- Vol. 1, Issue 2, 2016

Vol. 1, Issue 2, 2016

Creativity, Innovation and the Perspectives of Management

Page: 71
Authors: Paul MARINESCU, Ionut CONSTANTIN, Sorin-George TOMA
Abstract: This paper aims to analyse the perspectives of management starting from the current challenges and the future environmental conditions. Business models will facilitate the disappearance of the border between professional and personal life and companies will consider the improvement plan regarding the welfare of the employees and improvement measures for the monitoring, control and evaluation processes to help boost performance. Thus, the importance of the share capital and the interpersonal relationships will increase, and the human resources departments will redefine their priorities given the fact that it will be possible for the organizational network of tomorrow to be made up of employees belonging to a global network. Therefore, companies’ employees will take courses and programmes regarding the learning and development of the organizational culture, and the companies’ management will have permanent access to the evolution of employees. Actually, the main issue to be discussed here is represented by the ratio between corporate behaviour and non-corporate behaviour and the way in which the combination between these two will contribute to the increase of the organisational performance. Technology will facilitate the disappearance of the demarcation between “life at work” and “life outside of work”. Complex strategies that will identify the competence sets needed by the company will contribute to finding candidates suitable for company tasks. In the future, we can talk of people management specialists who will need increasingly more financial, analytical, marketing and risk management competences. Companies will seek to promote and support networks of people and “The Y Generation” (which considers individuals who desire “not to get lost in the crowd”, but, on the contrary, they wish to be noticed, to matter within the contexts where they evolve and, at the same time, to have a harmonious development), a fact which will require the use of technology as an interface between professional life, social life, personal life and spiritual life with an emphasis on options, the antimonopoly thinking and the process of encouraging the use of innovation within the management field.
JEL Classification: F63, F66, M11, M12, M54
Key words: technology, innovation, management, creativity, change

Evaluation of Information Entropy in Organizational System

Page: 82
Authors: Minodora URSACESCU, Mihai CIOC
Abstract: Entropy, as a thermodynamic concept, indicates the degree of system disorganization. The concept of entropy is associated with a measure of disorder and uncertainty in a physical system that leads to progressive loss of the relationships that integrate a system. The study of entropy becomes relevant for organization systems, which are described as interconnected elements, having a defined goal, and interacting with a dynamic environment. These systems are essentially based on the acquisition and application of information to ensure their self-determination and future development. In such a context, the approach of entropy is related to the Information Theory, referring to a measure of the amount of information that exists in an organizational system.
This paper discusses the concept of information entropy and proposes a manner to evaluate its level under the influence of certain events that reveals particular organizational aspects. A case study for testing the relationship between information and entropy in the case of a company has been elaborated. The findings reveal that the increasing of order within a company system, through highly structured states leads to low level of information entropy.
JEL Classification: M21, D8.
Key words: entropy, event, information entropy, organizational system, probability.

Empirical Research Regarding the Importance of Digital Transformation for Romanian SMEs

Page: 92
Authors: Livia TOANCA
Abstract: As the need for digital transformation becomes more and more self-evident with the rapid change of the business environment and the increased number of industries disrupted by digital advancements, we find it increasingly important for small and medium sized enterprises to recognize the emergence of threats and, most importantly, opportunities that arise from the dynamism of this phenomenon. Our research aims to uncover opportunities for Romanian SMEs to break apart and benefit from the diverse tools that are now within their reach in order to become successful on the global and European markets. Our survey was distributed to over 160,000 Romanian SMEs and netted 598 unique responses, representing the perception of digital by Romanian SMEs across 7 industries. We conclude that, despite their high awareness of the phenomenon of digital disruption, Romanian SMEs are yet to employ strategies of digital transformation that will bring them to the next level of competitiveness.
JEL Classification: D02, D22
Key words: business mode, digital transformation, organizational change

Socio-cultural Change and Generational Diversity in the Post-Soviet Workforce

Page: 109
Authors: Madara APSALONE, Ilona BAUMANE-VĪTOLIŅA, Igo CALS, Erika ŠUMILO
Abstract: In times of increased retirement age and senior employees staying in workforce longer, successfully managing generational differences in the workforce forms an increasingly important challenge for modern day management. In many ways, generations may vary in attitudes and approaches, reflecting deeper differences in their core values. This might be particularly true for the Post-Soviet countries, where earlier generations were educated and started their careers within a completely different socio-economic system.
In this study we explore differences in approaches towards values and attitudes amongst four generations of retail sector employees – starting from those, who were still to great extent exposed to pre-Soviet values, continuing with employees, who started their careers during the Soviet times, and ending with those, who were educated and entered the workforce after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
208 Latvian service employees were surveyed to assess their personal values and likelihood of dishonest and unethical behavior from four generations currently active in the workforce – Post-War generation, Early Gen X, Transition generation and Millennials.
We confirmed that despite dual morality and ambiguous ethics in the Soviet Union, older generations reported higher likelihood of honest behavior than younger generations. And Post-War and Early Generation X also rated honesty and responsibility higher as their personal values. We also found significant differences between Early Generation X and the Transition generation in a post-Soviet context.
JEL Classification: M14
Key words: Socio-cultural Change, Values, Generational Diversity, Post-Soviet Workforce

Increasing Absorptive Capacity to Improve Internal and External Knowledge Transfer in Multinational Companies: A Multiple Case Study Approach

Page: 120
Authors: Béla-Gergely RÁCZ, Anca BORZA
Abstract: This study investigates how the absorptive capacity could be increased to improve internal and external knowledge transfer in subsidiaries of multinational companies. We look at the way in which the literature on absorptive capacity has evolved, and how it links the internal and external knowledge transfer. Based on 3 case studies conducted at Romanian subsidiaries of multinational companies, we find some patterns, which could explain how the successful knowledge flows should be managed within the multinational company and outside of it, in the supply chain network.
JEL Classification: M11, M16
Key words: absorptive capacity, disseminative capacity, internal knowledge transfer, external knowledge transfer, manufacturing network, multinational company

The Difficulty in Following Project Schedule as a Key Project Management Challenge: Family Firm Perspective

Page: 136
Authors: Joanna SADKOWSKA
Abstract: The problem of how to manage projects successfully has been gaining growing interest for the last decades. The aforementioned is mainly caused by the fact that project management offers a wide range of methods and tools which, when properly used, can stimulate long-term growth of businesses. As a consequence it offers a particular development opportunity for family enterprises which, due to their specificity, have to overcome many difficulties. The primary objective of this paper is to examine whether family enterprises perceive, and to what extent, the factor of following project schedule as a difficulty in the area of project management. 154 Polish family firms representing different sectors were surveyed. The results of regression analysis show that family firms with global range of business activities, on the contrary to those with local or regional ones, do not find the factor of following project schedule as a difficulty. This results manly from the tools employed and the maturity level they have reached in project management. The findings support the current discussion on the specificity and uniqueness of family businesses in relationship to the knowledge area of project management. It also contributes to filling the gap on understanding the functioning of family firms in the emerging economies of Eastern Europe.
JEL Classification: L21, M21, O22
Key words: family business, project management difficulties, project schedule, Poland

Foreign Direct Investment and Competitiveness of Automotive Sector in Romania

Page: 148
Authors: Liliana SCUTARU, Gabriela PRELIPCEAN
Abstract: The paper approaches the automotive sector in Romania as a main branch of industry that contributes to the country’s competitiveness. There is analysed in territorial plan the layout of foreign direct investment and domestic investment in the automotive sector and also the automotive clusters and the main investments made in this sector of the economy. The research also includes an analysis regarding the competitiveness of the automotive sector and presents its evolution in terms of production and exports. The results indicate that most of the investors are located in the west and south of the country, the sector is one of the most competitive areas of economy, contributing to around a quarter of the country’s total exports.
JEL Classification: D24, F16, F21, F23, O30
Key words: automotive, competitiveness, domestic investment, foreign direct investment, innovative clusters

The Importance of Digital Adoption for Small and Medium Enterprises: Comparative Study of Romanian Service and IT&C SMEs

Page: 161
Authors: Dan POPESCU, Livia TOANCĂ, Cristina STATE
Abstract: Service enterprises constitute significant drivers of growth for developed countries as well as countries in development. The global economy in combination with the fast paced development of technology in the digital era create opportunities for companies that realize the importance of the service-technology convergence phenomenon, also known as the service economy 3.0.
In the case of the Romanian economy, SMEs and the service sector contribute significantly to the country’s economic growth and our study aims to uncover opportunities for Romanian service SMEs to further their chances of succeeding on the global service market through adoption of digital technologies.
We find that it is of utmost importance for Romanian service SMEs to bridge the digital divide through furthering their knowledge of network effects and digital ecosystems that can ultimately result in developing core competencies that help them remain relevant on the global services market.
JEL Classification: M10, M11, M19.
Key words: service economy, knowledge economy, digital transformation, small and medium size enterprises

Research and Development Costs in Retail Trade

Page: 170
Authors: Radojko LUKIC, Srdjan LALIC, Dragana VOJTESKI KLJENAK
Abstract: Research and development expenses are crucial business performance factors for all enterprises, including trading companies. The size and structure of these expenses depend largely on the nature of a company’s activities. Due to such importance and specificity, the research focus of this article is on R&D expenses in trading companies with particular emphasis on retail companies. Their share in the sales revenue of trading companies is increasingly important and determined by many factors, such as innovation, size, location, product categories, and others. Due to varying intensity of influence of these and other factors, research and development expenses in commercial companies differ among countries, trade types (wholesale, retail, wholesale and retail), retail formats (store types) and product categories. Understanding the factors of these differences is important for efficient management of research and development costs in trade, particularly retail companies. They are the focus of research in this work.
JEL Classification: L810, M420, Q320.
Key words: significance and strategy; innovation, brand and knowledge; intangibles and capitalization; online retailing and information technology; control.

Empirical Research on Urban Public Transportation in the Context of Population Growth and the Demographic Development

Page: 183
Authors: Alexandru Mihai BUGHEANU, Sofia Elena COLESCA
Abstract: Urban mobility is one of the most important challenges cities face nowadays. Half of the world population is living in urban areas, and more of them is becoming city-based, going for jobs and studies in metropolitan areas.
The present paper aims to analyze different transport systems in order to obtain a series of conclusions on issues related to public transport worldwide in the context of increasing the population in urban areas. Therefore, the article will illustrate some of the major solutions and strategies used by public authorities all over the world.
JEL Classification: R41, R42.
Key words: public transport, challenges, urban mobility, strategies.

Research on the Current Telecommuting Trends in United States and European Union Markets

Page: 194
Authors: Cătălina Georgiana PICU, Alina DINU
Abstract: In the context of globalization and due to the accelerated progress made in information and communication technology, more and more companies offer their employees the option of telecommuting. For the past twenty years, telecommuting has been on an asceding trend, an incresing number of people embracing the ability to work from home, using a computer and internet connection to communicate for their jobs.
The goal of the paper is to explain the overall notion of telecommuting and to analyze the current trends in the United States and European Union markets. Another objective is to assess the advantages and disadvantages of telecommuting and the important role played by this concept within the striving purpose of corporations to achieve their strategic targets.
The study is based upon specialized literature reviews regarding the emergence of telecommuting and the role it plays in organizations. A comparative analysis was conducted by the authors on two regional markets, United States and the European Union, in order to assess the trend in telecommuting and the factors that influence it.
The outcome of the research shows that although the benefits of telecommuting are numerous, it does not come without challenges, both being applicable for both the employer, as well as for the employee. The research results of this study can be used by organizations when considering to offer their employees flexible work opportunities which can positively influence the long term business performance.
JEL Classification: M10, M15, M16
Key words: flexible work, organizational performance, telecommuting, virtual work.

Research of Corporate Tax Impact on Financial Performance. Case of Companies Listed on Bucharest Stock Exchange

Page: 203
Authors: Ileana Cosmina PITULICE, Aurelia ȘTEFĂNESCU, Viorica Georgiana MÎNZU, Adriana Florina POPA, Arina Mihaela NICULESCU (DIACONU)
Abstract: Financial performance is the objective of any economic entity, regardless the domain it activates in. From the decision-making process perspective, the corporate tax is included in the equation of financial performance, considering that it has multiple informational facets at the company’s level. Considering the computation formula for the due tax as a premise, one can say that along with the economic development of the company, there is a positive correlation degree between it and the fiscal liability, determined by the multiplication of the number of transactions generating tax. Therefore, the corporate tax becomes relevant information for decision making in terms of organization form, reinvestment and others. In this context, our research plans to identify a relation between corporate tax and the financial performance of an entity. In this respect, two econometric models were built showing that the effective tax rate passes the tests of significance and influences the performance indicators in a negative way.
JEL Classification: M41, M10, H25
Key words: corporate tax, net profit, econometric model, financial performance, financial position, Romania

An Evolutionary Perspective on Toxic Leadership

Page: 217
Authors: Lucia Ovidia VREJA, Sergiu BĂLAN, Loredana Cornelia BOSCA
Abstract: Charles Darwin’s prediction from 1859, that future psychology was going to be built on principles derived from evolutionary theory came at last to be fulfilled. Nowadays, there are at least four disciplines that attempt to explain human behaviours as evolutionary adaptations (or maladaptations) to the natural and/or social environment: human sociobiology, human behavioural ecology, evolutionary psychology, memetics and gene–culture coevolution theory (in our view, the most adequate of all). According to gene–culture coevolution theory, articulated language was the singular phenomenon that permitted humans to become a cultural species, and from that moment on culture become itself a selection factor. Culture means transmission of information from one generation to the next and learning from other individuals’ experiences, trough language. So, it is of critical importance to have good criteria for the selection of those individuals from whom we should learn. Yet when humans also choose their leaders from among those role-models, according to the same criteria, this mechanism can become a maladaptation and the result can be toxic leadership.
JEL Classification: Z13
Key words: human sociobiology, human behavioural ecology, evolutionary psychology, memetics, gene–culture coevolution theory, dominance status, prestige status, toxic leadership

Executive Remuneration and the Financial Performance of Quoted Firms: The Nigerian Experience

Page: 229
Authors: Sunday OGBEIDE, Babatunde AKANJI
Abstract: This study examined executive remuneration and firms’ performance in Nigeria. Specifically, the study seeks to ascertain the nexus between executive remuneration, firm size and board size variables and the performance of quoted companies. The population of the study consists of all the quoted firms as at 31st December, 2014. A sample of sixty (60) companies excluding non- financial firms was selected for the period 2013 and 2014. Summary statistics such as descriptive, correlation and granger causality tests were used. Inferential statistics, using panel Generalized Least Square (EGLS) with fixed effect was used for the purpose of empirical validations. This was after the application of diagnostic test to enhance the study. The study ascertained that executive remuneration has a relationship with firm performance, but negatively impacted on it; though was not statistically significant. Firm size was ascertained not to have significant positive relationship with firms’ performance; though it has a causality relationship with the performance of the firms. Board size was found to negatively affect the performance of firms and is statistically not significant. Premised on this, the study suggests that executive remuneration of quote firms should be pegged constantly in a flexible manner. This will enable shareholders known the causality relationship between what is paid to the executive and how that influence performance.
JEL Classification: M10
Key words: Executive remuneration, firms’ financial performance, agency theory, Firm Size and Board size.

Empirical Study Regarding the Trust Relationships Established in a Community

Page: 243
Authors: Florina-Valentina NICOLAE, Ioana-Maria PAVEL
Abstract: The paper that we present aims to address the issue of relationships naturally established in a community through some items that we consider relevant to the proposed topic. In this purpose, we have initiated a quantitative research, developed through a survey, based on questionnaire, self-managed and on line. The recorded answers are statistically interpreted, using IBM SPSS application. The results suggests that the perception of the subjects participating in the study on the relationships established with their communities, on the date of the study, is not clearly contoured.
JEL Classification: A140, C120, C140, D640, M200, M210, O350
Key words: communities, social economy enterprises, trust capital

Highlighting the Socio-Demographic Differences of the Key Determinants of Staff’s Satisfaction in Jordanian Hospitals: an Empirical Analysis Based on Warr-Cool-Wall Scales

Page: 252
Authors: Adriana AnaMaria DAVIDESCU, Cristian BUSU, Alexandra Catalina NEDELCU, Marji Tania Issa EID
Abstract: The aim of this paper is to highlight the socio-demographic differences regarding the main determinants of employee satisfaction in Jordanian hospitals using a sample of 325 employees from six different hospitals in 2015. Therefore, it has been used Warr-Cook-Wall scale in order to assess job satisfaction according to four dimensions: extrinsic job satisfaction, intrinsic job satisfaction, working conditions satisfaction, employee relations satisfaction. The socio-demographic differences on the job satisfaction factors were analyzed using t-test, Anova test and correlation coefficients. The empirical results pointed out that young and older employees express higher degrees of satisfaction comparative with other age group regarding the extrinsic satisfaction and employee relations and that administrative staff, helpers and doctors are more satisfied intrinsic satisfaction, extrinsic satisfaction, working conditions, employee relations and also on the overall level of satisfaction. Also individuals from horizontal structure exhibit higher levels of satisfaction regarding the job satisfaction factors than the ones from vertical structure.
JEL Classification: C25, C38, C83, O15
Key words: socio-demographic, job satisfaction, hospitals, health workers, Warr-Cook-Wall scale, Jordan