CBERICBED June-2021

International business has grown rapidly in recent years as companies seek to take advantage of expanding supply chain opportunities. As companies enter into contracts to take advantage of engineering, production, and cost reduction capabilities of the global supply chain, they may be creating a foreign currency exchange rate risk. The quantitative study examined the 60-day EUR/USD exchange rate fluctuation and the use of currency call options to hedge the risk associated with EUR/USD currency fluctuations.  The researcher analyzed 13 years of historical EUR/USD currency data and 10 years of actual EUR call options premiums for this research paper.  The researcher concluded that the variability of the EUR/USD over 60-days does pose financial risk to a company.  The study also found that using currency call options to hedge this 60-day exchange rate risk resulted in an overall transactional financial loss as compared to no hedging.  However, research studies have shown that the use of hedging instruments to smooth financial results may result in lower overall financing costs which could offset the hedging transactional costs.  This study did not address the benefits of the use of hedging to smooth financial results or obtain other related financial benefits.  The researcher recommends that a firm should recognize the exchange rate risks it may be establishing within 60-day EUR or USD payable contracts and develop an appropriate hedging strategy. 

The unprecedented COVID-19 global pandemic radically changed the way we do things. The face mask is now a must to put on, and you do not handshake anyone. We are not even allowed to go near any person within six feet to maintain social distancing. The sudden pandemic lockdown forced all face-to-face classes into online classes overnight. It added immense pressure and stress to both instructors and students that brought many negative consequences. The sustained disruption has challenged higher education institutions to maintain academic continuity and put them into a grave financial situation due to a substantial decline in cash flow. This paper presents a case study of the transition to online learning for the Computer Information Systems classes at Medgar Evers College during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. We present the method we used to maintain academic continuity, examine the challenges of abrupt online transition, and assess what we learned from its outcome. In conclusion, we discuss the threats and opportunities for higher education institutions in the post-pandemic, which might change the entire landscape of higher education.

Entrepreneurial orientation resulting from entrepreneurship education in tertiary institutions has produced mixed findings in the developed context, especially in Northeast Nigeria, where the insurgency has been disrupting education over the years. This study investigated the level of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) of students in Yola, a region in Northeast Nigeria grappling with the onslaughts of the Boko Haram insurgency. This quantitative study examined the difference between the level of Entrepreneurial Orientations of Students before (BEO) and after taking entrepreneurship modules (AEO) while relying on primary data collected from three different categories of tertiary institutions in Nigeria (a polytechnic, a college, and a university) through a structured questionnaire. Relevant literature was reviewed to enrich the understanding of the researcher on different extents of the study. In the absence of a sample frame in the target population, a sample size of 270 students was selected based on the research eligibility criteria. Out of this sample, 191 respondents filled and returned the questionnaires.

Descriptive statistical analysis and Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) were used to analyze the data collected. The level of Entrepreneurial Orientation among students was measured to determine how students were innovative, proactive, risk-taking, and competitive aggressive before and after taking entrepreneurship modules. A significant difference between the level of EO before and after taking entrepreneurship modules, a meaningful relationship between the entrepreneurial orientation of students, and desire for self-employment after graduation was indicated. SEM results showed a significant positive impact of entrepreneurial orientation on students' willingness to self-employment after graduation. This research enriched the literature with a new understanding of entrepreneurial orientation. It provided modest empirical findings pertinent to policymakers interested in advancing Entrepreneurship Education (EE) in tertiary institutions.

Based on the findings regarding factors affecting the entrepreneurial orientation of students, the study recommends solutions for improving and developing an effective entrepreneurial orientation strategy in tertiary institutions.

Entities in the developing nations of Africa, just like other entities in the developed world need to demonstrate good stewardship in order to attract and retain investment. This means that African countries need a robust accounting infrastructure to deliver reliable and comparable financial information. This paper reviews the current status of accounting in Africa, by looking at the structure of the accounting profession, oversight of accounting entities, currency and monetary control, the status of adoption of International Financial Accounting Standards, the level of accounting research in Africa, and developments in accounting pedagogy at African institutions of higher education. This overview is intended to provide a baseline from which future researchers can develop further investigations into the accounting profession across the continent or a region of Africa.

This research aims to study the impact of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) (information quality, system quality and system use) and human resource management (HRM) practices (training and development, information exchange, recruitment and testing, compensation and benefits, safety and health and employee relations) on organizational performance. Through the Balanced scorecard (financial performance, customer performance, supplier performance and employee performance) in the rebar sector companies within the Arab Republic of Egypt. Therefore, the researcher used the positivism philosophy in this study and the deductive approach because they are more compatible with the nature of the research and with what the researcher wants to reach. He also followed a quantitative method in collecting data, as he prepared a questionnaire and distributed it to 260 individuals working in the reinforcing steel sector.

The data is analyzed using some statistical methods such as: correlation, and the structural equation model. The results fully accept the study hypotheses that there is a statistically significant relationship between ERP and organizational performance through the balanced scorecard. In addition to, relationship between ERP and HRM practices, moreover, relationship between HRM practices and organizational performance through the balanced scorecard. While it partially accepts that here is a statistically significant role for HRM practices, in the relationship between ERP and organizational performance through the Balanced Scorecard.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a theoretical and analytical framework by explaining the sustainable livelihoods framework and farming system model from a sustainable point of view. The author studied over 200 publications downloaded using the electronic database search of EBSCO through UNISA online library in June 2018. Keyword combinations of ‘land’, ‘tenure’ and ‘sustainable use’ were used to search for peer-reviewed journal articles published in English from January 1980 to May 2018. The article examines most relevant literature to consolidate the necessary theoretical and analytical foundation in analysing individual and group motivations towards sustainable land management practices. The literature review affirmed that a comprehensive theoretical and analytical framework is scant to empirically analyze the determinants of sustainable land management practices. To partially fill this knowledge gap, the paper provided a generic analytical framework that gives insight not only on pre-decisional processes, but also on post-decisional processes of continued and sustained use of conservation technologies. The analytical framework is developed by combining the sustainable livelihoods framework with the farming system model. It is concluded that the economic theory of property rights may not be adequate as a model to guide land tenure studies and policy. It is recommended that a holistic approach and comprehensive analytical framework is vital for research and development endeavours to ensure sustainable land management practices.

The purpose of this paper is to propose a conceptual framework for examining the impact of innovation and supply chain management practices on operational performance of FMCG organizations within the Middle East and North Africa Region. The quantitative data is collected through 519 questionnaires as the research population refers to Henkel across the Middle East and North Africa. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) is adopted to examine the causal relationships between’ supply chain management practices, innovation capabilities and operational performance. The findings of this paper reveal that Supply chain management practices have a positive influence on operational performance. Supply chain management practices have a positive influence on innovation capabilities. The direct effect between innovation capabilities and operational performance is statistically significant. However, the results of the mediation effect indicate that there is partial mediation effect of the innovation capabilities between supply chain management practices and operational performance.

This article analyses the role of Global Business Education (GBE) and proposes the Applied Holistic Mathematical Model for GBE (AHMM4GBE). The AHMM4GBE is based on a lifetime long research on business transformations, Artificial Intelligence (AI), applied mathematics, software modelling, business engineering, educational systems, financial analysis, security and enterprise architecture. The used research methodology is based on the author’s authentic mixed research method that is supported by a mainly qualitative reasoning module. AHMM4GBE’s formalism mimics the human brain, by using empirical processes that are mainly based on heuristics. The AHMM4GBE is used to implement a decision-making system (or an expert system) to support a GBE and uses a behaviour-driven development environment that can be easily adopted by any organization. The development environment can be used by any team member without any prior computer sciences qualifications. The AHMM4GBE is used to estimate the Role of AI in GEB’s (RAIGBE) context and tries to estimate the roles of the giants in this domain, like USA, China, and India; and what would be the real role of the European Union and France.

The uniqueness of this research is that the AHMM4GBE promotes a holistic unbundling process, the alignment of transformation strategies to support GBE’s evolution. For a successful integration of the AHMM4GBE in projects, the manager’s profile and role are crucial, where his decisions are supported by the selection, implementation and processing of critical success factors. A holistic systemic system approach is the optimal choice to integrate an RAI4GBE.

Constant electricity supply enhances smooth running and performances of SMEs. However, electricity outages in Nigeria have been identified as one of the factors hindering SMEs’ performance. This study aimed at exploring the impact of electricity outages on the operations and contributions of SMEs to Nigeria economy. Hence, the study evaluated the impacts of electricity supply on the growth of SMEs in Nigeria. It analysed the hindrances that deficient electricity supply could have on the growth and development of SMEs. Survey method was employed to administer structured questionnaires to 110 SMEs operators in three local government areas of Mainland, Shomolu and Agege in Lagos state, Nigeria. Descriptive statistics was utilised to analyse the collected data. A chi square method was used to test the formulated hypothesis. Findings revealed that electricity outages have significant effects on SMEs in Nigeria. The study recommends among other things that, state and local governments should join hands with federal government in generating electricity to ensure stable electricity supply; cost-benefit back-up generating plant is also recommended to keep business operative.

This article proposes the fundaments of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and is the basics to support Virtual Reality Systems (VRS) for Education and Sports (VRS4ES). The Applied Holistic Mathematical Model (AHMM) for AI (AHMM4AI) is the result of research on AI, business, education, digital sport, financial and organizational transformations using a mathematical model’s concept. This research project is based on an authentic and proprietary mixed research method that is supported by an underlining mainly qualitative holistic reasoning model module that uses quantitative functions (Trad & Kalpić, 2020a). The VRS4ES uses the Artificial Intelligence Pattern (AIP) to manage eActivity (eEducation or eSports) processes. Such projects are cross-functional and complex undertakings, developed using selection-based classification and weightings of critical success factors and areas, which are used as global variables in VRS4ES. In this article the main subject is VRS4ES that uses AIP for optimal integration purposes. Such transformation projects can be applied to various types of VRS, like team competition, personal training, intelligent support activities and other. People have become addicted to virtual environments and videogames since the 80s, but what is interesting, is the attractiveness they boast nowadays. eActivity, or competitive videogame playing, have exponentially expended in the last decade, to the level that in 2017 the second most watched sporting event in the USA, after the Superbowl, was an eActivity competition (Acer, 2018).  

The rapid population growth and the ongoing globalization of the economies result in increased competitiveness. Customers now prefer organizations’ that do not just meet but also exceed their needs. Vertical Integration (VI) has been used as a vital tool to increase competitiveness by aligning organizational functions and promoting new opportunities through supply chain management. Though, there has been ambiguity in findings on the impact of vertical integration on financial performance worldwide. Hence, the purpose of this study is to provide empirical evidence regarding the impact of vertical integration on financial performance in African emerging economies, a case study of Olam Nigeria Limited. The secondary data was obtained from Olam's cross-sectional financial record between 2010-2018, and the primary data was from 175 respondents out of the 183 questionnaires administered to the employee sample frame.

Descriptive statistics and regression analysis were used to analyze the data. The findings indicate a positive impact between the components of vertical integration and financial performance measures in Olam Nigeria Limited. This study is one of the first studies conducted in emerging economies after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) upgraded 9 African countries, including Nigeria. These findings can serve as a strategic, operational guide for business managers who may be considering vertical integration to improve their financial performance. This study also adds to the secondary source on the subject matter in the Nigerian Agribusiness sector, and it reiterates the three theories: transaction cost theory, resource-based theory, and property rights theory. However, the financial performance measurement metrics are limited to Olam's recommended parameters to gauge its progress, and the study did not cover the moderating variables.

Objective: Since December 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic has posed a considerable threat with its associated high mortality, infection, and hazard of physical, mental, emotional, financial, and spiritual stress (WHO, 2020). A large number of students are affected due to a chronic break from classroom academic activities, the pressure of being hired for an internship or final placement and staying at home. The main focus of this learning is to know the stressors of graduate and post-graduate Indian students and their major hurdles during the COVID-19 lockdown. Further, the study aims to facilitate a proposed model of training, by combining 7 psychosocial variables of emotional resilience which might empower the students to cater to stressors and improve personal, academic, and professional effectiveness (Chen et.al, 2020; Horesh et.al, 2020)

Methods: Using a convenience method, an internet survey of the 6-item COVID-19 Student Stress Questionnaire (CSSQ) (modified version Zurlo et.al, 2020) was conducted on students across India. together with their demographic details, the participants also reported their study patterns and challenges during their confinement period. The statistical scores for the responses were calculated and also the demographic variables analyzed using the factor analysis technique. (Ahorsu et.al,2020)

Findings, discussion, and implications: The findings suggest that self-awareness, self-regulation, mental agility, optimism, self-efficacy, sense of belonging and psychological safety may be the important emotional resilience to be developed among the Indian students to cope with physical, mental, emotional, financial, and spiritual stressors confronted by them during COVID 19 pandemic to increase personal and professional effectiveness (Maria et.al, 2020, Zurlo et.al. 2017)

Conclusion: The study has several practical implications for counseling psychologists, academicians, parents, life coaches handling youth and mental health workers related to the graduate and post-graduate education sector (Taylor et.al, 2020; Sahu et.al, 2020).

The research aims to explain Thailand’s value-based economy and its implications on wellness business. The research uses political and management theories namely, developmental state theory, neo-authoritarian developmental state theory, social network theory, social capital theory, diffusion of innovation theory, resource-based theory, and image theory to portray and applied into the case.

Moreover, the research is a qualitative research by nature as it uses semi-structure interviews and focus groups to find the answers. The main finding of this research is that since 2002 where the Thai government has set “Medical and Wellness Tourism” as the country’s development strategy to make Thailand a “hub” for medical and wellness tourism—though the country’s politics has faced two coup d’états and the country’s administrations have been rough as it is controlled by different political groups—both, civilian and military, governments have followed the strategy and have highlighted medical and wellness business sector as one of their development strategies as well as policies.

The conclusion of the research is that the military government has stepped forward from solely being authoritarian state and transform the country to become a neo-authoritarian developmental state where it practices capitalism while limits people participation in politics. On top of that, the state implements policies that benefit healthcare and wellness industry, especially SMEs, to assure that it achieves the goal of being a medical and wellness hub of the region.

Orientation: Financial Technology (FinTech) is causing a transformation in the traditional methods of financial services. In the financial planning industry, Robo-advisors are a novel FinTech solution which can enhance the current services of financial planners.

Research purpose: This study provides an overview of the functions and processes of Robo-advisors and investigates the intentions of financial planners to adopt Robo-advisors into their practices.

Motivation for the study: Research on the intentions of financial planners to adopt Robo-advisors can yield results which may assist in easing the incorporation of Robo-advisors into financial planning practices

Research approach/design and method: Interpretivist paradigm and phenomenological qualitative approach adopted. Criterion and snowball sampling employed to conduct semi-structured interviews with 13 financial planners. Data derived from interviews was analysed by means of a directed content analysis.

Main findings: The intentions of financial planners were influenced by the following factors: their intentions to use, training and education, experience, system quality and compatibility with tasks  

Practical/managerial implications and conclusions: institutions and professional bodies within the financial planning sector can use the Robo-advisory Adoption Model (RAAM) to facilitate the process of adoption into practices. Furthermore, the RAAM developed in this study can be used to measure the intentions of financial planners to adopt Robo-advisors and other technologies. This model can be tested and applied in future research projects.

The proportion of household debt to disposable income is very high in South Africa, signifying over-indebtedness which reduces the welfare of households and ultimately reduces economic growth. This paper presents the determinants of the household debt in South Africa and comes up with a framework of recommendations on how to manage household debt.  The objectives are achieved through systematic literature review, document analysis and secondary data analysis. Our findings suggest that households are over-indebted because they lack the necessary finance management skills, lack proper protection from the predatory practices by lenders and fail to obtain disclosure of vital information pertaining credit which affects their decision to borrow. Household indebtedness is also caused by the rising cost of living and low household disposable income, low household savings, high interest rates, misfortunes or adverse trigger events and living in urban areas. Education, age and being a recipient of a social grant all have positive and negative impacts on household indebtedness. Findings also suggest that female-headed households, renting households, large households, households with a mortgage and households where head is not working, is sick or disabled are more likely to be over-indebted. We develop a framework with recommendations for managing household debt in South Africa. We recommend upskilling to help households to effectively manage their finances and take responsibility. Moneylending institutions are encouraged to disclose vital information pertaining credit which affects decision to borrow by households and to avoid predatory lending. We also recommend a review of interest rates on debt and availability of consumption insurance on all loans to cover for cases when the household faces unforeseen circumstances affecting repayment.

One of the topical challenges facing South African municipalities recently is corruption. From time-to-time citizens learn about and witness the corrupt practices of public officials in the Local Government sphere. Arguably, the phenomenon of corruption has both direct and indirect impact on service delivery with specific focus to municipalities. Section 152(1) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (1996) states that the Local Government sphere has the mandate to ensure the provision of services to communities in a sustainable manner. Subsequently, some of the communities across the country still wish to have access to basic services namely: water, electricity, community halls and proper tar roads to name a few. As a result, at times it seems impossible for municipalities to smoothly render such services due to corrupt practices emanating in the South African Local Government sphere. This article aimed to explore the impact of corruption on service delivery in the South African municipalities. The article fully relied on secondary data as it collects information from newspapers, books, journal articles, conference proceedings, officials report and academic dissertations. In pursuit of all this, Afrocentricity: a theory of social change has been placed in context with a view that the needs of the society should be placed at the center of the local government sphere. To be specific, these needs are but not limited to water and electricity. Looking at the findings of the study, indeed literature can confirm that corruptions have negative impact on the ability of the municipalities in South Africa to provide basic services. Because the interests of the public are competing with those of the municipal officials. Therefore, at the end of the day service delivery is compromised due unlawful practices.

Previous studies have highlighted the important role, fashion can play in one’s cognition and behaviour and how one’s body is impacted, especially people with disabilities. Due to the inconclusive results on the topic, we decided to undertake an empirical study in South Africa to determine how fashion can be used to help women with disabilities deal with issues of body image, low esteem and negative mindset. The study reviewed the literature on body image and disability, body image and fashion as well as on fashion therapy and body image. The study adopted a qualitative research design while interviews were used as means of primary data collection. Data analysis was done by means of coding the participants’ responses before conclusions were drawn about the participants’ views. Findings reveal that fashion can help women with disabilities to deal with issues related to low self-esteem and body image. The study ends with recommendations to include other segments of the disabled community in the study, as well as to expand the study in the other parts of the country.

The government of South Africa adopted Local Economic Development (LED) as part of its development policy in its quest for an inclusive economic development and growth. LED is intended to create a conducive environment for an inclusive local economy. However, unemployment and poverty rates are high in local communities with some SMMEs struggling to secure funding. Although municipalities do not create jobs directly through LED, they should, however, ensure that strategies implemented talk to inclusive economic growth, particularly the mitigation of unemployment and poverty rates. The purpose of the paper is to investigate the efficacy of LED in South African municipalities. The paper aims to evaluate and analyse the impact of implementing LED in South Africa.  The quantitative research approach was adopted, and questionnaires were utilised to collect primary data. The paper found that LED in South Africa produces desired results at a low rate in that only a small fraction of the participants agrees that the municipality facilitates funding for SMMEs; only a small fraction of the participants is of the view that LED units provide adequate infrastructure and create industries. Moreover, the paper found that only a fraction of the participants is able to create job opportunities. Consequently, the paper recommends that municipalities should facilitate SMMEs funding, provide adequate infrastructure, develop industries and design LED strategies that enhance job creation. The paper argues that effective measures of implementing LED will enhance LED impact rate and fast track the prospects of inclusive economic growth in South African municipalities.

The paper “Social Business under the Youth Guarantee: Experience from the ground in Albania” deals with the model of Social Business, piloted in Albania, as a sustainable mode to encourage youth entrepreneurship and employment. The Albanian social business model, named Youth Albanian Parcel Service (YAPS), which employs exclusively disadvantaged youth, is an innovative example of new thinking on tackling social exclusion and reducing poverty.

Case analysis of YAPS (Youth Albanian Parcel Service), the successful Social Business Model established almost 20 years ago thanks to a harmonized multidimensional effort of key stakeholders, is used to bring in evidence from the ground to promote the novel concept of using efficiency and in-built sustainability of free markets to generate social wealth.   

The evidence provided here shows that a new approach is emerging vis-á-vis social policies. A shift in thinking on social policy foresees the emergence of a social capital approach to social exclusion. This approach involves the mobilization of the entire community-including business actors and civil society leaders-in tackling social exclusion and empowering disadvantaged members of society.

Therefore, it is the government, which should bear the burden of finding ways to harmonize economic development with social policies. Although social business is perceived as relevant by all stakeholders, people are looking for clear guidance from the government because they still miss innitiative, financial resources and entrepreneurship education. Hence, the government may utilize economic levers to encourage the development of markets and competition; it may exercise its social role by implementing active labour market policies. Nevertheless, alongside them, the government must boost the education of people with the rules of democracy and the market, alike. These three roles are inextricably linked as they reflect the new political, social and economic order in which we live and secondly, because they determine a new relationship between citizen and the state in the post-communist era.

Purpose of the research: To identify and explore the construction of professionalism in a multiple professional bodies (MPB) landscape in South Africa (SA) and demonstrate how such construction can be used to enhance professional accreditation regime.

Design of research and methodology: The study used a qualitative research design. This required five consecutive steps of (a) interviewing member services managers at four professional bodies (PBs); (b) systematic content analysis of codes of professional conduct (CPCs) and policy statements to identify constituent professionalism notions; (c) a systematic search of the literature to identify notions of professionalism mentioned in definitions and explanations of the construct; and (d) analysis of notions of professionalism using the constant comparison procedure to reveal key themes. The results in (a) through to (d) were used to advance a programmatic framework to construct professionalism in an MPB landscape.

Research results: The construction of professionalism is linked to services rendered and competencies in the MPB landscape. The existing licensing regime encapsulates the increased importance of the MPB landscape, leading to a shift away from a conventional conceptualisation of professionalism in a single professional body (PB) setting. A total of 90 separate notions of professionalism were identified in the 192 scholarly papers included in our study. The identified theme within BRP professionalism (emphasising relational aspects) point to practitioner dealings with (i) clients (business rescue candidates); (ii) government and others; (iii) the PB; and (iv) oneself to gain the essence of occupation. There is fragmentation between the constructed conceptualisations of professionalism among PBs, leading to an incoherent and inconsistent expert accreditation regime.

Practical implications and value: The findings of the study are useful in the integration of practitioner learning and development practices in the PBs whose members serve as BRPs. BRP is a regulated occupation and requires a distinct professional accreditation framework (PAF) to integrate multidimensional professionalism in the MPB landscape. Approaches to enhance accreditation should consider delineating BRP services and task from interview results from a community of practitioners. The PAF will structure the construction, investigation, and documentation of occupational professionalism required by the licensing authorities.

Kosovo's economy is young and dynamic. It has been transformed from a decentralized economy to an open market economy. As an important place for business development, Kosovo offers several advantages such as a young and well-qualified population, natural resources, etc. Creating an environment for sustainable economic growth and improving competitiveness has been the main focus of supporting various donors (World Bank/WB, United States Agency for International Development/USAID, etc.) for Kosovo from the transition from crisis to long-term development, working closely with the Government of Kosovo to face challenges and mitigate obstacles by building a sound and market-based economy. This paper is bringing an overview of economic development in Kosovo and provides an analysis of the impact of donors in the development of various economic sectors, especially during the most delicate period that Kosovo has gone through and specifically the transition to an open market economy. The purpose of this study is to prove and demonstrate the impact of donor assistance on economic development in various sectors in Kosovo as a necessary tool to maintain the sustainability of best practices in any field of economics and based on the findings of the study to express our views.

The adoption of enterprise application architecture (EAA) for supply chain management (SCM) in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) is influenced by the Owner’s Physiognomies & Incitements on a routine basis. EAA is essential for optimum SCM performance since it enlightens and enhances enterprise services, software, and hardware. The purpose of this study is to examine the Owner’s Physiognomies & Incitements for using EAA for SCM in SMEs in the Capricorn District Municipality. The empirical analysis is presented using data from a dissertation for a master's degree in commerce from 2018 to 2020. The study employs a quantitative approach based on a linear regression model. Cronbach's Alpha, descriptive statistics on the normality test, the Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Pearson Correlations, analysis of variance (ANOVA), Pearson's Coefficients, and linear regression are all included. Empirical investigation demonstrates that both the Owner’s Physiognomies & Incitements are directly associated with EAA adoption. Overall, the model accounts for a substantial proportion of the variation in EAA adoption for SCM in SMEs. This work leads to the conclusion that there is a positive correlation between variables. The findings of this study will confirm the positive and negative impact of owner physiognomies and incitements on the adoption of EAA for SCM in SMEs. More research is required to examine the links between psychographic and behaviouristic owner incitements.

The South African accounting profession needs racial transformation. Consequently, students pursuing the chartered accountant (South Africa) (CA(SA)) designation, especially at-risk Black students, require adequate support. To be successful, the support must be driven by factors influencing students’ academic performance. As prior academic performance is one such factor, this study examines the relationship between the National Senior Certificate (NSC) exams and the National Benchmark Test (NBT) for students enrolled in an accounting degree at a South African university. Due to numerous moderate and strong correlations between NSC and NBT results, without multicollinearity, it was concluded that both sets of results should be considered as factors contributing to students’ academic performance. The findings highlight the need for further empirical research on NSC and NBT results as determinants of success for accounting students.

Innovation is a key element of economic development and a key factor in social processes. Technological and economic innovations cannot respond to all social challenges. However, innovation - the search for new and innovative solutions - needs to be interpreted more broadly than before. In line with social changes, the European Union pays more attention to the context of social innovation. The social enterprises play a vital role in modern societies. The subject of our study is social cooperatives, which are a type of social enterprise. The social cooperatives offer an opportunity to improve the employment skills. However, the management of this enterprises faces several dilemmas how can build up an effective control system of a social enterprises in Central-Europe. As our questionnaire stated, the major problem of social cooperative is the quality of available labour force. This paper focuses the applicability of the traditional Balanced Scorecard system to the special needs of a social cooperative. Here one area of the Balances Scorecard will be highlighted – the Human Resource management and how the tools can be effectively adapted to the social cooperatives.  A report system and a ratio analysis tool are developed to help the work of social cooperative managers.

The focus of this paper research question how can improve the monitoring of Human Resource Management in social enterprises like social cooperatives.

In the introduction part of this paper the importance of social innovation is emphasized, and a brief introduction to the development of controlling tools is provided. Next, part of our broader questionnaire is presented to highlight the importance of Human Resource Management in the Hungarian social cooperatives.  In the discussion part a special BSC is presented which is based on Bull’s social enterprise Business Scorecard system. The Human Resouce Management should consider the regulatory requirements of granting authority, so these are briefly introduced. Finally, some indicators and tables are presented which can help the Human Resource Management in a social innovation enterprise.

Despite the importance of promoting entrepreneurship in business activities to achieve a competitive advantage, a large proportion of business firms fail to make entrepreneurship a reality in their work. In addition, these constraints make it possible to gain a competitive advantage in the problems of the market in particular that modern markets are full of rivals and fast-paced changes in various variables. In light of this, the researcher carried out this study to investigate the role of entrepreneurship in achieving competitive advantage in SMEs. By using the descriptive-analytical approach, developing a questionnaire tool and distributing it to a sample of 100 administrators working in SMEs in Saudi Arabia. The results of the study showed that there is a positive relationship in the role of entrepreneurship in achieving competitive advantage in small and medium enterprises in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

In this paper the alignment of computer and digital literacy as well as student academic success were examined. Lack of adequate functional digital literacy training and the unreadiness of higher education institutions for the impact of random shocks such as COVID-19 pandemic has gravely affected teaching and learning.

The purpose of this paper is to make the case for preparedness of students to meet the needs of technology jobs by mandating and aligning digital literacy and student success. As COVID-19 Pandemic was spreading through the communities of the United States, institutions of higher education transitioned to fully online teaching and learning. Prior to the pandemic, fully online education was secondary to face-to-face format. Only about 20% of classes were fully online while 80% were face-to-face. Digital literacy was given a token treatment as a percentage of the entire curriculum and relegated to only the departments of computer information systems and computer sciences. Faculty, students, staff, families, and communities were not trained for the intensity of fully online education as the only format. Many of them never heard of most of the digital literacy tools. Both faculty and students were forced to learn the use of computers and digital literacy tools to survive the spring 2020 semester. Low-income families were left to the operational schedules of local libraries, many of whom did not have internet presence. The institutions provided limited training for faculty and students to meet the urgency of the time. Faculty and students were forced to purchase expensive tools and hardware to withstand the intensive demand of teaching and learning. Many students were overwhelmed by the pressure of the new way of learning; some dropped out of school while many performed very poorly in their examinations which negatively impacted their overall grade point averages.  One year later in spring 2021, the student success outcomes have barely changed. At the same time, technology is advancing despite the raging COVID pandemic. Millions of technology-enabled jobs remain unfilled while millions of university graduates are unemployed. There continues to be a mismatch between current job requirements in the industries and graduating students’ skills.

This paper discusses the indispensable value of building computer and digital literacy training into all undergraduate curriculums. We argue for mandated computer and digital literacy exit skills assessment test for all graduating students irrespective of their discipline. We also make the case for increased institutional investment in faculty training in computer and digital literacy readiness. There are a number of remedies suggested to address the speed of advancement in technology, faculty and student functional mastery of basic computer and digital literacy skills. We conclude that all institutions must be proactive rather than reactive to systemic shocks by preparing students for academic success and technological readiness for today’s job markets.

The past decade witnessed an alarming emergence of technologies that have significantly altered our view of technology and how consumers, businesses, or even entire industries operate... Those were disruptive technologies. Some of these disruptions have been as fast and comprehensive as to damage products, markets and even industries.  Think of consumer banking and un-smart phones! They have created a shift in products, processes, and business models to what we may term the "new normal".  (McKinsey, 2014). Disruptive technology brought with its brand of disruptive politics. Technology became a barrier, a sanction, a bargain, and a sovereign war chest weapon.  United States acrimonious attitude towards Chinese firms from ZTE to Huawei illustrated the trend. Similar episodes came to life in other contexts again, from Japanese chip "sanctions" against South Korea to the protracted admission of Russia's Corona vaccine in the European Union. The scope and scale of the skirmish is bound to escalate as technologies penetrate economies and major restructuring takes place. A cooperative multi-country effort is overdue.  A concept of "technology sharing" should replace technology banning.

Regulating executive compensation is a balancing act. Companies must balance the need to recruit, retain and motivate executives against the need to protect the interests of their investors. In pursuing the aim of motivating executives, remuneration works as a retention tool: companies must offer competitive pay packages to retain skilled executives. Yet, treating pay as a retention tool is a problematic idea that is fraught with its complexities. It cannot be viewed lightly. It is a risky retention strategy that can prove contrary to the best interests of the shareholders and the company. That is why it continuously provokes attention of unprecedented proportions.

Most companies wish to take advantage of the growing awareness of a need to turn towards environmentally friendly practices changing their business models by adopting a more appealing image. While the task at hand may seem blatantly obvious, it proves to be extremely difficult for certain companies to make their image convincing to a younger audience. The problem that exists is the phenomenon that is known as Greenwashing, where companies will stretch the truth (willingly or not) on how their products or services comply with environmental safety measures. Once a member of the Generation Z catches sight of false information, there is a tendency to hold on to their beliefs and boycott a company. Alongside boycotting, another trend has grown exponentially through social media: “Cancel Culture”.  This expression refers to large scale efforts to destroy the image of a person, or in this case a business based on ethical breaches. The stakes are high for companies that wish to turn towards an environmentally based structure, but in order to do so correctly they need to understand the behaviours and the requirements that members of the Generation Z have for companies. Young consumers need to be informed and active in their purchasing behaviour in order to respond to the high stakes of preserving the planet for the future.

Compassionate healthcare and business practices during pandemic can yield more profits, at least in the long run, as such a phenomenon underpins cognitive psychology embedding the consumer's awareness of brand features and associations linking to certain ''symbolic compassion'' and ‘’attribute perceptions’’. The ''compassion practices'' understood as a ''value-form'' in commerce that forms a part of mental processes in the form of attention, language use, memory, perception, problem solving, creativity, and reasoning.

Purpose of the research: This paper is an attempt to link corporate social responsibility (CSR) with innovation. The main aim of the discussion is to identify the interrelations between the concept of corporate social responsibility and innovative activity. The following detailed goals were identified in the implementation of the main purpose: identification of determinants of the process of creation and implementation of innovations that use CSR principles; assessment of CSR as an effective tool supporting the process of formation of creative and innovative solutions in enterprises; and an assessment of the state and potential of innovativeness in connection with corporate social responsibility. Polish companies are the research subjects.

Design/methodology: The study’s theoretical part is based on a critical analysis of the literature addressing innovation and corporate social responsibility. In the research part, the author uses reports focusing on innovation and corporate social responsibility as well as secondary data and case studies.

Results/findings: The discussion has showed that innovation and CSR may be treated as interdependent categories. As part of the analysis, the author concludes that organizations classified as innovative in the CSR concept perceive potential opportunities in innovative activity and are inclined to implement the said concept. It has been observed that emergence and implementation of socially responsible innovations is possible by means of, i.a., innovations driven by challenges in the CSR interest area and by means of innovation-inspired socially responsible activity, new business models or the opportunity to create new markets.

Purpose: Man is a social animal. It is traditionally assumed that stock markets are efficient, and investors are rational individuals who make investment decisions without getting affected by their moods and emotions. However, this research has tried to explore that investment performance is affected by the animal spirits of the investors. The model proposed in this study suggests that animal spirits of the investors affect investment performance mediated by investment decisions. Animal spirits entail overconfidence, optimism, and herding behavior of the investors.

Methodology: Data were collected from 385 individual investors present in the Stock Exchanges of Lahore, Karachi, and Islamabad. To analyze the data, Structural Equation Model is applied via SmartPLS2.

Results: The results reveal that animal spirits of investors have a significant positive impact on investment performance and this relationship is partially mediated by investment decisions.

The 21st century “sustainability” has become a critical issue for the world and for business. Research Evidence shows that corporate social-environmental performance may be strongly associated with financial and marketplace success (S C Das & Singh2016). SO, the corporate world is changing the perspective from a business-oriented financial perspective to an efficiency-based, green economy. As the world moves towards a green economy, the corporate response has expanded to become green (Deshwal, 2015). The term green human resource as a strategic initiative refers to the use of human resource management policies, philosophies, and practices to promote the sustainable use of business resources (Zoogah, 2011). The present study aims to determine the relationship between green human resource practices like Green Recruitment and Selection (GRS), green training and development (GTR), and Green Compensation (GCO), directly on the financial performance of industrial companies, the study will attempt to answer the following research questions: Is the concept of GHRM known to managers and workers? What GHRM practices are often implemented in industrial firms?   Is there a relationship between the effect of GHRM and improving financial performance?

China’s 21st century Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) was launched as ‘One Belt – One Road (OBOR) in 2013 and renamed the following year, permitting the incorporation of the Arctic Sea Route as the second ‘road’ in 2018. The ‘belt’ consists of Chinese investment in more than 60 countries stretching as far as western Europe, and also in Africa. It can therefore be likened to a belt made of connected plates.  The ‘roads’, paradoxically, are maritime.  They are the traditional Suez Canal route, the vulnerability of which was demonstrated when a 200,000-ton container ship, the Ever Given, blocked the canal for six days from 23 March 2021 when it ran aground, and the Arctic Sea route, made more passable by the melting of the Arctic ice, which could shorten the journey from Dalian in China to Rotterdam by up to two weeks. 

The ambitious project for what China calls a’ “modern Silk Road” trading route to kick start a new era of globalization.’ Although the pandemic will not end the process of globalization, it has certainly given it a bad knock.  Prolonged lockdown and economic slowdown mean that the pace and scope of Maritime Silk Road activities will be affected both in the short and long term. It is anticipated that in the short run BRI projects will move at a snail's pace, but that in the mid- to long term BRI projects will pick up again. Critics of BRI also accuse China of pursuing a policy of ‘debt-trap diplomacy’, luring developing countries into taking out loans to pursue infrastructure projects so that, in extremis, when those countries default, it can seize those assets to extend its diplomatic and military reach.  Evidence to support that view is limited.  Of all the countries along the ‘belt’, Myanmar has probably been the strongest to try to avoid falling into that trap.

There is a debate whether BRI is China's ‘grand strategy’ or whether it is a geopolitical trade route that will genuinely allow regional integration dynamics and elevate it to be considered the contemporary version of the ancient silk route. International trade theory may highlight how global business would benefit if the initiative successfully brought the countries under one trade network. The BRI has been likened to the post-World War II Marshall Plan.   There are similarities: massive Chinese investment now, as opposed to US investment from 1945.  And some wary, and not participating.  Stalin’s Russia from 1945, India now.  Can China perhaps turn the BRI project into an alternative to the Marshall Plan in the post-coronavirus period? For the European countries and, indeed, for Asian and African countries as well?

The BRI has created huge strategic dilemmas.  The closest to China is in the South China Sea, where the Chinese ‘nine-dash line’ claim, dating back to before the Communist victory in 1949, overlaps with claims by the Philippines, Vietnam and Malaysia To reinforce its claim to most of the South China Sea – which international authorities reject -  and to secure the eastern end of the maritime Silk Road, China has, since 2014, embarked on the ingenious stratagem of turning uninhabited reefs and shoals into ‘islands’ and fortifying them – the ‘Great Wall of Sand’. Since then, there has been further escalation, with some 200 Chinese ‘maritime militia’ vessels massing off Whitsun reef on 7 March 2021. Whitsun Reef lies approximately 320 kilometres (175 nautical miles) west of Palawan Island within the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

The Belt and Road Initiative faces a number of ‘choke point’ obstacles, particularly the maritime roads.  To circumvent the Malacca Strait, China has invested heavily in a land route to Kyauk Phyu in Myanmar and has set up the first ever Chinese overseas naval base at Djibouti, on the Bab el-Mandeb. That has intensified the internal conflict in Myanmar between its government and the Rohingya and other peoples whose territory it straddles.

The belt extends across Central Asia as far as European termini in Russia and Germany, and the roads extend to Piraeus and Venice in the south and even beyond, to Rotterdam via the Arctic in the North. However, so far there has been sparse consideration of BRI’s influences in Africa, mainly international investment, in Logistics and Supply Chain Management (LSCM) literature. Africa is a particularly fruitful area for study as, unlike Eurasia, there are few great rivers permitting access to or from the sea – the big rivers (Nile, Congo) are all intersected by rapids or ‘cataracts’, there are few good roads and rail transport is very limited.  The Chinese are building a railway from their Indian Ocean Sea head in Djibouti to Addis Ababa. 

So far, India has opposed the BRI and refused to join it. While an expanding body of the literature highlights India's disagreement in joining the BRI, a detailed assessment is still absent on the likely short and long-run cost and benefits for both India and China if India agrees to join. There could be enormous economic potential for the South Asian region as a whole if India and China join hands, rather than opposing each other.

At the time this paper is written, the longer-term global impact of the Covid-19 pandemic is impossible to assess, but one thing is certain, and China is already infusing it into the BRI.  More global business will take place virtually and electronically, and that will not be reversed. Not only will there be a new Silk Road.  In parallel there will be an electronic Silk Road. In this context, the paper also addresses the long-term potential of the Tian gong (‘Heavenly Palace’) space station, the core module of which was launched on 29 April and the first resupply module on 31 May 2021

The Corona virus (COVID-19) swept through the world rapidly and all but took the world by surprise. From its earliest beginnings in March 2020, there were only 629,000 cases worldwide. As of April 29, 2021, just one year later, worldwide infection grew at an exponential rate to 151 million infections. This represents a 240-fold increase in less than 15 months in spite of lockdowns and other preventive behaviors across the world. Besides the severe strain on public health facilities all over the world and the concomitant reallocation of economic resources, the COVID-19 precipitated a near calamitous shock to the world economy. The COVID-19 is not first pandemic to give rise to a lockdown or quarantine. However, there is no known pandemic that has put such a strain on world trade and economic cooperation during the last 150 years of human history. Besides the internal disruption of economic activities that led to sharp increase in unemployment and domestic production, world trade experienced a drastic shock.

One of the earliest measures taken to curb the COVID pandemic was to restrict travel across countries and even within countries. The immediate consequence was the decline in world recreational and business travel. However, this was followed soon by drastic declines in imports and exports of major trading economies such as the USA, Japan, China, India and much of Western Europe. During the first six months of 2020, all major trading economies suffered severe declines in their imports and exports.  Even up to the end of the year, 2020 and going into 2021, world trade did not recover to their 2019 levels, though some countries like China experienced significant recovery.

Although improvements have been seen earlier in the year, the value of trade remained lower for nearly all major economies in the third quarter of 2020 than in the same quarter of the previous year. Growth of around 3 per cent in Chinese goods exports was the exception to this trend. In the fourth quarter of 2020, while trade in goods improved across many major economies, trade in services, in contrast, remained below averages. What is more, investment flows were adversely impacted, and multinational corporations reduced their Foreign Direct Investments (FDI). The reductions in world trade flows rudely shocked policy makers into a realization of the implications mutual dependency in world trade. For example, national security issues surfaced and instigated and emboldened isolationists to argue for more protection of industries. This shock reawakened fears of renewed isolationism and protectionism.

This paper presents the trends in world trade just before and during the ongoing pandemic and identifies the theoretical and practical justifications of apprehensions about protectionist proclivities. But also, the paper identifies and analyzes other possible reasons why globalization may still thrive in a post-COVID world economic order. For example, improvements in technology pose both a danger and provide an opportunity to increase globalization as well as efficiency in world economic cooperation and trade.

As the global economy stands to lose as much as US$9.2 trillion if governments fail to ensure developing economy access to COVID-19 vaccines the intellectual property rights, technology transfer and facilitation of global production and distribution are at the heart of ‘’vaccine diplomacy and commerce’’. Without understanding of the commerce of the vaccine none of the bodies such as GAVI (Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization), CEPI (Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations), the WHO founded GVAP(Global Vaccine Action Plan), UNICEF, or COVAX (COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access) or the or G20 initiative ACT-A (Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator) can be helped enough in their endeavor of equitable and easy access to immunization in low- and middle-income countries as well their pursuit of global collaboration task to accelerate the development, production and equitable access to new COVID-19 diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines.

The unprecedented COVID-19 global pandemic shakes up the long-standing business models and challenges the traditional economic platform. To prevent sudden financial failure, leading international governments have given economic stimulus money and aid packages to their citizens and companies. Such efforts seem to be working successfully on the surface as the stock market indices renewed their all-time-high repeatedly. However, under the hood, many economic health indicators show the opposites that deep depression is coming. This paper examines critical financial development over the pandemic lockdown and predicts the future of the post-pandemic economy.

COVID -19 has, unapologetically, recalibrated our world so significantly that we are having to deliberately and methodically retool ourselves to be able to sustain and grow in the current job ethos.  For ethnically diverse collegiate students, this retooling comes at a time where we are experiencing extreme climate change, social unrest and an economic system that is being compared to that of the Great Depression (Wheelock, 2020).

        Recognizing these broad challenges, in 2019 Medgar Evers College’s Office of Career Management Services partnered with NY Start-up company Nanotronics, an AI optics company that resolves the unique inspection and process control challenges of precision manufacturing, to seed opportunities for students to learn and grow in this industry. To date, the partnership has resulted in the placement of 10 interns, 2 fulltime and 1 part-time employee. Furthermore, Medgar and Nanotronics are designing industry–driven curricula for Computer Information Systems and Computer Science majors to embolden these student’s integration, assimilation and scalability in this high-growth and emerging eco-system.

The persistent negative racial disparity in the higher educational achievement of Black students in the United States has societal implications for employment, income trajectory, home ownership, and wealth accumulation. It is widely accepted that parental investment is crucial across all races in enhancing the academic performance of students, and ultimately facilitating intergenerational socioeconomic progress. While several studies have looked at the ways in which parents invest, a paucity of research has examined how Black middle-class parents in particular engage in preparing their children for higher education. It is useful to understand how Black middle-class parents perceive the value of college, their role in preparing their children for higher education, and the ways in which they catalyze investing in that preparation.  

One of the greatest challenges of food security among vegetable businessmen and women in Nigeria is post-harvest losses. This occurs from one stage to another across the supply chain and the point at which this loss occurs most is not yet known. This becomes timely and very necessary considering the important role that vegetables play in improving the nutrition security of the populace.  This study identified the marketing channel among the vegetable marketers, quantified the post-harvest losses of vegetables from one activity to another along the supply chain and analysed the factors affecting these losses in the study area. Purposive sampling technique was used to select five major markets in Ibadan, which is a major town in Southwest Nigeria known for the production and marketing of vegetables. Proportional and snowball techniques were used to select between 15-40 vegetable sellers from each market. These vegetables include Ugwu (Telfairia Occidentalis), Soko (Celosia Argentia), Tete green (Amaranthus Hybridus), Ewedu (Corchorus) and Okro (Abelmoschus esculentus) which are the preferred vegetables in the Southwestrn Nigeria. Primary data was collected with the aid of a structured questionnaire. Data was analyzed using inferential and non-inferential statistics.

The results revealed that the vegetable marketing channels that exist in the study area is from Farmer – Wholesaler - Secondary Retailer - Consumer/Food vendors. Results of the analysis of post-harvest losses revealed that significant losses occurred among vegetable farmers and wholesalers in the marketing of Ugu, Soko and Okro during transportation from home to market and from storage to market. Secondary retailers share similar experience. In addition, significant losses occurred at consumers’ level with Ugu, Ewedu and Tete green. Highest post-harvest loss was noted with Soko (0.07kg)/bunch at farmers level from storage to the marketing point. Next to this were losses of 0.018kg of Ewedu per bunch from storage to the marketing point with secondary retailers. The least post-harvest losses were at consumers level with Tete green (0.00012kg) during transportation from market to home and at wholesalers’ level with Okro from storage point to the market.

The regression results showed that distance to the market, years spent schooling, cooperative membership, access to credit, market participation and income had significant and negative effects on quantity in kilogram of the postharvest losses. Therefore, researchers, government, private investors, and non-government organisations should come up with credit facility that soothes these actors and also provide training on efficient approach of preserving vegetables in the study area in order to reduce post-harvest losses in the study area, improve income and nutrition security of the nation    

This paper illuminates how introducing cannabis on a college campus parallels the transition of cannabis in U.S. society moving from legitimate to illegal to legalization to corporate to academia. In response to a campus charge, student demand and industry demand, a small college located in the heart of Brooklyn, New York City answers a call to an opportunity to advocate on behalf of its student- and community members. Over a period of two-years thus far, a new cannabis education and programs initiative is introduced to the campus within the backdrop of such actions being viewed as controversial. Approval of cannabis education being introduced on a campus required critical campus stakeholders to undergo change-shaping events over time that led to shifts in their attitudinal thinking. 

The paper proposes a hybrid approach to design and implement an integrated and sustainable waste management system that is carbon-efficient and cost-effective. This system will bring benefits for socially and economically disadvantaged communities.  Former research has shown that relying only on a bottom-up approach might fail to resolve conflicts and garner for sufficient external resource support; relying merely on top-down approach could fail to obtain community’s trusts and sustain the system. The paper suggests combining community-led innovation and top-down policy/regulatory changes to avoid the tension.  The paper recommends using both academic and action research methods to design and implement such a system. As for the academic research method, the paper suggests conducting institutional and stakeholder analysis. As for the action research method, the paper suggests assisting the target communities to establish and utilize an inclusive and adaptive governance structure, in order to mobilize social, political and economic resources.