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The purpose of this paper was to understand the difficulties related to asset management observed by experts in Brazilian organizations in light of the requirements outlined in the ISO 55001:2014 standard.

A survey was performed with asset management experts. The collected data were analyzed using frequency analysis, hierarchical cluster analysis and fuzzy technique for order preference by similarity to deal solution (TOPSIS).

Based on data analysis, the most critical difficulties observed were related to managing and controlling the impact of changes in the company that affect asset management objectives; to the committing to and supporting the asset management system by the top management of the organization; to manage the processes for dealing with risks and opportunities for the asset management system and plans, and correcting failures in asset performance; and to plan and conduct actions in an integrated manner to identify and minimize adverse impacts associated with the asset management system, and afterwards verifying their effectiveness.

The findings of this study have important theoretical and practical contributions, since they indicate the most critical points observed in asset management in Brazil, which can be used as a source for future research and by professionals to prioritize difficulties in future planning and develop action plans to overcome them. The step-by-step methodological approach presented in this study provides professionals and researchers with a replicable method of identifying potential asset management difficulties in a given specific reality.

We present a critical literature review debating Brazilian research on social and environmental accounting (SEA). The aim of this study is to understand the role of politics in the construction of hegemonies in SEA research in Brazil. In particular, we examine the role of hegemony in relation to the co-option of SEA literature and sustainability in the Brazilian context by the logic of development for economic growth in emerging economies. The methodological approach adopts a post-structural perspective that reflects Laclau and Mouffe’s discourse theory. The study employs a hermeneutical, rhetorical approach to understand and classify 352 Brazilian research articles on SEA. We employ Brown and Fraser’s (2006) categorizations of SEA literature to help in our analysis: the business case, the stakeholder–accountability approach, and the critical case. We argue that the business case is prominent in Brazilian studies. Second-stage analysis suggests that the major themes under discussion include measurement, consulting, and descriptive approach. We argue that these themes illustrate the degree of influence of the hegemonic politics relevant to emerging economics, as these themes predominantly concern economic growth and a capitalist context. This paper discusses trends and practices in the Brazilian literature on SEA and argues that the focus means that SEA avoids critical debates of the role of capitalist logics in an emerging economy concerning sustainability. We urge the Brazilian academy to understand the implications of its reifying agenda and engage, counter-hegemonically, in a social and political agenda beyond the hegemonic support of a particular set of capitalist interests.

This paper aims to investigate Lean Six Sigma (LSS) in the Brazilian context, seeking to identify its main characteristics and opportunities for future research.

This study focuses on a literature review in the area of production engineering and operations management, where 104 relevant scientific publications were identified.

The results show that the most important critical success factor for integrating LSS in Brazil is top management support and commitment. LSS integration occurs predominantly in large industrial companies, being incipient in small and medium-sized enterprises. In general, there is no structured way of applying LSS. A standard framework for LSS is still lacking.

This study is limited to a sample that only comprises Brazilian scientific studies.

Professionals and practitioners can understand the evolution of LSS through practical applications and the main LSS tools used in both the industrial and services sectors. It also points out the critical success factor for the implementation of LSS. The study highlights several roadmaps for LSS implementation adopted by large and modern Brazilian automotive industries based on a robust technological base. This study also contributes to expanding the evidence base of LSS application, both in Brazil and in other countries.

Some suggestions are proposed to clarify the structure and complexity of integrated implementation of LP and SS as well as expand the LSS application in small and medium-sized enterprises. This study is the first to discuss the current situation of LSS in Brazil and provide suggestions to expand LSS in the country. Comparisons of Brazilian LSS literature review with researches of others countries are also presented.