Enterprise risk management adoption: An empirical investigation of its effects on firm performance

Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) is gaining relevance among financial and non-financial companies but its benefits still are uncertain. This paper aims at investigating the relationship between ERM adoption and firm performance based on a sample of 1130 non-financial companies belonging to the STOXX® index. A content analysis of individual accounts is performed to distinguish adopters, and a regression analysis explores the effect of ERM adoption on firm performance, proxied by Tobin’s Q. The findings suggest that there is a statistical significant positive effect of ERM adoption on firm performance, meaning that firms are benefiting from the implementation of this process.

The effectiveness of supply chain management on firm's performance: A comparative case study

The purpose of the paper is to investigate the effectiveness of supply chain management (SCM) practices to increase a company’s performance based on a cross-border and cross-sector analysis. The paper follows a comparative case study approach which was achieved by interviewing supply chain management experts of three companies operating in different industries and positions in a supply chain. Practices that were mutually applied by the firms and their contribution to achieve quality, economic, cost, and time advantages were analyzed. The paper revealed practices, which contribute the most to increase specific performance areas.

Future gender relations in global restructuring processes case study evidence from knowledge-intensive, manufacturing and service occupations

Global restructuring processes have not only strong implications for European working and living realities, but also have specific outcomes with regard to gender relations. The following contribution analyses in which way global restructuring shapes current gender relations in order to identify important trends and developments for future gender (in)equalities at the workplace. On the basis of a large qualitative study on global restructuring and impacts on different occupational groups it argues that occupational belonging in line with skill and qualification levels are crucial factors to assess the further development of gender relations at work. Whereas global restructuring in knowledge-based occupations may provide new opportunities for female employees, current restructuring is going to deteriorate female labour participation in service occupations. In contrast, manufacturing occupations can be characterised by persistent gender relations, which do not change in spite of major restructuring processes at the work place. Taking the institutional perspective into account, it seems to be crucial to integrate the occupational perspective in order to apply adequate policy regulations to prevent the reinforcement of gender related working patterns in the near future.

Towards a GIS-T database design and implementation for public transit planning: the case study of Dar-Es-salaam metropolitan city, Tanzania.

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Geospatial Technologies

BIM-lean synergies in the management on MEP works in public facilities of intensive use – a case study

21st Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction – IGLC 21 – Fortaleza, Brazil

The importance of internship in hotel management: The case study of Esplanade Hotel in Zagreb

A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Masters Degree in Management from the NOVA – School of Business and Economics

Interactive spatial decision support for sustainable agroforestry management: a case study in East Kalimantan, Indonesia

Forest managers, stakeholders and investors want to be able to evaluate economic, environmental and social benefits in order to improve the outcomes of their decisions and enhance sustainable forest management. This research developed a spatial decision support system that provides: (1) an approach to identify the most beneficial locations for agroforestry projects based on the biophysical properties and evaluate its economic, social and environmental impact; (2) a tool to inform prospective investors and stakeholders of the potential and opportunities for integrated agroforestry management; (3) a simulation environment that enables evaluation via a dashboard with the opportunity to perform interactive sensitivity analysis for key parameters of the project; (4) a 3D interactive geographic visualization of the economic, environmental and social outcomes, which facilitate understanding and eases planning. Although the tool and methodology presented are generic, a case study was performed in East Kalimantan, Indonesia. For the whole study area, it was simulated the most suitable location for three different plantation schemes: monoculture of timber, a specific recipe (cassava, banana and sugar palm) and different recipes per geographic unit. The results indicate that a mixed cropping plantation scheme, with different recipes applied to the most suitable location returns higher economic, environmental and social benefits.

The effect of ownership concentration on management behavior in Belgian banks: A case study

Double Degree. A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Master’s Degree in Finance from NOVA – School of Business and Economics and a Masters Degree in Management from Louvain School of Management

Being ahead of its time the consumer resistance phenomenon: A comparative case study research

Double Degree.

Exporting a model of integrated disease management: A cross-case study analysis and application to Associação Protectora dos Diabéticos de Portugal

Although literature is lacking in the topic of internationalization of services, we manage to apply both the Uppsala model and the Eclectic Theory to the healthcare service. A cross-case study analysis with three international hospitals is done in order to define an internationalization pattern and conditions for a successful process. This is then applied to Associação Protectora dos Diabéticos de Portugal with the purpose of defining an internationalization strategy to the Association.

Towards an integrated technology management across the rail supply chain extended to society: building the case study on high-speed trains

The present paper was prepared for the course “Project III”, with the supervision of Prof. António Moniz, reporting on the author speaking notes at the Winter School on Technology Assessment, 6-7 December 2010, as part of the Doctoral Programme on Technology Assessment at FCT-UNL.

Flood resilient housing recovery models: a theoretical case study in Maldives

Natural disasters are events that cause general and widespread destruction of the built environment and are becoming increasingly recurrent. They are a product of vulnerability and community exposure to natural hazards, generating a multitude of social, economic and cultural issues of which the loss of housing and the subsequent need for shelter is one of its major consequences. Nowadays, numerous factors contribute to increased vulnerability and exposure to natural disasters such as climate change with its impacts felt across the globe and which is currently seen as a worldwide threat to the built environment. The abandonment of disaster-affected areas can also push populations to regions where natural hazards are felt more severely. Although several actors in the post-disaster scenario provide for shelter needs and recovery programs, housing is often inadequate and unable to resist the effects of future natural hazards. Resilient housing is commonly not addressed due to the urgency in sheltering affected populations. However, by neglecting risks of exposure in construction, houses become vulnerable and are likely to be damaged or destroyed in future natural hazard events. That being said it becomes fundamental to include resilience criteria, when it comes to housing, which in turn will allow new houses to better withstand the passage of time and natural disasters, in the safest way possible. This master thesis is intended to provide guiding principles to take towards housing recovery after natural disasters, particularly in the form of flood resilient construction, considering floods are responsible for the largest number of natural disasters. To this purpose, the main structures that house affected populations were identified and analyzed in depth. After assessing the risks and damages that flood events can cause in housing, a methodology was proposed for flood resilient housing models, in which there were identified key criteria that housing should meet. The same methodology is based in the US Federal Emergency Management Agency requirements and recommendations in accordance to specific flood zones. Finally, a case study in Maldives – one of the most vulnerable countries to sea level rise resulting from climate change – has been analyzed in light of housing recovery in a post-disaster induced scenario. This analysis was carried out by using the proposed methodology with the intent of assessing the resilience of the newly built housing to floods in the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami.

Environmental quality of life index incorporationg MCA & GIS : case study Lisbon Metropolitan Area, Portugal

The study of Quality of Life (Qol) has been conducted on various scales throughout the years with focus on assessing overall quality of living amongst citizens. The main focus in these studies have been on economic factors, with the purpose of creating a Quality of Life Index (QLI).When it comes down to narrowing the focus to the environment and factors like Urban Green Spaces (UGS) and air quality the topic gets more focused on pointing out how each alternative meets this certain criteria. With the benefits of UGS and a healthy environment in focus a new Environmental Quality of Life Index (EQLI) will be proposed by incorporating Multi Criteria Analysis (MCA) and Geographical Information Systems (GIS). Working with MCA on complex environmental problems and incorporating it with GIS is a challenging but rewarding task, and has proven to be an efficient approach among environmental scientists. Background information on three MCA methods will be shown: Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), Regime Analysis and PROMETHEE. A survey based on a previous study conducted on the status of UGS within European cities was sent to 18 municipalities in the study area. The survey consists of evaluating the current status of UGS as well as planning and management of UGS with in municipalities for the purpose of getting criteria material for the selected MCA method. The current situation of UGS is assessed with use of GIS software and change detection is done on a 10 year period using NDVI index for comparison purposes to one of the criteria in the MCA. To add to the criteria, interpolation of nitrogen dioxide levels was performed with ordinary kriging and the results transformed into indicator values. The final outcome is an EQLI map with indicators of environmentally attractive municipalities with ranking based on predefinedMCA criteria using PROMETHEE I pairwise comparison and PROMETHEE II complete ranking of alternatives. The proposed methodology is applied to Lisbon’s Metropolitan Area, Portugal.

Wetland Habitat Studies using various Classification Techniques on Multi-Spectral Landsat Imagery: Case study: Tram chim National Park, Dong Thap Vietnam

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Geospatial Technologies

Rainwater harvesting case study: FCT/UNL campus

Dissertação apresentada para a obtenção do grau de Mestre em Engenharia do Ambiente, Perfil Engenharia Sanitária