Innovations in mentoring as part of the strategy to improve the quality of talent pool for the Russian mineral and raw material sector

In contemporary Russian practices, mentoring is a multifaceted innovative 'human resource technology' aimed at developing professional skills and corporate competencies, as well as systematic and targeted participation in professional development of employees who have insufficient work experience or have difficulties in mastering new technologies and work techniques. Today, the institution of mentoring is an open industrial, educational and social space where the mentor transfers not only readymade ways to solve production problems, but also teaches how to use available intellectual and material resources. Although the mentoring process in its traditional sense does not require large financial investments, most business entities, industrial enterprises and companies are more actively using training, coaching techniques and various forms of internships, which are valuable forms of professional development of employees, but, as our research has shown, they do not have the potential that the targeted on-the-job mentoring possesses. With all the variety of forms and programmes of mentoring activities, there is a clear lack of innovative ideas aimed at improving its efficiency, which fully applies to the mentoring of students who take their work placements during vocational education, which is the subject of the research presented in this article. The literature and research studies do not fully analyse the potential of the third mission of universities regarding the issue of targeted mentoring aimed at more proactive and advanced applied training of graduates, capable of responding to "the great challenges". The article highlights the mentoring models used in foreign companies, which are similar to the types of mentoring technologies successfully implemented by Russian enterprises.

Missing the Target: Brazil's Agricultural Policy Indirectly Subsidizes Foreign Investments to the Detriment of Smallholder Farmers and Local Agribusiness

Currently there is controversy about the effect of direct foreign investment in the Brazilian agricultural sector, mainly due to the impact it has on small farmers, land use, the environment, and food security. In this context, Brazil finds itself in an even more delicate situation, since in order to remain a bulwark of the economy, Brazilian agribusiness depends heavily on public policies that directly impact its treasury. This suggests there is an indirect transfer of public resources to transnational companies involved in agribusiness production chains. This paper assesses the allocation of agricultural credits in Brazil and the market share held by Brazilian groups, vis-à-vis multinational corporations in the agribusiness supply chains. The study was carried out analyzing the three largest supply chains established in the country: soybean, corn, and cattle. Results reveal that 75% of the operating credit (crédito de custeio), which represents 60% of the total government credit in Brazil, goes directly to soybean, corn, and cattle farmers. Most of this subsidized credit budget goes to the soybean farmers, which are mostly encompassed by large farmers. Results also reveal that 76.1% of the soybean supply chain in Brazil is controlled by foreign multinational corporations. These findings suggest that resources invested in large farmers that take part in supply chains controlled by multinational foreign groups end up indirectly financing foreign companies to the detriment of local smallholder farmers and domestic agribusiness. This highlights the need for restructuring Brazilian agricultural policy in favor of family farmers and domestic agribusiness.

AGOA exclusion adds to economic pressure on Ethiopia

Significance This adds to the bad economic news for the country, which recently had to postpone its second telecoms licensing round, is still waiting to restructure its foreign debt and faces huge reconstruction costs in conflict-affected areas. Impacts Foreign companies that have evacuated personnel, let alone tourists, may be slow to return until the security situation improves markedly. A debt restructuring deal should be reached this year, easing fiscal pressure after the end of the G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative. Ethiopia’s AGOA exclusion is not up for review again until 2023, and could even be extended absent real improvement in the situation.

The Influence of Foreign Investors on the Development of Polish Enterprises: A Case Study of Bank Polska Kasa Opieki Spółka Akcyjna

Pursuant to the definition proposed by Eurostat, foreign direct investment takes place when a resident entity in one economy seeks to obtain a lasting interest in an enterprise resident in another economy. A lasting interest implies the existence of a long-term relationship between the direct investor and the enterprise, and an investor’s significant influence on the management of the enterprise. Foreign investors do not only exert impact on a given company’s board of directors but, importantly, provide production capital in privatized companies. Additionally, they equip them with both know-how on the performed economic activity and technical know-how. They send their specialists, who introduce international standards in daughter companies smoothly. In this paper, the author deals with the impact of a foreign investor on the development of Bank Pekao. A literature review is applied for this aim. It covers a detailed analysis of transaction documentation and post-audit statements of the Supreme Audit Office and delegations of the Ministry of State Treasury. Thanks to research, it can be assessed how UniCredito Italiano has positively influenced the operation of Polish bank after the acquisition of shares. Thereby, the results of this study contest popular opinion about exploitation of domestic employees by foreign companies.

Acquisition versus greenfield in Colombia: Reviewing the effect of cultural distance and vicarious experience

The relation between the cultural distance and the firm’s entry modes to foreign countries has received considerable research attention, and studies have shown the role of experience in this relation. However, previous research has only studied direct experience and neglected the study of vicarious experience. Using a sample of 355 foreign companies that entered Colombia (2007–2017), this research reviews the effect of cultural distance on entry mode choice (e.g., Acquisition vs. Greenfield) and examines the moderating role of vicarious experience in this relationship. The study concludes that the cultural distance positively affects the entry probability by acquisition, and the vicarious experience negatively affects this relationship in four cultural dimensions. If firms have vicarious experience, the effect of cultural distance on the acquisition probability is less and positively influences the entry probability by Greenfield when the cultural distance is in power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism, and long-term orientation. Nevertheless, vicarious experience has the opposite effect when considering the masculinity dimension. Consequently, we highlight the importance of considering vicarious experience as a different variable of direct experience and the individual effects of cultural distance dimensions for cross-cultural studies in management.

Study of the thermal characteristics of the aluminum radiator ROYAL Thermo Evolution

The use of aluminum radiators in heating systems began with the foreign companies products such as Fondital Group, Global Radiatori, Ferroli, etc. There are now Russian aluminum radiators companies that adhere to European standards, for example ROYAL Thermo, Rifar. The thermal characteristics of radiators are usually specified by the manufacturer. However, they are not always confirmed in practice. This is due to the fact that radiator connecting method is not taken into account. In some technical data sheets, the power reduction factors are given depending on the difference between the average coolant temperature and the air temperature in the room. Therefore, the study of the influence of aluminium heating appliances connecting on its thermal characteristics is an actual task. The article presents the results of research of radiator of the ROYAL Thermo Evolution type, it was made on request from company specialising in heating systems design. It was found that the actual thermal power of one section varies in the range of 135 … 225 W, depending on the connection method of the radiator, the thermal power of the section declared by the manufacturer corresponds only to the diagonal «top-bottom» connection, the thermal power of the eight-section radiator with one-sided «top-bottom» connection is 12% higher than with a diagonal one. Studies show, when designing heating systems, it is necessary to take into account the connection method and the number of device sections.

The Survey of Fungal Contamination in the Air Flowing Out of Air Conditioners (Coolers) in a Car

Background: Fungi are among the most important microorganisms in the air. The air conditioner (cooler) in a car can be an important reservoir for infectious agents, especially fungal species. The present study aimed to measure the fungal contamination in the air flowing out of air conditioners. Objective: In this study 138 cars including 69 Iranian-made cars and 69 cars made by foreign companies were examined. Methods: The plating technique was used. In this study, in each car, 2 plates were placed for 5 minutes when the air conditioner was on and also 2 plates were placed for 5 minutes when the air conditioner was off. Results: A total of 2442 colonies were isolated. The most common isolated fungi were Cladosporium spp. (25.55%), Penicillium spp. (6.14%) and Aspergillus niger (3.03%). The highest number of isolated fungal elements was observed in the Iranian-made cars during summer season (P-value<0.05). Furthermore, the growth rate of colonies on the plates placed on the front and rear seats of cars did not vary considerably (P-value > 0.05). Conclusion: Air conditioners of Iranian-made cars can be an important source for fungal transmission to the human respiratory system that is important, especially in susceptible people to allergic diseases and patients with immunodeficiency.

THE IMPORTANCE OF E-LEARNING FOR MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGIES STUDENTS

The pandemic situation in Slovakia has shown that e-learning teaching within educational institutions has not received sufficient attention so far. The purpose of the paper is to stress the importance of e-learning application in foreign language teaching as well as show the possibilities of creating new educational portals for university students using professional foreign language texts. The KEGA project “Innovative Methods and Forms of Education for Needs and Development of Language and Communication Skills within Technical Professional Foreign Language Study Material” is still ongoing at the Department of Social Sciences and Humanities. The aim is to emphasize the importance of foreign language training for future engineers, and at the same time to look for modern and innovative mixed methods of education, which includes the use of e-learning. The paper compares the study results of more than 200 students in different study programmes at the Faculty of Manufacturing Technologies in Prešov Technical University of Košice achieved during the academic year 2020/2021. The research findings prove that the experimental group of students from different study programmes achieved the best study results in those manufacturing technologies e-tests which are closely connected with their study programme. The results confirm that English teaching focused on tailor-made professional texts and topics within the engineering levels of studies was effective. Teachers also identified the strengths and weaknesses of students within tasks to practice language competencies. By applying e-tests students were able to improve their language skills, which can be practised in selected foreign companies or in their future careers as engineers, technicians, managers or computer programmers.

The analysis of barriers to entry into the pharmaceutical market of Ukraine

The pharmaceutical market of Ukraine is characterized by a tendency to dominate imports over exports, which indicates its economic attractiveness for foreign companies that face various obstacles when entering the market. Entry barriers are understood as factors of an objective or subjective nature that prevent new firms from organizing profitable operations in the industry. The presence and impact of market barriers prove the need for their identification and comprehensive research. It has been established that when entering the pharmaceutical market of Ukraine, there are restrictive barriers related to state policy (for example, licensing, registration of medicines, examination, certification, etc.), barriers due to competition, and barriers of a non-legal nature. The results of the analysis of the competitive situation as a possible barrier characterize the pharmaceutical market of Ukraine as a market of free competition, which contributes to the relatively free entry of foreign manufacturers. Market entry barriers are also caused by anti-competitive behavior such as mergers and acquisitions, unfair competition, informal agreements, and so on. The results of the research can be used in making decisions about entering new markets or market segments for pharmaceutical companies, in forming competitive advantages and business strategies in order to develop potential in the long term.

Actual Problems of the Development of the Regulatory Framework for Digitalization

The article examines the Russian experience of the transformation of the modern economy. The widespread introduction of digitalization is ahead of the existing regulatory framework in this area. For the most part, all digital platforms through which payments take place or some kind of transactions and transactions take place belong to foreign companies or companies whose headquarters are located abroad, and, consequently, taxes are paid abroad. This indicates a lag in the formation of not only the tax base in accordance with today’s demands of the modern economy, but also the entire regulatory framework in the field of digitalization in our country. In 2019, the Digital Economy program and the signed decree of the Government of the Russian Federation “On state support for leading companies in the development of products, services and platform solutions based on end–to-end digital technologies” were approved. The author of the article assesses the possibility of implementing the features of the application of the provisions of the Federal Law “On experimental legal regimes in the field of digital innovations in the Russian Federation” in the direction of “provision of state and municipal services and implementation of state control (supervision) and municipal control, the exercise of other powers and functions by state and local self-government bodies” on the example of the Perm Region.