The triple role of university academic staff and its effects on students’ satisfaction: contractual tie and gender contextual analysis

The university academic staff is a key element of the quality of universities. Therefore, it is essential to understand if performance in their three possible roles (teaching, research and management) affects the learning process of students and, more specifically, their satisfaction. A database of 992 satisfaction surveys conducted at the University of Girona was used to show that not all the roles affect these two aspects in the same way and that contextual factors such as contractual tie and gender are also significant.

Company philosophy and its reputation through an analysis of the MERCO ranking

Social responsibility has been incorporated as a fundamental aspect in the structuring of large organizations. It is inevitable from a communicative and social interpretation perspective of organizations, not to observe them as socially incorporated entities and active agents in society. In the last two decades there has been not only an advance in the theoretical conceptualization of social responsibility, but also a normative and strategic design of the implementation of SR in companies. In the present investigation, a comparative study is presented that analyzes the development and execution of Social Responsibility in Spanish and Mexican companies. For this, the index based on Corporate Reputation Corporate Monitoring (MERCO Ranking) will be taken as a basis, selecting those considered as the ten best companies positioned in Spain and Mexico. The objective of the study is to determine the coherence of the MERCO Reputation Index with the theoretical concept of social responsibility. As well as determining the real role of the SR in the organizational philosophy and the materialization of it.

Demographic Drivers of Workplace Deviance: A Survey of Clinical and Non-Clinical Hospital Professionals

This paper aims to determine the extent to which employee demographic characteristics (gender, age, tenure and professional group) predict an employee’s decision to participate in deviant workplace behavior. We conduct a quantitative field study consisting in a survey of 113 clinical and non-clinical professionals at the three largest hospitals in Brazil. ANOVA and linear regression were used to test the hypothesized model. Our results reveal that those most prone to deviant behavior are the short tenure, young and administrative professionals. Although we found no association between gender and workplace deviance, our results generate specific knowledge on relevant behavioral issues involving clinical and non-clinical hospital professionals. The knowledge of the demographic characteristics that may predict workplace deviance will allow managers to design and implement more accurate control systems and training programs that could reduce this dysfunctional behavior and its negative impact on organizations and society.

The Role of Awareness, Learning and Knowledge in Entrepreneurial and Firm Leadership Processes

Scholars in recent years have urged researchers to shift from their traditional focus on specific characteristics of entrepreneurs and leaders toward research on entrepreneurship and leadership processes. To do this, researchers must better understand entrepreneurs and leaders’ cognitive processes involved in learning, awareness and knowledge acquisition. In this paper systems thinking theory and system dynamics methodologies are used in the development of a dynamic conceptual framework of learning effectiveness. The research applies the conceptual framework to nine U.S. wineries and identifies the consequences of varying levels of awareness and types of knowledge, as well as alternative learning processes on entrepreneurship and leadership effectiveness. Results indicate that one’s level of awareness and knowledge are key factors in enhancing one’s ability to learn. The types of awareness and knowledge identified most critical for enhancing entrepreneurship and leadership effectiveness are: (a) awareness of one’s mental models and learning patterns, (b) systemic knowledge and (c) business related knowledge. Results also identify that there is a positive relationship between the level of entrepreneurs’ intangible key resources and the scope of the learning process undergone. The higher the level of the intangible resources the entrepreneur moves from conducting single loop learning to double loop learning.

How the Mission Internalization Works? An Empirical Research

The objective of this paper is to analyse the process of the definition and deployment of a company’s mission, to obtain a better understanding of the employees’ role. On the basis of the literature investigating the dimensions of the internalization of a mission (leadership, importance, knowledge, co-workers’ engagement and implication), the paper proposes a model that shows the cause and effect relationships among these dimensions. A survey addressed to Spaniards was launched, and 400 valid responses were received. The data was analysed using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) for an initial model that shows the causal relations among the dimensions for the internalization of a mission. An array of Lagrange multiplier tests suggested modifications for refining the model and proposed one with acceptable fit indices, where the last dimension to be accomplished is “Implication”. The findings show a direct effect between “Leadership” and “Implication”, and double mediation. On the one hand, there is second order mediation through “Knowledge” and “Importance”. On the other hand, there is mediation through “Co-workers’ engagement”. This sequencing among the five dimensions of the internalization of the mission gives new clues and evidence for managers that will help them to define and implement a successful mission statement.

Women with STEM qualifications on supervisory boards. Does a high women quota in supervisory boards influence firm success?

Many large companies in Europe include mainly men in supervisory boards and the women quota is often lower than 20 %. In Germany an optional women quota of 30 % in supervisory boards was proposed for capital market oriented companies in 2016. Some assume that without a gender quota the earnings of enterprises would shrink as male and female members in supervisory teams do not work in such a harmonized and structured way. Others think that a women quota in supervisory boards should be requested by law and should not remain optional. In this context, conducting research and analyzing the impact of the women’s presence in supervisory boards on the success of companies appear as a necessary topic. The present article looks at the companies of EURO STOXX 50 in the year 2015 and their success and tries to establish whether this success can be related to the percentage of female members in supervisory positions. It replicates in this way the study of Binder, Alonso-Almeida and Bremser (2016) which analyzed the relationship between female’s representation in the management board (executive board) and firm performance (measured by earnings before taxes – EBT) of the EURO STOXX 50 companies in 2014. It is in the same time an extension of the original study as the supervisory board is brought under scrutiny and a closer look at women qualifications, and especially women with STEM qualifications is provided.

Open Innovation in Times of Covid-19: The case of Project OxyGEN

In the face of the health crisis unleashed by Covid-19, experts worldwide took on the challenge of designing a low-cost emergency ventilator that could be assembled quickly. This study analizes the successful case of the Project OxyGEN, led by the Barcelona-based design firm Protofy, which created an industrial-class emergency ventilator and obtained approval from the Spanish Ministry of Health (AEMPS) for use on patients. The project received scientific support from a local Research Hospital, and SEAT, a Volkswagen subsidiary, collaborated in the OxyGEN ventilators’ mass-production. This open-hardware project sprung into action teams in more than 32 countries involved in the collaborative design process, adopted or made an iteration of the technology. These teams collaborated with suppliers, consultants, universities, and research institutes to drive this innovation forward. The case highlights the Open Innovation approach, inter-organisational relationships between firms of different sectors with research institutions, and innovation communities.