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Publications

Publications by Manuel Au-Yong Oliveira

2018

Research on innovation processes at a firm located in a country averse to uncertainty

Authors
Ribeiro, MMLBB; Au Yong Oliveira, M; Lima, F; Afonso, R;

Publication
Proceedings of the European Conference on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, ECIE

Abstract
Innovation is increasingly more relevant to researchers. Following a literature review, which revealed that research on innovation processes in a country averse to uncertainty (e.g. Portugal), and thus inhibiting of innovation, is still lacking, a focus group was performed at a product development firm, as well as a survey of the firm's employees, with 48 valid answers. The case is of a firm which develops innovative products and services for the telecommunications and information technology market. The firm is situated in central Portugal and the focus group involved six employees - one from each operational department (pre-sales), plus two employees from sales. How innovation is managed at the firm was a main topic of discussion in the focus group. The results revealed a corporate culture focused on teamwork, where employees are free to innovate in areas not directly linked to their job description, and where innovative ideas, however disruptive, are welcomed. No formal or informal recognition is given, to more innovative employees, and there is a desire by employees to change this. At a firm where product innovation older than 24 months may no longer be seen to be innovation, numerous tools to promote innovation are used, namely: brainstorming, scrum, agile, focus groups, and design thinking. Operating in a business-to-business market, innovation is continuous and open, also involving, for example, universities. Business cases are constructed for each product, customers are surveyed for their satisfaction, all ideas are valued and none are rejected. Despite an innovation-welcoming atmosphere at the firm tact and common sense are still needed to communicate new ideas. External competition by rivals is considered at all times. Internal competition, between colleagues, however, is not seen to be healthy, and work is done towards the common good. Knowledge sharing platforms abound and include internal blogs, workshops, and the registering of projects on specific knowledge-sharing platforms. Finally, product pricing will depend on a number of factors, including the degree of innovativeness of the product in question. The main influence on pricing is, however, the market - an extreme effort must be made to make product prices fit in with what the market is prepared to pay for a technology.

2018

Reshaping society with open innovation - The seeding of a new open and innovative mindset

Authors
Au Yong Oliveira, M; Almeida, M; Mendes, F; Van Geenhuizen, M;

Publication
Proceedings of the European Conference on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, ECIE

Abstract
This article is a description of a growing community and movement taking place in Portugal related to open innovation. The testimonies of two principal promoters as well as the views of two career academics were gathered. Herein, the process is described whereby real corporate problems felt in industry and requiring a solution are brought for discussion and resolution by a community of motivated problem-solvers, who were carefully chosen for their skills and capabilities. Can this initiative become a mass phenomenon and can it be built up to attract [paying and sponsoring] corporations across Europe and from different continents? How can the events evolve to become mainstream? What capabilities and promotion are necessary forthat to occur? The promoters involved are entrepreneurs located in central Portugal and are seen to be forward-thinkers disrupting how innovation is seen and approached. In a society geared towards services and tourism the team is seeking to bring open innovation to the fore in a country also considered to be very creative and not lacking in creative talent - but which on the other hand is very traditional, collectivist, hierarchical, consensus-seeking, and where innovation may be resisted and change viewed with suspicion. In a 72-hour time frame where problem-solving participants are invited and gathered at a physical venue individuals surpass themselves and experience team work in a setting where all logistics issues are previously carefully thought out and taken care of - so as to provide for the best problem-solving environment possible. The open innovation initiatives (called Hackathons) involve the following: defining the challenges (we want challenges that define goals and purposes but that are open enough to let the team build something creative), defining the fit (each candidate can apply as a team or individually; candidates select their preferred area); building teams (the candidates are free to change teams and can even propose their own challenges; we encourage communication between the team elements and also the mentors). A three-day Hackathon involves: creating a team spirit; constant feedback; building an MVP (Minimum Viable Product); learning new things; sharing is caring.

2019

Self-driving cars and considerations on ethics: Where are we heading with Automation?

Authors
Jael, B; Au Yong Oliveira, M; Branco, F;

Publication
Proceedings of the European Conference on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, ECIE

Abstract
We hear more and more about autonomous vehicles, however, where are we heading with automation? Recently, we have heard about some crashes of autonomous vehicles, which have occurred during trials. Therefore, can this technology be trusted? Equally important, what kind of moral and ethical questions are behind the decisions that a vehicle like this must make? Who should be saved if someone must die, in a car accident? The elderly, or perhaps younger people? Executives or the homeless? People who follow traffic rules, or is that not relevant? This article will start by reviewing some of the ethical questions that have already been raised and results found within the public domain. Then the article proceeds by discussing our survey, administered in Portugal, with 111 answers. For situations which would seemingly lead to an obvious consensus and to a 100% agreement on the matter, we found this to not be the case, as our survey never achieved such polarized results. For example, even when confronted with saving pet animals or children, there was still a split in the choice made (albeit pending heavily towards saving the children). This goes to show how people are different and make different choices in life. Are we superior to animals and do we have a greater right to life than pets? Of course, this is debatable, according to differing values and cultures. Therefore, it follows that much debate should ensue as to how to program autonomous vehicles to behave - in case the loss of life (in whatever form) is at stake. Automation, as such, is thus leading us down ambiguous avenues where grey areas abound and we may simply not know what is best all of the time. Automation is thus making us work harder at being human beings and is bringing us to new levels of rationality - where emotions should also play a big part. The spontaneity and intuitiveness of human decision-making being taken out of the equation (when an accident occurs without automated cars that is how we think) makes many pre-meditated decisions uncertain and unpopular. Profoundly humane issues, which are often culture specific, are thus yet to be discussed.

2018

Service innovation implications: The importance of business alignment by employees

Authors
Lima, IC; Au Yong Oliveira, M; Madaleno, M;

Publication
Proceedings of the European Conference on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, ECIE

Abstract
The market's evolution and ever-increasing competitiveness forces organizations to find new ways to reinvent themselves. According to the principles of the Service Dominant (SD) Logic, it is argued that Service Innovation depends on the participation of all the direct actors in any given organization, focusing on its employees as key elements for delivering the brand promise made to the consumer, regardless of any eventual direct contact between them. The success of organizations relies on their growth capability and, for this reason, the measurement of investments is fundamental to the business strategy. Thus, the tangibility of the Internal Brand Management (IBM) is essential in management decisions, only possible through the construction of Key Performance Indicators (KPI). Given the intangibility inherent to the processes of brand building, brand promise delivery and service co-creation, which are directly dependent on the definition of the business strategy, the present article proposes a method to create KPIs with the aim of understanding the alignment of employees in relation to the business strategy. Based on a literature review, which corroborates the relevance of the theme, a case study is presented on a multinational Business-to-Business (B2B) organization. Using a mixed methodology, the research is divided into two moments: 1) A qualitative analysis which a) Identifies the strategic categories of the organization being studied, b) Evaluates the focus given to those main categories through the most important internal brand dissemination documents and c) Organizes the Employee Satisfaction Questionnaire based on those same categories; 2) A quantitative analysis to evaluate the results of the alignment of the Employee Satisfaction Questionnaires' answers with those strategic categories previously referred to for the period 2011 to 2017. Therefore, it is suggested that all organizations have tangible information that allows the identification of KPIs to serve IBM. However, traditionally, there is no objective systematization of these indicators, which could lead to the measurement of the employees' alignment under this perspective.

2018

Social networks and internal corporate communication: Help or hindrance?

Authors
Rodrigues, A; Tavares, B; Silva, I; Brito, M; Au Yong Oliveira, M;

Publication
Proceedings of the European Conference on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, ECIE

Abstract
An innovative, forward-looking organization has a different kind of internal structure, different Marketing and a different way of processing things. Innovative organizations have methods and processes that help them avoid stagnation. In the 21st century we have embraced a whole new technological world. Communicating through social networks is a new phenomenon and organizations must follow this trend, otherwise they will not endure. Companies need to be close to clients and the best way to achieve this is by exploring the new tools that online social media provide (social media includes e-mail and social networks and other such applications). The way people are exposed to information and publicity suffered a real change, as nowadays almost everything is also advertised online. Internet usage and social networking will be the focus of this article. The main research question of this paper is: what is the impact of using social networks on the performance and competitiveness of organizations? This question is relevant since almost every company has access to the Internet, as do their employees. Social networks may also be used for professional purposes as networks that connect everyone to expedite and facilitate communication. On the other hand, social networks may influence productivity negatively. To better discuss the main issue, we will use a Portuguese company as a case study. Thus, we interviewed an employee at BRABBU - the head of the BRABBU Press & Communications department - to establish patterns in the usage of social networks for internal communication during working hours. BRABBU is an award-winning company which won the Best Viral Instagram award, in January 2018, attributed by the Maison et Objet. Furthermore, a sample of the general population was surveyed (we received 352 answers to the survey) to deepen the study of this topic and so as to ascertain whether people think that online social networks help or hinder business performance. The result was clear: social networks may be a great help for internal communication, but this does not replace human contact. Finally, this usage of social networks in the work environment has to reach a consensus amongst the younger generations (e.g. millennial, in favour of this usage) and older ones (e.g. baby boomers, not so receptive to new technologies).

2019

Strain Effect - A Case Study About the Power of Nano-Influencers

Authors
Oliveira, MAY; Cardoso, AS; Goncalves, M; Tavares, A; Branco, F;

Publication
2019 14TH IBERIAN CONFERENCE ON INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND TECHNOLOGIES (CISTI)

Abstract
This article serves to show how things are changing when it comes to business and social networking. Nowadays, it is hard to find a business that does not have an account on any social network, and we can safely say that social media is a crucial aspect for any business enterprise - to sell their products, to be seen and, obviously, to make more money. We talk about the possibility to mix innovation, business strategy and social media. To complement this research, we focused our work on a Portuguese start-up - Strain - that intends to prove marketing is changing and that it actually welcomes the change, with social networks at the base of their business. They intend to use online influencers to promote the image of a brand, free of charge, and earn discounts on it. It is, indeed, a win-win situation, where each of the three parts (the company itself, clients and Strain) is a winner one way or the other.

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