THE COMPETITIVENESS OF NATIONAL ECONOMIES IN THEIR STRUGGLE FOR POWER SUPREMACY

Mankind is in a continuous movement process, and power moves from a country to another, each of these trying to maintain supremacy. The struggle for power is very tough because to counterbalance the main competitors, knowledge of their strengths and weaknesses is imperative. The remaking of world order, on the basis of clashes between cultures and civilizations, is very well captured and illustrated by Samuel Huntington.competitiveness, economic structures, cultural dimensions, power distance, masculinity, individualism, uncertainty avoidance, management systems

CLUSTER OF COUNTRIES ANALYSIS BY RESPONSIBLE COMPETITIVENESS, NATIONAL COMPETITIVENESS AND CORRUPTION

The Global Competitiveness Report, the State of Responsible Competitiveness and the Global Corruption Barometer elaborate annually a countries ranking that emphasize the progress or regress of each country. Using this reports the paper try to make a clusters analysis of world country by responsible competitiveness, national competitiveness and corruption. The main idea of this paper is to split the countries in three categories of clusters – innovators, asserters and beginners – in relation between responsible competitiveness and national competitiveness – and – stars, asserters and beginners – in relation between corruption and national competitiveness. Within the three clusters, countries may be able to improve their performance through real and suitable policies.cluster, responsible competitiveness, national competitiveness, corruption

The influence of culture on the economic freedom and the international business

The firms who decide to expand their business in an international environment must modify their management style through international management. Certainly, international management must adapt their on functions to the different framework of the business development. The culture is a cardinally factor, being an essential component in the success equation of multinational companies. The culture, the habits and the attitudes became points of major interests on the global market. Their importance is obvious through numerous "blunders" which find out in international trade and international. For the success of international business the economies must bees free, but the economic freedom is influenced by the national culture. All the undertake activities of managers are accessible to cultural environment. The global firm is due to negotiate with different international organisms, and where through the negotiations to fall flat, the managers must understand the cultural environment of the negotiator and must have cross-cultural competence.culture; economic freedom; international business

THE RELATION BETWEEN MANAGERIAL PERFORMANCE AND FIRM PERFORMANCE - SEVERAL CONSIDERATIONS

Managerial performance and firm performance are two concepts in a strong correlation. The more managerial performance is higher with both shareholders are pleased because managers leading firms such manner that they are able to increase their performance (financial, social and environmental). Achieving or maintaining a certain level of performance by the firms is possible in conditions which leaders performs in the management. Furthermore, managerial performance has a tremendous impact on firm performance.managerial performance, firm performance, performance managers, firm performance model

Valorificarea capitalului intelectual - criteriu pentru performanta manageriala in societatea bazata pe cunoastere

If we can see the knowledge society as an essential part of the “external environment” of the firm management, that brings with it some specific opportunities and threats, we have to consider the intellectual capital – that integrates the two basic resources: knowledge and human – a key ingredient for the “internal environment” of the firm management, which determines some strengths and/or weaknesses that lead to the success or the failure of the managerial effort of the firm operating under the circumstances given by the emergency of three processes with global spread: the economic globalization, the managerial revolution and the knowledge-based society. Having as starting point the premise that Peter Drucker emphasized years ago: the managerial revolution represents the third essential change into the dynamics of knowledge, when knowledge is applied to knowledge itself, we have to accept the priority of the human factor – which generates, uses and valorizes knowledge in a never ending process of interaction with the environment. By continuing with this logic, we can not ignore that, even if there is no unanimously recognized approach about the meaning of the intellectual capital, it appears recently a quasi-unanimous recognized opinion regarding the first place that the intellectual capital has to take as source for the competitive advantage of the firm and strategic resource for its management. More than that, in a time when knowledge becomes the strategic resource for any of the human activities, firms shift through a new managerial paradigm that characterize “the civilized business” and promote management intellectualization. By this way, the valorization of the intellectual capital of the firm could become vital criteria for the managerial performance in the knowledge – based society.intellectual capital; managerial performance; knowledge-based society

Competitiveness and Corruption in Romania - Forecasting in the Context of the Romanian Integration into the European Union

Competitiveness and corruption are now - more than ever before - two real challenges for Romania on its way to the European integration. The theoretical approaches to those concepts did not get to a unanimous and happy end and the real figures that evaluate them are not at all pleasing for Romania. Our country registers low positions in the world and European hierarchies both regarding competitiveness and corruption. But, still it looks forward for its integration into the EU. The gaps that separate Romania from the European average scores are significant and by this paper we try to forecast some development directions and to estimate some time horizons in order to reduce the gaps, by significantly increasing competitiveness and diminish corruption.Competitiveness, Corruption, Forecasting, Integration, Gap Reduction

Competitiveness, Economic Freedom and Real Exchange Rate. Evidence from Romania

In the new context of European Integration, Romania has to improve some important macroeconomic indicators, such as: competitiveness, economic freedom and real exchange rate for a sustainable economic growth. Many authors emphasize that competitiveness and economic freedom affects economic growth through stimulating investment and business environment. The equilibrium exchange rate is crucial as it directly influences external competitiveness, especially through export prices. For Romania, the competitiveness can be improved through the economic freedom growth and the real exchange rate appreciation. But this appreciation must be accompanied by a rise in productivity and in the quality of the products offered on the external markets in order not to affect Romania’s external competitiveness.competitiveness; economic freedom; real exchange rate; Romania

INTERRELATIONS BETWEEN ECONOMIC FREEDOM, KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY AND GLOBAL COMPETITIVENESS – COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS ROMANIA AND EU AVERAGE

Economic Freedom, Knowledge Economy and Global Competitiveness are three of the many and very different dimensions which characterize the level of a country’s performance. This paper tries to present these three important directions, the specific indicators that measure them – IEF, KEI, GCI – and the relationship between them. Also, it will try to demonstrate that countries with free economy can turn into knowledge and competitive economies. Furthermore, it will make a comparative analysis of Romania with the EU countries’ average in order to identify for Romania which pillar’s scores it has to improve.economic freedom, knowledge economy, global competitiveness, Romania, European Union

CHANGING THE PATTERNS OF THE GLOBAL ECONOMY – THE EMERGENCE AND EVOLUTION OF THE BRIC COUNTRIES

The world is (permanently) changing – and from time to time major shifts occur and redefine its patterns of evolution. The global economy within it gets new leading actors and defining features, new power balance and architecture. This is inevitable in order to develop. Sometime of these shifts seem to be the result of a scientifically grounded, well defined and consciously applied strategy, and sometime it seems to be the result of some kind of a Brownian movement (something like: “it just happened”). In this paper we analyze the fascinating “case” of the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China). Having some (a few) common features, but actually being very different (in most of the aspects), and in an absence of a unique mission, vision and development strategy, the four countries have started to be seen as an entity (given their previous evolution and based on forecasting studies) – not only able to change the patterns of the global economy, but, more than that, able to lead it in the (almost near) future (the year 2050). This very optimistic projection of Goldman Sachs obviously has (and still have) its critics, but the governments of the BRICs took it very seriously – by assuming the theory and organizing annual common meetings – the best of the validation! The impact of the global crisis (and recession) on the BRICs is a major challenge for them and the opinions also vary a lot in this aspect – from “BRICs didn’t experience the crisis yet” to “BRIC will offer the best models of recovery”; we just have to “wait and see”.BRIC countries, development, EU, crisis, models of development

FROM FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE FOR SHAREHOLDERS TO GLOBAL PERFORMANCE FOR STAKEHOLDERS

The global business environment (at every of its levels and by any of its forms) is more and more competitive and challenging for firms nowadays. On the other hand, firms themselves exercise a growing pressure and influence over the society (by their economic, social and environmental – wanted or not – outputs/effects). There is no doubt about those facts. Under these circumstances, new theories and practices emerged, in order to bring together and make long term peace between firms/businesses and society (as a whole and considering each part and category of it as well). Stakeholders’ theory and corporate responsibility theory come into discussion when we talk about business cooperation and sustainable development, according with the future generations best interests. As a result, together with the new theory and philosophy of the firm, we (and firm management) must consider a new paradigm when measuring corporate performance: the transition form shareholders to stakeholders brings with it the transition from financial reporting to social reporting, in order for firms and their management to be able to manage and measure global firm performance (financial, as well as social and environmental, in the idea to positively answer to all the interests stakeholders have – a request of doing well by doing good). By this paper, we would like to analyze how the transition from satisfying shareholders interests theory to satisfying stakeholders interests’ theory changes the way management seeks for and measures corporate performance, and how this shift is perceived. In order to do this, we will bring together the Most Profitable Fortune Global 500 versus 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World and will analyze: the correlation between financial performance and social performance; the measure these two kinds of performance leverage each other – in order to achieve global corporate performance by satisfying all kind of stakeholders’ interests.global corporate performance, financial performance, social performance, stakeholders