Competitiveness of the Regions in the Czech Republic from the Perspective of Disaster Risk Financing

Mitigation of the impact of disasters and increasing resilience represent an inseparable part of the competitiveness of regions that cannot be implemented without a necessary resource framework. The paper focuses on the issue of financing individual phases of disaster management at the level of regions in the Czech conditions. The article is based on the assumption that public authorities do not systematically plan funds for dealing with crisis situations in the expenditure part of the budget, thereby not supporting the structural and functional conditions of territorial attractiveness, security and sustainability. The aim of the article is to propose a unique calculation of the minimum fund allocation for individual phases of disaster risk reduction at the regional level. The calculation concept is based on the value of the property owned by the region, the number of crisis situations predicted in the region, the number of crisis situations predicted in the Czech Republic, the administrative territory of the region and the total expenditures of the regional budget. The article presents a specific national approach to the public fund allocation to the individual disaster risk management phases, providing competitive administration and progressive and resilient development of the region. Based on the originally elaborated calculation, a comparative analysis of the expenditure part of 13 regional budgets for the 2013– 2019 period was performed. The premise on the insufficient financing of disaster management was confirmed, although the Crisis Management Act imposes this obligation. The results showed that the most underfunded area was the implementation phase.

New Product Creativity Mediating the Relationship Between Organizational Bricolage and the Competitive Advantage of SMEs

It is well-documented in literature that one major challenge facing Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) is resource constraints. This affects SMEs’ potential for innovation, as innovation is resource-intensive. To survive the competition, it is expedient that SMEs find more creative and innovative ways to operate. This present study sought to ascertain how SMEs could adopt a bricolage strategy to achieve a competitive advantage. The study also sought to determine the mediating role of new product creativity in this relationship, which formed a key contribution. Data was gathered from 334 SMEs using a simple random sampling technique. The data was analyzed using the covariance-based structural equation modelling (CB-SEM) approach in Amos (v.23). Various validity and reliability tests were run before testing the significance of the various hypotheses of the study. It was concluded that bricolage had a direct positive effect on SMEs’ competitive advantage. Bricolage further had a direct positive impact on new product creativity, whiles new product creativity had a direct positive effect on SMEs’ competitive advantage. It was also realized that creativity had a partial mediating effect on the relationship between bricolage and SMEs’ competitive advantage. Although this study did not directly assess the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on business operations, the data for the study was gathered during the pandemic period, as such, the results of this present study could offer some practical clues on how firms could achieve competitive advantage during the outbreak of pandemics.

Bonds Between Earnings Management and Corporate Financial Stability in the Context of the Competitive Ability of Enterprises

The financial health of enterprises and their continued profitability and competitiveness in the market are influenced considerably by the level of earnings achieved. Enterprises are forced to report the best possible results to demonstrate financial strength and competitiveness and to provide a good accounting for investors and creditors. Thus, the main objective of the study is to investigate whether there is any mutual dependence between corporate financial stability and earnings management. To measure these categories, Altman’s Z score was used to determine the financial health of enterprises, and the Beneish M-score and modified Jones model were applied to detect earnings manipulation. Using the chi-square test, the results revealed a statistically significant dependence between financial distress and earnings manipulation. Then, a multivariate statistical technique of correspondence analysis was applied to the categorical data to find categories of factors that are mutually correspondent. Based on a dataset of 11,105 enterprises operating in the Visegrad countries, the results found that enterprises that are threatened by bankruptcy or located in the gray zone tend to manipulate their earnings to maintain credibility, creditworthiness, and competitiveness. Because the financial health of an enterprise provides a potential incentive for earnings manipulation, state authorities, regulators, and policy-makers may benefit from the findings of the study.

The Impact of Proactive Environmental Strategy on Competitive and Sustainable Development of Organizations

The purpose of this research is to evaluate the impact of proactive environmental strategy, competitive differentiation advantage & cost-leadership competitive advantage for the competitive, sustainable development of an organization in terms of its performances, for instance, product strategy, production, process & financial performances. We incorporated technological eco-innovation as a mediating factor & corporate image as a moderator between exogenous & endogenous variables. We have collected 798 responses from China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, United Arab Emirates, and Vietnam. For the data analyses, we employed a structural equation modeling-based multivariate approach and conditional process modeling. The novelty and significance of the undertaken study rested in multifaceted outcomes; for instance, the proactive environmental strategy, the competitive advantage of differentiation & competitive advantage of cost leadership have a significant & positive impact on the sustainable development of an organization in terms of its performances, for example, product strategic, production & financial performances. The findings further demonstrate that technological eco-innovation as a mediating factor & corporate image as a moderating factor played vital and significant influencers between exogenous and endogenous variables. Finally, the Toda- Yamamoto causality showed the two-ways directionality between exogenous & endogenous variables. The outcomes have provided critical practical and societal implications for the industry and society. The companies may incorporate the environment as a cornerstone in short & longterm strategies for sustainable development. On the other hand, organizations may provide an eco-friendly environment to society.

Competitiveness of the Selected Countries of the EU with a Focus on the Quality of the Business Environment

The business environment and entrepreneurship are important elements in the economic growth of each country. The better the business environment a given country offers, the more attractive the country is for small and large companies as well as for private entrepreneurs. A high level of business competitiveness can help a country secure economic growth, especially after overcoming a crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Many institutions focus on the measurement of the business environment using indices to evaluate its quality. The main goal of the present study is to evaluate the quality of the business environment through multicriteria analysis. For the period from 2018 to 2020, the data were analysed by using seven selected indices of the weighted sum approach (WSA) and the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) methods. The research sample included all EU countries that joined the EU at the same time in 2004. The processing of analytical data was gradually implemented by using descriptive statistics and multicriteria evaluation methods. The methods used in the multicriteria evaluation of variants determined the rankings of the individual variants in terms of the selected criteria using entropy. We concluded that the efficiency of the business environments in Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and Slovenia are below the EU average. Within this group of countries, Estonia, Malta and Slovenia have seen the largest regeneration of their business environment since having joined the EU.

Supply Chain Finance, Performance and Risk: How Do SMEs Adjust Their Buyer-Supplier Relationship for Competitiveness?

Supply chain finance (SCF) has attracted considerable attention being an innovative business model that allows firms, especially small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), to convert illiquid assets into cash without incurring additional liabilities. However, its effects on SME performance and risk have been insufficiently studied. The competitiveness of SMEs depends on performance enhancement and risk mitigation. Thus, this study constructs a scaled-decile rank transformation of account receivable turnover to gauge the degree to which a supplier implements SCF, thereby examining the relationship between SCF, performance, and risk. We collect data on 4,679 SMEs from the Chinese manufacturing sector. Thereafter, hierarchical linear regression, a complex form of multiple linear regression analysis, is employed to test the hypotheses. The results indicate that an SME’s SCF adoption positively impacts its performance but negatively impacts its risk. To further explore cross-sectional variability, we investigated the buyer-supplier relationship’s moderating role. Results show that an increase in customer concentration strengthens both the positive effects of SCF on performance and the negative effects of SCF on risk. Overall, our study contributes to the literature on the interface of operations and finance in supply chains by exploring the multiple facets of SCF adoption and highlighting the moderating role of buyer-supplier relationship in SCF and SME competitiveness. Finally, we provide managerial implications for SMEs and financial service providers by validating the value of SCF implementation and the buyer-supplier relationship management in forging competitive advantages.

The Role of Trait Competitiveness and Entrepreneurial Alertness in the Cognitive Process of Entrepreneurship Among Students: A Cross-Cultural Comparative Study Between Vietnam and Poland

Our study aims to explore the influences of trait competitiveness and entrepreneurial alertness on the cognitive process of entrepreneurship in the cross-cultural context of Vietnam and Poland, two emerging nations with different levels of economic and social development. To achieve this research goal, two student questionnaire surveys were carried out at universities and institutes in Vietnam and Poland. Structural equation modelling (SEM) with a bootstrapping approach was utilised to test the proposed hypotheses and conceptual model. Eight hypotheses were statistically supported by the Vietnamese dataset, confirming the significant and positive effects of both trait competitiveness and entrepreneurial alertness on the cognition process of entrepreneurship. However, for the Polish data, trait competitiveness was not found to be associated with an entrepreneurial attitude, perceived behaviour control, or entrepreneurial intention, while entrepreneurial alertness was positively related to perceived behavioural control. Our study has significantly contributed to the entrepreneurship literature by increasing the knowledge about the central role of trait competitiveness and entrepreneurial alertness on the cognitive process of business ventures in two emerging countries, where to the best of our knowledge, few studies related to our topic have been researched. Moreover, practical contributions are also offered for educational institutions and practitioners to stimulate university students’ business venturing activities.

Implementation of Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy to Enhance Firm Reputation and Competitive Advantage

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is an important strategy for firms to gain a positive reputation. This study aims to identify the mediating role of firm reputation on the relationships of CSR dimensions (economic, legal, ethical, philanthropic and environmental) and competitive advantage, and how a firm directly gains competitive advantage through CSR implementation. Data were collected by surveying 869 managers, as representatives of small and medium enterprises, and large enterprises, in the trade and service, real estate and manufacturing sectors in Vietnam. Then, SmartPLS 3.0 software and the partial least squares structural equation modelling method were used to process the data and test the hypotheses. The empirical results are impactful and enhance the existing literature on strategic management. The results show that implementing environmental, ethical, philanthropic and legal CSR activities contribute positively to increase the firm reputation and thus generating competitive advantage. The findings indicate that the implementation of economic CSR activities does not enable firms to gain a reputation. In contrast, active involvement in environmental CSR activities results in building firm reputation, thereby creating a source of competitive advantage for firms. The study provides guidelines for top-level management to adjust their CSR strategies more effectively to improve reputation and competitive advantage.

The Perception of Market and Economic Risks by Owners and Managers of Enterprises in the V4 Countries

The aim of the paper is to assess the impact of the length of entrepreneurship on the perception of the most important business risks in Slovakia and the Visegrad Group of Countries (V4 countries). The empirical research was conducted in 2019-2020. It was focused on assessing the state of enterprise risk management (ERM) application. The research file contained 422 online questionnaires completed by owners and managers of enterprises (OMEs). The results of this case study were compared with the results of similar studies performed in the V4 countries in 2017-2018. In total, 1,781 OMEs participated in the surveys mentioned. The following statistical methods were used to assess the data: ANOVA, Bartlett’s test, Agostini test, good fit test, and Grubbs test. The overall results of the empirical research highlight the significance and importance of the assessment of business risks in the V4 countries. The results in Slovakia in 2019-2020 and the research results in the V4 countries in 2017-2018 show that OMEs still consider market and economic risks to be most important in their business. Market and economic risks are related to sources that exert the most negative influence on enterprise success. The results are valuable for entrepreneurs, enterprise managers and institutions that provide comprehensive entrepreneurship support in the V4 countries. The overall results are significant at the regional, national, and international levels of the V4 countries and have the ability to strengthen the competitiveness of entrepreneurs within the EU common market.

Does Core Competence Affect Corporate Social Responsibility?

Core competence is the key factor in the competitiveness of enterprises. This study examines whether enterprises with stronger core competence have the ability and motivation to fulfill more corporate social responsibilities. Taking the non-financial companies listed in the A-share market in China from 2010 to 2019 as the research samples, this paper constructs the measurement index of core competence by text analysis method and empirically tests the impact of core competence on corporate social responsibility. We find that the stronger the core competence is, the higher the corporate social responsibility will be, which means core competence can significantly improve corporate social responsibility. This conclusion remains significant after a series of robustness tests. The mechanism test shows that the impact of core competence on corporate social responsibility is realized by enhancing financial strength and increasing external attention. Further research shows that the relationship between core competence and corporate social responsibility are affected by the nature of the enterprise and the degree of market competition. When the enterprise is a non-state-owned enterprise or the industry competition is more intense, the influence of core competence on corporate social responsibility is stronger. This paper reveals the important impact of core competence on corporate social responsibility, which not only enriches the literature on the economic consequences of core competence and the influencing factors of corporate social responsibility but also has a certain practical significance for how to improve corporate social responsibility.