Responsabilidade social: visões e perspectivas de empresários do segmento industrial do Rio Grande do Norte

The theme Corporate Social Responsibility is relatively recent both in the academic field and in the business practice. Because of the lack of socialization of experiences and precision of concepts, there are gaps regarding the understanding of the subject and, also, how to conduct operations. This study just seeks to investigate such matter, focusing applications of social responsibility in business. It takes, as empirical field, winners of the PSQT - SESI Prize of Quality at Work in Rio Grande do Norte (2002-2007) in order to systematize the various approaches on the issue, aiming to reveal subjective visions and perspectives of the theme. It is characterized as a qualitative study, carried out by structured interview. The universe was composed by 15 companies. It was used analysis of content categorical as an axis for the interpretation of the information. Three approaches guided the analysis: Business Ethics, (normative); Business & Society (contractual); Social Issues Management (strategic). The findings are related in three ways: 1) reasons for the CSR practice; 2) the results obtained; 3) the means of CSR. It was found that the award participation occurs, mostly, linked to SESI invitations, so, as an articulated movement of industrial corporations in Brazil it occurs, also, because of the organizational commitment with the society and the possibility of internal and social growths and because of the importance attributed to the report as an instrument of consultancy. There are no indicators to check impacts of organizational interventions, in spite of the existence of planning for the actions. Social responsibility appears as a tool to reinforce the organizational image and to increase satisfaction of the employees. There is a tendency of large and medium firms to a contractual commitment while the small and the micros firms are on strategic or normative level. The analysis of the perspectives of social responsibility future revealed trends towards for strategic approach

Gestão participativa em educação: compasso e descompasso de uma experiência de democracia no espaço escolar

This work aims at investigating the strategies of management used by State School Joaquim Jose de Medeiros, located in the city of Cruzeta - RN, as award practice of "School of Reference in Management", with a state title in 1999 at the beginning of the decade from 2000, being "Outstanding Brazil" from best management strategies nationally. In 2005, it is ranked among the best experiences of the state. It has been become complex by experiencing in that institution, but at the same time an enjoyable practice, mainly by using a social research, in a qualitative and quantitative approach, and a analysis of the institutional performance of two management practices: from 1995 to 2002 and from 2003 to 2007 . To understand the object, a investigative questionnaire was used with representatives of the school community and carried out an analysis of assessment of institutional and documents of institutional organization of the periods above in order to identify management strategies and examine the influences of the share capital, public policies , the institutional evaluation, in the process of democratic construction that has allowed achievements, highlighting Cruzeta, in the Seridó in the state of Rio Grande do Norte, semi-arid northeast, in the national and international juncture of well-successful experiences in management in institutional categories and leadership. This study becomes relevant to allow understand that the cultural practices of seridoenses that symbolize a capital generated by principles of trust, reciprocity, civic culture, as a driving force in overcoming the problems community and the conquest of democratic principles, worked for the school become a national reference in educational administration. Another aspect that made it natural that school was the collective creation of educational project with the participation and civic culture of self-evaluation as a way to understand the institutional practice and establish guidelines to improve the teaching and practice management in its many dimensions educational, social, administrative - financial and legal

A noção de acontecimento na experiência do DOCTV RN IV Sangue do Barro

This dissertation presents a reflection upon the notion of event, inspired by the contributions of Edgar Morin to the thinking of the present. The research analysis this notion particularly from the experience of the documentary titled Sangue do Barro, which was the winner of the 4th edition of DOCTV, in the federal state of Rio Grande do Norte in 2008. The study focuses on how facts from daily life can be approached by the documentary making process, and how in this process the questioning of facts leads to the questioning of social realities. In this perspective, through the illustrative case of Sangue do Barro, the research develops the hypothesis of how in the documentary process, which aims at revealing a particular history, is the revealing of the particular able to reflect the universal. The dissertation thus assumes this situation as precisely the configuration of the sociology of present, proposed by Edgar Morin. Furthermore, along with the theoretical premises of the sociology of the present, the research performs a brief historical analysis of documentary practices, Brazilian audiovisual public policies, and it also discusses the technical contributions of several contemporary film makers and contemporary thinkers, such as Jean Rouch, Bill Nichols, Ismail Xavier, Consuelo Lins, Gilles Lipovetsky, Jean Serroy, Michel Foucault, Alfredo Pena-Vega, Nicole Lapierre, etc

Emprego de redes neurais artificiais supervisionadas e não supervisionadas no estudo de parâmetros reológicos de excipientes farmacêuticos sólidos

In this paper artificial neural network (ANN) based on supervised and unsupervised algorithms were investigated for use in the study of rheological parameters of solid pharmaceutical excipients, in order to develop computational tools for manufacturing solid dosage forms. Among four supervised neural networks investigated, the best learning performance was achieved by a feedfoward multilayer perceptron whose architectures was composed by eight neurons in the input layer, sixteen neurons in the hidden layer and one neuron in the output layer. Learning and predictive performance relative to repose angle was poor while to Carr index and Hausner ratio (CI and HR, respectively) showed very good fitting capacity and learning, therefore HR and CI were considered suitable descriptors for the next stage of development of supervised ANNs. Clustering capacity was evaluated for five unsupervised strategies. Network based on purely unsupervised competitive strategies, classic "Winner-Take-All", "Frequency-Sensitive Competitive Learning" and "Rival-Penalize Competitive Learning" (WTA, FSCL and RPCL, respectively) were able to perform clustering from database, however this classification was very poor, showing severe classification errors by grouping data with conflicting properties into the same cluster or even the same neuron. On the other hand it could not be established what was the criteria adopted by the neural network for those clustering. Self-Organizing Maps (SOM) and Neural Gas (NG) networks showed better clustering capacity. Both have recognized the two major groupings of data corresponding to lactose (LAC) and cellulose (CEL). However, SOM showed some errors in classify data from minority excipients, magnesium stearate (EMG) , talc (TLC) and attapulgite (ATP). NG network in turn performed a very consistent classification of data and solve the misclassification of SOM, being the most appropriate network for classifying data of the study. The use of NG network in pharmaceutical technology was still unpublished. NG therefore has great potential for use in the development of software for use in automated classification systems of pharmaceutical powders and as a new tool for mining and clustering data in drug development

A gestão do conhecimento e a inovação tecnológica como fatores de sobrevivência e de competitividade na sociedade do conhecimento: uma análise exploratória das MPEs do Rio Grande do Norte

The study examines the process of Knowledge Management and Technological Innovation in Small and Micro Enterprises (SME) in Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil, and proposes actions that can contribute to regional development and competitiveness of SME. Presents as technological innovation can help to make the SME entrepreneurial activities with innovative and competitive. Defines the phases and activities of the construction of knowledge in small organizations. Examines the process of Innovation, Research and Development (R & D) in SME. Identifies the use of knowledge management and technological innovation in management practices and social interaction to influence the competitiveness of SME. Covers the communities of practice as a diffuser of knowledge and learning. To obtain the data were used questionnaires with closed questions with multiple choice, direct observations and interviews with companies. The questionnaires and interviews covered the topics of Innovation, Knowledge Management and Competitive Intelligence on SME. The sample consisted of a total of 13 Small and Micro Enterprises Award winning MPE Brazil Competitiveness, sponsored by SEBRAE in the State of Rio Grande do Norte. The assessment questionnaires dealing with the Knowledge Management (KM Diagnostics - Model Bukowitz and Williams, 2002) and the process of Technological Innovation (Adaptation of ANPEI - National Association for Research, Development and Engineering of Innovative Companies). With the analysis, we concluded that the SME perceive knowledge management, but not formalized management practices so as to facilitate the dissemination of information. Soon, these companies need additional supports to direct them to the innovative activities that generate added value and competitiveness in the market

Preparando pessoas para a qualidade :um estudo na Empresa de Correio do Brasil

This essay aims to analyze different aspects regarding employees satisfaction about their work environment in order to preparethem to deal with quality programs. The study was developed through field and bibliographic research, which was turn in to a comparative analysis between the results obtained in a pilot research and the results from a final research applied to Brazilian Mail enterprise that got the bronze award of the Federal Government Quality Award. The main issue is to define where to act so that employees will be ready to deal with a quality program, identifying why they consider important, their influence in the insertion of the program and the relationship between satisfaction in the work environment and the success of such insertion

Os princípios da organização focada na estratégia: um estudo em empresas vencedoras do prêmio nacional de qualidade

The Balanced Scorecard (BSC) has been used as a communication tool and strategy monitoring, helping organizations alignment, inserting a new vision with integrated use of performance indicators nonfinancial together with some financial measures. Their proper use leads to a new management style, focused on management strategies, using for this, basically three dimensions: strategy, which should be translated as the primary responsibility for the organizational agenda, the focus that should be concentrated, and the organization with the mobilization of employees. This paper deals with theoretical considerations about strategies, strategic planning, BSC and principles of the organization focused on strategy (OFE). Describes a study of four companies that won the National Quality Award - PNQ, among which, three have adopted the BSC and adopts a particular model of strategic management. The research aimed to make an analysis of the companies regarding adherence to the five principles of OFE, proposed by the BSC, seeking to answer whether the use of BSC is a prerequisite for accession to the Principles of OFE. The results showed that the BSC is a strategic management model that promotes focus and organizational alignment and is a major facilitator in the process, however, cannot be considered a prerequisite for accession to the principles of the OFE, because the four companies studied, including the one that adopt its own model of strategic management, have great levels of adherence to such principles. Making the organization focused on strategy can be considered a natural movement essential for the strategic management, which is not necessarily conditioned by the use of BSC

Otimização de modelos de predição da perda de propagação aplicáveis em 3,5GHZ utilizando algoritmos genéticos

The telecommunications industry has experienced recent changes, due to increasing quest for access to digital services for data, video and multimedia, especially using the mobile phone networks. Recently in Brazil, mobile operators are upgrading their networks to third generations systems (3G) providing to users broadband services such as video conferencing, Internet, digital TV and more. These new networks that provides mobility and high data rates has allowed the development of new market concepts. Currently the market is focused on the expansion of WiMAX technology, which is gaining increasingly the market for mobile voice and data. In Brazil, the commercial interest for this technology appears to the first award of licenses in the 3.5 GHz band. In February 2003 ANATEL held the 003/2002/SPV-ANATEL bidding, where it offered blocks of frequencies in the range of 3.5 GHz. The enterprises who purchased blocks of frequency were: Embratel, Brazil Telecom (Vant), Grupo Sinos, Neovia and WKVE, each one with operations spread in some regions of Brazil. For this and other wireless communications systems are implemented effectively, many efforts have been invested in attempts to developing simulation methods for coverage prediction that is close to reality as much as possible so that they may become believers and indispensable tools to design wireless communications systems. In this work wasm developed a genetic algorithm (GA's) that is able to optimize the models for predicting propagation loss at applicable frequency range of 3.5 GHz, thus enabling an estimate of the signal closer to reality to avoid significant errors in planning and implementation a system of wireless communication

Comércio internacional e meio ambiente: estímulo à produção sustentável ou mero protecionismo comercial a posição do Brasil em dois casos de litígio

The World Trade Organization (WTO) was established in 1994 as a result of the Uruguay Round, and has as its principal aim advocate for the maintenance of free trade between nations. The preamble of its Constitutive Agreement specifically cites as an institution the goal of achieving sustainable development and the pursuit of protecting and preserving the environment, bringing into the sphere of world trade the idea that concern for the environmental cause is not restricted only the group of environmentalists, but rather has entered the economic landscape in a way not only ideological, but also pragmatic. The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1947, part of the GATT 1994, contains a device that allows the adoption of trade restrictive measures, provided that such measures aimed at protecting the environment - Article XX. The Settlement Body (DSB) is part of the WTO and acts in dissolving disputes between the countries motivated by trade. It examines two cases where countries have imposed restrictive trade measures with environmental justification. The first case was closed in 1996, with award of damages given to Brazil, on the breakdown of U.S. environmental legislation imposed on imported gasoline from Brazil - and the second, begun in 2005 and closed in 2007, coming out victorious again Brazil is on the import ban on retreaded tires to Brazil. The objective is to answer the question: how the environment is treated in the midst of trade discussions - which is aimed at its protection or its use with economic objectives in disguise? For the preparation of this work, extensive documentary research was undertaken with the virtual site of the WTO to review the entire production of legal cases and subsequent analysis of the key issue for the work, and literature of authors who have studied the tense relationship between trade international environment. The first case, it could be seen that the political movement performed by the U.S. with the aim of achieving acceptable standards of air quality was an institutional effort to ensure the quality of air, and thus would be inappropriate to say that the regulation of gasoline was merely a disguised trade barrier.However, a careful analysis of the implementation and operation of gasoline regulation may reveal intentions disguised trade and U.S. environmental argument did not hold. The weight of this environment was relegated, since there were clearly outside interests to the environmental cause. The second case, it was realized that, despite clear attempts by the EC to promote ecological dumping, send when brought to Brazil, supposedly a country with weaker environmental structure on surveillance, a residue that, pursuant to internal policies, as could not be sent to their own landfills, the Brazilian discourse remained focused on the environmental cause, and this sort there was the existence of disguised trade barriers, but of importance, at least a priori, the discussion of foreign forces on the environment environment because there is no way to legally justify the reversal of the total understanding of the first judging body, the sight of all the arguments presented by Brazil and the nonsubmission of new facts upon appeal. Still, quite heartening to reflect on the role of trade liberalization on the environment in general, because, while they do not reach a definitive conclusion will reveal positions in both directions, both for and against, the that only adds to the discussions and makes this a very fertile topic for future research