Tom 49 (2016): Zeszyt 1 (March 2016)

The EU’s current ten year strategy “Europe 2020” aims to set out a vision of a European social market economy for the 21st century that will promote economic growth with social and ecological attributes. This article analyzes the roles ascribed to the government and the market and the extent this role allocation is suitable to enhance growth of the European Union’s member states. Based on a robust political economy framework it is argued that this new economic policy concept is in essence a technocratic approach and a form of selective interventionism. As such it suffers from three major shortcomings: (1) it underestimates the difficulties of gathering and analyzing the relevant information necessary for steering the economy in the desired direction, (2) it encourages rent-seeking rather than productive entrepreneurship, and (3) it may cause a subtle transformation of the societal order through the diminution of individual liberties. It is contended that while an interventionist policy approach meets the preferences of large parts of the population, not the least in Germany, it is unlikely to boost economic growth and employment in the EU.

Unemployment rates, especially among youth, have increased in various countries of Europe over the last years. This paper examines changes in youth unemployment in Germany and Poland with Okun’s law, testing that young employees are more vulnerable to the business cycle. I estimate country specific Okun coefficients for five different age cohorts. The results show that youth in Poland is more sensitive to business cycle fluctuations than adults, while in Germany the difference between the age cohorts is not that distinctive. In addition, cohort differences in Germany are not statistically significant, while they are significant in Poland but only with regard to the two oldest age cohorts.

A further examination of the different labor market institutions affecting youth employment suggests long-term policy recommendations extending beyond GDP growth, such as structural reforms in education, as well as job-search assistance as short-term recommendation.

The goal of this paper is to present a formal model of firm innovation that simultaneously analyzes innovation factors characteristic to the Schumpeterian strand of industrial organization literature and the know-how strand. Corporate R&D intensity serves here as an input measure of firm innovation. R&D intensity can be defined as a ratio of firm’s R&D spending to the firm’s sales (total revenues). On the basis of formal analysis it is found that R&D intensity is fully determined by three complementary factors, i.e. a firm’s technological competence (supply-side factor), consumer preference for quality and price of a product (demand-side factor), as well as a moderator factor associated with the knowledge spillovers, which occur between competing firms in the industry. Since the above factors are expressed in terms of elasticities, the presented model is called an elasticity-based model of firm innovation. Further, within the model framework, it is shown how horizontal R&D cooperation alleviates the free-rider problem that can discourage a firm’s innovation activities. It is next postulated that horizontal R&D cooperation can be effectively treated as a complementary tool (to such traditional solutions as patent protection and public research subsidies) for solving the problem of negative externalities in an industry with pervasive knowledge spillovers.

The purpose of this study is to identify key factors related to network capabilities that enhance the performance of Chinese, Turkish and German firms. Chinese (n = 107), Turkish (n = 129) and German (n = 109) MBA-students completed a questionnaire, based on an earlier version developed by Kenny [2009], which included questions on the respective firm, its performance and network capabilities. The predictors of firm performance varied by country: in China “information sharing” and “trust” were important, in Turkey “network coordination” and in Germany “human capital resources.” In addition, each country had its own specific drivers of firm performance. The findings of this paper should enhance understanding of the cross-cultural differences and assist managers when planning to join foreign corporations.

The perception of women’s statutory place within organizations has been influenced by gender bias, which has led to discrimination. Lowering barriers related to gender inequality and introducing constructive changes takes a surprisingly long time. This procrastination can, to some extent, be attributed to the fear of potential economic costs, which is a misconception. A deeper understanding of the interplay between socio-economic factors and gender inequality within organizations can result in designing better, less biased, more merit-based structures and provide women with better career opportunities. Countries and organizations promoting gender equality practices prove that women’s inclusion in the labor market can be ‘cost-effective’ and beneficial in socio-economic terms.

This article analyzes selected determinants of female under representation in organizations, and in leadership positions in particular. The author points out to the rich body of research and to the multiple implications of gender inequality. Among the change resistant, deeply rooted factors, those originating in culture have a significant impact on women’s inclusion in organizations. This paper focuses on macro problems, and explains why some determinants are more persistent than others, and still influence gender equality at all levels of organizational structures. The determinants are systematized, analyzed using statistical data, and rooted in a wide body of research. The article also presents potential future developments and available tools that can be employed to speed up changes leading to gender equality in organizational structures, particularly in leadership positions.

The e-commerce market has been developing very rapidly and changing traditional distribution systems. The development of online channels is matched by a similar evolution of companies’ logistics systems. As a consequence, logistics processes management now significantly influences e-customer service quality, which has emerged as a competitive advantage. The main goal of this paper is to identify e-commerce business models, modern distribution channels and management tools that would facilitate a continuous improvement in e-customer logistics service. Based on the literature and interviews with e-commerce services providers, we provide a plethora of good and best practices useful for managers in the rapidly developing and highly competitive e-commerce business.