business-management

January 29, 2022

Scientific Program

Keynote Session:

Meetings International -  Conference Keynote Speaker Laura Piedra-Munoz photo

Laura Piedra-Munoz

University of Almeria

Title: Sustainability certifications to support farmers' decision-making process and business management

Biography:

Laura Piedra-Muñoz is a Lecturer in the Department of Economics and Business and Vice-Dean in the Economics and Business Studies College at the University of Almería in Spain. She received her PhD in Economics and Business Administration in 2005 from the University of Almería. Research stay in Georgia State University (USA) in 2006. She has 21 years of experience in studies on environmental economics, sustainability and agri-food systems. She has published 35 scientific articles in international journals. Additionally, she has published 5 books and 19 chapters; she has more than 50 contributions to international conferences; and she has been a member of the Scientific Committees of 12 international conferences. She has directed three doctoral thesis. She is the Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Migration Studies since 2013; Guest Editor of a Special Issue in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health; and a reviewer in JCR journals.

Abstract:

The demand for certified products has grown greatly in recent years because their lower environmental impacts and the supposed extra profitability that certified agriculture should generate for farmers. Therefore, different types of certification have emerged. In this context, their impacts on sustainability have been widely discussed in the academic arena since it has produced contrasting results. This study contributes the discussion developing a compared evaluation of sustainability between organic and conventional banana in Ecuador. SAFA (Sustainability Assessment of Food and Agriculture) is a new sustainability assessment tool that still lacks wide application in developing countries and it is chosen for the present analysis due to its ease of application and understanding. The results display how certified production overcomes conventional’ s in governance, environment and economic dimensions but performs lower in the social one. A possible explanation of this may rely on the size of the farms and production processes rather than certification standards. Furthermore, certifications are ineffective in correcting some crucial points that affect the sustainability management of the whole system such as the monoculture and the use of no renewable materials. The system is structured in a monoculture since all product is directed to exportation. Crop rotation and intercropping are an exception that is possible only in agri-forest farms, which are a small fraction of total producers, and this fact affects biodiversity. Researchers and practitioners can use this study as a valid reference point for the implementation of SAFA in other agricultural systems and managers as a guide for the control of processes in agri-food businesses directed to augment the biodiversity and sustainability of the agricultural processes.

Meetings International -  Conference Keynote Speaker Jofy Johnson photo

Jofy Johnson

Mount Zion Institute of Management, INDIA

Title: Big Data and Transformation of Marketing

Biography:

Joffy Johnson has completed his Masters in Business Administration from School of Management and Business Studies, Mahatma Gandhi University and working as an Assistant Professor at Mount Zion Institute of Management and pursuing Masters in Commerce off campus from Annamalai University. Has attended many National Conferences and made many presentations regarding Big Data and Marketing.

Abstract:

Marketing has evolved much during the last few decades. The newest trend is Big Data. Advancements in Big Data have started paving way for the transformation of Marketing. The immense potential of Big Data can be exploited in a way that would make the marketing more effective. The data driven marketing significantly improves the sales figures of the organization than best practice marketing strategies. The focal point of Big Data is consumer analytics. Innovation of Technology helps to capture the rich and plentiful data on customer phenomena continuously. Consequently, unprecedented volume, speed, and assortment of primary data, Big Data, are accessible from singular customers. To better comprehend the effect of Big Data on different marketing activities, empowering firms to more readily exploit its advantages, a reasonable structure that expands on asset-based hypothesis is proposed. Three assets—physical, human, and organizational capital—moderate the following: (1) the way toward gathering and putting away proof of buyer action as Big Data, (2) the way toward removing purchaser knowledge from Big Data, and (3) the way toward using shopper understanding to improve dynamic/versatile capacities. To take advantage of big data, marketing will need to embrace disciplines such as data science, machine learning, text-processing, audio-processing, and video-processing. 

Meetings International -  Conference Keynote Speaker Roberto Moro-Visconti photo

Roberto Moro-Visconti

University Cattolica del Sacro Cuore

Title: THE INTERACTION OF BIG DATA, FLEXIBLE OPTIONS, AND NETWORKED ECOSYSTEMS IN AUGMENTED BUSINESS PLANNING

Biography:

 

Abstract:

Traditional business planning follows a managerial top-down approach where forecasts are conceived within the firm and occasionally compared with market returns.

The increasing availability of timely big data, sometimes fueled by the Internet of Things (IoT), allows receiving continuous feedbacks that can be conveniently used to refresh assumptions and forecasts, using a complementary bottom-up approach. Forecasting accuracy can be substantially improved by incorporating timely empirical evidence, with consequent mitigation of both information asymmetries and the risk of facing unexpected events.

Network theory may constitute a further interpretation tool, considering the interaction of nodes represented by IoT and big data, mastering digital platforms, and physical stakeholders.

Artificial intelligence, database interoperability, and data-validating blockchains are consistent with the networking interpretation of the interaction of physical and virtual nodes.

Flexible real options represent a natural by-product of big data consideration in forecasting, representing an added value that improves Discounted Cash Flow metrics. The comprehensive interaction of big data within networked ecosystems eventually brings to Augmented Business Planning.