Differences between innovative and non-innovative microenterprises: internal factors

This exploratory study presents a comparison between two samples of microenterprises. One sample is formed by companies involved in product innovation during the current economic crisis and the other is formed by companies not involved in product innovation during the same period. The comparison analyzes which internal factors, supported by the literature as the influential factors of small business innovation, are significant when explaining the main differences between innovative microenterprise and non-innovative ones. The results suggest that the factors related to the organization and activity of the company are the factors which explain the differences between these two types of firms, rather than those factors related to micro-entrepreneurs own profile

Kinetics and crystallization path of a Fe-based metallic glass alloy

The thermal stability and the quantification of the different transformation processes involved in the overall crystallization of the Fe50Cr15Mo14C15B6 amorphous alloy were investigated by several characterization techniques. Formation of various metastable and stable phases during the devitrification process in the sequence a-Fe, ¿-Cr6Fe18Mo5, M23(C,B)6, M7C3, ¿-Fe3Mo3C and FeMo2B2 (with M = Fe, Cr, Mo), was observed by in-situ synchrotron high energy X-ray diffraction and in-situ transmission electron microscopy. By combining these techniques with differential scanning calorimetry data, the crystallization states and their temperature range of stability under continuous heating were related with the evolution of the crystallized fraction and the phase sequence as a function of temperature, revealing structural and chemical details of the different transformation mechanisms.Postprint (published version

Incidencia de la acumulación de costos por procesos en el cálculo del costo unitario de los artículos terminados en la empresa CUBANACAN Cigars S.A. regulada por la Ley de admisión temporal para el perfeccionamiento de activo de facilitación a la exportación (Ley 382) en el mes de Abril del año 2016

El régimen de Ley de admisión temporal para perfeccionamiento activo, Ley 382 permite el ingreso de las mercancías suspensas de derechos e impuestos y bajo ciertas condiciones, como se verá abordado en el desarrollo de la investigación. La ley persigue la facilitación de las exportaciones otorgando beneficios a fin de promover la actividad exportadora en el país y lograr un desarrollo sostenible de la economía nacional. Debemos de estar claros que la mejor forma para que el país se desarrolle económicamente es mediante el posicionamiento de las mercancías en el mercado internacional, por lo que la correcta regulación de la ley favorece este propósito. El objetivo principal de la Contabilidad es proporcionar a la gerencia información útil y confiable para la toma de decisiones acertadas, esto implica que el contador nunca debe perder de vista su meta final que no solamente es elaborar y presentar los estados financieros de manera oportuna y con gran contenido informativo, sino que dependiendo de las características y necesidades de la empresa debe también cumplir con otras funciones

Incidencia de costos por proceso en el cálculo del costo unitario en CUBANACAN Cigar´s S.A

El trabajo investigativo realizado en la empresa tabacalera CUBANACAN Cigars S.A pretende determinar la incidencia de la acumulación de costo por proceso en el cálculo del costo unitario de los artículos terminados, regulada por la Ley de admisión temporal para el perfeccionamiento de activo de facilitación a la exportación (Ley 382) en el mes de Abril del año 2016. En ésta investigación se emplearon los métodos teóricos y empíricos para confeccionar instrumentos que permitieran reunir toda la información pertinente para el cumplimiento de objetivos como son guías de entrevistas y revisión documental, los que facilitaron el proceso de construcción de este trabajo. Dicha temática se ha elaborado con el fin de beneficiar a la empresa CUBANACAN Cigars S.A. contribuyendo a una posible solución de los problemas o debilidades que tiene actualmente. Y como principal resultado de investigación se obtuvo que un sistema de acumulación de costos por procesos en ésta empresa permite que los costos unitarios se determinen eficientemente y con mayor exactitud y ello conlleva a conocer en mayor medida y exactitud el incremento de utilidade

Does a balanced gender ratio improve performance? The case of Spanish banks (1999-2010)

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify the dynamics of the gender diversity-to-performance relationship in the Spanish banking sector in the period 1999-2010. Specifically the authors try to study how different proportions of men and women in banking institutions lead to different levels of return on assets (ROA) and sales productivity. Design/methodology/approach – The authors use conventional panel data methods to find an optimal mix of males and females which leads to higher levels of financial results. With the aim of controlling unobserved heterogeneity, equations are estimated using the random-effects model. Findings – The findings show that the proportion of women in the workforce does not affect productivity but significantly explains ROA. In addition low-moderated levels (27 per cent) of women in technical positions optimize ROA. Originality/value – This research empirically explores the business case for gender diversity going beyond the upper echelons of organizations. The authors also study how the technical qualification of employees can determine the optimal proportion of gender groups

Learning Analytics to Detect Evidence of Fraudulent Behaviour in Online Examinations

Lecturers are often reluctant to set examinations online because of the potential problems of fraudulent behaviour from their students. This concern has increased during the coronavirus pandemic because courses that were previously designed to be taken face-to-face have to be conducted online. The courses have had to be redesigned, including seminars, laboratory sessions and evaluation activities. This has brought lecturers and students into conflict because, according to the students, the activities and examinations that have been redesigned to avoid cheating are also harder. The lecturers' concern is that students can collaborate in taking examinations that must be taken individually without the lecturers being able to do anything to prevent it, i.e. fraudulent collaboration. This research proposes a process model to obtain evidence of students who attempt to fraudulently collaborate, based on the information in the learning environment logs. It is automated in a software tool that checks how the students took the examinations and the grades that they obtained. It is applied in a case study with more than 100 undergraduate students. The results are positive and its use allowed lecturers to detect evidence of fraudulent collaboration by several clusters of students from their submission timestamps and the grades obtained.This research was funded by Spanish National Research Agency (AEI), through the project VISAIGLE (TIN2017-85797-R) with ERDF funds

El impacto del uso efectivo de las TIC sobre la eficiencia técnica de las empresas españolas

Los numerosos estudios llevados acabo acerca del efecto de las Tecnologíasde la Información y lasComunicaciones (TIC) sobre la productividadde las firmas han puestode manifiesto que no es suficienteinvertir en TIC, sino que una seriede inversiones adicionales, prácticasorganizativas específicas, etc, sonnecesarias. En este trabajo se muestracómo el efecto del simple uso delas TIC sobre el rendimiento de lasfirmas es irrelevante, mientras quesu uso para la comunicación conclientes y proveedores eleva significativamentesu desempeño. La magnitudutilizada para caracterizar estedesempeño es la eficiencia técnica enel proceso de conversión de inputs enoutputs. Esta eficiencia técnica se hacalculado utilizando un modelo deData Envelopment Analysis, metodologíaestándar en estudios sobreproductividad, pero que hasta lafecha apenas ha sido utilizada paraanalizar el impacto de las TIC sobreel rendimiento empresarial.Tecnologías de la Información, EficienciaTécnica, Data Envelopment Analysis, Cadena de Aprovisionamiento.

Computational analysis of different turbulence models in a vane pump simulation

The study presents a computational analysis of a vane pump using two different turbulence models namely κ-ε and κ-ω. The geometry characteristics of the vane pump were obtained by disassembly and further measurements. The CAD model for the computational domain was developed in SOLIDWORKS®. The CFD modeling was powered by ANSYS®, which allowed the evaluation of different mesh types and turbulence models. A total set of six simulations were performed to obtain comparison schemes for turbulence model evaluation. Specifically, the angular velocity and excentricity were varied within the simulations. Both turbulence models were carefully validated using the manufacturer´s dataset as validation criteria, obtaining a relative error of less than 5%. The κ-ω experienced the best performance when describing the flow variables, excepting the pressure gradient. Specifically, the κ-ω presented an accurate prediction of edge effects, energy losses in the walls, and turbulent viscosity. Notably, the CFD modeling showed that density and velocity variations are not significant. Overall, CFD modeling demonstrated to be a robust tool to gain insight understanding of the flow interactions in vane pump operation

Morbilidad materna extremadamente grave.Una aproximación actual

Extremely severe maternal morbidity is the condition used to refer to any woman who has a serious complication during pregnancy, childbirth or the puerperium that puts her life at risk and requires immediate attention in order to avoid death. An information search was carried out in the Pubmed, Scopus, Dialnet and Lilacs databases. A search strategy was applied using the terms: perinatal care, postpartum hemorrhage, Near miss, maternal mortality. Of the 33 articles initially obtained, 30 met the inclusion criteria. Objective: To describe aspects related to extremely severe maternal morbidity that allow establishing health actions aimed at reducing maternal-perinatal complications and consequently maternal mortality.Postpartum hemorrhage and hypertensive disease of pregnancy continue to be the main causes of extremely severe maternal morbidity today, which varies according to the criteria used to define cases and the characteristics of the populations studied in different regions of the world. Added to this are predisposing factors such as: age over 34 years, previous history of postpartum hemorrhage, multiple pregnancy, hypertension, emergency cesarean section, anemia, lack of prenatal care, patients with previous abortions, and deliveries performed by poorly trained people. When describing the extremely severe maternal morbidity as an indicator that evaluates maternal health and the quality of care, there will be enough elements to identify these cases and make decisions regarding the implementation of more effective programs that allow the reduction of the maternal mortality. La morbilidad materna extremadamente grave es la condición utilizada para referirse a toda mujer que tuviera una complicación grave durante el embarazo, parto o puerperio que ponga en riesgo su vida y que requiera atención inmediata con el fin de evitar la muerte. Se realizó una búsqueda de información en las bases de datos Pubmed, Scopus, Dialnet y Lilacs. Se aplicó una estrategia de búsqueda mediante los términos: atención perinatal, hemorragia posparto, Near miss, mortalidad materna. Objetivo. Describir aspectos relacionados con la morbilidad materna extremadamente grave que permitan establecer acciones de salud encaminadas a reducir las complicaciones maternas-perinatales y consecuentemente la mortalidad materna. La hemorragia del posparto y la enfermedad hipertensiva del embarazo continúan siendo las principales causas de morbilidad materna extremadamente grave en la actualidad, lo cual varía según los criterios usados para la definición de casos y de las características de las poblaciones estudiadas en diferentes regiones del mundo. A ello se unen factores predisponentes tales como: la edad mayor de 34 años, historia previa de hemorragia posparto, embarazo múltiple, hipertensión, cesárea de emergencia, anemia, falta de control prenatal, pacientes con abortos previos y partos realizados por personas mal entrenadas. Al describir la morbilidad materna extremadamente grave como indicador que evalúa la salud materna y la calidad de su cuidado se contará con los elementos suficientes para la identificación de estos casos y la toma de decisiones referentes a la implementación de programas más efectivos que permitan la reducción de la mortalidad materna

Resource Dependence In Non-profit Organizations: Is It Harder To Fundraise If You Diversify Your Revenue Structure?

This article explores how fundraising efficiency is affected by changes in diversification of revenues in non-profit organizations. It uses random effect regression and Arellano–Bond models to study this phenomenon in a sample of 10358 US non-profits during the 1997–2007 period. We find a negative impact on fundraising efficiency when NPOs alter their locus of dependence and change their pattern of diversification. This effect is impacted by organizational size and industry. Previous studies have suggested that income heterogeneity is associated with organizational stability and financial strength. Using a change (versus level) model of funding diversity, our work shows that increased diversification leads to a higher operational inefficiency that could be penalized by potential donors