Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze the benefits of the agile project management (APM) framework compared to the traditional waterfall model, and understand how it can help companies add value and gain competitive advantage. Design/methodology/approach The methodology used was the exploratory qualitative research through a case study of a software project, developed with the support and application of the Scrum framework, in a pharmaceutical industry information technology project. Findings There were benefits found in the utilization of the agile framework, such as increased motivation and staff satisfaction, better control of requirements and especially higher quality of the delivered system, generating added value to the organization. Additionally, the project allowed the use of features from the first month of the application deployed, enabling a 75 percent reduction in development time, compared to traditional methods. The software development time was four months, 30 percent of what would be the total if the traditional methodology was adopted. Based on the results, the agile framework, especially the Scrum, proved to be a viable option as a project management approach. Research limitations/implications Since this research is an exploratory case study, its results cannot be generalized. Practical implications The paper provides relevant practical information and experiences to managers interested in implementing APM, as well as those interested in improving the management of projects. Originality/value This paper provides a case study with practical implications of using APM, and APM’s benefits and advantages are compared with the traditional waterfall approach. Companies can use this case study to better understand about the advantages and strengths of APM over the traditional approach.

O cenário contemporâneo exige das organizações uma maior preocupação em tornar mais efetiva a gestão de suas atividades, com o objetivo de aumentar sua competitividade por meio da redução de custos e eficiência operacional. Nesse sentido, os sistemas de gestão empresarial (ERP) surgem como uma solução a essa conjuntura. Normalmente, um ERP é adquirido em forma de pacote pronto, mas algumas empresas optam por desenvolvê-lo internamente, influenciadas pela complexidade de implementação desses softwares de mercado. Assim, o objetivo deste trabalho é analisar as características de um ERP comercial e de um ERP desenvolvido localmente, traçando um comparativo entre essas duas abordagens para entender qual é a melhor solução para auxiliar os processos em grandes empresas. A metodologia utilizada foi a pesquisa qualitativa exploratória, por meio de um estudo de caso em uma grande empresa do setor industrial de equipamentos pesados, a qual, ao longo de sua existência, promoveu a implementação do ERP das duas maneiras. Verificou-se que a adoção do sistema desenvolvido internamente é mais fácil e atende melhor aos requisitos da empresa. Porém, os gestores da organização estudada entenderam que o ERP comercial é mais benéfico, devido à possibilidade de maior integração entre as filiais e as demais empresas da cadeia de suprimentos, ponto relevante na estratégia da empresa.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify and analyse the difficulties encountered in the implementation of a voice picking system at a large multinational company of the tractor industrial segment, outlining a comparison related to the main critical factors concerning the system implementation at a Brazilian and a USA plant. Design/methodology/approach – The methodology utilised was qualitative and exploratory conducted through case studies in the two plants of the multinational company. The main data were collected through interviews with key managers directly involved in the project of voice picking system implementation. Findings – The results indicate that the picking processes in the two plants were similar, since both were designed for the production line and conducted using bar-code readers and paper lists. Nevertheless, the internal warehousing process in the USA was more mature and computerised, whereas the Brazilian process still had opportunity for improvement, such as, the visual storage process, where the operator was responsible for locating an empty position. Research limitations/implications – Since this research is an exploratory case study, its results cannot be generalised. Practical implications – The paper provides relevant practical information and experiences to managers interested in implementing voice picking systems, as well as interested in improving the accuracy and productivity of logistics processes within warehouses. Originality/value – The voice picking systems are more widespread in the USA than in Brazil, and therefore, companies around the world can use this studied case to better understand about the voice picking systems implementation process in both emerging and mature marketplaces.