rss_2.0Sciendo RSS Feed for Proceedings of the International Conference on Business Excellencehttps://sciendo.com/journal/PICBEhttps://www.sciendo.comhttps://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/6472745e215d2f6c89dc873c/cover-image.jpghttps://sciendo.com/journal/PICBE140216https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0190<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Studying education from an econometric perspective provides an understanding of how economic and social factors influence educational process. From this perspective, it is possible to understand how different groups of people are affected by the educational system and find solutions to create a more equitable environment. Regarding this research area, the specialized literature is very vast. However, few schools recognize the interdependence and contributions that school infrastructure (buildings and furniture) can make to the improvement of academic activities in the school. This paperwork thus aims to study the public educational field in Romania from a managerial, as well as a spatial econometric perspective, in order to provide possible solutions for the improvement of the quality of the educational act in schools. The research hypothesis of this work is that certain infrastructure factors, such as the number of teaching staff, classrooms, IT equipment, gymnasiums, school laboratories, school workshops, and sports fields, have an impact on the number of graduates in each county of Romania. Conducting a spatial econometric analysis, the results validate the research hypothesis. The number of graduates from a county is influenced by the number of teaching staff, the number of IT equipment, school laboratories or sports fields existing in the respective county. Thus, Romania should allocate more financial resources to education, especially to motivate teachers, but also to transform the teaching career into an attractive one for passionate and well-prepared young people.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-01902023-08-31T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0189<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Employees’ motivation is, probably, the biggest and most profound concern of managers today. Considering the constant changes of the marketplace, along with the attrition rates nowadays, we can easily understand why this matter is of high importance. But how did the study of motivation evolve throughout time and what stage has it reached today? From Maslow and the Pyramid of Needs to Herzberg and the Two-Factor Theory, McGregor and the X and Y Theories or McClelland and his Need for Achievement Theory, the matter of motivation has long been debated and researched. The present scientific paper aims to analyze how today’s employees in knowledge-based organizations find job satisfaction, what helps them feel motivated and the way in which the management and the organizations can influence the level of job satisfaction and motivation for the employees working in the IT industry. Generations evolve and so do their expectations of what a workplace should look like. For the employees working in the IT industry, the autonomy, and the learning opportunities they could have while doing their job are at least as important, or perhaps more important than their level of satisfaction with the financial benefits offered by companies. The research methodology of the present paper is based on literature review, and the objectives are related to describing the knowledge-based organizations and how they differ from other types of organizations, analyze the evolution of motivation theories over time, presenting the IT industry and its specifics for the motivation of employees in this field.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-01892023-08-24T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0096<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>In an era when targeting younger generations becomes more and more challenging, and classic fashion is starting to be seen as being outdated, the Metaverse and online gaming has attracted fashion brands’ interest. Increasingly more fashion brands, such as Nike, Vans, Gucci, Supreme, Forever 21, Ralph Lauren, and NASCAR, are being present in the Metaverse and online games. The purpose of the study will be to bring some light on how the Metaverse might revolutionize fashion marketing communication for the younger and future generations. The paper also explores the customer benefits that the brands offer through the Metaverse and why the younger public tends to find this marketing type so appealing. From a methodological point of view, two focus groups were organized, one for gamers and another for casual players. The research directions investigate the relationship between fashion, Metaverse, and gaming marketing communications. It follows the perception of the audience, as also the benefits for organizations and consumers of games that include fashion brands. The qualitative analysis results showed that the gap between gamers and nongamers is becoming more and more narrow, as both consume the same type of content, and the benefits for organizations are worth the investment. For consumers, on the other hand, both advantages and disadvantages were highlighted as concerns for future generations. The study acknowledges why the younger generations invest so much time and money in the digital fashion world. It clarifies aspects related to the Romanian market, giving useful insights for fashion brands and not only.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-00962023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0108<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the entire working world and has proven that people can generally perform their tasks from anywhere while still managing to achieve their professional goals. The evolution of employment involves more and more of its dimensions and ramifications. Among these developments, work flexibility is a concept that is gaining more and more territory and is most often associated with a flexible and modern form of work. This article aims to analyze how integrating new ways of working which include flexible work can influence individual and organizational knowledge, as well as personal life. For employees, flexible work offers the advantage of incorporating personal commitments, but at the expense of shared work experiences. For employers, flexible work can engage a better reputation when competing, with a highly motivated and productive workforce because employees feel valued. The paper examined the impact that teleworking had on 190 employees within the Romanian branches of three American consultancy corporations in terms of knowledge acquired, performance, and perspectives of the future.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-01082023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0172<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>This research presents a bibliometric analysis conducted on the Scopus database, using the keywords "ERP" and "Benefits." The objective of this study is to identify the trends and patterns in the literature related to the implementation of ERP systems and their associated benefits. The analysis was performed using Vosviewer, a powerful bibliometric analysis tool that allows for the visualization of bibliographic data. The retrieved articles were analyzed using various bibliometric techniques, including co-citation analysis and keyword co-occurrence analysis. The results of this study provide insights into the current state of research on ERP systems and the benefits they offer. The findings indicate that the implementation of ERP systems can result in a range of benefits, including increased efficiency, cost savings, and improved decision-making. This study also highlights the need for further research in several areas, including the impact of ERP systems on organizational culture, the role of ERP systems in digital transformation, and the challenges associated with the implementation of ERP systems. Overall, this bibliometric analysis provides a valuable contribution to the existing literature on ERP systems and their associated benefits.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-01722023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0011<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Are digitalisation and Internet of Things (IoT) enablers for the circular economy? This question is based on relatively new concepts, but with a strong foundation applied in the relationship between environment, economy, and society, which, through their roles, determines a sustainable approach towards a future which companies and consumers should share. In order to highlight the attributes of the circular economy in a direct relation with the influence of digitalisation and the IoT component, the theories of various experts prove our ability to perceive sustainability from a circular and digital perspective. Whether we talk about the interconnection between the process of monitoring the life cycle of a product and the adoption of artificial intelligence during the creation process, the circular economy is the solution that comes to support the business models which also use promotion through green marketing. The adoption of the principles of circularity overlapping technological practices supports the idea of creation of a world built on social responsibility, generating long-term social, environmental and governance benefits. Nowadays, society increasingly feels the need to adopt sustainable behaviour, building pressure on the way companies operate, produce, and sell. The case study performed on a global group that has already started to adopt circular business models through digital and especially IoT technologies is proof that this solution could be implemented quite easily by other companies and the race has already started.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-00112023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0163<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Space systems are a key enabler for a wide variety of applications and capabilities. They have become very important for the functioning of critical infrastructure systems and for national security processes. This article lays out the arguments in favor of characterizing the dependence on space systems as being critical, describes the recent and important changes in the security environment, and lays out key trends in space security governance which will affect the domain in the future.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-01632023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0062<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Over the past two decades, tourism in Vietnam has seen unprecedented growth, and it is now one of the country’s most important economic drivers. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has halted this growth trend, and between 2020 and 2021, Vietnam’s tourism industry suffered significant losses. Nonetheless, there are encouraging signs as the domestic tourism market played a significant role in Vietnam’s tourism industry’s recovery in 2022. Now that the pandemic has ended, the tourism industry must adjust its development strategy to enter a new phase. The purpose of this article is to perform an analysis of the development scenario of Vietnam’s tourism industry over the past few years, perform an analysis of possibilities and obstacles, and provide some solutions for Vietnam’s tourism industry in the post-pandemic period in the near future. The novel contribution that this paper makes is to present evidence that the demand for domestic tourism can be leveraged as a significant driver for the tourism industry to rebound after it has been affected by the crisis.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-00622023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0004<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>In this article, we aim to study the role of climate change news in the European Big-Pharma companies returns. The goal of the research is to explain if the sentiment of the news posted on Twitter can explain the market movements, even if current global events may affect stock prices. The previous literature reveals the impact of climate change in the economy, but in the field of pharma companies, there is less information of how climate change affects the evolution in the stock market. We used the VADER methodology to examine and analyze the climate change news posted on Twitter. This allows us to extract the sentiment and use it to study the dependence between sentiment score and the evolution of the European Big-Pharma companies. To examine the relation, we use Ordinary Least Squares regressions and Quantile Regression. Our results reveal the fact that there is no significant dependency between the sentiment score of the news published on Twitter by the biggest newspapers and the price increase of the European Pharma companies stocks. We observe a small increase in dependence when we use the sentiment score with 1 day lag in the Ordinary Least Squares regressions and another improvement in results with Quantile Regression.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-00042023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0142<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Clusters, which are examples of Porter’s diamond in action, may foster creativity. Regional economic development, innovation efforts, and clusters are interdependent. Artificial Intelligence and Big Data can perform activities at a higher level than humans. Recent studies indicate that they are gaining popularity because they can be used to collect, organize, and analyze vast, varied data sets in order to reveal hidden patterns and trends that may be applied to a number of problems. How can Stockholm’s Artificial Intelligence and Big Data cluster enhance its competitiveness in light of these factors? How can it be made more appealing? To address these research issues, qualitative research was undertaken using the case study approach and statistical data mostly gathered from the Global Competitiveness Report. Among the most important aspects of this article are the analyses of competitiveness, cluster performance, and main actors of the cluster. The study indicates that Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, has the potential to become one of the world’s largest proponents of Artificial Intelligence and Big Data, since it is far more developed than other cities. In addition, a strategy to strengthen the cluster’s competitiveness by stressing the implemented actions is proposed. This paper was co-financed by The Bucharest University of Economic Studies during the PhD program.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-01422023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0028<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Research carried out before shows that, although only exports contribute directly to GDP growth, the actual impact of imports on it is not necessarily negative. The increase in the value of imports shows an increase in demand in the domestic market, hence a better purchasing power and standard of living than in some of the exporting countries. Practice shows that many of the poor countries are dependent on exports, which usually consist in raw materials or products without much added value, while the most developed countries have negative trade balances.</p> <p>The study involves the use of the least-squares method, in EVIEWS 12, to determine the relationship between the annual increase in the volume of foreign trade of the states in the Black Sea region and the annual increase in GDP, respectively the increase in GDP per capita, by estimating simple linear regressions, using annual data from the period of 1990-2021.</p> <p>The research results show positive relationships between the mentioned indicators in the case of all the states analyzed, showing that even in the Black Sea region, although economies and societies have very diversified structures, often in competition or even in conflict, trade plays an important role for the economic growth, whether the trade balance of the analyzed state is positive or negative.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-00282023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0129<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Sports forensic is a very niche segment of knowledge and activity encompassing sports, audit, legislation, chemistry and police investigation. The purpose of this article is to have a transdisciplinary approach encompassing on one hand academic frameworks of analysis and on the other qualified judgement of professional bodies and authorities. Outside its law enforcement capacity, evidence gathered by police in an attempt to find non-coercive solutions, can serve as advancements in the field of sports. The perspective of this article is an education one, identifying causes, effects as well as providing insights for prevention and anti-corruption programmes. Also, organisational risks are zoomed-in via annual reports and their subsequent non-financial reporting. Mapping out and better understanding scale and stimuli of corruption in sports while acting can play a disruptive role in other criminal activities. International cooperation and identifying best practices are a key aspect in guiding whistle-blowers as well as making sports forensic a more established filed of research, for better competitions.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-01292023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0134<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Over time, the concept of economic development has been the cause of debates in the research environment. Some of the researchers consider the level of economic development of a country to be characterized by high levels of the main macroeconomic aggregates, while another part supports the idea of uniform economic development with a high level of social inclusion. Regardless of the definition of the concept of economic development, it has been proven that a major positive impact is generated by the sustainable development strategy, especially in the light of the concept of circular economy. Therefore, the study addresses the level of economic development of the member states of the European Union based on the impact generated by the circular economy. In addition, based on the analysis carried out, the paper aims to identify the dependency ratio between the variables associated with the circular economy concept and the level of economic development. In order to achieve these goals, a panel regression model was estimated, for all member states of the European Union, on the time horizon 2011-2020. The model used as dependent variable “the level of economic development”, and the independent variables were made up of variables associated with the circular economy. The results of this analysis reveal that there are individual effects on both dimensions associated with the analysis (cross-sectional, time series), which leads to the idea that each country is influenced in the process of economic development through the circular economy by its own specificities.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-01342023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0089<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Globalization, interconnectivity, and instant access to information have multiplied the complexity of the problems industries are facing. A new way of looking, feeling and thinking is necessary that will lead to richer strategies and new tools to create organizations that have a positive impact on their environment and culture. High performance teams driving innovation are built with goal-focused individuals, from cross-functional backgrounds. They come together to collaborate on solving particular challenges of achieving an objective. The current study aims to analyze the creative process within ad hoc mission driven teams and propose a design framework for organisational practices. Strategic design transforms complex problems into sustainable solutions, by focusing on systemic innovation. Unlike design thinking, which is a formal method used mainly in the consultant model, strategic design is a design practice applied on organisations culture, policy, governance, and strategy. Questions such as how to run mission-driven teams to function on their own and how to reduce micromanagement and oversight and focus on the production, testing and iteration of innovative solutions, will be addressed. The analysis is based on qualitative and basic research, with the focus on one case-study. The paper aims to offer new perspectives to organisational leaders and team managers on how to design solutions for cultural practices that are aligned with sustainable industry goals and business performance.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-00892023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0061<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Due to the importance of the pursuit of sustainable development in global society, it is noticed that an increasing number of organizations are striving to develop in a green direction. A large amount of scientific research is currently being devoted to the development of organizations in a green direction, but there is a lack of tools for assessing the greenness in the scope of the entire organization that could help organizations to assess their current situation in the aspect of greenness and to determine directions for improvement. Based on their previous research and investigations on the topic, authors of this study suggest analyzing the aspect of greenness of an organization in the aspect of its performance evaluation by choosing the perspective of evaluation of resources in the scope of the entire organization. This study aims to carry out an analysis of the existing methodical basis of evaluation of resources of an organization in the aspect of greenness. Methods of systematic and comparative analysis of scientific literature, bibliometric analysis, grouping, critical evaluation and synthesis have been applied. The main result of this study is the assessment of the sufficiency of the existing methodical basis for evaluating the resources of an organization in the aspect of greenness.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-00612023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0080<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Built on a commercial structure, a social enterprise has its primary goal to achieve certain social objectives, by which attempts to make a strong societal, and environmental impact. In exploring its role in a VUCA (volatile-uncertain-complex-ambiguous) world, we argue that such dynamic, adaptable, structures fostering social innovation, and entrepreneurship, are set to thrive as pillars of socio-economic stability in the current climate of rapid business change. We posit that social entrepreneurship (and intrapreneurship) skills such as creative bricolage¹ represent a much-needed addition to the business toolkit competences. The aim of this paper is to provide a counterpoint to a world marred by overconsumption, where instant gratification and short-term profits, coupled with human impact to global climate add to market volatility and uncertainty. Our research focuses on a sustainable business model that blends entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship, with the full, balanced, use of financial, social, and human capitals, while blending innovative accounting models to create a new paradigm of long-term economic stability. This all-inclusive business model has the ability to leverages a three-sector collaboration between public, private, and voluntary, centered on a different kind of profit-making organizations such as social enterprises, benefit corporations, or cooperatives, towards a more sustainable business and economic future.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-00802023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0022<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>This study examines how enterprise asset management (EAM), customer relationship management (CRM), warehouse management system (WMS), transport management system (TMS), and returnable package management (RPM) can be integrated with technologies that support supply chain safety management. This research work aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the integration of these technologies and systems in improving the overall supply chain safety management of the organization. The goal of the study is to assess how well these systems’ and technologies’ integration have improved the organization’s overall supply chain safety management. The study also reveals that the successful implementation of these systems requires a holistic approach, involving organizational culture, training, and change management. The results indicate that the integration of these technologies and systems has significantly improved the company’s asset utilization, customer satisfaction, inventory management, transportation efficiency, and overall supply chain safety management. While the implementation of these technologies can be costly and time-consuming, the benefits of enhanced supply chain security can be far greater. The findings of this research can provide insights and guidelines for other companies in their pursuit of achieving effective supply chain safety management through the integration of technologies supporting supply chain safety management, EAM, CRM, WMS, TMS, and RPM systems.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-00222023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0103<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>The implementation of information technology in enterprises develops customer relationship management, which has the role of improving customer satisfaction. By sharing certain information, it is also possible to maintain effective relationships with customers, but also to maximize profit. The use of social media platforms, in parallel with the implementation of information technology, strengthens the trust of customers, through the reviews of the end consumer. In this unique interview-based case study approach, we empirically describe a conceptual model. Production and distribution departments of operational flows, implement digital technology, becoming an artificial intelligence-optimized system. New intelligent manufacturing capabilities are transforming the relationship between the company and customers from one focused on product to one oriented towards creating value and services, even personalization of them.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-01032023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0187<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>This article analyzes the situation of human resources in Romanian banks, in the context of the implementation of the "remote" bank. With the acceleration of digitalisation, financial and banking institutions are going through a complex transformation process. Most of the recurring customer operations have been taken over by internet banking platforms. Banking 4.0 and the exclusively digital banking experience is becoming the desire of financial-banking institutions in our country, as well. In the context in which the "job description" of bankers is changing substantially, the question of their future arises. Therefore, digitalisation draws attention to the need for continuous retraining and continuous professional training of employees in this sector so that they can face the demands of the banking of the future. With the help of in-depth interviews conducted with 8 managers or experts from the financial-banking field, we tried to analyze whether Romanian banks are preparing for the full digitalisation of retail services through the professional training of employees. The study shows us interesting insights about the effectiveness of HR departments in banks. Also, a relevant result comes from branch employees where there is a solid concern about losing their job in the future. In addition, the research gives us some direction on the skills needed to design the banker of the future. The article shows us that, in the context of digitalisation, the qualification of human resources in the sector becomes essential and the efficiency of professional training and engagement programs turns into a strategic objective for organizations.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-01872023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-0008<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>One of the most polluting industries is the fossil fuel energy industry. The production of energy from lignite has direct pollution (stack of thermal power plants emissions) or indirect pollution (caused by coal mining). The main pollutants are suspended particles, heavy metals, and other toxic substances. In areas where the limits of these pollutants are exceeded, there is a high risk of population-level health problems, such as circulatory, respiratory, nervous, and immune systems. In the current state of the scientific literature, there are studies that demonstrate the connection between the pollution caused by the coal energy industry and the negative health effects in people who have been exposed to increased amounts of these emissions. However, few studies address this topic in Gorj County. The research methodology used in this paper includes an initial presentation of the polluting substances found in the area, the possible diseases that result, and the correlation between them.</p> <p>The study identified the main diseases that can affect the population in areas where the pollution limits for certain substances are exceeded. It also features a graphic representation by means of a map of the areas with a higher risk of the occurrence of these diseases. This paper aimed to study the need to decarbonize the energy sector from the point of view of the impact on human health. The work has both a theoretical contribution by creating the literature that addressed this topic, and a practical one, representing an information resource for decision-makers in the development of health, environmental, economic, or energy policy. The results highlight the need for increased attention in protection, monitoring, staff allocation, treatment provision, and budget allocation to protect the health of the population in these areas.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/picbe-2023-00082023-07-14T00:00:00.000+00:00en-us-1