Virtual Mentorship as an Advanced Method of Knowledge and Experience Sharing and Network Building

Access to advanced ideas, specific information, advanced expertise, accumulated experience and applicable knowledge are key competitive determinants of those that want to prosper in knowledge based society. In other words human capital is principal competitive advantage of knowledge based economies. Trends in today’s world are making us rethink the methods of delivering knowledge. In order to answer to those trends and as a proactive effort to foster their global competitiveness top students from two most influenced graduate schools (Faculty of Economics and Business and Faculty Electrical Engineering and Computing both within University of Zagreb) in Croatia gathered within eSTUDENT initiative and they have started project “Virtual Mentorship”. Its primary goal is to initialize and organize cooperation between senior undergraduate students from Croatian universities and acknowledged members of academic society and business world who live abroad but do have originated from Croatia. Purpose of the project is to establish mentor-protégé relationship between these two parties that will enable students to learn and improve their knowledge as well as gain new skills through quality virtual communication with respectable scientists and professionals. This project has a great potential and significance for development of Croatian system of education as well as for improvement of Croatian labor competitiveness in general. Its significance lies primarily on impacts that Virtual Mentorship has on educational system.mentorship, virtual, knowledge sharing, networking, distance learning

Navigating Corporate Responsibility: Unveiling the \u27Purpose\u27 as the Fourth P in Elkington\u27s 3Ps Model

In today\u27s business world, there is a growing recognition of the need for companies to be conscious of their social and environmental impact, aligning with the European Union\u27s goal of becoming a zero-impact continent by 2050. Businesses are now seen as key players in this transformation, moving away from traditional economic models. The contemporary framework underscores ignoring societal and environmental impacts is no longer viable. In this transformative era, a notable paradigm shift is evident as businesses shift from solely maximizing profits to optimizing them, balancing financial success with societal and environmental benefits. This change marks a departure from the traditional focus on just the bottom line, highlighting the dual role of companies as both profit-oriented and key drivers of positive societal change. This paradigm underscores a symbiotic relationship between profitability and positive societal impact, echoing the EU\u27s sustainable and responsible business paradigm vision. This narrative posits the EU as a trailblazer, spearheading a collective effort to harness the transformative potential of the business sector in realizing a zero-impact future by 2050. The paper aims to expand Elkington\u27s 3Ps model (People, Planet, Profit) and stakeholder theory by introducing \u27Purpose\u27 as a crucial fourth dimension, emphasizing the importance of a company\u27s underlying motives and values in shaping sustainable and responsible business practices. This paper reveals that integrating \u27Puropse\u27 into business models aligns with contemporary environmental and social governance standards and significantly enhances stakeholder engagement, fostering a more resilient corporate ecosystem

Role of Corporate Social Responsibility in Croatian Export Companies

Continuous globalization, rapid development of information-communication technologies, and the presence of new burning challenges for the global community have contributed to the perception of corporate social responsibility as a strategic tool that allows for successful differentiation and sustainable competitive advantage. The goal of this paper is to offer a short overview of the role of a strategic approach to corporate social responsibility, as well as emphasize the importance of such an approach in creating competitive advantage for a company, but also of sustainability of society as a whole. The paper is based on a primary research questionnaire conducted on middle-sized and large Croatian export companies, as well as a systematic analysis of previously published relevant international scientific papers in the area of corporate social responsibility. This work is licensed under a&nbsp;Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.</p

Corporate Social Responsibility and Stakeholders’ Management of Export Companies in Foreign Markets

In this paper, we investigate how corporate social responsibility (hereafter CSR) practices of domestic Croatian mid and large size firms differentiate them on foreign markets. Still, in order for export organizations to realize benefits offered by CSR, export organizations need to identify their main stakeholder groups and interests, and adequately design their CSR activities. This paper provides an overview of the main CSR activities of export organizations in foreign markets and analyses their stakeholder’s management as well as the quality of relationships with their primary and secondary stakeholders on foreign markets. Results of empirical research on a sample of 78 medium and large Croatian export companies show that these export organizations invest significant efforts in implementation of different CSR activities, and into relationships with their primary stakeholders. This work is licensed under a&nbsp;Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.</p

Digital Transformation of Croatian Newspapers: Analyzing Evolving Perspectives of Readers over a Five-Year Period

The digital transformation has revolutionized the media industry, reshaping the way news is consumed and challenging the dominance of traditional printed publications. As technology continues to advance at an unprecedented pace, it is crucial to examine the evolving landscape of news publishing and understand the preferences and behaviors of readers in the context of digital and printed newspaper formats. This research article presents a comparative analysis of reader opinions on a significant Croatian e-publication over a five-year period, aiming to explore the impact of digital transformation on readers` perceptions, engagement, and preferences between online and traditional printed content. By delving into the advantages, challenges, and trends associated with e-publications and printed editions, this study provides valuable insights into the dynamic relationship between readers and news publications in the digital era

Corporate Reputation and Shareholder Engagement Impact on Companies' Success in Croatia

In a business community shareholder activists areoften perceived as a group with hidden agenda, whether it issocial, economical, environmental, value based or any other, thatcould have impact on companies’ reputation. On the other handthis type of activism is becoming an increasingly sophisticatedstrategy of engagement, which exploits shareholders rights toengage companies on particular issues that are important tothem. Although activism can take many forms, shareholders intransitional economies such as Croatia are still showing highlevel of passivity and inertia. On parallel basis corporateresponsibility as an integrative model directly reflectingcorporate reputation is gaining exponential attraction since it ismore widely perceived as a new strategic source of competitiveadvantage. In that sense this paper explores reputationalinteraction between corporations and one of their most powerfulstakeholders, its shareholders. The research within this paper isfocused on Croatian companies and is covering several aspects ofshareholder activism. In this paper authors are trying to describereasons behind passive investors' community and why theyshould act as a more vibrant corrective factor for possibly poorcorporate governance

Corporate Social Responsibility of Export Organizations: Relation between Strategy, Activities and Communication on Foreign Markets

The concept of corporate social responsibility has been recognized as a successful differentiation strategy for European export organizations in foreign markets. In the time of unprecedented global social, humanitarian, and economic challenges that we face today, the concept comes into the focus of most global stakeholders as never before in history. Still, the existing literature lacks a deeper analysis of differentiation on foreign markets based on corporate social responsibility. This article aims to analyse the relation between socially responsible strategy, activities and communication of export organizations in foreign markets. Empirical research was done on a sample of 78 medium and large sized Croatian export organizations. Research results reveal the importance and positive influence of inclusion of corporate social responsibility in organizational strategy on socially responsible activities and communication channels and principles in foreign markets

Reputation as a Key Resource for Market Success in the Banking Sector

Acknowledging the importance and role of corporate reputation as a unique intangible and specific organizational resource, in this paper, we analyze its role and importance for the market success of contemporary banks. Furthermore, the paper provides an overview of the existing research regarding bank reputation in the Republic of Croatia. As corporate social responsibility aspect of a business is one of the most widely studied aspects of corporate reputation, we investigate the corporate social responsibility practice of two major banks in Croatia. By using publicly available data, we analyse the internal and external dimensions of their CSR and their relation to a bank’s reputation. This work is licensed under a&nbsp;Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.</p