A systematic literatura revew of the impact of organizational structure on firm performance

Treballs Finals del Màster en Oficial en Empresa Internacional / International Business, Facultat d'Economia i Empresa, Universitat de Barcelona. Curs: 2021-2022. Tutor: Elio ShijakuThe objective of this paper is to determine the impact of a firm’s organizational structure on its performance, measured through both financial and non-financial dimensions. A systematic literature review was carried out using a total of 35 articles from select management, finance and other relevant journals. Finalized articles included data and findings from a multitude of different geographic locations, industries and firm sizes. For analysis, a range of organizational structures were considered, including organizational structures comprised of hybrid internal systems. Similarly, performance was analyzed including both objective and subjective measures. Findings of this review were categorized into three items; positive effect of organizational structure on firm performance, partial effect of organizational structure on firm performance and no effect of organizational structure on firm performance. Results of finalized articles reviewed were illustrated by means of a table with relevant data. No conclusive relationship between firm structure and performance was established therefore suggestions were made for future research

Blood glucose variance measured by continuous glucose monitors across the menstrual cycle

Past studies on how blood glucose levels vary across the menstrual cycle have largely shown inconsistent results based on limited blood draws. In this study, 49 individuals wore a Dexcom G6 continuous glucose monitor and a Fitbit Sense smartwatch while measuring their menstrual hormones and self-reporting characteristics of their menstrual cycles daily. The average duration of participation was 79.3 ± 21.2 days, leading to a total of 149 cycles and 554 phases in our dataset. We use periodic restricted cubic splines to evaluate the relationship between blood glucose and the menstrual cycle, after which we assess phase-based changes in daily median glucose level and associated physiological parameters using mixed-effects models. Results indicate that daily median glucose levels increase and decrease in a biphasic pattern, with maximum levels occurring during the luteal phase and minimum levels occurring during the late-follicular phase. These trends are robust to adjustments for participant characteristics (e.g., age, BMI, weight) and self-reported menstrual experiences (e.g., food cravings, bloating, fatigue). We identify negative associations between each of daily estrogen level, step count, and low degrees of fatigue with higher median glucose levels. Conversely, we find positive associations between higher food cravings and higher median glucose levels. This study suggests that blood glucose could be an important parameter for understanding menstrual health, prompting further investigation into how the menstrual cycle influences glucose fluctuation