Resumo em Inglês:

The goal of this paper is to present an analytical perspective of strategy as social practice in organizations by the articulation of proposals by Foucault, Certeau and Moscovici on social dynamics. To accomplish its intents it discusses the convergences and divergences between social dynamics in Foucault (1972, 1999, 2003a, 2003b), knowledge, power and subjectivities from Moscovici (1961), and Social Representation Theory (SRT) as articulated with the concept of everyday strategies and tactics by Certeau (1990). The paper presents the micro and macro delineations in investigations involving strategy-making practices in organizations over time. The studies of strategy as social practices are focused only on the micro-social level of CEO practices in organizations and don't consider the involvement of these practices at the macro-social level. Thus, this paper aims at acknowledging the roles played by experimentation and by the researcher's theoretical position, but also at offering the actors an opportunity to present the micro and macro aspects that involve their strategy practices in a given organization. This way, a dynamic reference is obtained that allows for the comparison of empirical data in the analysis of strategy as a social practice.

Resumo em Inglês:

Hospitals, as social organizations, are seen as complex, surprising, ambiguous and paradoxical. The theoretical foundation finds its roots in organizational complexity, strategic management characterized by strategy implementation, and sensemaking especially in the context of complex adaptive systems. Managers frequently neglect elements of complexity when they develop models and implement management practices. The purpose of this study is to analyze the implementation of strategies in complex organizations. The focus of the study is two Brazilian nonprofit hospitals. This is a comparative, qualitative case study. Data were gathered from three main sources: interviews, non-participant observation, and documents. Two important aspects of the strategic approach are discussed: first, the implementation of strategies, and second, the influence of ambiguity, unpredictability and uncertainty in the way strategies are implemented. The analysis indicated that the implementation of strategies in the hospitals has to do with the practices and processes that are adopted (how) and the practitioners (strategists) involved (who). The findings reinforce the importance played by the strategizing process in the implementation of strategies. The findings also highlight that strategic practices are adopted in parallel with the formal planning and are characterized by informality.

Resumo em Inglês:

This paper seeks to deepen the understanding of management practices adopted by organizations characterized by significant levels of participation and influence from their employees. Based on the assumption that the successful utilization of such practices is circumstantial, a conceptual framework is proposed identifying the essential elements that should be dynamically aligned to allow organizational success in the long term. Different types of work & participation practices - that arise from the adoption of the dimensions locus of knowledge and locus of power - support the reasoning on how to align these elements and, consequently, how to lead the organizational renewal and survival in the long run.

Resumo em Inglês:

Entrepreneurial Orientation (EO) has received substantial conceptual and empirical attention, representing one of the few areas in entrepreneurship research in which a cumulative body of knowledge is developing. Nonetheless, an important message from past research is that simply examining the direct effect of EO on firm performance provides an incomplete picture, especially in the case of new ventures. This study examined the influence of Dominant Logic (DL) on the relationship between EO and firm performance. Results based on a sample of 149 new manufacturing ventures indicated that DL mediates the EO-performance relationship, and risk taking, aggressiveness and innovativeness had the highest correlations with the internal and external conceptualization of DL. The empirical evidence suggests that new ventures must foster DL implementing appropriate strategic processes in order to maximize the effect of EO on performance.

Resumo em Inglês:

This paper examines the effect environmental management certification (ISO 14001) has on publicly traded Brazilian companies profitability. Signaling theory predicts that the certification serves to signal to society good environmental behavior; allowing people to screen the different types of firms, improving the financial-economic performance of those firms that engage in this behavior. We performed difference-in-difference fixed effect design comparing the financial performance of companies with and without certification of their environmental management systems, using data on 552 companies over the period from 1996 to 2008. The results indicate that firms with an environmental management system certified according to the NBR ISO 14001:2004 standard tended to be more profitable, on average, than firms without certification.

Resumo em Inglês:

Firm performance is a relevant construct in strategic management research and frequently used as a dependent variable. Despite this relevance, there is hardly a consensus about its definition, dimensionality and measurement, what limits advances in research and understanding of the concept. This article proposes and tests a measurement model for firm performance, based on subjective indicators. The model is grounded in stakeholder theory and a review of empirical articles. Confirmatory Factor Analyses, using data from 116 Brazilian senior managers, were used to test its fit and psychometric properties. The final model had six first-order dimensions: profitability, growth, customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction, social performance, and environmental performance. A second-order financial performance construct, influencing growth and profitability, correlated with the first-order intercorrelated, non-financial dimensions. Results suggest dimensions cannot be used interchangeably, since they represent different aspects of firm performance, and corroborate the idea that stakeholders have different demands that need to be managed independently. Researchers and practitioners may use the model to fully treat performance in empirical studies and to understand the impact of strategies on multiple performance facets.