med hjälp av en kvalitativ metod, i form av intervjuer, där sju svenska börsnoterade företag har intervjuats som hållbarhetsredovisar enligt GRI. Resultaten av studien visar att de undersökta svenska börsnoterade företagen identifierar och prioriterar intressenter, där de identifierade intressenterna är de intressenter som påverkar eller påverkas av företagen. De prioriterade intressenterna anses enligt de undersökta företagen vara de som i högre grad påverkar eller som i högre grad påverkas av företagens verksamheter. Intressenterna blir även av de undersökta svenska börsnoterade företagen involverade, detta via olika dialogmetoder som beror på vilken intressentgrupp det berör. Slutligen visar studien att intressenter till de undersökta svenska börsnoterade företagen även inverkar på företagens hållbarhetsredovisningar, där det kan ses att en del intressenter har mer inflytande än andra. / Corporate stakeholders place increasingly high demands on companies regarding the sustainability work, where the environmental, social and economic aspects are at the center. In order for companies to demonstrate that they are in charge of the sustainability work, companies establish a sustainability report, primarily using Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guidelines. In GRI one of the principles is stakeholder inclusiveness, which means that companies should engage in dialogue with stakeholders in order to gain access to stakeholders' views, and thereby contribute to a more useful and credible sustainability report. Based on the company's stakeholder dialogue and what previous research deal with within the subject, the study has explained how Swedish listed companies identify, prioritize and involve stakeholders in the sustainability report, as well as how companies' stakeholders influence the sustainability reports.   In order to fulfill the purpose of the study and answer its problem formulations, the study has been conducted using a qualitative method, in the form of interviews, in which seven Swedish listed companies have been interviewed, who are using GRI guidelines when they are establishing the sustainability reports. The results of the study show that the surveyed Swedish listed companies identify and prioritize stakeholders, where the identified stakeholders are the stakeholders that affect or are influenced by the companies. Priority stakeholders are, according to the companies surveyed, considered to be those that increasingly influence or are increasingly affected by business activities. The stakeholders will also be involved in the surveyed Swedish listed companies, through different dialogue methods depending on which stakeholder group it concerns. Finally, the study shows that stakeholders of the Swedish listed companies surveyed also in some way affect the companies' sustainability reports, where it can be seen that some stakeholders have more influence than others.

[pt] Os avanços tecnológicos, a acirrada concorrência entre as empresas e as frequentes mudanças sociais e mercadológicas impõem uma constante busca por métodos, ferramentas e processos efetivos de gestão empresarial. Há firmas que buscam vantagem competitiva sustentável para se destacarem dos demais players que atuam no mesmo segmento de mercado globalizado. Existem também empresas que adotam estratégias com intuito apenas de sobrevivência do negócio e outras cujo foco é estritamente social, visando o desenvolvimento da sociedade, sustentabilidade ambiental, dentre outros. Dentro deste contexto, as práticas de gestão de portfólio de projetos estão sendo cada vez mais adotadas para melhoria de processos ou desenvolvimento de produtos e serviços inovadores. Um dos principais desafios enfrentados pelas organizações é definir de maneira adequada o processo de priorização dos projetos, objetivando cumprir as diretrizes estratégicas definidas pela alta cúpula administrativa. O objetivo do presente trabalho é identificar como esta priorização ocorre em instituições financeiras brasileiras. Os procedimentos metodológicos utilizados são a pesquisa bibliográfica e de campo, por meio de estudos de casos com quatro bancos brasileiros. Os resultados da pesquisa indicam a prática de priorização de projetos pelo comitê executivo composto por representantes de diversas áreas. Os projetos regulatórios atendem à demandas legais e são considerados prioritários. Espera-se que os resultados encontrados contribuam para o aumento do conhecimento sobre a priorização dos projetos, gerando novas reflexões e questionamentos acerca do gerenciamento de portfólio de projetos no Brasil. / [en] The technological advances, the fierce competition among companies and the frequent social and market changes demand a constant search for effective methods, tools and processes of business management. There are firms that look for a sustainable competitive advantage to stand out from the other players that operate in the same globalized market segment. There are also companies that only adopt business survival strategies and others whose focus is strictly social, aiming at the development of society, environmental sustainability, among others. Within this context, project portfolio management practices is being increasingly adopted to improve processes or develop innovative products and services. One of the greatest challenges companies face is to define an appropriate projects prioritization process, to accomplish the strategic goals defined by top management. The objective of this work is to identify how this prioritization occurs in Brazilian financial institutions. The methodological procedures used is mainly bibliographical and field research, through cases studies with four Brazilian banks. The research results present business practices used in project priorization by the executive committee composed of representatives from different areas. Regulatory projects fulfill legal demands and are considered priorities. It is expected that the results should contribute to rise the knowledge about of the prioritization of projects, produzing new questionings about project portfolio management in Brazil.

The emergence of Human Rights NGOs continue to influence the practice of human rights domestically and internationally. In connection with this development, as scrutinizers of human rights and human rights violations, the Human Rights NGOs must in turn be scrutinized. Guided by a theoretical framework consisted of theories of justification by Rainer Forst, Martha Nussbaum and Michael Ignatieff, a critical analysis of how Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch reveal the state of human rights in the respective annual report of 2017 is carried out. The aim is to scrutinize how the Human Rights NGOs interpretation, prioritization and justification of human rights affect the validity of human rights. The validity of human rights in turn, argues the thesis, presupposes that we must assess whether these strategies are reasonable. The thesis finds that human rights are understood as universal claims for the respect and protection of the underpinning values of human rights: dignity, freedom and equality. Human rights, interpreted in this sense, must have an abiding effect and protect human rights, but also to hold human rights violations accountable through means of justice. Accordingly, justice has a double meaning for the purpose of human rights in the sense that it firstly set out conditions for when human rights are protected and secondly, make this task possible. / I ljuset av framväxten av icke-statliga människorättsorganisationer och deras betydande inflytande på de mänskliga rättigheterna, syftar denna uppsats till att studera deras förståelse och tolkning av dessa rättigheter. Med hjälp av ett teoretiskt ramverk bestående av teorier om rättfärdigande av mänskliga rättigheter av Rainer Forst, Martha Nussbaum och Michael Ignatieff, genomförs en kritisk analys av hur Amnesty International och Human Rights Watch årliga rapporter om de mänskliga rättigheternas status ser ut. Syftet med denna analys är att kritisk granska hur organisationernas tolkning, prioritering och rättfärdigande av mänskliga rättigheter påverkar rättigheternas validitet. Validiteten i sin tur, förutsätter att en kritisk analys av dessa strategier förhåller sig till huruvida dessa är förnuftiga och godtagbara. Uppsatsen kommer fram till att mänskliga rättigheter förstås som universella anspråk vars syfte är att respektera och skydda de underliggande normerna av mänsklig värdighet, frihet och jämlikhet. Mänskliga rättigheter måste således ha en varaktig effekt för att skydda människor, men även för att kunna ställa brott mot mänskliga rättigheter inför rättvisa. Följaktligen har rättvisa mer än ett syfte, nämligen att först staka ut de förutsättningar som krävs för att respektera och skydda mänskliga rättigheter, och för det andra att göra detta möjligt.

Estimativas recentes mostram que as taxas atuais de extinção são muito maiores do que o indicado pelo registro fóssil, sendo as principais ameaças resultado da atividade humana. Como a crise da biodiversidade age em todas as escalas e não apresenta fronteiras políticas, a aplicação do arcabouço teórico da biogeografia da conservação e do planejamento sistemático para conservação se torna muito útil para a identificação de áreas com alto valor de conservação que sejam significativas em um contexto global, continental ou regional. Além da dimensão taxonômica, as dimensões funcional e filogenética da biodiversidade são componentes importantes para a conservação, e a sua perda implica não somente em perda de espécies, mas também na perda de funções ecossistêmicas e de trajetórias evolutivas. O objetivo desta tese foi avaliar como o impacto humano atual gerado pelo uso da terra, influencia padrões funcionais (relacionados ao risco de extinção, Capítulo 1) e filogenéticos (Capítulo 2) de distribuição, e como informações filogenéticas e de atributos podem ser utilizadas para informar priorização espacial pra conservação (Capítulo 3). Nos capítulos 1 e 2 encontrei que a influência do uso da terra sobre a biodiversidade não está restrita apenas às escalas mais locais e de paisagem, mas também já é perceptível em escalas geográficas amplas. Além disso, verifiquei que o uso da terra tem impacto não somente na dimensão taxonômica, mas também nas dimensões filogenética e funcional da diversidade de vertebrados nessa escala macrogeográfica. Isso demonstra a necessidade de um planejamento de ocupação e manejo de áreas utilizadas para atividades humana em ampla escala também, pois o impacto humano não se dá mais somente em escalas finas. O uso atual da terra representa uma ameaça real maior para algumas linhagens de anfíbios (Capítulo 1) e de primatas (Capítulo 2), como, por exemplo, Microhylidae e Atelidae, respectivamente. Isso reforça a necessidade de utilizarmos abordagens filogenéticas que identifiquem quais linhagens estão mais suscetíveis aos impactos decorrentes de atividades humanas. Ao tentar maximizar a a conservação das dimensões taxonômica, filogenética e funcional da biodiversidade de mamíferos, a congruência entre as áreas selecionadas como prioritárias foi baixa. A integração dos diferentes componentes da biodiversidade para selecionar áreas mais eficientes para a conservação das espécies ainda é um desafio. O desencontro entre as prioridades de conservação para as diferentes dimensões da biodiversidade ressalta a necessidade o desenvolvimento de abordagens mais integrativas para a conservação da biodiversidade. / Recent estimates show that current exticntion rates are much higher than the indicated by fossil records. The causes of this elevated rate are mostly result of human activities. The biodiversity crisis affects all scales and presents no political boundaries, the application of the theoretical and analytical framework of Conservation Biogeography and Systematic Conservation Planning becomes very useful to identify meaningful areas with high conservation value locally and globally. In addition to taxonomic diversity, functional and phylogenetic dimensions of biodiversity are also important components to preserve, and their loss implies not only on species number, but also loss of ecosystem services and evolutionary history. The aim of the thesis was to evaluate how impacts of human land use influences functional (related to extinction risk, Chapter 1) and phylogenetic (Chapter 2) distribution patterns, and how phylogenetic and trait information could be used to inform spatial conservation prioritization (Chapter 3). In the chapter 1 and 2 I found that the influence of land use on the biodiversity is not constrained to local and landscape scales, but has an effect at broad-scales too. Besides, I verified that land use impacts on phylogenetic and functional dimensions on macrogeographical scales. These results show a need of creating a broad scale planning for ocupation and management of areas intended to human activities. Current land use is a major threat to some lineages of amphibians (Chapter 1) and primates (Chapter 2), as for example Microhylidae and Atelidae respectively. That reinforces the need of phylogenetics approaches that identify which lineages are more exposed to human activities. We found low congruence between priority areas for maximize the conservation of taxonomic, functional and phylogenetics dimensions of biodiversity. The integration of the differnt componentes of diversity to conservation still is a chalenge. The mismatch of the conservation priorities across the different dimension highlights the necessity of an integrative approach to biodiversity conservation.

O presente trabalho apresenta, primeiramente, o desenvolvimento e aplicação de uma Ferramenta de Apoio à Decisão (FAD), seguindo os conceitos de Sistemas de Informação (SI), para facilitar o acesso e visualização de informações técnicas estratégicas, e que possa compor um Sistema de Apoio à Decisão (SAD) que englobe o portfólio de informações necessárias para o planejamento da priorização de obras de investimento e expansão das redes de distribuição de energia. A FAD proposta realiza o tratamento de um grupo de dados relativos a incidência de interrupções de energia da rede de distribuição de uma concessionária do setor elétrico, de forma a disponibilizar as informações depuradas para auxílio na tomada assertiva de decisão para aplicação de recursos para execução de ações de manutenção em rede de distribuição. Em seguida, exibe a inclusão de uma função de análise, no aplicativo desenvolvido como Ferramenta de Apoio à Decisão (FAD), baseada na priorização multicriterial AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process). A aplicação do método AHP indica as estações avançadas da concessionária que possuem prioridade para a aplicação de recursos que visam à execução de ações de manutenção em rede de distribuição para a melhoria nos indicadores de continuidades do fornecimento de energia. / This paper first introduces the development and application of a Decision Support Tool (FAD), following the concepts of Information Systems (IS), to facilitate the availability and visualization of strategic techniques information, and can compose a Decision Support System (DSS) that encompasses the entire portfolio of information needed for planning the prioritization of investment works and expansion of power distribution networks. The proposed FAD performs the treatment of a group of data on the incidence of power outages in the distribution of the electric utility industry network in order to provide information to aid in purified assertive decision making for application of resources for execution maintenance actions in the distribution network. Then displays the inclusion of an analysis function, the application developed as a Tool for Decision Support (FAD), multicriteria prioritization based on AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process). The application of AHP method indicates the advanced utility stations that have priority for use of funds aimed at the implementation of maintenance actions in the distribution network to improve the indicators of continuity of power supply.