Volume 16 (2021): Issue 2 (August 2021)

Cryptocurrencies are becoming an exciting topic for legislative bodies, practitioners, media, and scholars with diverse academic backgrounds. The work identifies diversification benefits when cryptocurrencies are combined with the equity instruments from Visegrad Stock Exchanges. Furthermore, the results of the study explore financial and economic benefits for the investors of combining cryptocurrencies with equity stocks on the mixed portfolio. Three different independent experiments were conducted to observe diversification benefits generated from cryptocurrencies. Results from the two experiments show that cryptocurrencies employ higher portfolio risk and generate higher returns when they are involved with equity stocks portfolios. The first experiment indicates that cryptocurrencies reduce the risk level of the equity portfolios while increase average returns. Providing the equity portfolios with additional equity stocks lower the portfolio risk which is in line with the theoretical paradigms. Results indicate that cryptocurrencies must be seriously considered by the portfolio managers as an essential aspect of the portfolio diversification benefits. Future studies might raise the samples of selected portfolios with stocks from different stock indexes, to identify the problem from a broader perspective.

Critical Success Factors (CSF) for a successful enterprise system (ES) implementation have been widely studied at the level of individual firms. However, firms may (unintendedly) end up forming groups (clusters) whose members look alike in terms of the CSF that they emphasize during the ES implementation. The objective of this study is to identify such clusters, analyze the differences in organizational performance and ES benefits among them, and explore whether human capital amplifies the effects of the CSF-based cluster membership. Data were collected from a sample of 125 Mexican firms that have implemented ES. The data analysis indicates the presence of three distinct clusters that differ in organizational performance and ES benefits, with performance indicators being greater for high-human-capital-level firms across the clusters. The findings suggest that ES deployments are complex phenomena subject to institutional forces that shape the CSF configurations that firms emphasize. Different CSF configurations, in turn, determine whether firms profit (or not) from their ES investments.

This study focused on to examine whether the implementation of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) in a Peruvian education enterprise impacts on process management of enterprise which in turn enhance the performance of employees. Also, it is analyzed the impact of technology literacy on process management. Empirical data were collected using a survey questionnaire which was distributed to 142 ERP users in a Peruvian education enterprise to test the relationships among variables. Using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) was analyzed the validity of construct and discriminant and, internal consistency by the composite reliability. ERP implementation has a positive impact in the performance of employees. The process management had a mediation effect between ERP implementation and performance. Also, technology literacy had an impact on performance. Outcomes provide further support for the validity of the model in Peru and globally. Thus, business owner/managers can use the model to help improve their options of success. Other stakeholders, investors and institutions that provide them with investment can also benefit from this model. The information also provides information to ERP implementation agents to support small business development. This is the first study reports the mediating effect of business strategy and organizational capabilities on the relationship between ERP implementation and firm performance. The outcomes of this study can be used to evaluate success of the ERP implementation evaluating preliminary the basic level of technology literacy.

To help facilitate the development of a theoretically rigorous and practically useful theory of customer value propositions (CVP), as called for repeatedly by the extant literature, this paper establishes a game-theoretic theorem regarding the dynamics of market competition and potential market entry. On top of this result and by employing logical rigor and analytical reasoning, eight generally true facts are developed without suffering from the constraints of data- and anecdote- based approaches, as widely used in the literature. In particular, these established results reveal how a newly adopted CVP is associated with the three essential processes underlying a company’s operation, how it will be pivotal for the company to attain competitive advantages, how the value added by adopted CVPs can be determined, etc. At the end, recommendations for decision-making managers and entrepreneurs and potential questions for future research are provided.

This paper aims to explore gender wage differential at the wage distribution decile level. We define “real wage” with one of the most tangible adjustment measures, “Big Mac Index”. We study wages equivalent to the number of Big Mac burgers (per day) of men and women belonging to different wage distribution deciles for 21 countries and for the priod of 2000 to 2013. We find that, across countries, the higher the GDP per capita, the larger the gender wage gap. The “wealthy” European countries have the lowest female to male wage ratio. High female participation in part-time jobs may be a reason for that. Meanwhile, Latin American countries with the lowest GDP per capita in our study have the highest ratio of female to male wages. As expected, we also find that within a country, the higher the wage decile, the larger the gender wage inequality.

Research on institutional influence on sustainability information indicates that organisations prepare reports voluntarily, following international standards. On the other hand, some countries’ regulation has requested the presentation of mandatory sustainability reporting for listed companies. In Peru, stock market regulations have established the mandatory sustainability report since 2016. The aim of this study is to analyse the nature and the level of compliance of listed Peruvian companies with the sustainability mandatory report at 2017 and 2018. Further, the study seeks to analyse whether company size, profitability, indebtedness, sector, voluntary report, and transnational nature determine the level of compliance with mandatory reporting. The results indicate that the level of reporting compliance is not high; the greatest incidence of fulfilment occurs with respect to reporting labour performance, with suppliers and clients, with a high regulatory and sectoral institutional influence. Likewise, size, profitability, sector, and the companies’ voluntary reporting experience are determinants of the compliance level of mandatory sustainability reporting.

The objective of the research was to compare the procedures for the calculation of income tax in the Visegrad Four (V4) countries. The statutory income tax calculation procedures are very similar in the V4 countries. Particular systems differ parametrically. Based on a literature review, synthesis of knowledge, comparison and simulation calculations, it can be stated that Hungary has the lowest corporate tax rate, and in the simulative calculations it also produced the lowest tax and highest profit after taxation for a fictitious entity in Hungary. Income tax in the V4 countries differs mainly in the possibility of applying the loss of previous years, in the impact of depreciation on the amount of the tax and in the income tax rebate linked to the employment of the disabled.

Present article aims to summarize the impact of ‘High-Performance Work-System' (HPWS) on employee performance. The research evaluates and establishes the link between HPWS best practices and corporate performance by investigating the evidence of the effects of these practices on the employee’s overall attitudes on the basis of the concept of ‘Black Box’. Further, the study contributes empirically by providing possible corrective measures and suggestions to the management of the company, which can be adopted to attain the status of a ‘World Class Organization’ by the company. Initially, the skewness and kurtosis tests were performed on the survey data to examine the normality of the data. Basis this, the correlation tests were designed and executed. In the present analysis, the bivariate analysis between the various variables (both independent and dependent) as chosen were performed to explore this inter-relationship. The present research uses “Hierarchal Multiple Linear Regression” (HMLR) analysis to examine the net effect on the employee attitudinal measures due to each bundles of the HPWS best practices as highlighted in nine hypotheses. At the end, summary of the recommendations to the general users has also been listed.

This paper investigates direct and indirect impacts of an individual’s digital engagement on their financial satisfaction considering a significant role of an individual’s financial capability and financial advice. The study is administered on the individual level, surveyed the working youth in northern India. PLS-SEM were employed using SMART-PLS version 3 for a confirmatory analysis and structural model assessment. Digital engagement has been established as a vital factor substantially influencing the individual’s financial advice, financial capability and financial satisfaction both directly and indirectly. The outcome of the study strongly favours the role and importance of digital engagement in the individual’s financial satisfaction. What is more, this paper contributes to the current knowledge by clarifying digital engagement as a possible predictor of financial capability, financial advice and financial satisfaction in the context of a low-income, developing country and applies it as a variable with the selected financial constructs. The originality and novelty of the study may be found useful to design effective policies.

Consumption of fruit and vegetable is at the centre of interest from different perspectives, mainly based on the consumers’ behaviour and its impact, which are different for various groups of consumers. When analysing food choice decisions (fruit and vegetable especially) examining subgroups of population is recommended. Article deals with the factors affecting group of Slovak millennials in consumption of fruit and vegetable. The study focused on 146 young and educated consumers who have completed at least the first degree of a university in economic sciences and agriculture since a basic knowledge of food scandals was a precondition to the eligible responses. All of the examined questions were tested using XL stat, compared and described to get the applicable results. Shapiro-Wilk, Durbin-Watson and Kruskal-Wallis tests were applied among the descriptive statistics. Based on our results, we can conclude, that for Slovak educated Millennials perception of label and/ or specific grower was significant factor which influence their consumption of fruit and vegetable according to the most of the examined variables. This was followed by perception of country of origin and perception of quality. Perception of price was significant only according to preferences of origin.

The time span between 2014 and 2020 constitutes a new, multi-annual financial framework. During this time, by negotiating with the European Union, Romania received financing through 5 major types of funds which were part of the European Structural Investments Funds (ESIF) and which were structured in six major Operational Programs, the most consistent of which is POIM - The Major Infrastructure Operational Program (MIOP). Within this financial framework, Romania needs to improve its absorption of funds based on the experience gained in the previous framework, with regards to issues like bureaucracy, corruption, lack of qualified personnel for the implementation of projects, the transition from the quantitative side of projects to the qualitative one, and the lack of a strategic vision. The country shouldn’t continue with justifications of powerlessness that are divided between political and economic factors. Romania needs a viable solution in terms of absorption, because otherwise economic and social development projects cannot be carried out in the near future. Romania's problem is that, after 2020, it has to absorb an amount of around 80 billion euros in European Funds coming from both the Recovery and Resilience Program and the 2021-2027 allocation.

Both loneliness and materialism have been associated with decrement in one’s life satisfaction. However, the relationship between loneliness, materialism, and life satisfaction has not been explored in the Western context. Therefore, the present study addresses two issues: (1) the relationship between loneliness and life satisfaction taking into account the mediating role of materialism and (2) the moderating role of gender in the aforementioned mediation model. A research model was proposed. To test the proposed model, data were collected via an online survey administered to U.S. nationals convenience sample (N = 312). Structural equation modeling was used to test the proposed model. Loneliness was negatively related to life satisfaction and positively related to materialism. Contrary to the expectation, materialism was positively related to life satisfaction. Materialism mediated the relationship between loneliness and life satisfaction. Gender did not moderate the relationship between loneliness and materialism, whereas gender did moderate the relationship between materialism and life satisfaction.

Several studies have examined the implications of different macroeconomics variables on energy consumption, but the findings have been mixed, in addition, the study in the context of Egypt have been scant in the literature. Thus, our study investigates economic growth, gross capital formation, urbanization, and import as the determinants of energy consumption in Egypt using a time series from 1971 to 2017, and employed a wavelet coherent technique for the analysis. This study demonstrates a positive correlation between energy consumption and urbanization at different scales, as well as revealing a bidirectional causal relationship between the two variables. Moreover, this study shows a positive correlation between energy consumption and import, and also revealed import as a significant determinant of energy consumption at different frequencies in Egypt. In addition, an evidence of bidirectional causality was found between economic growth and energy consumption, while gross capital formation was also found to cause energy consumption in Egypt during the period of study. Our findings provide empirical rationale for the initiations by the policymakers in Egypt towards formulating policies that will ensure sustainable energy consumption in the country.

The Palestinian economy is a small and open economy that is characterized with a high level of uncertainty. The purpose of this paper is to determine the effect of COVID-19 on the economic growth in Palestine through estimating the relationship between economic growth and unemployment. We will use the GDP per capita to measure economic growth and unemployment rate in Palestine. Thus we will also look at the Palestinian labor force and determine whether the job creation is successful in absorbing the rising rates of unemployment and determine how COVID-19 will affect unemployment rates. This is an effort to study where the Palestinian economy is heading and gives suggestions of how we can avoid the convergence into a Volatility Uncertainty Complexity Ambiguity environment. The data was taken from the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics for the period from 1995 to 2018. The time series analysis indicated that a 1 percent increase in the unemployment rate will result in a 0.356 percent decrease in the GDP per capita. Given the continuation of the Israeli occupation, the Palestinian government plays the role of “crisis management”.

The history of the last 15 years has been marked by many events at European level, some which led to the last wave of EU enlargement in 2013, with the accession of Croatia, others that led European authorities to take radical action in order to overcome the crisis of 2007-2008, and recently the pandemic crisis of 2020, and the others that marked the first contraction of the European Union since its establishment, together with the decision of Great Britain to no longer be part of the European Union, a phenomenon known as Brexit. Starting from the important role that Great Britain played in the European Union, London being a famous financial and banking center, through this paper we propose to analyze the evolution of the banking system before and after Brexit, in order to highlight the impact that the Brits’ decision had on the European Union banking system. The broad context of the impact of Brexit on the European banking system, which has effects on both British and EU banks, will also be analyzed in this paper.

This study examines strategic firm-level advertising behavior around accounting-based brand scandal events. This analysis is guided by propositions presented in the brand scandal and marketing-finance literatures regarding firm response to brand scandal events. While, recent findings from the marketing-finance literature show that managers tend to reduce advertising when anticipating the release of negative information, this response is contrary to the established support and recommendation from the extant brand scandal literature. This inconsistency suggests that firms treat product-based brand scandal events different from accounting-based brand scandal events. A sample of firms accused of financial misreporting by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and US Department of Justice between 1977 and 2010 is used to examine the central research question and hypotheses regarding the relationship between accounting-based brand scandals and firm-level advertising spending. The results of this analysis provide empirical support for the relevance of advertising expenditures to firm’s approach to reputation management strategies in the wake of accounting-based brand scandals.

Development of the whole economy and sectors of the economy is influenced by cyclical fluctuations, what can be observed as slowdown or acceleration of the economic processes. The identification of the leads and lags between the economic indicators, that reveals cyclical fluctuations is very important. The paper attempts to diagnose the lead and lag relationship between the economic sentiment indicators and the indicators of barriers to doing business in the services sector. The growth cycle approach was applied in the paper. A cross correlation analysis was conducted to identify the lead / lag relationship between the variables. The results of the analysis enable to conclude if the confidence indicator is a leading or lagged indicator and what is the length of lead / lag in relation to the indicators of barriers to doing business in the services sector in the EU countries. The study indicate the number of quarters from the peak or through of the business cycle in the services sector after that the level of factors limiting business activity will start to grow or drop. The results of the study can be useful both to the managers of firms as well as the governments.

Although research in social norms and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is limited, previous studies show mixed results on the influence of social norms, specifically religiosity of the community, on firms’ CSR activities. Using the CSR scores from KLD database, we merge county- level religious data and other control variables to run multiple regression models. Contrary to existing theories suggesting more religious social norms would entice companies to do better, our results show that community religiosity has a negative impact on firms’ CSR scores. In our discussion, we provide insights that explain this seeming contradiction and provide directions for future studies.

In this paper, the various problems of the franchise industry in South Korea are discussed and analyzed, and solutions to these based on the research results are presented and discussed. In this study, hypotheses were formulated for creating a model. Conflict, management, fairness, and performance were designated as variables, and how these variables affect one another was investigated. A research was conducted to verify the research model, reliability analysis was conducted through the Cronbach’s coefficient, and the study hypotheses were verified using factor and regression analyses. The conflicts between and the achievements of franchisors and franchisees were examined, along with the relationships among conflict, management, fairness, and performance. Management was subdivided into the overall management by the franchisor and the franchisee’s self-management and autonomy while fairness was subdivided into distribution, procedure, and interaction fairness between the franchisor and franchisee.

European Commission’s six priorities for 2019-2024 are all in line with and leverage each other to support Europe’s twin transition to digitalization and sustainability; aiming to address the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, The Recovery Plan for Europe adds resilience as key dimension of EU’s progress, while reinforcing its commitment to the green and digital transformation. Counting for more than 99% of the enterprises, employing about two of three people, and generating more than a half of the value added - with similar weights as concerns Romania - EU’s SMEs are the engine of Europe's economy, therefore essential contributors to these transformative processes - as emphasized in the SME Strategy for a sustainable and digital Europe.

Against this background, the main questions the paper is addressing are: how ready the Romania’s SMEs are for the twin (digital and sustainability) transition the EU has embarked on? What are RO’s SMEs approaches to and performances on digitalization and sustainability against the EU27 SMEs’ average benchmark? How can the RO’s SMEs twin transition process may be speeded up? The analysis was mainly built on data provided by the Flash Eurobarometer 486: SMEs, start-ups, scale-ups and entrepreneurship (released in September 2020). The review of Eurobarometer 486 data on the two topics will then be examined and discussed, in order for the paper to eventually: identify the gaps between RO SMEs and EU27 SMEs in terms of perceptions, attitudes and behaviors related to the twin transition; explore the challenges (in terms of both opportunities and threats) RO’s SMEs face as regards the twin transition; provide some guidelines able to speed up the twin transition of RO’s SMEs.