OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT TOOLS IN BRAZILIAN SMALL COMPANIES
Tonny Kerley de Alencar Rodrigues
Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (Coppead), Brazil
E-mail: tonny.rodrigues@coppead.ufrj.br
Átila de Melo Lira
Universidade Paulista, Brazil
E-mail: atilalira@hotmail.com
Irenilza de Alencar Naas
Universidade Paulista, Brazil
E-mail: irenilza@gmail.com
Submission: 01/04/2014
Revision: 17/04/2014
Accept: 30/04/2014
ABSTRACT
This
research has the objective was to characterize the small Brazilian companies
about the knowledge of operations management tools that help in improving the
administrative process for these organizations. For that we chose a more
positivist strand which values quantitative aspects. The research was
explanatory, applied and can be classified as survey. The population for this
study is composed by Brazilian small enterprises are characterized by having a
lower or equal to R$ 3,600,000 (approximately 1,800,000 dollars) gross annual
income. To collect information regarding the diagnosis of the degree of
knowledge of small entrepreneurs, it was used a structured questionnaire using
gradual tracks in identification of the respondent and the firm. It was found
that the majority of managers interviewed small enterprises does not use the
operations management tools, because they do not know such tools or have no
need for their use in their companies.
Keywords:
Small companies, Brazilian companies, Operations management tools.
Contributors
and Supporting Agencies: Capes,
CNPq and Associação Teresinense de Ensino.
1. INTRODUCTION
Small
businesses are in accordance with Complementary Law No. 123 of December 14,
2006, the individual limited liability companies, simple partnerships, business
corporations and businessman who plays professionally organized to produce
goods and services that get economic activity or an annual gross income equal
to or less than R$ 3,600,000 (approximately one million eight hundred dollars) (BRAZIL,
2006).
In
designing Santos, Silva and Neves (2011) claim that the world these companies
form a production system that allows the dilution of the economy in thousands
of projects. In the Brazilian case, these authors postulate that the small
companies play an important socioeconomic role in generating income, offering
jobs and strengthen the economy.
Small
enterprises form a production system worldwide that enables, on the basis of a
society, the dilution of the economy in thousands of projects. Highlighting the
Brazilian case, the small enterprises are important in generating income, the
provision of jobs and strengthen the economy. Therefore, this segment has an
important social and economic role as a center for the creation and
distribution of wealth, decisive in generating jobs and economic development
(SANTOS et al., 2011).
Borges
et al. (2012) show that due to the
importance of local businesses, small enterprises, it is necessary to isolate
aspects of the same failure to understand the phenomena that influence the
continuity of business. Since knowledge of these causes is important to create
instruments to minimize the levels of discontinuation of these companies.
Due
to the importance of local businesses as a source of funds is what is needed to
isolate the causative aspects of success or failure, to understand all
phenomena that directly or indirectly influence the continuity, informing the
business owner the best way to go in managing their businesses to achieve
effectiveness and success. Knowledge of the causes is indeed important
condition for the possible creation of instruments to minimize the rates of
discontinuation of businesses, such as policies to encourage the creation and
survival of these (BORGES et al., 2012).
This
research appeared on the following question: what degree of knowledge of the
small Brazilian businessmen about operations management tools? Was taken as the
main assumption in this question that business owners have poorly qualified
knowledge about these tools. The objective was to characterize the small
Brazilian companies about the knowledge of operations management tools that
help in improving the administrative process for these organizations.
2. THE CURRENT SCENARIO OF SMALL BRAZILIAN COMPANIES
The
current economic context is marked by competitiveness between organizations.
The relentless pursuit of profit leads to large corporations – with their lush
technological infrastructure and its highly trained staff – to increase
profitability in its industry and then increase its market share in this
sector, thus removing the small enterprises.
The
period of import substitution, through the emergence of the phenomenon of
globalization, attempts to stabilize the Brazilian economy and trade
liberalization has meant that large corporations were pressured to adopt the
international standards of competitiveness, reducing costs to ensure global
standard competition (SOUZA et al., 2007).
This
caused many small enterprises to raise their difficulties to compete with these
big corporations. Thus, many who wish to open their own business as a way to
earn a living began to run into problems such as the lack of technical and
scientific knowledge, the operation of the planning and implementation of
management tools and the lack of proposals for assistance to these
organizations (RIBEIRO, 2011).
According
to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics - IBGE (2011) and Annual
Social Information - RAIS (2011), small enterprises correspond to most
Brazilian companies and employ the majority of the population, yet they account
for a small share of GDP and nearly half of them do not pass the first years of
life. As Borges et al. (2012, p.21), "The high mortality rate of
businesses is a problem that undermines economic growth. There is a
susceptibility to the closure of businesses, especially in the early years of
existence".
In
this sense, one of the main factors contributing to the high mortality of these
organizations is the lack of management tools applications. The current
literature on the subject points out that this fact is because the managers of
these organizations, largely lack the scientific knowledge about these tools (RIBEIRO,
2011; SANTOS et al., 2012; SANTOS et al., 2011; TACHIZAWA; POZO, 2007). They
manage the only empirical knowledge, or common sense, that they call
"practical". Combine this practice to the theory can be a way these
organizations achieve survival.
3. BRAZILIAN SMALL COMPANIES ON OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT
TOOLS
With
regard to the productive aspect, identifying the right kind of productive
management to be used by an small enterprises can be a difficult and complex
task. Since investment in a production suitable for small business high growth
or growth in fixed rates for a considerable period of time model, the correct
choice of the production model is critical to the profitability of micro and small
business in the short and long-term (RIBEIRO, 2011).
Research
on the selection and implementation of management tools for productive
environments has been extensive. What is perceived to deploy these management
tools is that the smaller the business unit, the greater the positive effect
and its ability to transform (SANTOS et al., 2012). Therefore it can be stated
that these tools are indispensable for the small companies.
Small
enterprises, which consist of productive units that seek to add value continuously,
can reduce the difficulties in realizing the benefits of many of these
management tools in its production process, while in which they are being
applied (SOUZA et al., 2007).
The
production and control of the production process of these organizations, though
less than the automated production of large corporations, become much more
robust in competitiveness with the use of these management tools (SANTOS et al.,
2011).
The
choice of the productive structure is one of the most important decisions faced
by the management of small enterprises. While there may be studies that engage
the decision of the production structure and offers more empirical work with
large public companies, this study also discusses the tools of operations
management to small companies.
4. METHODOLOGY
In
research question we chose a more positivist strand which values quantitative
aspects (KUHN, 1997). As Vergara (2006), the methodology can be categorized as
to the purposes and on the means. As for the purpose, the research can be exploratory
and applied. As for the means, the research can be classified as survey.
The
population for this study is composed by Brazilian small enterprises are
characterized by having a lower or equal to R$ 3.600,000 (approximately 1,800.000
dollars) gross annual income. They amount to about 5.786.696 business
establishments, according to IBGE (2011).
Regarding
the sample, it was random stratified where “n” calculated was 664 small
businesses at a confidence level of 99% and a sampling error of 5%. The “n”
observed, for example the amount of small enterprises who answered the
questionnaire proposed was 800, thus reducing a little more sampling error,
although it has not reached a sampling error of 3%, which would require a
sample of 1.843questionários. Thus it is noteworthy that the absolute majority
of research in the area of Social Sciences uses the sampling error of 5%.
According
to IBGE (2011), through its management of research, stratification of small
Brazilian enterprises has the following format: 1.3% in the northern region,
14.3% in the Northeast, 55.5% in southeast, 22.4% in the south and 6.5% in the
Midwest. Thus, the sample is very close to the percentages of these percentages
for each region, proceeding just rounding them.
To
obtain these samples as close to these percentages, the researcher was counting
the questionnaires answered by geopolitical region of the country. As you could
be the desired percentage, going to disregard or not count most of the
responses coming from that region. This procedure allowed the stratification of
the sample.
To
collect information regarding the diagnosis of the degree of knowledge of small
entrepreneurs, a structured questionnaire using gradual tracks in
identification of the respondent and the firm (such as age groups, marital
status, length of business and geographic region was used business location)
and a Likert type scale which is related to the knowledge of small
entrepreneurs on operations management tools, where the researcher was able to
deduce the main difficulties encountered by respondents in the administrative
process for these organizations and the level of skilled knowledge operations
management tools of small enterprises. The scale had the following
configuration: a) Strongly agree; b) Agree in parts; c) Neither agree nor
disagree; d) disagree in parts; e) Strongly disagree.
The
questionnaire was filed in Google Docs (Internet tool that provides free filing
of a questionnaire), and sent to the SEBRAE of all states of the federation,
secretaries of finance, development and farm all the states and capitals of the
country, departments management, economics and accounting in various Brazilian
federal universities with a disclosure requirement for small entrepreneurs.
Furthermore, the researcher sent the questionnaire to your bank emails of small
business owners across the country.
The
pretest of the instrument was performed with some businessmen database
researcher who agreed to contribute to the development and structuring of it.
Data collection occurred from November 2011 to March 2012. Initially the
researcher personally visited some offices SEBRAE (Brazilian Service to Support
Small Business), SESI (Social Service of Industry) and SESC (Social Service of
Commerce) and some departments of farm some municipalities in the North and
Northeast of Brazil to promote research and seek cooperation in sending the
same link of the instrument and the awareness of entrepreneurs to reply the
questionnaire.
The
data relating to the questionnaire were analyzed with the help of SPSS (Statistical
Package for Social Science). Through breeding techniques could be identified as
the organizational structure and the type of manager that applies more or less
applies operations management tools, as well as which ones that have better
financial results. Also, was provided at the end of the analysis of the
results, a set of operations management tools found in the literature of
administrative sciences for the best management of these small enterprises.
The
selection methodology and exemplification of management tools was made
compatible with the defined objectives and design management as a scientific
and technical process of applying scientific knowledge to seek survival and/or
growth of small enterprises.
5. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
In
questioning the managers of the companies if the current physical space in the
company was sufficient for all the activities he wanted to accomplish, it was
noted that in relation to this premise: 46.18% strongly agreed, 24.41%
disagreed completely, 11,18% neither agreed nor disagreed, 11.18% agreed
shares, 6.76% disagreed in parts, and 0.29% no opinion.
The
premise: know the correct time and the correct amount of supplies to be
purchased per month by my company not to miss or leftover goods, it was found
among the managers who: 52.94% strongly agreed, 14.12% agreed parts; 13.24%
disagreed completely, or 12.06% agreed nor disagreed, 7.06% disagreed in parts,
and 0.58% prefer not to answer.
As
for the statement: Before performing the tasks of my business I make a plan of
action to indicate who will do something when going to do, where to go, how
much will be spent and how it is performed, it was noted between managers
which: 47.94% strongly agreed, 24.41% disagreed totally, 12.94% agreed in
parts; 8.53% or agreed nor disagreed, 5.29% disagreed in parts, and 0.89%
prefer not respond.
As to
assert that he knew the cause of all the problems of the company, for example,
the root of the problems, managers: 62.35% fully agreed; 12.94% totally disagreed;
12.35% agreed parties; 7.94% neither agreed nor disagreed, 3.24% disagreed in
parts, and 1.18% prefer not to answer.
When
the managers said that among the numerous tasks they had to perform day-to-day
we knew distinguish those with greater severity, urgency and relevance, which
are realized: 57.65% strongly agreed, 21.76% disagreed utterly: 7.94% parties
agreed, 7.06% neither agreed nor disagreed, 3.24% prefer not to answer, and
2.35% disagreed in part.
With
respect to knowing exactly towns or places that the company should sell its
products in order to obtain higher gains, it was found that managers: 43.82%
strongly agreed, 27.94% disagreed completely, or 11.47% agreed nor disagreed,
10.29% agreed in parts; 6.18% disagreed in parts, and 0.30% prefer not to
answer.
Forward
to the following assertion: if the company wants to open a new branch or a new
point of sale, I'll know where in higher return, it was noted that managers:
50.59% strongly agreed, 24.41% disagreed completely; 11,76 % agreed in parts;
8.53% neither agreed nor disagreed, 4.18% disagreed in parts, and 0.53% prefer
not to answer.
How
to know all the costs (as storage, insurance, tax , depreciation, freight,
etc.) that the company could have if he wanted to deliver the product to the customer,
it was perceived that managers face this assertion: 49.71% agreed totally,
totally 23.82% disagreed, 10.59% agreed parties; 10.59% neither agreed nor
disagreed, 5.00% disagreed in parts, and 0.29% prefer not to answer.
Regarding
the knowledge of the time the company takes to deliver a product to the
customer, it was found that managers: 59.71% strongly agreed, 16.47% disagreed
completely, 9.41% agreed in parts; 8.53% neither agreed nor disagreed, 4.71%
disagreed in parts, and 1.17% prefer not to answer.
How
to know the quantity of products that have been returned because they are
damaged, faulty or delays, it was perceived among the managers who: 45.59%
strongly agreed, 27.94% disagreed completely; parties agreed to 9.71%, 9.41%
neither agreed nor disagreed, 6.18% disagreed in parts, and 1.17% prefer not to
answer.
How
to know the amount of requests that were made by customers who were satisfied,
fulfilled within or without errors in the collection, it was noted, among
managers who: 58.53% strongly agreed, 17.65% disagreed completely; 10.29%
agreed in parts; 9.41% neither agreed nor disagreed, 2.94% disagreed in parts,
and 1.18% prefer not to answer.
Forward
the claim to know the value (in dollars) of stock in the company that had the
day of the survey, it was found among the managers who: 51.76% strongly agreed,
20.00% strongly disagreed, 14.71% neither agreed nor disagreed, 6.76% disagreed
parts; parties agreed to 6.47%, and 0.30% prefer not to answer.
6. CONCLUSION
Regarding
affirmative scale of knowledge, the answer choice that had the highest
incidence was the “strongly disagree” (55% on average), may show that the
majority of managers interviewed small enterprises does not use the operations
management tools. Is because they do not know such tools or have no need for
their use in their companies.
Thus,
it is suggested that further studies be carried out in different segments as
small Brazilian companies to identify the needs of operations management tools
according to the peculiarities of each type of company. Furthermore, it is
suggested that the organs of support and encouragement can stimulate the use of
such tools to enable economic and financial growth of these organizations and
therefore their survival in the highly globalized market in which they live.
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