Competence development of young entrepreneurs through educational innovations

The questions regarding interactive methods of teaching, self-studying, active learning, as well as an implementation of a competency-based approach into study process, have been actively discussed by educational experts, authorities, scholars and teachingpractitioners during the last decade. Probably, the main issue is to encourage students to participate in classroom activities and to promote successful learner-tutor cooperation. The research was aimed to evaluate the progress in entrepreneurial competencies perceived by students, participating in a specific 2-days long entrepreneurship workshop. The workshop content and schedule was designed within the framework of the international project «Strategic Partnership for Innovation and Development of Entrepreneurship».The format of the organized workshops was created during the project by the partner organizations. It is a unique teaching instrument, encouraging entrepreneurial skills and innovativespirit among students. After the workshop, the participants (students and mentors)were surveyed, using the specially designed questionnaire. One of the question blocks involved the list of competencies, which were offered for evaluation according to the criterion «progress», using 5-point scale (1 –the level stayed the same; 5 –the level really increased). The results were processed, using the methods of frequency analysis and ranking. Thus, the main goal of the paper is to reflect the results of the conducted survey in order to test the quality and success of the specific teaching method. The results indicated the substantial perceived increase in such competences, as Collaborative working, Decision making & Problem-solving, Managing Performance, Commitment to Excellence, Speaking and Listening Skills, Presentation Skills, as well as Self-motivation. The obviousconclusion is that such kind of interactive teaching methods isthe most valuable in management teaching. However, additional peer consulting and evaluation block could be useful at the stage of the initial presentation of the business idea. The results of the research (and the idea of such workshop) can be useful for any academic staff member engaged into the study process and working with students of programmes «Entrepreneurship», «Management», «Business economics»and related ones.publishersversionPeer reviewe

A Review of the Monograph by T. Pimonenko, O. Lyulyov, N. Letunovska "Circular and Carbon-Free Economy: The Roadmap for Harmonizing National and European Standards for Energy Market"

Circular and carbon-neutral economic development are the topical areas of implementing the climate strategy in many countries. According to these concepts, the main basis for economic development is the growth of the renewable energy share in the structure of energy consumption. The fact that Ukraine has announced that in the future its evolution will be determined by the European integration vector of development means that a prerequisite for the transition to the next steps of development is the synchronization of the national energy policy in accordance with the strategic guidelines of the European region. To develop an effective roadmap for harmonising Ukrainian and European standards of energy market regulation, it is advisable to analyse the experience of implementing energy efficiency practices in the policies of other countries in the European region. The authors forecast the structure of energy production from renewable sources, based on empirical calculations. The development and implementation of modernized mechanisms for regulating the energy market in European countries is a prerequisite for the successful adaptation of the Ukrainian energy sector and the introduction of effective approaches to the management of local businesses and all industries that depend on energy resources

Entrepreneurs’ perception of outcomes from intellectual capital investments

Investments in intellectual capital, such as advertising, R&D, staff training and software, positively affect a company’s value. The aim of this research is to evaluate the perceived importance of expected results from intellectual capital investments by Latvian entrepreneurs and reveal the difference in perceptions caused by differing company profiles. Representatives of Latvian companies were surveyed using the questionnaire developed for the research. Respondents’ answers were evaluated within groups based on profile criteria such as the company’s age, size, financial performance, location and business sector. Data processing was carried out in an SPSS environment using analysis of frequencies, ranking and independent samples t-test

ADVANCED TEACHING METHODS FOR STUDENTS’ COMPETENCIES DEVELOPMENT

Competence-based approach to study process is frequently discussed topic among academicians, learners and government authorities due to its practical contribution to better graduates’ employment abilities. The aim of the given study is to identify teaching methods with the biggest contribution to development of students’ competencies. Bachelor level students of management-based study courses were surveyed in order to evaluate the progress in acquiring certain management competencies. Self-evaluation study was performed before and after the course. The acquired data was processed and the contribution of analysed teaching methods to competencies’ development was assessed

Drivers of bank profitability: case of Latvia and Lithuania

The issues regarding measuring and managing bank performance are always on the agenda due to the critically important role of banks in the national economies of new member states of the European Union. The goal of the given study is to explore drivers of bank profitability in Latvia and Lithuania. Research period covers 2008–2014. Performance of the banking sector is proxied by profitability ratios. The set of explanatory factors involves financial and non-financial measures. The core research method is a multiple regression analysis. Data processing is performed in SPSS environment. The paper contributes to the scope of knowledge regarding bank performance drivers and the research results provide the basis for the future studies in the related field

Competences necessary for a social entrepreneur: a case study of Latvia

Social entrepreneurship as a specific kind of business has been developing in Latvia since 2018, and it is a little researched field. Achieving the goals of social entrepreneurship is facilitated by several factors, including the competences of the social entrepreneur him/herself. The present research aims to identify the general basic knowledge, skills and competences necessary for a social entrepreneur in Latvia. The authors made a review of theoretical literature on the role of managerial competencies in social enterprises and analysed the results of surveys of social entrepreneurs and their institutional partners – university teaching personnel – conducted in Latvia. The research found that there were areas of general knowledge, skills and competences of social entrepreneurs that were rated as equally important by both groups surveyed, yet the social entrepreneurs gave more importance to competences related to business goals and opportunities. The present research makes a scientific contribution in two aspects: 1) the identified general competencies required for a social entrepreneur could serve as a basis for further research to measure the actual competencies of social entrepreneurs; 2) the research contributes to an institutional framework for the social entrepreneurship ecosystem by developing recommendations for cooperation partners – those involved in adult lifelong learning, incl. universities, for the development of competencies in social entrepreneurs

ATTITUDE TOWARDS SUSTAINABLE ENTREPRENEURSHIP AMONG STUDENTS : TESTING A MEASUREMENT SCALE

The overwhelming goal of the research is to evaluate the attitudes and behaviours of youth towards sustain-ability issues and sustainable entrepreneurship. The current paper reflects the results of the first research stage and aims at testing a measurement scale that consists of three groups of items: 1) statements about environmental attitudes and behaviours, 2) general intention to start a sustainable business, 3) intention to start a social business in the field of the circular economy. The reliability analysis to measure the internal consistency of the scale was performed in SPSS environment, using Cronbach alpha. A focus group discussion was organized among business students to evaluate the perceived quality of the questionnaire.publishersversionPeer reviewe

Attitudes Towards Sustainable Entrepreneurship among Students : A Pilot Study in Latvia and Lithuania

Publisher Copyright: © 2023 Jelena Titko et al.Sustainable economic development is driven by sustainable entrepreneurial activities, generated by the personal attitudes of entrepreneurs. The present and future of sustainable entrepreneurship are shaped by the youth, including students, which is why it is important to understand their attitudes towards this type of entrepreneurship. Therefore, the key goal of the research is to evaluate the attitudes and behaviours of the youth towards sustainability issues and sustainable entrepreneurship. The current article reflects the results of the second research stage and aims at evaluating attitudes towards sustainable entrepreneurship among Latvian and Lithuanian students. The results reveal that gender/age affect personal environmental attitudes, however gender/age has no effect on personal willingness to start a sustainable business. The analysis results of the personal attitudes to sustainable entrepreneurship differ by age and gender. Gender has no effect and age strongly affects personal attitudes to sustainable development.Peer reviewe

Bank value: comparing customer and employee perceptions

In the modern competitive environment, banks create the value generally using the relational capital. Thus, customer satisfaction and loyalty are the main components of bank success in a market. In turn, customer satisfaction is affected by bank service quality that determines bank’s value perceived by clients. The main goal of the research is to determine factors affecting bank value perceived by customers to examine the gaps in customers’ and employees’ perceptions of these factors. The goal of the paper is to prepare a theoretical basis for the survey and to describe and theoretically validate the design of the research instrument. To achieve the goal the brief literature review was conducted in the fields of relationship value management, service quality and customer buying behaviour. The statements of the questionnaire were developed based on Kotler’s concept of a customer perceived value and different variations of the SERVQUAL model. To purify the developed questionnaires, the authors conducted focus group interview. We believe that bank performance depends directly on the bank’s ability to capture and retain clients and on customer-employee relationships. Thus, it is crucial to know factors affecting customer perceived bank value. Using our developed instrument it is possible to measure the level of service quality in Latvian banks and to examine the difference between customers’ and employees’ viewpoints on the quality of bank services