Business Sustainable Competitiveness a Synergistic, Long-Run Approach of a Company's Resources and Results
Abstract Business sustainable competitiveness is a very complex concept. This complexity generates a variety of possibilities to define, to measure and to test it. The purpose of the paper is to develop the concept of businessness (for business sustainable competitiveness) by leveraging productivity, profitability, effectiveness and sustainability, at firm level. The interrelations between them, in terms of revenues per employee, return on assets, total assets turnover and Dow Jones Sustainability Index, were integrated into models/functions in order to develop, test and apply businessness. The article is about proposing functions (by using multiple discriminant analysis) in order to measur…
A Snapshot of the World of Global Multinationals – An Industry Based Analysis of Fortune Global 500 Companies
Abstract For better or for worse, the “corporations rule the world” assertion is nowadays more actual and accurate than ever before, as multinational companies represent the undisputable engine of the globalization process, and the latter continuously (re)creates the background against which global multinationals are flourishing, while reinforcing their “domination”. Since 1995, the Fortune Global 500 ranking (FG 500) annually provides a comprehensive and eloquent image of the world of global multinationals; the merits of the FG 500 ranking go beyond the synchronic approach of the characteristics of global multinationals (in terms of revenues, profits, assets and employees - by sector, indu…
Interrelations between competitiveness and responsibility at macro and micro level
PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to emphasize that the growing of competitiveness at any level may be possible through more responsibility (business ethics) on the one hand and less corruption (as lack of business ethics) on the other.Design/methodology/approachThe objective of the paper is to identify the double‐way relationships between competitiveness and the responsible (beyond ethics) behaviour. In order to do this, the authors used correlation indexes CORREL and R2 and the graphic representation able to illustrate the above‐mentioned interrelations.FindingsThe authors observed that there is a strong and direct correlation between GCI, RCI and CPI – at national level, and six possib…
Study on the Reputation of the (MASS) Media in Romania
Abstract Part of a bigger research project conducted by Media Reputation Lab (Media REP Lab) on the reputation of media in Europe, the study explores the reputation of media among informed population in Romania. A sample of 100 cases was involved in the online survey taking place in December 2019. The results provide a description of the country’s media reputation (media in general: radio, print, digital and television). For each one of these media, the valuation obtained by each of the reputational attributes (credibility, rigor, impartiality, willingness to rectify) by the informed population would be indicated. Moreover, insights on the knowledge and use, as well as on the reputation (ov…
Integrating Holistic Marketing into the Stakeholder Management Approach
The context of globalization and the growing pressures toward sustainable development are nowadays forcing firms to deal with a paradoxical situation: while undeniable engines and major beneficiaries of globalization, businesses are also sources for significant negative externalities that impact on the dynamics of the global system. In these circumstances, the sustainable business should not only represent a major strategic challenge but must also become an effective strategic solution. This is the transformational shift we are advocating for in this chapter, by the instrumentality of a strategic model that integrates holistic marketing into the stakeholder management approach. Based on an …
Relevance of Big Data for Business and Management. Exploratory Insights (Part I)
Abstract Over the last few decades Big Data has impetuously penetrated almost every domain of human interest/action and it has (more or less consciously) become a ubiquitous presence of day to day life. The main questions this exploratory paper seeks to address (throughout its two parts) are the following: What is the (actual) impact of Big Data on Business & Management and How can businesses (through their management) leverage the potential of Big Data to their benefit? A gradual, step by step approach (based on literature review and a variety of secondary data) will guide the paper in search for answers to the abovementioned questions: starting with a concise history of the topic Big …
Leveraging tangible and intangible assets by using a possible firm competitiveness index
More and more, in order to achieve global competitiveness, firms need to develop and apply unique and dynamic competitiveness models. With this paper, we propose an index that measures firm competitiveness by taking into consideration some tangible and intangible assets. This index demonstrates the fact that a firm is highly competitive as long as its managers are able to mix the tangible and intangible assets in the most effective and efficient manner; therefore, a firm can get the same score of competitiveness by using different combinations of assets and by giving different importance coefficients to the tangible and intangible assets.
Management Challenges in the Context of a Complex View - SMEs Perspective
Abstract The complexity significantly affects the functioning and development of enterprises and is important in understanding the activities of an organization. The perspective of complexity makes the decisions bringing with them a growing economic risk. One group particularly sensitive to the complexity in internal and external environment are small and medium-sized enterprises. Despite this increasing importance, most SMEs have not introduced or implemented yet a complexity management system/approach or they do not realize of the multitude of management challenges emerging with the phenomenon of complexity. The role of SMEs in each economy encourages to explore this area in order to deve…
EMNCS– Lessons On The Way To An Innovation-based Development. Setting The Backgrounds
Abstract The main focus of (the two parts of) this article is on the emerging countries and their development paths. Particularly, it emphasizes on the role and contribution of innovation (of all kinds, in all its forms) for multinational companies from emerging economies (EMNC); the entire research endeavor is placed under the auspices of the knowledge-based society - the one that makes knowledge the ultimate source of power, enabling entities to use and potentially multiply it at the same time at global scale. Analyzing the situation of some emerging economies (starting from their best ranked multinationals), the article draws some empirical and theoretical conclusions on the ways knowled…
An Overview on European Union Sustainable Competitiveness
Abstract The last few years have emphasized a continuing concern of many institutions, nations, companies for sustainable development. The recent literature brings into attention the concept of sustainable competitiveness beyond sustainable development. The main idea of sustainable competitiveness is reflected by the searching of a model that could balance economic prosperity, environmental issues and social sustainability. In this context, is shaping the sustainability-adjusted global competitiveness index that take into consideration two new dimensions – environmental and social. Practically, the triple bottom line concept will be extrapolated from the microeconomic level to the macroecon…
Knowledge management – a source of sustainable competitiveness in the knowledge based economy
Confirming the well known thesis knowledge is power, A. Toffler argued that the knowledge based society represents the acme of the human society development and P. Drucker said that the developed countries passing through the knowledge based society represents the biggest change of the modern world. That made possible and helped the emerging of the managerial revolution (defined as knowledge applied to knowledge itself) at the firm’s level. Under these circumstances, knowledge has to be seen as a strategic resource – source of competitive advantages and of managerial performances as well. Considering this, a firm’s management have to define a coherent behavioral model in order to seriously …
Does Capital Structure Influence Company Profitability?
Abstract Every company has a different structure of balance sheet. Some of the companies have more liabilities than equity. Considering the industry or debt-to-equity ratio, the balance sheet structure affects the company profitability measured by DuPont system. The main objective of the paper is to analyze the structure of balance sheet and to identify some optimal levels in order to increase company profitability. The DuPont returns like ROA (return on assets) and ROE (return on equity) will be used to measure the company profitability, while the debt-to-equity ratio will be used as a measure (reflection) of capital structure. The samples consist on the most profitable non-financial compa…
The Directive 2014/95/EU – Is there a “New” Beginning for CSR in Romania?
Abstract The global commandments of sustainable development, assumed and translated by the EU into a series of communications and resolutions, have found themselves a new (and more powerful) expression into the “Directive 2014/95/EU (…) as regards disclosure of non-financial and diversity information by certain large undertakings and groups”; in order to increase the transparency of their sustainability-related actions and results, these companies need to report (starting from 2018, by referring to the financial year 2017) information “relating to, as a minimum, environmental, social and employee matters, respect for human rights, anti-corruption and bribery matters”. As regards the Romania…
Searching for new paradigms in a globalized world: Business ethics as a management strategy
The process of globalization is an undeniable reality of today's world. Yet, paradoxically, the cornerstone of this phenomenon, economic performance, varies widely across the world whatever indicator (for example, GDP/habitant, competitiveness) we choose to use to compare countries. Increasingly, studies tend to explain this apparently paradoxical situation with reference to the issue of corruption and ethics. In essence, corruption is perceived to be an important impediment to the economic development of a country (or area). Many studies of corruption are focused at the national level. The aim of this conceptual paper is to explore the role of the firm (as opposed to national states or int…
CSR Strategies in Emerging Markets
The purpose of the chapter is to emphasize on the roles of businesses – as an effective (sustainable) development agent in emerging markets, on one hand, and of their CSR strategies – as an efficient sustainable development tool, on the other hand, in order to identify valuable business practices able to lead the emerging markets towards sustainability – through socially responsible decision making processes at business level. Having in the fore-ground the ideas of sustainability (which basically is a macro-economic concern) and responsibility (and especially its micro-economic correspondent that usually embraces the form of CSR), it will try to discover the general and specific features of…
Valorificarea capitalului intelectual - criteriu pentru performanta manageriala in societatea bazata pe cunoastere
If we can see the knowledge society as an essential part of the “external environment” of the firm management, that brings with it some specific opportunities and threats, we have to consider the intellectual capital – that integrates the two basic resources: knowledge and human – a key ingredient for the “internal environment” of the firm management, which determines some strengths and/or weaknesses that lead to the success or the failure of the managerial effort of the firm operating under the circumstances given by the emergency of three processes with global spread: the economic globalization, the managerial revolution and the knowledge-based society. Having as starting point the premis…
Sustainable Innovation as Competitive Advantage in the Era of Sustainability
The challenges that sustainability raises in front of companies are nowadays bigger than ever, as their actions and performances are increasingly scrutinized and evaluated (by a plethora of different stakeholders) against a variety of sustainability-related expectations and standards. The paper aims to explore the universe of the most sustainable corporations—based on an analysis that corroborates these companies’ engagements towards sustainability (as declared on their websites) with their sustainability-related performances (as reflected in their scores—based on relevant KPIs—according to Corporate Knights’ Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations)—in order to find relevant insights on th…
The Dynamics of the Global Multinationals: Determinants of New Global Configurations and New Management Challenges
During the last few decades, the complex interplay between (the process of) globalization and (the evolution of global) multinationals has radically changed both the architecture of the global economy and the characteristics of their main players – the global multinationals; new configurations have emerged, while new complexities have replaced them, in unprecedented (in terms of speed, breadth, and depth) manners, adding new valences to the challenges firms and their strategists are confronting nowadays. The aim of the paper is to identify (some of) the most significant shifts that have marked the dynamics of the global multinationals during the last two decades, in order to sketch the new …
Business Models Addressing Sustainability Challenges—Towards A New Research Agenda
From just another buzzword a few decades ago, sustainability has become a hot topic on strategists&rsquo
Solving Strategic Paradoxes through Organizational Ambidexterity - A Foray into the Literature -
Abstract In a world of unprecedented (diachronic and synchronic) complexities like ours, firms are forced to deal with an increasing number of organizational paradoxes that challenge their strategic choices. Under these circumstances, ambidexterity could become a (dynamic) core competence for firms, making the ambidextrous organization an imperative for businesses more than ever before. The paper aims to explore, based on an integrative approach, the most relevant literature on the interdependencies between the two topics (strategic paradoxes and organizational ambidexterity), in order to identify the most important thesis, arguments and solutions that support the ambidextrous organization,…
The dynamics of the financial capital – intellectual capital binomial relationship regarding the value creation process of a firm in the knowledge-based society
The idea that the value of the firm is given by its financial capital and its intellectual capital is generally accepted. But, what is changing nowadays is the importance/weight that each one of these two components claims to have regarding the value of the firm – based on the dynamics of the changes and the intensity of the competition within an industry, on one hand, and on the measure of connection/networking to the knowledge-based economy of the given industry, on the other hand. So, we are the witnesses of: (1) a repositioning into the dynamics of the financial capital – intellectual capital binomial relationship regarding the value creation process of a firm and (2) the need to reform…
Wealth, Competitiveness, and Intellectual Capital – Sources for Economic Development
Abstract National wealth, national competitiveness and national intellectual capital were major objectives of a nation in the last century. By this paper we identify strong interrelations between national wealth, national competitiveness and national intellectual capital according to Pearson, R and R 2 results. These interrelations demonstrate that national wealth, national competitiveness and intellectual capital are important sources for increasing the economic development based on data from 40 developed, emerging and developing countries.
Some Insights on the Changing Architecture of the World’s Top 100 Multinationals
Abstract Premise: globalization represents both the fertile background and the accountable foreground that accompanies the evolution of TNCs/MNEs, within a self-enforcing spiral of co-evolution which gratifies the winners and discards the losers. Argument: UNCTAD’s Top 100 non-financial TNCs/MNEs gathers together, since 1993, some of the most prominent winners of the above mentioned processes, making this instrument one of the best indicators and benchmarks in terms of both globalization and transnationalization – when analyzed at a given moment in time (for a particular year), and even more relevant when analyzed dynamically and by comparison. Context: two major global shifts have occurred…
Corporate Sustainability – From a Fuzzy Concept to a Coherent Reality
Abstract During the last few decades, the search for sustainability has experienced a tremendous momentum, encompassing all the levels of the global system. Fuelled by complex (both proactive and reactive) motivators, the process has surpassed the characteristics of an intellectual endeavor – more preoccupied by idealist goals, and less focused on the actual means to achieve them – and has proved that it can successfully be transposed into the corporate real world – of decision making, objective assessment, and relentless scrutiny. The paper aims to (broadly) explore the world of the most sustainable corporations – based on a descriptive (factual and dynamic) analysis of Corporate Knight’s …
Romania’s SMEs on the Way to EU’s Twin Transition to Digitalization and Sustainability
Abstract 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 emp…
Coordinates and Dynamics of the Relationships between Multinational Enterprises and Economic Development – A Theoretical Approach
Abstract The paper aims to configure, based on the historical analyses of the theories regarding multinational enterprises and economic development (which, most of them, are unilateral, unidimensional and focused on just one theoretical background) a conceptual framework – subsumed to the idea of a matrix with variable architecture that integrates existing models – able to allow and favour the exhaustive and dynamic analysis of the relationships between multinational enterprises and economic development within the current and future spatial and temporal context – characterized by (enormous) complexity, turbulence and volatility.