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Factors influencing sustainable poverty reduction: a systematic review of the literature with a microfinance perspective
No full textThis research examined factors that help microfinance achieve sustained poverty reduction
based on a systematic literature review (SLR). A search was conducted on the SCOPUS database
up to December 2023. After analyzing hundreds of documents, a subset of 30 articles was subject
to in-depth analysis, exploring factors and corresponding measurement indicators for sustainable
poverty reduction in microfinance contexts. This article emphasizes that sustained poverty reduction is a gradual process requiring ongoing efforts from both Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) and governments.
Two key success factors are empowering borrowers and ensuring the microfinance programs
themselves are profitable. When implemented in an integrated and coordinated manner, these factors can empower individuals to escape poverty by fostering self-employment and income generation, ultimately reducing dependence on external support. Additionally, the study highlights the role of personality traits in influencing long-term entrepreneurial success. The findings provide valuable tools for MFIs and policymakers. MFIs gain a practical framework to guide their interventions towards sustained poverty reduction. Policymakers can leverage the identified factors and indicators when designing and implementing microfinance policies with a long-term focus on poverty alleviation.
This study breaks new ground by presenting an operational framework that categorizes and
integrates two critical factor groups: empowerment and beneficiary profitability. Furthermore, it
links these factors to corresponding measurement indicators within a unified framework, enabling a
more holistic assessment of poverty reduction efforts.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Strategic challenges of the Portuguese molds industry
No full textIn a competitive environment shaped by continuous change, the understanding of the different forces that support or hinder the development of an industry, enables more informed, and assertive decision making.
As such, following a sectoral system of innovation perspective that takes into account the temporal
evolution of its most important events, the main objective of this chapter is to define a set of strategic lines for the sustainable development of the Portuguese molds industry. The study supports set of strategic priorities so that the Portuguese molds industry can embrace both an international favorable position and an entrepreneurial outward looking governance perspective. This chapter proposes that the future outlook will support the diversification to and the penetration of new sectoral markets, associated with a strong international product engineering and development cluster capable of supplying integrated solutions to several international markets.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
The internationalization process of a born global: a case study of a beverage firm
No full textAlthough companies seek to export in order to meet the growing importance of international markets, vis-à-vis domestic markets, this chapter presents a case study of a company founded by two former high school teachers who started a beverage company in 2015 and quickly reached an early internationalization. The company produces alcoholic beverages and has won international awards regarding the quality of its product, which has given it an important status and opened the door
to a process of rapid internationalization. This will be used to explore the theory of entrepreneurship and how two potential entrepreneurs, with employment difficulties in teaching, began with a project that gave birth to a born global firm.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
The trust-commitment challenge in service quality-loyalty relationships
No full textPurpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop and empirically test a model to examine service
quality, satisfaction, trust and commitment as loyalty antecedents in a private healthcare service.
Design/methodology/approach – The approach was tested using structural equation modelling,
involving 175 patients from a private Portuguese healthcare unit, using a revised Service Quality
Assessment Scale (SQAS) scale for service quality evaluation.
Findings – The scale used to evaluate service quality is valid and meaningful. Service quality proved
to be a multidimensional construct and relevant to build satisfaction. The path satisfaction→trust→loyalty was validated, whereas the path satisfaction→commitment→loyalty
was not statistically supported.
Research limitations/implications – The revised SQAS scale showed good internal consistency in
healthcare context. Further trust-commitment antecedents must be examined in a private healthcare landscape to generalise the findings.
Practical implications – Healthcare quality managers must explore the service quality dimensions
to generate satisfaction among their patients. Developing trust generates positive patient attitudes and loyalty.
Originality/value – This study explores using the SQAS scale in a private healthcare context.
The authors provide further evidence that service quality is an antecedent and different from
satisfaction. All the measures used proved to be valid and reliable. Trust and commitment play
different roles in their relationship with loyalty.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
How music–video metaphors build destination brand resonance: dyadic affect, meaning access, and cultural cues
No full textShort-form destination videos often rely on music to carry cultural meaning. This paper links Cognitive Metaphor
Theory with the circumplex dyad of pleasure and arousal to explain how music–image pairings build destination
brand resonance (DBR). Three experiments show that pleasure is the stable route to DBR, arousal helps only
under favorable tone, and their effects are additive. A Meaning-Access Prime (MAP) raises both emotions under
identical clips and, in Bayesian structural models, also exerts a direct path to DBR, strongest when pleasant tone
is low. DBR then predicts destination brand identification and destination consumption intention. We also show a
useful state view: Resonant versus Emergent DBR. The framework provides design rules for co-tuning tone,
activation, and cultural cues in creator-made clips that improve resonance, identification, and intention.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
D. Alexandre Nascimento: an Angolan catholic priest in the transition from Portuguese colonialism to Angola’s independence
No full textO percurso de D. Alexandre Nascimento (1925-), bispo de Malanje (1975), arcebispo Metropolitano de
Lubango (1977), cardeal (1983), arcebispo de Luanda (1986-2001), é analisado na dupla perspetiva de compreender a dinâmica das relações entre Estado e Igreja Católica no período colonial, transição para a independência e primeiros anos da independência, e a agência da personalidade em causa na transformação destas relações. Testemunha do seu tempo, D. Alexandre Nascimento foi também um agente religioso e social, geralmente discreto, cuja ação, de contornos ainda pouco estudados, é aqui analisada. A sua simpatia pelo nacionalismo angolano, formada no final da década de 1950, nasce da consciência das injustiças sociais do colonialismo português e leva-o a estabelecer
contactos com os nacionalistas angolanos e com os oposicionistas católicos portugueses ao Estado Novo, durante o período de exílio na metrópole, entre 1961 e 1971. A sua imagem de crítico do colonialismo português dá-lhe um reconhecimento junto dos nacionalistas angolanos que lhe permite dispor, durante o período de transição para a independência, de uma margem de manobra para estabelecer mediações entre a Igreja Católica e o poder político, entre a hierarquia católica e os padres mais identificados com a vanguarda revolucionária, que outros elementos do episcopado não possuem. Nos primeiros anos da independência afirma-se como defensor da autonomia institucional da Igreja Católica e dos direitos humanos em Angola.D. Alexandre Nascimento (1925-), Bishop of Malanje (1975), Metropolitan Archbishop of Lubango (1977), Cardinal (1983), Archbishop of Luanda (1986-2001), is analyzed in the double perspective of understanding the dynamics of the relations between the State and the Catholic Church in the colonial period, the transition to independence and the first years of independence, as well as the agency of a personality involved in the transformation
of these relations. Witness of his time, D. Alexandre Nascimento was also a religious and social agent, generally discreet, whose action, of contours still little studied, is addressed in this article. His sympathy for Angolan nationalism formed in the late 1950s, arises from the awareness of the social injustices of Portuguese colonialism and leads him to establish contacts with Angolan nationalists, and with Portuguese Catholic opponents to the Estado Novo, during the period of exile in the metropolis, between 1961 and 1970. His image as a critic of Portuguese colonialism gives him recognition among Angolan nationalists that allows him, during the period of transition to independence, to have a margin of maneuver to establish mediations between the Catholic Church and the political power, between the Catholic hierarchy and the priests most identified with the revolutionary vanguard, which other elements of the episcopate do not have. In the early years of independence, he asserted himself as a defender of the institutional autonomy of the Catholic Church and human rights in Angola.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Open innovation: a successful case study of a Portuguese company seeking complementary resources
No full textOpen innovation practices are recurrent in the business environment due to resource and technology limitations in most companies. The search for complementary resources, especially among SMEs, begins to be a current practice due to the possibility of resorting to partnerships and collaborative processes. Thus, through a case study analysis of a Portuguese SME based in Aveiro, Portugal, it was possible to analyze the innovation process and the adoption of open innovation practices in this SME.
Through a qualitative study, it was possible to understand the importance of SMEs in the Portuguese business fabric, as they increasingly seek to apply innovative processes in their processes. However, the case analyzed reveals that open innovation may involve an inter-organizational partnership where the company analyzed uses an intermediate model of open innovation, since it does not sell surplus technology, internalizing only external resources. This case study serves as a teaching case as well as a pedagogic tool.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Mapping internal knowledge transfers in multinational corporations
No full textManaging multiple knowledge transfers between headquarters and subsidiaries, among subsidiaries, and also within each of these units is crucial for multinational corporations’ (MNCs) survival. Therefore, this article aims to uncover the main factors influencing internal knowledge transfers in MNCs—including intra-unit knowledge transfers and transfers between units, namely, conventional, horizontal, and reverse knowledge transfers. To achieve this goal, a systematic literature review (SLR) was conducted to synthesize the content of 85 articles. From a set of 1439 papers, only 85 related to knowledge transfer and knowledge sharing were considered. Based on an inductive thematic approach, eight different research categories and 97 topics were identified. Four different internal knowledge transfers (intra knowledge transfer (IKT), horizontal knowledge transfer (HKT), conventional knowledge transfer (CKT), and reverse knowledge transfer (RKT)) are compared across eight thematic categories and 97 topics. According to the results obtained, the depth of the topics analyzed varies, as does the variety of categories, with RKT being more deeply analyzed than IKT.
There is a clear dominance of vertical knowledge transfer (CKT + RHT) over HKT. The exercise of power (e.g., size, knowledge base) still dominates CKT and RKT in most of the studies analyzed, which are traditionally affected by the characteristics of MNCs, HQs and subsidiaries. The debate on HKT is affected by the classical perspectives of power-based relations (e.g., expatriates, size, knowledge base) among subsidiaries. Although important, intra-unit knowledge transfer is greatly influenced by characteristics.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
The impact of microfinance on individuals’ empowerment: a systematic literature review
No full textThis study aims to conduct a systematic literature review (SLR) to identify the main factors of individuals’ empowerment from the perspective of microfinance. Methodology/approach: To achieve the proposed objective, an SLR was conducted using the SCOPUS database from 1950 to 2021. From a set of 690 papers, only 43 related to empowerment factors were considered and analyzed to segment the factors and their respective sub-factors according to their nature. Findings: This SLR documents that microfinance is a tool for the economic, psychological, political, and social empowerment of people with business ideas, but without access to the traditional financial system. Also found are financial and nonfinancial/social factors of empowerment that must operate systematically to produce the desired effects. Practical implications: The results of this research can help microfinance institutions (MFIs) and policy makers to determine the best strategy for individuals’ economic, psychological, political and social empowerment through
the microfinance lens. Originality/value: It identifies a set of empowerment factors for needy individuals with entrepreneurial ideas who, through microfinance, can find a mechanism to exit poverty.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Seeking opportunities: challenges faced by a small “Born Global” company
No full textNew types of companies have emerged, known as “Born Globals” (BGs), transitioning and internationalizing early and rapidly. They have attracted scholarly interest because their involvement in international sales from the moment of inception contradicts the more traditional perspectives on internationalization.
This chapter explores a gap in the literature on BG micro-enterprises’ behavior on their internationalization trajectory. It analyzes the case of a micro-company based in Aveiro, Portugal that follows a passive internationalization path to embrace a BG’s typical behavior. The behavior of this micro-company is examined to illustrate how a BG can find new opportunities abroad and take advantage of them, the main entry modes and marketing strategies adopted in the early and rapid internationalization process, the importance of networking and growth strategies, and the role of the CEO in the internationalization process. This chapter adds value by explaining how a micro-enterprise manages to overcome its passive behavior and evolve into a BG company.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio