Analysis of the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on consumer buying behaviour in food chain stores

The paper's chief goal is to determine the impact of COVID-19 on consumer purchasing behaviour and purchasing decisions concerning selected factors affecting consumers when buying food products in chain stores. The research was conducted in V4 countries, and data were obtained from a questionnaire. Essential research methods, such as analysis, synthesis, comparison, induction and deduction, were used in the presented research. Selected basic methods of descriptive statistics, normality tests and correlation coefficients were also applied. After evaluating the results of the questionnaire and verifying the research hypotheses, the expected conclusion regarding the apparent impact of COVID-19 on consumer purchasing and decision-making was confirmed. The hypothesis focused on buying behaviour in relation to gender (p = 0.03665), and economic status (p = 0.0407) was confirmed, manifesting a statistically significant relationship between these factors. A statistically significant relationship between age and buying behaviour during the COVID-19 pandemic was not confirmed (p > 0.05). The research's benefit is identifying changes in buying behaviour and consumer decision-making during the COVID-19 pandemic, which is crucial information, especially for entrepreneurs who can thus adjust their business activities to the current customer needs

Designing an advanced PPE model to measure performance and efficiency of Slovak spa enterprises

Each model for measuring performance and prediction is different as it uses different mathematical approaches and works with different indicators. In the era of rapidly changing economic environment, the standard methods for measuring financial performance and assessing financial health are less adequate. Most authors focus on enhancing the predictive ability of original models by responding appropriately to the existing changed economic environment as the identification, increasing and managing enterprise performance and efficiency represent a key tool of today's competitive struggle. The objective of the paper is to create and then apply in practice a new innovative 3D model (PPE model) evaluating the current financial position of Slovak spa companies (P – positon), their future development prognosis (P – prognosis) as well as their efficiency (E – efficiency). The aim of the paper is to identify and implement traditional key indicators, predictive models and efficiency indicators within each of the model dimensions while respecting sectoral characteristics and financial particularities of Slovak spa enterprises. Creating a PPE model will help to better identify the current financial position of the sampled enterprises and, in this way, it will be able to reveal the causes hindering the development of their financial performance to a more accurate extent

Categorization of the EU Member States in the Context of Selected Multicriteria International Indices Using Cluster Analysis

The main aim of the paper was to analyse the economic and social development of the European Union (EU) member states (28 countries) on the basis of selected five multicriteria indices (the Global Competitiveness Index, the Economic Freedom Index, the Global Innovation Index, the Corruption Perceptions Index, the Human Development Index). To perform settled aim, a multidimensional classification of EU countries for years 2011 and 2018 using cluster analysis was realized. The purpose of the analysis was to categorize the individual EU countries into clusters and to find out to what extent the position of EU member states has changed in terms of selected international indices over the analysed period. Based on the findings, it is arguable that a major part of the EU member states cluster into the same groups based on the selected indices assessment, regardless of the time period. However, six countries (Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, and United Kingdom) improved their position during the period under review and ranked into the cluster of more prosperous countries in 2018. The rate of change (improvement) was quantified at the level of 21.43%. Based on the results, Latvia and Lithuania were the most similar countries in terms of economic prosperity (Euclidean distance reached the level of 3.08), while the least similar countries were Greece and Sweden (Euclidean distance reached the level of 70.8). Declining Euclidean distances indicate that economic disparities of the individual EU countries have decreased in the period under review. This paper aims at developing the research to find out how, besides hierarchy, we can analyse the EU member states from the perspective of various multicriteria indices. The four proposed clusters could be used as a starting point for future policy reforms, pointing to the weaknesses of various countries

Analysis of modern methods for increasing and managing the financial prosperity of businesses in the context of performance: a case study of the tourism sector in Slovakia

Research background: In the context of constantly changing business environment, the financial sector is focusing on new trends in financial management systems. Nowadays, there is a need to achieve long-term financial growth, so financial managers try to develop new models for managing and improving the financial performance of businesses in economic practice. Purpose of the article: This article aims to determine the financial performance of travel agencies by applying modern business performance evaluation methods in order to create a performance portfolio (ranking) for the years 2013-2017, subsequently to reveal the concordance rate of order of the selected business entities by comparing applied financial methods in the context of performance benchmarking. The research question is as follows: Does the multidimensional PCA method in the form of the performance portfolio of travel agencies provide similar financial results compared to the EVA indicator? Methods: For measuring the financial performance of businesses, the method of Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and the indicator Economic Value Added (EVA) were chosen. Spearman's rank-order correlation was applied in order to reveal the concordance rate of the analyzed travel agencies. Findings & Value added: The results indicate that by applying the PCA method, 6 key performance factors can be identified. Moreover, the findings revealed that the assessment of travel agencies using the PCA method and EVA indicator did not lead to the same financial results. Individual financial methods identified a different number of strong-performing and inefficient business entities. In this backdrop, we concluded that the business performance measurement based on the PCA method is not a suitable alternative to measuring performance using the EVA indicator

Postrzeganie stereotypów płci w stanowiskach kierowniczych firm przemysłowych

Managing people is the basis of the existence of any company, which determines the achievement of economic, managerial and social goals. In this context, an irreplaceable place belongs to the company’s management and individual managers. The complexity of managerial work gives high demands on managers at all levels, which apply equally to men and women. The issue of gender stereotypes in today’s dynamic and constantly changing world is still the subject of many research studies. The presented study deals with the issue of gender stereotypes in managerial positions in large industrial companies. The research, which was carried out on a sample of 453 respondents, revealed the results applicable to theoretical research of the issue and business practice. This research is focused on examining the relationship between filling managerial positions in terms of gender. The achieved p-value (p = 0.0001) confirmed the relationship between filling managerial positions by men and women. Based on the results, it can be stated that men hold positions in top management to a greater extent than women. However, the relationship between gender and opinion on filling managerial positions was not confirmed according to the calculated p-value (p = 0.1039). The research was also focused on examining the relationship between the salary of men and women working in a position within the same level of management (gender pay gap). Based on the data results and calculated p-value (p = 0.0005), the salary differences between men and women were confirmed. Therefore, it can be argued that women are paid less than men in a position within the same management level. This research points out the gender stereotypes between men and women in managerial positions and the fact that women can also hold top managerial positions and run a successful company achieving the set goals.Zarządzanie ludźmi jest podstawą istnienia każdej firmy, od której zależy osiągnięcie celów ekonomicznych, zarządczych i społecznych. W tym kontekście niezastąpione miejsce należy do kierownictwa firmy i poszczególnych menadżerów. Złożoność pracy kierowniczej stawia wysokie wymagania menedżerom na wszystkich szczeblach, które dotyczą w równym stopniu mężczyzn i kobiet. Kwestia stereotypów płci we współczesnym dynamicznym i ciągle zmieniającym się świecie jest nadal przedmiotem wielu badań naukowych. Prezentowane badanie dotyczy problemu stereotypów płci na stanowiskach kierowniczych w dużych przedsiębiorstwach przemysłowych. Badanie, które zostało przeprowadzone na próbie 453 respondentów, ujawniło wyniki mające zastosowanie do badań teoretycznych zagadnienia i praktyki biznesowej. Niniejsze badanie koncentruje się na zbadaniu zależności między obsadzaniem stanowisk kierowniczych pod względem płci. Uzyskana wartość p (p = 0,0001) potwierdziła związek między obsadzaniem stanowisk kierowniczych przez kobiety i mężczyzn. Na podstawie uzyskanych wyników można stwierdzić, że mężczyźni zajmują wyższe stanowiska kierownicze w większym stopniu niż kobiety. Jednak związek między płcią a opinią o obsadzaniu stanowisk kierowniczych nie został potwierdzony na podstawie obliczonej wartości p (p = 0,1039). Badania koncentrowały się również na zbadaniu zależności pomiędzy wynagrodzeniami kobiet i mężczyzn na stanowiskach na tym samym szczeblu zarządzania (różnica w wynagrodzeniach kobiet i mężczyzn). Na podstawie wyników danych i obliczonej wartości p (p = 0,0005) potwierdzono różnice w wynagrodzeniach kobiet i mężczyzn. Dlatego można argumentować, że kobiety zarabiają mniej niż mężczyźni na tym samym szczeblu kierowniczym. Badanie to wskazuje na stereotypy dotyczące płci występujące między kobietami i mężczyznami na stanowiskach kierowniczych oraz fakt, że kobiety mogą również zajmować najwyższe stanowiska kierownicze i prowadzić odnoszącą sukcesy firmę, osiągając wyznaczone cele

Competitiveness and sustainable growth analysis of the EU countries with the use of Global Indexes' methodology

International audienceThe issue of countries' competitiveness and sustainable economic growth is constantly at the centre of interest and represents the frequent object of research in economic theory as well as economic practice. The multi-criterial approach and the assessment methodologies relating to the global competitiveness have been dynamically adjusted over the recent years to reflect the current globalization trends in the world economy. The main objective of this study is to analyse the objectivity and resulting values' deviations of the Global competitiveness Index (GCI) and World Competitiveness Index (WCI) composite indexes that are currently considered to be the world's most respected and to identify the impact of key factors that affect the countries' competitive positions with a focus on Slovakia. The research study is realized within the group of EU (24) countries for the period 2006 – 2016. The partial objective is to summarize the main starting points of the World Economic Forum (WEF) and Institute for Management Development (IMD) composing these indices, to identify their common features and different approaches that create differences in the results achieved. Then we analyzed the differences between the resulting rankings and the resulting scores of the GCI and WCI rated countries. In the next part, we focused on analyzing the position of Slovakia using the correlation and multiple regression analysis and identifying the interrelationships between individual pillars and the GCI score in order to determine the impact of key factors that influence the competitive position and sustainable growth of Slovakia and improve or worsen its position. Our results highlighted the economic and statistical context of GCI Slovakia development and the impact of the following key pillars and key factors: pillar P1 (P1: Institutions – Public trust in politicians), pillar P3 (P3: Macroeconomic environment – Government debt) and pillar P11 (P11: Business sophistication – Nature of competitive advantage). All three pillars, identified as crucial to the development of the overall Slovakias' GCI scores, occupy unflattering positions in the comparison of pillar rankings. Therefore, we conclude that it is necessary to clarify the causes of their development and eliminate these identified factors as soon as possible. The results can be seen as beneficial to countries' economic policies in increasing global competitiveness

The evaluation of competitive position of EU-28 economies with using global multi-criteria indices

Research background: Under the current conditions of increasing competitiveness and interdependence, national economies are more influenced by the global business environment and its development. Constantly changing economic, social, political aspects, and many other factors, cause the differences in the global competitiveness of economies, so the economies are forced to analyze their competitive level more complexly. Despite that, there is a lack of research studies analyzing the international competitiveness of EU-28 economies from the point of view various multi-criteria indices. Purpose of the article: The paper investigates the relations between the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) and other selected multi-criteria indices, namely the Global Innovation Index (GII), the Doing Business Index (DBI), the Economic Freedom Index (EFI) and the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) in the case of EU?28 economies. Methods: In order to investigate the relations between the global competitiveness and selected multi-criteria indices affecting the EU?28 economies, the multiple linear regression analyses were applied. The multiple regression model was quantified for every single year, as well as, the regression model using the average score of all analyzed indices. The secondary data concerning the scores of individual indices were collected based on annually published online reports over the period of 2014?2018. Findings & Value added: The research confirmed that there is a statistically significant dependence between the global competitiveness, corruption and the level of innovation potential within the EU?28 economies. Besides, we identified the worst results in the context of competitiveness evaluation especially in the area of corruption and innovation activities. In this regard, the issue of insufficient innovation development and inappropriate corruption perception is considered to be key determinants influencing the assessment of the global competitiveness of the EU?28 member states. In our opinion, to improve the competitiveness of these countries, targeted activities should be implemented in the frame of national competitive strategies, programs, and policies

Demotivation of medical staff in the selected health facility in Slovakia

The biggest challenges for today’s businesses and facilities in ministries (health, education, defence, police, etc.) are to constantly increase their effectiveness. The quality and efficiency of each business are above all quality employees. They should be as satisfied and motivated as possible to their work performance. This requires careful and funded leadership by properly prepared and carefully considered managers. Providing excellent employee work performance is beneficial to the enterprise/organization and workers themselves. Nowadays, when employees are an integral part of a knowledge-based business/organization, there is a progress that cannot be achieved without development of the workforce. Although educated people work in the healthcare facility under investigation, it is not always possible to achieve a synergy effect based on excellent work performance and successful system management of the given healthcare facility. Managerial readiness and knowledge of factors affecting employee satisfaction and motivation enables them to prepare an appropriate incentive program that can influence the behaviour of individuals or workgroups towards to develop and effectively use the potential of employees, their responsible and quality work, considering their personal goals, and also the interest in the entire facility. Motivation/demotivation of healthcare personnel are frequently discussed issue in relation to healthcare policy making and overall health performance. The quality of health care and the performance of healthcare providers depend not only on the level of education, but also on the willingness and motivation of healthcare professionals. Even in a relatively stable environment, it is necessary to examine what contributes to the motivation of individual workers and what their behavioural patterns are. While motivation is generally paid great attention, in the healthcare system, research is mainly carried out on its performance and relatively few studies relate only to the field of motivation of healthcare professionals. The authors’ ambition is to present research on this topic and to introduce some measures that could contribute to improving the motivation systém of healthcare personnel in Slovakia. In a sense, we have tried to briefly compare the similarity of the system of healthcare motivation in Slovakia to systems in selected, mainly developed countries