Information Management Process in Continuous Improvement Area at Worldwide Steel Company - Enterprise Information Systems Design, Implementation and Management: Organizational Applications - page 188

To conduct this research, aware of the high
geographical dispersion of the target population
and the wide availability of information con-
cerning key personnel of each unit in relation to
information management, it was decided to hold
a non-probabilistic sample. Thus, the search for
this sampling plan was as follows:
Population: CEOs (Chief Executive Officer),
Coos (Chief Operating Officer), VPs (Vice Presi-
dents), Managers and Continuous Improvement
professionals involved
Sampling framework: Continuous improve-
ment and development area's employees of the
Americas Long Carbon units.
In addition, it was adopted in this research:
survey method, documentary research and bib-
liography search as data collection techniques.
The research instrument selected was the
self-administered questionnaire and the questions
were arranged to ensure no induction of certain
patterns of response.
To ensure reliability of data, the question-
naires were made available through an internet
site created specifically for this study. There was
no identification of the interviewee whatsoever
and the data were treated in total confidentiality.
After data collection, data were coded, cat-
egorized, classified, tabulated and had distribu-
tion of frequency defined. After entering data in
the software and tabulation of these, descriptive
analysis is followed by tables. We used unvaried
analysis, by variable and analysis of associations
between the variables.

and industry in general, especially in the research,
development and technology.
The research focused in the study of informa-
tion management at the Americas ArcelorMittal
long steel segment (LCA Long Carbon Americas)
continuous improvement area.
The main objective of this area is to diagnose
process, product and services' opportunities as
well as to develop projects targeting on produc-
tion increase or cost reduction.

resuLts

During the documentary research, several manage-
ment information initiatives among Long Carbon
Americas units were detected. Each plant is look-
ing for the best way to manage its information
using the tools available or creating new tools.
One of these initiatives is the Corporate Infor-
mation System Management ArcelorMittal Long
Carbon Americas (SIGA). It is the management
information system used by the LCA that allows
the monitoring of companies performance within
LCA in Brazil, Argentina, Costa Rica, Mexico,
in Trinidad and Tobago, Canada and the United
States from its monthly management reports.
Worldwide the company uses BPM software
(Business Performance Management), but for
some specific reasons LCA works with the in-
formation in the SIGA before sending it to BPM.
With SIGA system deployment there was an inte-
gration of all the information tools and systems,
before dispersed in different systems and reports
( Figure 2) . The software now works as the main
information repository on LCA management and
it is used by all LCA units.
Other initiatives are the Global Cost Bench-
mark (GCB) and Global Technical Benchmark
(GTB). The objective of both databases is to
standardize, collect, analyze and distribute compa-
rable information across all units in the company.
The first is focused on costs and the second on
technical indicators.

company characterization

With strategically located plants, ArcelorMittal is
present in 60 countries with over 330 thousand
employees, an annual production capacity of 130
million tons of flat, long and stainless steel, which
represents more than 10% of total steel manu-
factured in the world. In 2007, sales were over
30 billion euros and leadership in main markets:
automotive, construction, appliances, packaging