Valoración del capital intelectual y su impacto en la rentabilidad financiera en empresas del sector industrial del Ecuador

El objetivo del presente artí­culo es determinar la relación que existe entre el capital intelectual (CI) y sus componentes (capital humano, capital estructural y capital relacional) con la rentabilidad financiera medida a través del ROA y ROE, de las 46 empresas más grandes del sector industrial del Ecuador. Para aproximar el valor del CI, se utilizó el modelo del coeficiente del valor añadido intelectual ) y se aplicó la metodologí­a de regresión lineal para el análisis de los resultados. Se concluye que existe una relación alta y positiva del capital intelectual y la rentabilidad

Innovación y Calidad en los Emprendimientos Familiares del Ecuador

http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4527717 This work analyzes the development of quality management and innovation in family enterprises in Ecuador. Descriptive statistics and nonparametric contrasts are used due to the ordinal nature of the variables to be studied. The sample consisted of 42 family enterprises from Ecuador surveyed in 2017. To determine the total quality implemented in the company, the following variables were used: leadership, alliances, processes and continuous improvement. For innovation, questions were asked about the changes in products, processes or services carried out in the last two years. The results obtained show that the companies surveyed have a similar level of quality in terms of their level of innovation, which is why they must develop other types of strategies that consolidate their position in the market and guarantee their sustainability.http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4527717 Este trabajo analiza el desarrollo de la gestión de la calidad e innovación en los emprendimientos familiares del Ecuador. Se emplea la estadística descriptiva y los contrastes no paramétricos debido a la naturaleza ordinal de las variables a estudiar. La muestra estuvo formada por 42 emprendimientos familiares de Ecuador encuestados en el año 2017. Para determinar la calidad total implementada en la empresa se utilizaron las siguientes variables: liderazgo, alianzas, procesos y mejora continua. Para la innovación se preguntó sobre los cambios en productos procesos o servicios realizados en los últimos dos años. Los resultados obtenidos muestran que las empresas encuestadas tienen un nivel de calidad similar en función de su nivel de innovación, por lo que deben desarrollan otro tipo de estrategias que consoliden su posición en el mercado y garanticen su sostenibilidad

Factores que inciden en el rendimiento académico de la Educación Media

http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4527750 This research aims to analyze the factors that influence the academic performance of 320 students of a Higher Technological Institute, Beatriz Cueva de Ayora, located in the city of Loja, Ecuador, as a case study and learn about the obstacles and facilitators of the students’ performance. An instrument with Likert scale was used, as well as descriptive and inferential statistics. To check for normality, the Kolmogorov Smirnov test was applied with the H contrast of Kruskal Valllis. From the results obtained it is identified that the study factors do not influence the academic performance. It is also concluded that the time used to improve academic performance is not only related to quantity but also to qualitative aspects such as the ability of a student to plan in each academic activity.http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4527750 La presente investigación tiene como objetivo analizar los factores que influyen en el rendimiento académico de 320 estudiantes de un Instituto Tecnológico Superior Beatriz Cueva de Ayora ubicado en la ciudad de Loja del Ecuador como caso de estudio y conocer los elementos obstaculizadores y facilitadores del desempeño estudiantil. Se empleó un instrumento con escala de Likert, así como la estadística descriptiva e inferencial. Para la comprobación de la normalidad se aplicó el test de Kolmogorov Smirnov con el contraste H de Kruskal Vallis. De los resultados obtenidos se identifica que los factores de estudio no influyen en el rendimiento académico. Se concluye, además, que el tiempo utilizado para mejorar el rendimiento académico no tiene que ver únicamente con la cantidad sino también con aspectos cualitativos como la capacidad que tiene un estudiante para planificar en cada actividad académica

Gestión de la calidad en los emprendimientos familiares del sector industrial del Ecuador

http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4521638 This current work verifies whether there is a relationship between the components of quality: leadership, planning, alliances and resources, employee management, learning, process management and continuous improvement based on the age and family nature of the company. For this, the non-parametric contrasts of Kruskal Wallis and of Sum of Ranks of Wilcoxon were used. The sample consisted of 274 industrial companies in Ecuador. The main contribution of the work is based on the quality of the exam as a potential source of competitive advantage indispensable to achieve the survival of the enterprises. The results show that there are no divergences in: leadership, quality planning, alliances and resources, employee management, processes and continuous improvement with regard to the age of the company. However, regarding the nature of the company if it is a family-owned enterprise, there are differences in: leadership, quality planning, alliances and resources, employee management and learning.http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4521638 El presente trabajo comprueba si existe una relación entre los componentes de la calidad: liderazgo, planificación, alianzas y recursos, gestión de los empleados, aprendizaje, gestión por procesos y mejora continua en función de la edad y la naturaleza familiar de la empresa, para ello se utilizó los contrastes no paramétricos de Kruskal Wallis y de Suma de Rangos de Wilcoxon. La muestra estuvo compuesta por 274 empresas industriales del Ecuador. La contribución principal del trabajo se basa en que la calidad se la examina como una fuente potencial de ventaja competitiva indispensable para lograr la supervivencia de los emprendimientos. Los resultados evidencian que no hay divergencias en: el liderazgo, planificación de la calidad, alianzas y recursos, gestión de los empleados, procesos y mejora continua con respecto a la edad de la empresa. Sin embargo, con respecto a la naturaleza de la empresa si es familiar hay diferencias en: liderazgo, planificación de la calidad, alianzas y recursos, gestión de los empleados y aprendizaje.&nbsp

El rendimiento de los emprendimientos financiados por el Crédito de Desarrollo Humano (CDH) en Ecuador

http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7415902 The Human Development Credit (CDH) is a mechanism created by the Ecuadorian government as a complementary program to the Human Development Bond (BDH), whose objective is to create financial autonomy for the beneficiaries of the bond. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the real destination of the CDH and its impact on the performance of the enterprise. In addition, it is required to know if the beneficiaries of the program of interest comply with the purpose established by the MIES through this program. This research makes use of the documentary information available in the records of the Ministry of Economic and Social Inclusion about the beneficiaries of the BDH and the CDH; additionally, the methodology of exploratory analysis is used for which 242 surveys were conducted with beneficiaries of the microcredit granted by the State. The research population is located mainly in the urban parishes of Loja canton. In addition, with the application of the Kruskall-Wallis test, profitability variables and credit destinations are crossed, it was determined that the yields vary according to the sector where the investment is made, likewise, that the manufacturing industry is the one that grants better returns in relation to the other activities, while the destinations such as animal husbandry, agriculture among others do not grant significant differences, in addition there is a concentration in the activity of animal husbandry. Also, it is important to mention that not all respondents reported having started a business; that is, the money was not used in the generation of a business, but was used in activities such as debt repayment, purchase of electronic equipment, among others.http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7415902 El Crédito de Desarrollo Humano (CDH) es un mecanismo creado por el Gobierno ecuatoriano como programa complementario al Bono de Desarrollo Humano (BDH), cuyo objetivo es crear autonomía financiera en los beneficiarios del bono. El presente trabajo plantea como objetivo evaluar el destino real del CDH y su impacto en el rendimiento del emprendimiento. Además, se requiere conocer si los beneficiarios del programa de interés cumplen con el propósito establecido por el MIES a través de este programa. Esta investigación hace uso de la información documental disponible en los registros del Ministerio de Inclusión Económica y Social acerca de los beneficiarios del BDH y del CDH; adicionalmente, se utiliza la metodología del análisis exploratorio para lo cual se levantaron 242 encuestas a beneficiarios del microcrédito otorgado por el Estado. La población investigada se localiza principalmente en las parroquias urbanas del cantón Loja. Además, con la aplicación de la prueba Kruskall-Wallis se cruzan variables de rentabilidad y los destinos del crédito, se determinó que los rendimientos varían según el sector en donde se invierta, así mismo, que la industria manufacturera es la que mejores réditos otorga en relación con las otras actividades, mientras que los destinos como crianza de animales, agricultura entre otras no otorgan diferencias significativas, además se observa una concentración en la actividad de la crianza de animales. También, es importante mencionar que no todos los encuestados manifestaron haber emprendido; es decir, el dinero no fue utilizado en la generación de negocio, sino que se lo utilizó en actividades como pago de deudas, compra de equipos electrónicos, entre otros

Influenza A virus epidemiology in breed-to-wean farms and infection dynamics in nursery pigs

University of Minnesota Ph.D. dissertation.February 2018. Major: Veterinary Medicine. Advisor: Montserrat Torremorell. 1 computer file (PDF); xi, 107 pages.Influenza is an economically important disease in pigs and a public health threat. Breed-to-wean (BTW) farms play a central role in influenza epidemiology and control because piglets born in BTW farms can maintain, diversify and, at weaning, disseminate influenza A virus (IAV) to other farms. Despite the importance of piglets in influenza epidemiology, there is limited information on IAV infection parameters in piglets, risk factors that impact IAV prevalence in piglets at weaning, and how strategies that are implemented in BTW farms affect IAV infections in weaned pigs. In this thesis, I aimed to: 1) estimate herd-level prevalence and seasonality of influenza in BTW farms, 2) evaluate farm factors associated with IAV infection in piglets at weaning, 3) assess transmission patterns and parameters of influenza in nursery pigs based on IAV prevalence at weaning, and 4) evaluate the impact of maternally-derived antibodies (MDA) at weaning on IAV infection parameters in nursery pigs. Results from my work showed that IAV herd-level prevalence in piglets at weaning is seasonal with higher infection rates in winter and spring. I also found that among all the factors evaluated, IAV sow vaccination and influenza negative status of replacement breeding females (gilts) at entry to the herd were significantly associated with fewer IAV infected piglets at weaning. My results also indicate that groups of piglets with different prevalence at weaning had different transmission patterns and parameters after weaning and these patterns were characterized by 1, 2 or no peaks of infection after weaning. Lastly, I reported that if pigs had high levels of strain-specific MDA at weaning, IAV infection occurred later and was of shorter duration after weaning. Knowledge of seasonality and what factors are associated with influenza in BTW farms may help producers and veterinarians to better use and allocate influenza control strategies such as vaccination. Lower prevalence at weaning due to high strain-specific MDA levels may help decrease IAV spread and infections in nursery pigs. Reducing the burden of IAV in pigs should decrease IAV-associated economic losses and the generation of novel strains, including strains with pandemic potential

Quality Management, Knowledge Creation, and Innovation Performance: Insights from Ecuador

This paper aims to analyze the relationship between quality management, knowledge management, and innovative performance, and their impact on organizational performance in an emerging country. A sample of 349 Ecuadorian companies was surveyed between March and August 2017. Structural equation modeling was used for testing the theoretical hypothesis. Our study is one of the first attempts to explore the role of quality management for improving knowledge creation and innovation performance in emerging countries. Specifically, our results show which quality management practices are the most efficient for enhancing knowledge creation and innovation performance in an emerging country like Ecuador

Effect of strain-specific maternally-derived antibodies on influenza A virus infection dynamics in nursery pigs.

Reducing the number of influenza A virus (IAV) infected pigs at weaning is critical to minimize IAV spread to other farms. Sow vaccination is a common measure to reduce influenza levels at weaning. However, the impact of maternally-derived antibodies on IAV infection dynamics in growing pigs is poorly understood. We evaluated the effect of maternally-derived antibodies at weaning on IAV prevalence at weaning, time of influenza infection, number of weeks that pigs tested IAV positive, and estimated quantity of IAV in nursery pigs. We evaluated 301 pigs within 10 cohorts for their influenza serological (seroprevalence estimated by hemagglutination inhibition (HI) test) and virological (prevalence) status. Nasal swabs were collected weekly and pigs were bled 3 times throughout the nursery period. There was significant variability in influenza seroprevalence, HI titers and influenza prevalence after weaning. Increase in influenza seroprevalence at weaning was associated with low influenza prevalence at weaning and delayed time to IAV infection throughout the nursery. Piglets with IAV HI titers of 40 or higher at weaning were also less likely to test IAV positive at weaning, took longer to become infected, tested IAV RT-PCR positive for fewer weeks, and had higher IAV RT-PCR cycle threshold values compared to piglets with HI titers less than 40. Our findings suggest that sow vaccination or infection status that results in high levels of IAV strain-specific maternally-derived antibodies may help to reduce IAV circulation in both suckling and nursery pigs

Influenza Herd-Level Prevalence and Seasonality in Breed-to-Wean Pig Farms in the Midwestern United States

Influenza is a costly disease for pig producers and understanding its epidemiology is critical to control it. In this study, we aimed to estimate the herd-level prevalence and seasonality of influenza in breed-to-wean pig farms, evaluate the correlation between influenza herd-level prevalence and meteorological conditions, and characterize influenza genetic diversity over time. A cohort of 34 breed-to-wean farms with monthly influenza status obtained over a 5-year period in piglets prior to wean was selected. A farm was considered positive in a given month if at least one oral fluid tested influenza positive by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. Influenza seasonality was assessed combining autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) models with trigonometric functions as covariates. Meteorological conditions were gathered from local land-based weather stations, monthly aggregated and correlated with influenza herd-level prevalence. Influenza herd-level prevalence had a median of 28% with a range from 7 to 57% and followed a cyclical pattern with levels increasing during fall, peaking in both early winter (December) and late spring (May), and decreasing in summer. Influenza herd-level prevalence was correlated with mean outdoor air absolute humidity (AH) and temperature. Influenza genetic diversity was substantial over time with influenza isolates belonging to 10 distinct clades from which H1 delta 1 and H1 gamma 1 were the most common. Twenty-one percent of farms had three different clades co-circulating over time, 18% of farms had two clades, and 41% of farms had one clade. In summary, our study showed that influenza had a cyclical pattern explained in part by air AH and temperature changes over time, and highlighted the importance of active surveillance to identify high-risk periods when strategic control measures for influenza could be implemented