Charbel José Chiappetta Jabbour

Latin America: research opportunities on management for sustainable development

It is essential to characterise some of the environmental and social aspects of a region when addressing sustainable development to be able to understand their restrictions and opportunities and propose a research agenda. Therefore, this article briefly presents a few data on Latin America’s economy and other data referring to environmental and social issues, as well as some previous research already conducted about Latin America, in order to propose a research agenda to subsidise the discussion of management for a sustainable development.

Critical success factors and green supply chain management proactivity: shedding light on the human aspects of this relationship based on cases from the Brazilian industry

Abstract By applying the resources-based view (RBV) theory to green management, this study aims to analyse the relationship between critical success factors (CSFs) and the adoption of green supply chain management (GSCM) practices for some Brazil-based manufacturers of automotive batteries considered focal in their supply chains. It also analyses how human issues, known as green human resource management (GHRM) aspects, can help to increase the effectiveness of CSFs for GSCM strategies that are still not totally well-managed, justifying a RBV perspective. This research assumes that firms tend to be in different stages of GSCM development (more strategic or less strategic) and tests four research propositions to determine whether more proactive GSCM is related to higher levels of effectively managed CSFs. Three focal companies that operate in the Brazilian automotive battery industry were studied. Research results suggest that more proactive GSCM practices correlate to more effectively managed CSFs and to a greater support from GHRM. We argue that managers with a clear GHRM strategy will have more success in GSCM adoption, using more green training, green recruitment and selection, green performance evaluation and employee rewards.

Information systems and sustainable supply chain management towards a more sustainable society: Where we are and where we are going

Abstract The objectives of this study are to identify and systematize scholarly articles on the use of information system to support sustainable supply chain management and to suggest future research opportunities. Therefore, a structured literature review was conducted. The most relevant studies identified were classified and categorized into seven dimensions: research context, research focus, research method, sector analyzed, information system (IS) beneficiaries, relationship between IS and green supply chain practices, and performance benefits. The main authors and articles on this particular topic were identified. In addition, it was concluded that IS is an important support tool for sustainable supply chain management practices since it brings benefits to the organization, suppliers, and customers. Furthermore, IS positively influences the operational, financial, and environmental performance of the organization. However, further advances in the literature are still needed. The major contribution of this research is related to the recommendations that provide opportunities for future research.

An assessment of the causes and consequences of agricultural land abandonment in Europe

ABSTRACT The agriculture sector is the principal source of income for around 20% of the EU-26 population, which live in predominantly rural regions that would be devastated without its contribution. Moreover, the combined agricultural and food sector forms an important part of the EU economy, accounting for 15 million jobs (8.3% of total employment) and 4.4% of GDP. The 12 million active farmers across Europe today, have an average farm size of about 15 ha, and are expected to meet the needs of 500 million Europeans. In addition, they are also expected to promote a sustainable and balanced development of their land, also in areas where production conditions are difficult. Yet, despite the relevance of the sector, the use of land for agriculture purposes is not very sustainable. Among other issues, there is a serious problem in respect of the abandonment of agricultural land. Based on the perceived need for research on this topic, the aim of this paper is to examine the causes and consequences of agricultural land abandonment, outlining its social, economic and environmental impacts, as well as the implications for territorial integration.

Contingency theory, climate change, and low-carbon operations management

Drawing on the theory of contingency, the aim of this work is to understand how supply chain-related contingencies, arising from climate change, are related to changes in the organisational structure of firms. Further, we explore how this relationship influences the perception of sustainability managers on the adoption of low-carbon operations management practices and their related benefits.To achieve this goal, this research uses NVivo software to gather evidence from interviews conducted with ten high-level managers in sustainability and related areas from seven leading companies located in Brazil. We present four primary results: (a) a proposal of an original framework to understand the relationship between contingency theory, changes in organisational structure to embrace low-carbon management, adoption of low-carbon operations practices, and benefits from this process; (b) the discovery that an adequate low-carbon management structure is vital to improve the organisations’ perceptions of the benefits from its adoption; (c) low-carbon management initiatives tend to emerge from an organisation’s existing environmental management systems ; and (d) controlling and monitoring climate contingencies at the supply chain level should be permanent and systematic. Based on the knowledge of the authors, to date, this work is the first piece of research that deals with the complexity of putting together contingency theory, climate-change contingencies at the supply chain level, organisational structure for low-carbon management, and low-carbon operations management practices and benefits. This research also highlights evidence from an emerging economy and registers future research propositions.

The importance of quality management for the effectiveness of environmental management: evidence from companies located in Brazil

Recent discussions in the specialised literature support that quality management influences the level and maturity of environmental management practices; however, in searches performed in the ISI Web of Science and Scopus databases, it was verified that there is a need for research to portray this relationship quantitatively, especially when it comes to companies located in Brazil. Thus, this research aims to explore this gap: does quality management positively influence the adoption of environmental practices in companies located in Brazil? Therefore, a conceptual grounding on the aforementioned issues was carried out and, based on this, the questionnaire used for the empirical phase of the research was constructed, being a self-administered e-survey with 104 companies of all sizes and sectors located in Brazil. The results demonstrated that, in fact, quality management positively influences environmental management practices. In addition, it was verified that the size of the companies and ISO 14001 certification are significant to control environmental management practices. To date, it is believed that this is the first study that shows a survey to test the relationship between quality management and environmental management practices in companies in Brazil.

What is a social enterprise? Revising old concepts and interviewing social entrepreneurs

ABSTRACT The concept of social enterprise (SE) has been developed by an emerging and collective effort of scholars over the world. However, a comprehensive meaning of ‘SE,’ which embeds traditional knowledge of organizational management has potential to be explored further. Due to the relevance of ‘SE’ in the contemporary society, new conceptual and practical insights are desirable. This study proposes to shed light on building up a definition for ‘SE’ that is inspired by existing definitions of organization and ‘SE’ and rely on real-world evidence. Literature review and comprehensive interviews with social entrepreneurs were conducted. Data analysis defines ‘SEs’ as an autonomous organization managed in a participative way and created by and for the community, with a relatively identifiable boundary, that strives to generate social wealth, and for this, produces goods and/or services that guarantee its financial viability, consequently, its continuity. Its integration into its environment generates consequences guided by social, economic, and environmental goals.

Práticas de gestão da cadeia de suprimentos e seus eventuais relacionamentos com as prioridades competitivas da produção: Evidências empíricas do setor eletroeletrônico à luz de modelagem de equações estruturais [Supply chain management practices and their possible relationships with manufacturing competitive priorities: Empirical evidence from electro-electronic industry in light of structural equation modeling ST]

This article aims to identify the supply chain management practices adopted in the Brazilian electronics sector and verify whether manufacturing competitive priorities of companies in this sector relate to the adoption of such practices. An empirical quantitative research was developed based on an e-mail survey with managers of companies in the electronics sector associated with the Brazilian Association of Electrical and Electronics Industry. Descriptive and multivariate statistical techniques of second generation (Structural Equation Modeling) were used to analyze the data. Main results showed that: (a) the supply chain management practices most deployed are focused on the integration and support of product development activities with customers; and (b) no significant relationships between competitive priorities and supply chain management practices were found.