Ana Cláudia Lara

Although the study of destructive leadership is a growing field, the adverse behaviours of public leaders during crises, such as the COVID‐19 pandemic, remain largely underexplored in academic literature. This study aims to bridge this gap by examining participants' perceptions of destructive leadership behaviours in public crisis management. Using a qualitative case study approach, it explores how the crisis context may have influenced the manifestation of perceived destructive leadership behaviours within public organisations. The research is based on semi‐structured interviews with 27 individuals affected by the pandemic, including public leaders, healthcare professionals, and recovered patients in the context of Santa Catarina, southern Brazil, with participants representing federal, state and municipal levels of government. Given Brazil's vast social disparities and diverse ecosystems, the study explores the alignment between documented destructive leadership behaviours and real‐world cases. The findings indicate that interviewees perceived destructive leadership behaviours among public leaders operating at different levels of government, suggesting that the pressures and uncertainties associated with the pandemic may have influenced these behaviours, without establishing a direct causal relationship. By identifying and categorising perceived destructive leadership behaviours, often detrimental to public trust, effectiveness and resource allocation, this study contributes to the evolving discourse on destructive leadership in crisis scenarios.

O objetivo desta pesquisa foi propor um framework de elementos que alicerçam uma universidade empreendedora sustentável. Para isso, foram investigados casos de duas conceituadas universidades brasileiras: a Universidade de São Paulo (USP) e a Universidade Estadual de Campinas (Unicamp), classificadas no Ranking Universitário Folha (RUF), pelo Ranking Nacional de Universidades Empreendedoras e GreenMetric World como as melhores instituições do Brasil. Guiada pelas abordagens teóricas da universidade empreendedora e da universidade sustentável, esta tese se centrou na abordagem qualitativa e no método de estudo de caso integrado com múltiplas unidades de análise. Na etapa de coleta de dados foram realizadas 17 entrevistas com auxílio de instrumento semiestruturado a gestores das instituições pesquisadas. Foi feita, ainda, coleta em fontes documentais, efetuada a partir de documentos públicos disponíveis nos sites das universidades, e outros fornecidos e indicados pelos entrevistados, além de artigos e livros publicados. Para análise de dados foi utilizado o software Atlas.ti versão 22. E utilizada a técnica de análise de conteúdo. Os achados originaram tabelas para cada uma das instituições, resultando em uma síntese de elementos necessários para construção de uma universidade empreendedora sustentável. Os resultados permitiram, ainda, a proposição de um framework, que gerou diretrizes para implementações das ações. Nesse sentido, constatou-se que a construção de uma universidade empreendedora sustentável é um desafio que exige uma abordagem integrada e compromissada com a inovação, a sustentabilidade e o empreendedorismo. Para construir uma universidade empreendedora sustentável, é fundamental que haja: cultura empreendedora, liderança comprometida, infraestrutura de suporte, incentivo à pesquisa e inovação sustentável, parcerias estratégicas e engajamento com os Objetivos de Desenvolvimento Sustentável (ODS).

The increasing adoption of virtual environments and environmental concerns, such as energy consumption and carbon emissions, motivated the analysis of how the metaverse can contribute to sustainability. The objective of the study is to analyze the potential of the metaverse in promoting clean and sustainable technologies, analyzing how digital technologies can be effective in developing sustainable practices. The study is based on a systematic literature review, focusing on two main themes: metaverse and sustainability, which resulted in a final sample of 47 relevant articles. A significant increase in publications on the topic was observed from 2022 onwards, reflecting the growing interest and importance of the metaverse in sustainability. There is a focus of studies on social areas aimed at the consequences caused by the use of the metaverse on social behavior, as well as on the management of uncertainty regarding the adoption of technologies. The study concludes that the metaverse has significant potential to promote sustainable practices in several areas. However, there is an urgent need for public policies and additional studies to ensure the safety, ethics, and sustainability of the use of these technologies. The research suggests that future studies should focus on Hofstede's cultural dimensions to better understand the social implications of the metaverse and its integration with sustainable practices.

The application of Big Data Analytics (BDA) plays a crucial role in promoting sustainability across various organizational contexts. It strengthens sustainability initiatives in diverse areas, such as Supply Chain Management, where it helps identify socially responsible suppliers, reduces logistics costs, and enhances delivery efficiency. In the energy sector, BDA supports energy consumption modeling, forecasting, storage, and distribution, enabling more efficient energy management. Despite existing literature linking BDA and sustainability, few studies have provided an integrative and strategic view that connects data‐driven technologies to the tensions and trade‐offs involved in sustainable development. This study investigates the use of BDA in fostering sustainability, identifying key practices, outcomes, challenges, and opportunities. By focusing on organizational tensions and strategic outcomes, this research offers an original contribution to the field. A systematic literature review was conducted to explore the role of BDA in advancing sustainability. The findings highlight the potential of BDA to align sustainability with more effective, data‐driven strategies, delivering positive impacts for both internal and external stakeholders. The benefits are observed across both private and public sectors. In industry, BDA improves energy efficiency by mapping real‐time data, optimizing natural resource use, and reducing costs. BDA also enhances mobility, identifying bottlenecks, improving public transport, and alleviating congestion. In circular processes, BDA aids waste management by promoting recycling and reuse. A conceptual framework is proposed, integrating sectoral applications, enablers, barriers, and outcomes, to support both academic research and managerial practice. The article concludes with recommendations for further discussion and research on the role of BDA in sustainability.

This study investigates the application of the 10R strategies as an innovation-driven alternative for advancing the circular economy in Santa Catarina state prisons. A qualitative single case study design was adopted, triangulating data from a systematic literature review, 16 semi-structured interviews with prison managers, and direct observation. Results show that despite some isolated sustainable practices, there is a lack of institutional coordination, stakeholder awareness, and technical training. Technological innovation, digital tools, and organizational routine redesign were identified as enablers of circularity. It is concluded that circular economy implementation requires a systemic approach with technological infrastructure and continuous engagement.

This paper investigates the alignment between the missions, visions, and values of food technology firms and robust sustainability principles. Employing a comprehensive research methodology including surveys, secondary data analysis, and semi‐structured interviews with managers of food technology startups, this study identifies and examines key areas: (1) strategic components and pivotal aspects of positioning within the food technology industry; (2) necessary changes for supporting sustainability‐driven business models; and (3) guidelines to assist food technology proprietors and managers in developing the required competencies to meet evolving societal and global market demands. The findings highlight the need for capacity development in resource circularity, material regeneration, and innovative processes, suggesting the circular economy as a strategic approach for achieving strong sustainability. The paper outlines specific changes for decision‐makers to consider. While contextual, this study represents a distinctive effort supporting the transition toward strong sustainability, grounded in the circular economy and dynamic, relational capabilities perspectives.

This study aimed to analyze the impact of innovative and disruptive production technologies adopted by Brazilian agribusiness startups on the value chain, contributing to the transition to the circular economy. Qualitative research was carried out through 10 semi‐structured interviews with CEOs of startups in the agribusiness segment, also called agtechs. The results indicate that various disruptive innovative technologies are in use, such as precision agriculture, artificial intelligence, and biotechnology. The adoption of innovative technologies, especially those that have disruptive potential, contributes to the transition to a circular economy. These innovations enhance efficiency, productivity, resource waste reduction, greenhouse gas emission reduction, monitoring, and control. At the same time, they have the potential to contribute to the generation of food security, the minimization of environmental impact, and the promotion of sustainability in agribusiness, making it more resilient. It is concluded that disruptive technologies, especially those originating from Industry 4.0, have the potential to transform the agribusiness industry. They support sustainable and efficient practices and have the potential to replace the lack of human labor in the field. Furthermore, the study expands the theoretical understanding of the role of agtechs in the circular economy and provides practical insights into the formulation of public policies, investments, and business strategies to promote sustainability in the agricultural sector.

This article analyzes how the circularity of resources occurs in Brazilian craft breweries supported by innovation and proposes the creation of alternative craft breweries to promote circular economy. Data were collected through 11 interviews with entrepreneurs in the craft brewery segment, checklist application, and access to the website of the cases investigated. Our results expand the relationship with innovation suggesting that: (a) the circularity of resources is still focused on several long‐cycle practices; (b) short cycles, which are the most desired for the retention of resource value in the production chain, are already present, but demand more attention from the enterprises surveyed; (c) innovation practices can become barriers to or drivers for the feasibility of circular economy in the beer context; (d) technical cycles are consolidated in most of the researched cases, while biological cycles still demand greater engagement from all stakeholders; (e) the nature and content of circular practices imply different adoption stages in the cases investigated; (f) companies invest in strengthening the relationship with consumers and suppliers in order to obtain support for current circular strategies in their ventures.

This study analyses how startups implement circular business models supported by innovation and Industry 4.0, in which strategic stakeholders for value creation are to be found in this specific business ecosystem. The theoretical framework of circular business models supported by innovation was used for analysing the startups based on some assumptions of stakeholder theory. Fifty-one startups were selected, which correspond to the unit of analysis for this study on the improvement of supply chains through circular business models supported by innovation aimed at sustainability in organizations. We conducted a multiple case study whose results suggest that: (i) circularity is strategic for the business to assume its commitment to a sustainable development agenda, especially regarding pollution prevention and proactive action; (ii) visionary entrepreneurs are actively engaged with circular economy practices and technological innovation to promote a circular flow for their business ecosystem; (iii) Industry 4.0 is still incipient, but it is synergistic and beneficial for a successful circular economy in startups; and (iv) primary stakeholders are the activators of circular cycles in the startups surveyed. The present study contributes to the literature in four ways by: (i) presenting a framework which brings together exploratory theoretical propositions on strategic stakeholders for startups, innovative capabilities and assumptions of circular business models; (ii) validating exploratory theoretical propositions with 51 startups; (iii) providing lessons learned so far by the startups which are in line with the assumptions of circular business models for triggering their innovation capabilities and promoting Industry 4.0; (iv) providing an original typology of circular economy assumptions and technological innovations adopted by startups. The originality of this study lies in presenting useful insights for motivating managers to: (i) invest in circular business to become one of the first entrants and earn extra profits; (ii) make investments in circular business and technological innovations to obtain efficiency, practicality and process optimization; (iii) internalize Industry 4.0 technologies concomitantly with technological innovations and circular economy to generate systemic effects; (iv) integrate relevant stakeholders of the business ecosystem to generate a synergistic and effective effect for sustainable development.