Thesis (Ph. D.)--State University of New York at Binghamton, Thomas J. Watson School of Engineering and Applied Science, Department of Computer Science, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M. S.)--Literature, Communication, and Culture, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2009. / Committee Chair: Pearce, Celia; Committee Member: Do, Ellen Yi-Luen; Committee Member: Knoespel, Kenneth; Committee Member: Nitsche, Michael.

Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 43-51).

Background: Although leadership is a topic which has been extensively researched, there is limited literature concerning co-leadership, especially in connection to start-ups. Moreover, as those who are co-leaders in start-ups often also are co-founders and co-owners, it is vital that their co-leadership dynamic is functional as a way of staying in business. Co-leadership is described as a leadership form which has become more commonly used, which further adds urgency of exploring the topic of co-leadership dynamics, and how to make it functional. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to explore how a functional co-leadership dynamic can be created between leaders who are simultaneously founders and owners of a start-up. Method: This is a qualitative study, for which is used semi-structured interviews to collect data from 11 co-leaders in 10 companies. The transcribed interviews have been used together with secondary data to point out specific elements that have shown to be important for a functional co-leadership dynamic. Both the themes of co-leadership dynamics and the context of entrepreneurship, foundership and ownership were used to find and highlight these elements. The elements have been discussed in the Analysis and are thereafter presented in a model. Conclusion: Six elements have been pointed out as important for a functional co-leadership dynamic: Collaborative Attitude, Shared Values & Vision, Open & Continuous Communication, Synergy, Learning & Personal Growth, and Trust. These elements are interrelated, and Collaborative Attitude, Shared Values & Vision, Synergy and Trust are also connected to the contextual factors.

In recent years, start-ups and small to medium sized enterprises that operate globally from their inception have become commonplace. These companies often use shared leadership structures and aim to disrupt an existing market with a innovative product. This thesis intends to explore and understand the influence of shared leadership on disruptive innovation inside these international new ventures using a qualitative research approach, by gathering relevant theories of shared leadership, such as disruptive innovation and international new ventures and contrasting them in an abductive manner with the results of six interviews conducted with representatives of chosen start-ups. In these interviews the participants were questioned about shared leadership and disruptive innovation separately and try to integrate the results of shared leadership that relate to disruptive innovation in a positive or negative manner. Our findings suggest that creativity, efficiency, intrinsic motivation as well as cross-field knowledge have an incubative effect, while shared leadership itself, when managed poorly, can hamper disruptive innovation.

The aim of this study is to investigate how explicit CSR values are implemented in the organizational culture of companies through MCS. The focus is on which elements of MCS affect the tacit CSR values of employees, so that employee and corporate values can be aligned. Additionally, the role that shared values play on corporate social behavior is explored. To answer the research question both primary and secondary data were collected and analyzed by conducting multiple case studies. The primary data was collected through qualitative, semi-structured interviews. Secondary data was collected from the case companies’ official reports, codes of conduct and statements. A model was created to create a visualization of the concepts used in the theoretical framework. This study found that companies from nine different industries utilize MCS to align CSR values in their organization, and realize green marketing behavior. Shared values are created through four MCS; a belief system, a diagnostic control system, a boundary system and an interactive control system. These are the building blocks upon which positive corporate social behavior is grounded on. This study’s results provide managers tools to affect their company’s corporate social behavior. Additionally, on a broader level, this study indicates that green marketing and greenwashing behavior can be viewed as choices that companies can deliberately make. Managers can affect the corporate social behavior of their company and are therefore responsible for the path they choose regarding CSR.

O presente trabalho analisou a propensão dos executivos do setor de papel para embalagem no Brasil à aplicação dos conceitos de Criação de Valor Compartilhado (CVC) como forma de aprimorar a vantagem competitiva das empresas do setor. O conceito de Valor compartilhado foi lançado por Porter e Kramer em 2011, através do artigo publicado na Harvard Business Review chamado de: A Grande Idea – Como consertar o capitalismo. De acordo com Porter e Kramer, o conceito de valor compartilhado redefine as fronteiras do capitalismo ao conectar melhor o sucesso da empresa com o progresso da sociedade, este conceito abre muitas maneiras de atender a novas necessidades, ganhar eficiência, criar diferenciação e expandir mercados, tornando-se mais competitiva. De acordo com os autores, se as empresas utilizarem as mesmas ferramentas que norteiam suas escolhas no core business para analisarem as oportunidades socioambientais, deixa de ser um custo ou filantropia para se tornar uma fonte de oportunidade e de vantagem competitiva (PORTER; KRAMER, 2011). Para a realização do trabalho, procedeu-se à revisão de literatura disponível sobre o tema CVC, sobre estratégia e competitividade, o que permitiu conhecer melhor os conceitos para que uma empresa possa coloca-los de fato em prática. Após a revisão da literatura, realizou-se a pesquisa de fontes secundárias, que utilizou dados coletados através de materiais internos e externos sobre o tema disponíveis no Brasil e no mundo, tais como: publicações de revistas, vídeos, apresentações em fóruns, artigos, dissertações e teses acadêmicas, publicações em sites e notícias vinculadas. Os dados secundários ajudaram a tangibilizar o conceito de CVC realizado na revisão literária, através de exemplos de empresas de classe mundial, que já estão aplicando e desenvolvendo projetos e iniciativas de CVC. A partir dos dados recolhidos através de entrevistas de profundidade com executivos e especialistas em sustentabilidade, verificou-se que o tema é pouco disseminado e, ainda, confundido com os conceitos de sustentabilidade, porém, indicam a propensão às práticas de CVC pelas empresas do setor. / The present work analyzed the application of the concepts of Creating Shared Value (CSV) by executives of the area of paper packaging in Brazil as a way to improve the competitive advantage of companies in the sector. The concept of Shared Value was devised by Porter and Kramer in 2011 through the Harvard Business Review article called "The Great Idea How to Fix Capitalism." According to Porter and Kramer, the concept of shared value redefines the boundaries of capitalism by better connecting the company's success with the progress of society, this concept opens up many ways to meet the new needs of this society, such as gaining efficiency, creating differentiation and expand markets, making it more competitive. According to the authors, if companies use the same tools that guide their choices in the core business to analyze socio-environmental opportunities, it is no longer a cost or philanthropy to become a source of opportunity and competitive advantage (PORTER, KRAMMER, 2011). In order to carry out the work, a review of available literature on the CSV topic on strategy and competitiveness was carried out, which allowed a better understanding of the concepts for a company to actually put into practice. After reviewing the literature, secondary sources were searched, using data collected through internal and external materials available in Brazil and in the world, such as: magazine publications, videos, presentations in forums, articles, dissertations and academic theses, publications on websites and related news. The secondary data helped to underpin the CSV concept addressed in the literary review, through examples of world-class companies that are already implementing and developing CSV projects and initiatives. Based on data collected through in-depth interviews with executives and sustainability experts, it was verified that the theme is poorly disseminated and also confused with the concepts of sustainability, but indicate the propensity to CSV practices by companies in the sector.

A economia compartilhada é um sistema econômico baseado no compartilhamento de bens subutilizados, de forma gratuita ou por uma taxa. Com os adventos da internet, smartphones e Gps surgiram as plataformas digitais que se baseiam nesse conceito, em que se faz emergir a necessidade da compreensão de sua relação com mercados two-side. Tal expansão atingiu diversos setores da economia, e, ainda, criou nova demanda, como a plataforma Uber, o que, no entanto, gerou distúrbios no setor de táxis, tradicionalmente regulamentado e com ineficiências mundialmente reconhecidas. Dessa forma, o objetivo dessa dissertação é entender o que são as plataformas digitais e analisar o caso especifico da empresa Uber, apresentando quais os principais fatores que permitiram que esse tipo de empresa surgisse; onde estamos, definindo o que é efetivamente a Uber e os serviços por ela prestado, abordando quais os ganhos de bem-estar proporcionados (excedente do consumidor) e problemas de regulamentação enfrentados; e para onde iremos, prospectando um caminho para a economia compartilhada a respeito das plataformas digitais em mercados two-side. / Shared economy is an economic system based on the share of underutilized goods free of charge or for a fee. With the advent of the internet, the digital platforms based on this concept have been developed, emerging the need of understanding its relationship with two-side markets. This expansion has reached various sectors of the economy, as well as created new demand, such as the Uber platform, which ,however, has generated disturbances in the taxi sector, traditionally regulated with its worldwide recognised inefficiencies. Thus, the goal of this dissertation is to understand what the digital platforms are and to analyse the specific case of Uber company, showing the main factors which allowed this type of business to arise; where we are, defining what Uber effectively is and the services provided by it, addressing the welfare gains provided (consumer surplus) and regulatory problems faced; and where we go, prospecting a path for the shared economy regarding the digital platforms in two-side markets.

Submitted by Noeme Timbo (noeme.timbo@metodista.br) on 2018-02-28T18:54:41Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Daniella Fernandes de Oliveira Orsi.pdf: 1675678 bytes, checksum: df05ff77cabad394821af49b47b3e08c (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-02-28T18:54:41Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Daniella Fernandes de Oliveira Orsi.pdf: 1675678 bytes, checksum: df05ff77cabad394821af49b47b3e08c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-07-25 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES / This study aimed to investigate the practices of collaborative consumption, in the social strata A and B of the city of São Paulo, by analyzing the facilities, difficulties and the real interests of the interviewees to increasingly seek access and sharing instead of Ownership of products and services. The research question considers how collaborative consumption can be expanded in order to establish a win - win system for businesses and consumers, as well as to understand if this practice is driven by social, economic or technological drivers (OWYANG, 2013c). It is presented as the collaborative consumption established in society, driven by the internet, creating a new culture, based on the consumption systems defined by Botsman and Rogers (2011) and in the twelve categories classified by Owyang et al. (2014). With the purpose of giving subsidies to the companies to develop more appropriate strategies next to this new profile of consumption, a qualitative, exploratory descriptive study was developed through a bibliographical review and semi-structured interviews in field research. The results indicate the real interests of respondents about the products or services made available on the collaborative consumption beyond the knowledge of which services are used, identifying the specifics of these social classes sharing phenomenon. It has also been possible to infer that the interest with respect to the practice of collaborative consumption is driven by several factors, one being the economic factor as the paramount among the respondents. To finalize the study are presented business and academic contributions and suggestions for research on the topic / Este estudo buscou investigar as práticas do consumo colaborativo, nos estratos sociais A e B da cidade de São Paulo, por meio da análise das facilidades, dificuldades e dos reais interesses dos entrevistados a buscarem de forma crescente o acesso e o compartilhamento em vez da posse dos produtos e serviços. A questão de pesquisa considera: De que forma o consumo colaborativo pode ser expandido a fim de estabelecer um sistema ganha-ganha, para as empresas e os consumidores, além de compreender se esta prática é impulsionada por condutores sociais, econômicos ou tecnológicos (OWYANG, 2013c). Apresenta-se como o consumo colaborativo se estabeleceu na sociedade, impulsionado pela internet, criando uma nova cultura, com base nos sistemas de consumo definidos por Botsman e Rogers (2011) e nas doze categorias classificadas por Owyang et al. (2014). Com o intuito de dar subsídios às empresas para o desenvolvimento de estratégias mais adequadas junto a este novo perfil de consumo, foi desenvolvido um estudo de natureza qualitativa, exploratório-descritivo, por meio de uma revisão bibliográfica e de entrevistas semiestruturadas na pesquisa de campo. Os resultados indicam os reais interesses dos entrevistados acerca dos produtos ou serviços disponibilizados no consumo colaborativo além do conhecimento de quais serviços são utilizados, identificando as especificidades do fenômeno de compartilhamento nestas classes sociais. Também foi possível inferir que o interesse com relação à pratica do consumo colaborativo é impulsionado por diversos fatores, sendo fator o econômico como o primordial entre os respondentes. Para finalizar o estudo são apresentadas contribuições empresariais e acadêmicas e sugestões de pesquisas sobre o tema.

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the developing role of the Student Trustee. Utilizing a case study design and document analysis, this descriptive study examined the comments of 143 Student Trustees in Board meetings of the University of Massachusetts (UMass) System, the first in the nation to require Student Trustees, from 1970-–2015. The research questions sought to uncover the origins of the Student Trustee at the UMass System as well as how the role developed over time. The study concluded that Student Trustees provide a unique perspective that offers meaningful contributions to the discourse and decision-making processes of university Boards. The legislation that placed the first Student Trustee on the UMass Board was the result of contentious campus protests fueled by student dissatisfaction with higher education’s response to the Vietnam War, racism, and sexism, among other issues. Governor Francis Sargent proposed and signed that legislation in 1969 as a means to “move protest from confrontation to dialogue.” Student Trustees found success pushing the Board in a more progressive direction – adopting co-ed dormitories, providing greater due process in conduct matters, and asserting that students have primary responsibility over student policies and related matters. Student Trustees also pressed the Board to divest from companies operating in apartheid South Africa, and even to grant students an eight-day reprieve from papers and exams so they could campaign in the 1970 congressional elections. The role of the Student Trustee has expanded since Cynthia Olken took her place as the first Student Trustee in 1970. There are now five Student Trustees representing each of the five campuses in the UMass System. The two with voting power operate as regular board members and have the ability to serve on all committees, while the other three are ex officio non-voting members and can only attend open meetings of the full Board of Trustees. While more than half of the 143 Student Trustees made five or fewer remarks during their time on the board, there were many who spoke out frequently on issues related to finance, governance, and academics. Through their half-century of efforts, Student Trustees have earned a seat at the table and the praise of many university presidents, chancellors, and Board chairs that have used words like helpful, valuable, and significant to describe their contributions. As former UMass President Jack Wilson once exclaimed, “Having student representation on this Board is important.”