Soft Skills Integration into Business Processes Based on the Requirements of Employers—Approach for Sustainable Education

This paper deals with the issue of increasing the quality and sustainability of education at universities regarding the requirements of employers. Employers’ expectations of university graduates in terms of soft skills are analysed and outlined. The employers participating in this study answered a questionnaire survey focused on understanding university graduates’ soft skills. The collected results were subjected to the method of mathematical–statistical analysis by nonparametric testing of significance of the mean value difference. The significance of the difference for individual skills was confirmed, demonstrating that the surveyed enterprises required and anticipated a level of soft skills development on the part of recent graduates that was insufficient. This finding implies the necessity of improving university education to match the expected and real state of soft skill mastery.

Explore the Approaches to Corporate Social Responsibility Implemented by E-commerce Platforms in China during the Early Stage of COVID-19: A Mixed-methods Content Analysis

Objectives: To explore (a) the approaches to corporate social responsibility (CSR) implemented by e-commerce platforms in China during the early stage of COVID-19 (ESCOVID-19) and; (b) the factors associated with the platforms’ choice of these approaches. Methods: We collected the CSR data from the Internet during ESCOVID-19. Conventional content analysis was used to develop the targeted approaches. Finally, based on the frequency analysis of each approach, rank-based nonparametric testing was conducted to answer objective (b). Results: Three main approaches (i.e., donative CSR actions, responsive CSR actions, and strategic CSR actions) and eight sub approaches were implemented. The strategic approach was the most frequently used approach. The platforms with higher market size implemented more donative and strategic CSR actions than the platforms with lower market size did. Donative CSR actions were significantly implemented in the earlier period, while strategic CSR actions were significantly implemented in the later period. Conclusions: Our research highlights the importance of e-commerce platforms to help the public survive and identifies that market size and time were associated with the platforms’ CSR choice. The design of prevention and control policies should incorporate and support e-commerce platforms and evaluate the factors when confronting future public health crises.

A-169 Remote Cognitive Screening: A Preliminary Study of Location Administration of the Boston Cognitive Assessment (BoCA)

Objective Digital, remote, cognitive assessment has become crucial for efficient screening of patients cognitive concerns. The Boston Cognitive Assessment (BoCA) is a brief, digital, global screening instrument that can be administered both in-office on a laptop, or remotely from patients’ homes. Potential differences in performance from completing the BoCA in-office versus completing it at home remain uninvestigated. As such, this study aimed to compared performances across these settings among demographically and cognitively matched patient samples. Method Data from 35 cognitively healthy participants who completed the BoCA (18 administered in-office; 17 remotely administered) were retroactively collected; groups were matched by age, education, gender, ethnicity, and global cognitive functioning based on their scores on a separate screening instrument. Overall BoCA scores (total = 30) as well as performance on the eight BoCA subscales (Immediate Recall, Delayed Recall, Verbal Reasoning, Visuospatial Reasoning, Executive Functions, Attention, Mental Math, and Orientation) were compared using nonparametric testing. Results A Contingency analysis and an independent samples Mann–Whitney U test confirmed the demographic and cognitive similarities between the two groups. Comparisons of BoCA scores revealed no differences in total scores or any of the BoCA subscales between those who completed the BoCA in-office and those who completed it remotely. Conclusion Results from the present study suggest that performance on the BoCA is not influenced by one’s environment at the time of administration. This further adds to the utility of the BoCA as a remote, self-administered, global screening instrument, and may support its adoption in settings where serial screening is indicated.

A Multi-Methodological Analysis of a Non-Clinical Healthcare Executive and Servant Leader: Attributes and Behaviour’s and their Associations with Reporting Relationships and Business Structures

A multi-methodological approach was used to examine the personal and professional life of a well-respected, nonclinical, healthcare executive for purposes of determining if “Don” was a servant leader and, if so, uncover the antecedents contributing to his leadership style. The results provided the backdrop for examining linkages between servant leadership, reporting relationships, and business structures. Content analysis and Spears’ 10 constructs of servant leaders were used as a priori themes to affirm that Don is a servant leader. Nonparametric testing revealed moderate to strong associations between the reporting relationships of the respondents (x1) and the types of business structures (x2) where the respondents and our servant leader forged their initial relationship and the perceived behaviors and attributes of Don (y). We discovered that relationships, spiritual centeredness, and desire for career advancement served as antecedents in shaping Don’s leadership style. Implications for practice and future research are also addressed.

Representation of Women Authors in International Heart Failure Guidelines and Contemporary Clinical Trials

Background: Gender disparities in authorship of heart failure (HF) guideline citations and clinical trials have not been examined. Methods: We identified authors of publications referenced in Class I Recommendations in United States (n=173) and European (n=100) HF guidelines and of publications of all HF trials with >400 participants (n=118) published between 2001 and 2016. Authors’ genders were determined, and changes in authorship patterns over time were evaluated with linear regression and nonparametric testing. Results: The median proportion of women authors per publication was 20% (interquartile range [IQR], 8%–33%) in United States guidelines, 14% (IQR, 2%–20%) in European guidelines, and 11% (IQR, 4%–20%) in HF trials. The proportion of women authors increased modestly over time in United States and European guidelines’ references (β=0.005 and 0.003, respectively, from 1986 to 2016; P <0.001) but not in HF trials (12.5% [IQR, 0%–20%] in 2001–2004 to 8.9% [IQR, 0%–20%] in 2013–2016; P >0.50). Overall proportions of women as first or last authors in HF trials (16%) did not change significantly over time ( P =0.60). North American HF trials had the highest likelihood of having a woman as first or senior author (24%). HF trials with a woman first or senior author were associated with a higher proportion of enrolled female participants (39% versus 26%, P =0.01). Conclusions: In HF practice guidelines and trials, few women are authors of pivotal publications. Higher number of women authors is associated with higher enrollment of women in HF trials. Barriers to authorship and representation of women in HF guidelines and HF trial leadership need to be addressed.