Society and Economy

Family firms in the maelstrom of international market entry and innovation - can Socio-emotional wealth (SEW) and Entrepreneurial Orientation (EO) be

Gyula Márton Szabó — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0100

In my work I examine the relationship between the internationalisation of family firms and innovation. After the review of the relevant literature, I group together the narrow research topics addressed by the authors I have examined, which largely confirm the positive relationship between the two categories under study. Moreover, I demonstrate a theoretical framework which, according to the literature, can be implemented to put socio-emotional welfare and entrepreneurial orientation, which are restraining the internationalisation of family firms, on a common path, so that they can contribute to enhancing the innovative and international performance of family firms, not against each other but in support of each other.

Confucianism: ancient ideology or driving force of the future?

Sara Koczkas — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0100

This paper aims to explore the ambiguous relationship between Confucian culture and innovation based on scholarly literature. Applying a scoping review approach, the purpose of the literature review is to uncover the reasons behind the ambiguities of empirical research results and conceptualizations of how Confucianism affects innovation on the individual and organizational level. The paper builds on the assumption that the different operationalizations of Confucian culture are behind these contradictions. Since Confucianism is an ideology which has developed for over 2000 years, and even its most often cited virtues and principles are quite heterogenous, approaches to its operationalization in the management field are also diverse. The results of the literature review indicate that different approaches to Confucian culture indeed show homogeneity in the conceptualization of the Confucianism-innovation relationship. Virtues and principles related to rigid hierarchies and great power distance have a detrimental effect while others a rather positive. Therefore, the paper argues that a more specific denomination of cultural factors should be necessary to avoid biased and unspecified results in both theoretical and empirical approaches.

Decarbonization challenges and opportunities in the Central European energy sector: implications for management

József Magyari — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0100

While decarbonization and hydrogen energy are at the top of European policymakers’ agenda, research and innovation (R&I) management of energy companies must focus on clean technologies (cleantech) which could decrease greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the sector. The Central European energy sector, however, might face a decarbonization challenge because of the specific geopolitical situation, so aligning R&I directions with regional policy and conditions seem to be crucial to accelerate sectoral and corporate adaptation. This study focuses on the decarbonization progress and strategies of V4 countries, concerning some of the most promising hydrogen-driven cleantech R&I directions which might induce strategic changes in Central European energy companies. Besides promoting renewable energy sources, results show that V4 strategies usually include the development of nuclear energy capacities to reduce GHG emissions and using the extended natural gas infrastructure for renewable energy storage. The analysed cleantech innovations are included but usually not central in these strategies. Strategic changes of energy companies, however, could be driven by these promising R&I directions, e.g., the hydrogen economy development by power-to-X (P2X) technologies, industrial decarbonization by carbon capture, utilization or storage (CCUS) technologies in mid-term, and cross-sectoral integration and optimization by smart energy system (SES) development in long-term.

Energy Efficiency In Healthcare Institutions

Rana Alotaiby; Eva eva.krenyacz@uni-corvinus.hu — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0100

The Environmental Protection Agency classifies healthcare institutions as one of the leading energy-consuming industries. Extensive energy is needed around-the-clock operations, such as lighting, ventilation, and for medical equipment operations. However, there is a growing concern over the sustainability of energy utilization by healthcare institutions worldwide. This narrative review thus sought to examine energy efficiency and utilization in healthcare institutions as well as energy management and conservation techniques with the aim to make recommendations for future optimal usage. The review noted that healthcare institutions use energy from diverse sources, including hydropower, biomass, solar energy, and wind power of different quantities. However, the consumptions vary from one healthcare institution to another, with the number of beds and intensity of healthcare operations, with an average of 0.27 MWh/m2. Moreover, this review also identified various techniques and measures to enhance energy efficiencies, such as the variant refrigerant flow technology and the combination of renewable energy sources with diesel generators to reduce the cost of electricity. Overall, healthcare institutions need energy management systems such as automated energy monitoring technologies to check the usage for systems efficiency. The same techniques can as well help in Middle Eastern healthcare institutions for efficient energy utilization.

How should an agile organisation look like?

Balazs Vaszkun; Éva Sziráki — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0100

This paper presents the first comprehensive systematic literature review of articles from the last five years published on enterprise-scaled agility and offers practical insights for organisations looking to become more agile. Management literature on agile structures is still relatively scarce and fragmented, but emerging. Our results highlight the characteristics, advantages and tensions created by agility at organisational level, and give insight for executives to support their decisions on organisational design. By examining the structural, cultural, and leadership antecedents that are necessary for success, this paper will contribute to the ongoing debate about agile organisations. The concept of ‘Agility Forest’ proposed here will contribute to the better understanding of the connections between structure, culture, and leadership.

Sustainability change management in inter-organizational innovation networks

Zoltán Csedő — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0100

Managing sustainability-oriented organizational changes has got increasing attention in the international literature from the perspectives of corporations and universities. Nevertheless, researching sustainability change management (SCM) from the perspective of the cooperation of corporations and universities, especially the underlying factors of the cooperation, remained overlooked until now. Based on the change management (CM) literature, this research focuses on an international inter-organizational network with universities and corporations, and empirically studies their autonomous SCM characteristics and the collaborative planning dynamics of a sustainability-led innovation (SLI) project. Results show that SLIs cannot only come from SCM strategies, but emerging opportunities within inter-organizational networks could also induce them. Important contextual factors of CM, i.e., regarding strategy, structure, and capabilities, however, could and should be interpreted during SCM and SLI project planning, as these underlying factors force cooperation partners to compromise with each other in project scope. Results suggest that compromising could not undertake autonomous strategy alignment or capability building, only minor changes in the project scope which will still allow leveraging existing capabilities or require a few additional structural coordination mechanisms. Findings contribute to the literature by highlighting empirical examples of inter-organizational SLI challenges, deriving from autonomous balancing needs during SCM.

The global ESG trend and adaptation opportunities in the emerging hydrogen economy: A corporate governance perspective

Máté Zavarkó — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0100

The hydrogen economy (HE) development has become the main direction of climate-focused economic progress. Although the gap between the potential impact of energy companies and their actual willingness or ability needs to be bridged by corporate governance and economic policy, these dynamics are underrepresented in the literature. As environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) considerations could foster adaptation and developing hydrogen technologies, this paper is the first to analyse the intersections of the global ESG trend and the development policy of the HE, based on a systematic literature review. Findings suggest that ESG as a new institution in the economy might be in line with national and international policies, but corporate efforts for improving environmental performance could be further oriented directly or indirectly toward hydrogen technologies, for example, through cost reduction-focused projects, favourable taxation, or specific requirements for sustainability reporting. On corporate level, external and internal change drivers could lead to strategic and governance adaptation measures in line with HE development policy.

Strategic Renewable Energy and Power-to-X Projects: A Review of Best Practices, Risks and Challenges for Integrating Artificial Intelligence and Susta

Diego Navarra — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0100

The objective of this paper is to review the academic literature and identify best practice on the integration of artificial intelligence and sustainable technologies in strategic renewable energy and power-to-x projects in the EU region and globally. Specifically, we reflect upon the way in which exemplary case studies can be used to foster a common shared view among different policy makers to highlight new ways through which energy efficiency and systemic improvements in the energy sector may be achieved while curbing carbon emissions and addressing climate change. The main risks and challenges for integrating artificial intelligence and sustainable technologies in energy systems are also presented to identify critical areas of future development for academic research as well as opportunities for professional practice.