Students’ Perceptions on Corporate Social Responsibility at the Academic Level. Case Study: The Faculty of Administration and Business, University of Bucharest

During the last decades, the social responsibility of institutions, public as well as private, has been subject to intense debates, activities and academic research. The aims of the paper are to highlight in short the importance of the social responsibility of institutions, and to analyze the results of a research regarding students’ perceptions on corporate social responsibility activities of a Romanian university. By using primary data obtained from a survey based on a questionnaire a set of three hypotheses was tested during our research. The information was processed by using the SPSS software. The results of our research emphasize that students attach importance to the corporate social responsibility at academic level, a fact indicated through their involvement degree in the specific activities of this concept.social responsibility, corporate social responsibility, students, university

Information and Ecological Behaviour towards the Natural Resources Consumption of the Population of Bucharest

Over the last decades, the consumer’s ecological behaviour has been the topic of intense debates, academic activities and researches. The scope of our article is to briefly highlight the importance of concrete actions aimed at informing and getting awareness of the environmental aspect in the consumption of natural resources, and also analyze the results of a research regarding the adult population perception of the methods developing ecological behaviour in consuming natural resources. A set of three hypotheses has been tested during the research using primary information obtained through a questionnairebased survey. The information has been processed using SPSS software. The results of our research outline the facts that the population of Bucharest is selective when choosing the information channels, that there is a low correlation between the civic expression and the individual behaviour due to an early development of the non-government organizations, the reduced civic involvement and the adverse accommodation of messages to target groups. Those who are interested in informing and developing the consumers’ ecological behaviour would rather need the support of fellow citizens than of the institutions authorized to promote such a message.ecological behaviour, consumer, natural resources, environment, information, Bucharest, concern

(Self-)Reflecting on International Recruitment: Views on the Role of Recruiting Agencies in Bulgaria and Romania

This article focuses on the recruiting practices of public and private agencies dealing with international labour mediation in Bulgaria and Romania. Based on interpretative analysis of 20 in-depth interviews with professionals working in migrant recruiting agencies in the two countries, we aim to understand their views on the advantages and disadvantages of their services in comparison with other mobility channels: such as informal networks, direct contacts with employers, or unofficial Internet sites. The article examines the ways in which international labour mediation practitioners construct their target group—migrants—in terms of motivation, human capital, and/or challenges of their adaptation to the new context. We then look at intermediaries’ perceptions of employers’ needs and expectations. We finish with uncovering recruiters’ underlying assessment of the national and European mobility policies and the outcomes they see for individual migrants, employers and the countries of departure and destination

Refugiații din Ucraina și percepția războiului

The survey was conducted between March 9-20, 2022 on a sample of 800 people living in 220 urban and regional localities in all counties of Romania, with a statistical error of +/- 3.5%. He measured the attitude of Romanians towards refugees from Ukraine, but also from other geographical regions. Compared to the similar research in October 2021, there was a 25% increase in the favorable attitude towards refugees, and it is the highest increase among young people, those with higher education, employers, those living in very large cities. Romanians are favorable to the entry of refugees from Ukraine and hypothetically from Moldova, but more reluctant to those from Asia, Africa, Latin America or the Caucasus. Romanians' self-esteem has significantly increased for the exemplary way in which their fellow citizens have been involved in helping refugees in Ukraine, although they are aware that there is a risk of upsetting the Russian Federation

Kolmogorov compression complexity may differentiate different schools of Orthodox iconography

The complexity in the styles of 1200 Byzantine icons painted between 13th and 16th from Greece, Russia and Romania was investigated through the Kolmogorov algorithmic information theory. The aim was to identify specific quantitative patterns which define the key characteristics of the three different painting schools. Our novel approach using the artificial surface images generated with Inverse FFT and the Midpoint Displacement (MD) algorithms, was validated by comparison of results with eight fractal and non-fractal indices. From the analyzes performed, normalized Kolmogorov compression complexity (KC) proved to be the best solution because it had the best complexity pattern differentiations, is not sensitive to the image size and the least affected by noise. We conclude that normalized KC methodology does offer capability to differentiate the icons within a School and amongst the three Schools

POSSIBILITY TO CREATE A SOCIAL ENTERPRISE IN TODAY’S WORKING ENVIRONMENT

Purpose – This paper aims to debate the possibility of creating a social enterprise in a certain region of Romania. Design/methodology/approach – In the first section there is a theoretical approach of some aspects of societal change processes and seven trends which indicate the change processes within the working environment. From the same point of view, there are also mentioned different types of entrepreneurial activities. The paper ends with a case study which is dealing with the study of the potential to create social enterprises to support rural communities in Bistrita Nasaud. Findings – The data provides an array of social problems that are facing the people of this region: the lack of jobs, of qualifications required by the market, poverty, social exclusion of vulnerable groups. Practical implications/originality/value – The presentation of a case study specific to social entrepreneurship within a larger theoretical framework triggers a complex approach in compliance with the specified theoretical aspects

THE EVOLUTION OF THE LARGEST US CORPORATIONS IN THE PERIOD 2011-2012

Since the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century, big corporations have evolved into one of the main business organizations of the world. Moreover, large corporations started to dominate many industries in the United States (US). Today, in the globalization era, they have become much more powerful as in the past. The US corporations are major players in the business world and influence our lives. The aim of our paper is to analyze the evolution of the first ten largest US corporations by their revenues and profits in the 2011-2012 period. The research type is a literature review

WHEN BUSINESS STRATEGY MEETS CREATIVITY

Purpose – Our paper aims to present in short the theoretical foundation of the concepts of business strategy and creativity, and to highlight the relationship between them. Design/methodology/approach – Using the literature review, the study examined the conceptual framework of the notions of strategy, business strategy, and creativity. Also, it analysed the relationship between business strategy and creativity. Findings – The results confirm previous studies related to the beneficial impact of creativity on the business strategy of a company. As creativity has become an important input for a successful business strategy, companies are making significant efforts in order to bring creativity into play. Practical implications/originality/value – Business strategy and creativity are two interconnected concepts not only in theory, but also in practice. Also, creativity represents a fundamental asset of a successful company in turbulent times

Combining Direct and Indirect Measurements to Assess Patients’ Satisfaction with the Quality of Public Health Services in Romania: Uncovering Structural Mechanisms and Their Implications

Introduction: Patients’ satisfaction was extensively researched over the last decades, given its role in building loyalty, compliance to treatment, prevention, and eventually higher levels of wellbeing and improved health status. Patients’ feedback on the perceived quality of health services can be incorporated into practice; therefore, understanding factors and mechanisms responsible for patients’ satisfaction allows providers to tailor targeted interventions. Method: A questionnaire assessing patients’ perception of the quality of health services was administered to a country-representative sample of 1500 Romanian patients. Using a partial least squares—path modeling approach (PLS-PM), with cross-sectional data, we developed a variance-based structural model, emphasizing the mediating role of trust and satisfaction with various categories of health services. Results: We confirmed the mediating role of trust in shaping the relationship between the procedural accuracy of health professionals, along with the perceived intensity of their interaction with patients, and patients’ experienced quality of the health services. We confirmed the mediating role of satisfaction by the categories of services in the relationship between waiting time on the premises, attention received, and the perceived reliability of the information received, as predictors, and the experienced quality of the health services. In addition, indirect assessment of patients’ satisfaction is a good predictor for direct assessment, thereby affirming the idea that the results of the two types of evaluations converge. Discussions: One of the most efficient solutions to increase both patients’ satisfaction and their compliance is to empower the communication dimension between patients and health practitioners. Given the non-linear relationships among variables, we advocate that, unless the nature of the relationships between satisfaction and its predictors is understood, practical interventions could fail. The most relevant variable for intervention is the degree of attention patients perceive they received. We suggest three methods to turn waiting time into attention given to patients