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Paradox of Firm Theory and Sustainable Development in the Mining Industry: Approximation Through the Managing Leader

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Industrial Engineering and Operations Management (IJCIEOM 2021)

Abstract

The Mining Industry, in general, involves large economic capital and causes a huge socio-environmental impact, aspects both linked to the Firm Theory and to Sustainable Development. In this relationship between these theoretical constructs, the leading manager must daily decide to balance his decisions to meet the expectations of the stakeholders. This article used the theoretical data triangulation methodology and aimed to map the paradox experienced by the leading manager within the Mining Industry sector according to (a) Costs, (b) Value creation around the mining area, (c) Image together to society, (d) Establishment of ethical standards in community relations, (e) Information sharing and reporting, (f) Investments and customer relations, and (g) Digital transformation. It is concluded that the leaders of the companies in this sector are always in a dilemma, in the paradox, between attending to inherent variables of the Firm Theory or the sustainable development agenda, since there is a trade-off in these two theoretical constructs, so, the leader being in charge balance the relationship between economic growth and care for natural ecosystems.

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Acknowledgements

This work has been supported by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT) and C-MAST- Centre for Mechanical and Aerospace Science and Technologies, under project UIDB/00151/2020 and the projectsCentro-01-0145-FEDER-000017—EMaDeS—Energy,Materials and Sustainable Development, project 026653, POCI-01-0247-FEDER-026653.

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Correspondence to Ana Paula Braga Garcez .

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Garcez, A.P.B., Moreira, J.A., da Silva, R.M., Franco, M., Santos, F.B.C. (2021). Paradox of Firm Theory and Sustainable Development in the Mining Industry: Approximation Through the Managing Leader. In: Tavares Thomé, A.M., Barbastefano, R.G., Scavarda, L.F., Gonçalves dos Reis, J.C., Amorim, M.P.C. (eds) Industrial Engineering and Operations Management. IJCIEOM 2021. Springer Proceedings in Mathematics & Statistics, vol 367. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-78570-3_39

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