Search results

Considering the growing global significance of intellectual capital, we explore the impact of foreign directors on the effectiveness of intellectual capital.

Using 21,352 firm-year observations of Chinese-listed firms, for 2006–2020, we employ a modified value-added intellectual coefficient model to evaluate intellectual capital efficiency. The author use ordinary least squares regression as the main method, with a variety of methods for endogeneity and ensure robustness, including the fixed-effects method, propensity score matching, Two-step system GMM and Heckman’s two-step model, as well as other techniques.

Our findings indicate that foreign board directors significantly increase aggregate intellectual capital and its components, including capital employed efficiency, human capital efficiency, structural capital efficiency, and relational capital efficiency. Further, foreign directors have more impact on the intellectual capital efficiency of non-state-owned versus state-owned enterprises. We also observe that the impact becomes significantly greater with the presence of three or more foreign directors. Our findings hold up to various measures of board internationalization and a battery of robustness tests.

The research results show that the foreign directors on boards are related to IC efficiency, and IC efficiency is crucial to enterprises' value creation and competitive advantage in the era of the knowledge economy. Our findings are useful for companies and governments that are interested in improving the performance of IC.

This study provides novel evidence by using the MVAIC model to investigate foreign directors on boards and their relationship with IC efficiency among Chinese companies, while most previous studies have linked IC efficiency to financial performance. The findings also suggest that the influence of nationality diversity differs concerning ownership structure and their threshold.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is vastly impacting the digital transformation of societies, economies, businesses, markets and enterprises, at a very fast pace, mostly after the global success of the generative algorithms. In this respect, this study, with an exploratory intention, aims to provide evidence about the fundamental issues of AI, particularly if generative, when adapted to humanism, with a specific focus on the wine business.

An exploratory analysis, conducted on a convenience sample of wine business operators, has been performed to investigate AI applications when connected with the conceptual platform of the “Industry 5.0” framework.

The results of the survey provide evidence about the success of AI in the wine business. Specifically, the research outcomes highlight that the interviewees (wine business operators) recognized the high relevance of the potential use of AI in the strategic and operating management of wine firms.

This study aims to provide new empirical evidence with regard to the application of AI in real business contexts. More specifically, in this exploratory investigation, a potential interaction between AI and sustainability has been highlighted in the wine industry, especially from an environmental point of view, i.e. for respectfully governing and managing the business impact on the planet and also for increasing the general efficiency of the process, with peculiar applications on the managerial, economic and financial side of the wine business.

This paper aims to examine the extent to which the presence of women in governance and top management positions is likely to affect corporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance. This study also examines the interaction effect between female leadership and cultural leadership in the boardroom.

The empirical quantitative paper covers a sample of French-listed non-financial companies from 2018 to 2022 (925 firm-year observations). France is the European Union pioneer of non-financial reporting and gender equality policies. A fixed-effect panel regression analysis was estimated to unveil the links between the presence of women in governance and top management positions and ESG performance.

Results show that appointing more women on the board of directors and executive team is conducive to higher ESG performance. Nevertheless, the interaction effect between female and cultural leadership does not impact ESG performance.

This study contributes to the accounting and corporate governance literature on gender diversity and ESG performance by investigating female leadership in both directorship and top executive roles.

This study intends to analyze the relationship between the digital maturity of SMEs and intellectual capital, investigating the determining factors. Starting from the endowment in terms of intellectual capital and evaluating Management Style, Decision-Making Competences, and Business Network, a model is proposed aiming to provide a comprehensive measure of SMEs’ digital maturity and thus to improve understanding and, consequently, effectiveness. The empirical analysis allows assessing the validity and applicability of the suggested model, providing valuable insights for the improvement of digital strategy and competitiveness of SMEs in the Amalfi Coast Tourist District (Italy), with evident implications also for policymakers and the community.

A mixed-methods research strategy was utilized to confirm research hypotheses that were derived from literature review. The field study was organized into two separate phases: the first phase, which is qualitative, employed focus groups comprising key stakeholders (managers and entrepreneurs) from various companies within the Amalfi Coast Tourist District. This phase adhered to the principles of homogeneity (to facilitate deeper discussions) and heterogeneity (to allow for a broader range of viewpoints among participants). The insights gathered from these preliminary focus groups informed the subsequent quantitative phase. In this second phase, structured interviews were conducted using a questionnaire to probe the participants’ views on digital maturity. This analysis involved 94 companies, all part of the Amalfi Coast Tourist District, assessing their digitalization levels and highlighting key management attributes. Logistic regression was applied to quantitatively analyze the data, effectively assessing the impact of various independent variables (such as Management Style, Decision-Making Competencies and Business Network) on the dependent variable, digital maturity. Employing both qualitative and quantitative methods provides a thorough and nuanced understanding of the digital maturity landscape within the specified context.

The main results suggest the existence of a correlation between the analyzed variables and digital maturity. Innovation, indeed, increases by applying a data-driven leadership style. Intellectual capital (measured in its three components of human capital: decision-making competences; structural capital: management style; and relational capital: business network) influences digital maturity, although some of the variables used are not equally weighted.

The main contribution of this article is to provide an in-depth understanding of the company components that favor digital maturity, to support strategic choices oriented towards a conscious digital transition. The results enrich the existing literature on intellectual capital in terms of its contribution to the digitalization of organizations, which can be a critical success factor in the context of SMEs.

The aim of this research is to elucidate the correlation between open innovation, digital strategies and networking in enhancing agricultural enterprises within the new perspective of Agrifood 5.0. As such, it contributes to making businesses more competitive, especially in the Italian agricultural sector, where small and medium-sized enterprises are highly fragmented. Numerous studies have asserted that the competitiveness of actors operating within a specific territory is closely linked to local identity and image enhancement. Agricultural organizations are undergoing a profound transformation, with technological assets emerging as catalysts for new synergies. Advanced technologies such as robotics, the Internet of Things (IoT) and automation (AI) are emerging as differentiating elements capable of further advancing the agricultural sector, transitioning it from Agrifood 4.0 to Agrifood 5.0. The empirical analysis of the research shows a positive correlation between a collaborative attitude and a propensity for innovation. Indeed, the data demonstrated that digital strategies and open innovation positively influence competitiveness in agricultural SMEs.

The methodology employed in this study is mixed, incorporating both qualitative and quantitative approaches. The quantitative aspect involves analysis of the dataset from the Italian Statistical Institute (ISTAT) through logistic regression, while the qualitative component entails analysis of semi-structured interviews conducted with a sample of 174 agricultural cooperatives in southern Italian regions (Campania). This approach allows for a comprehensive understanding of the research topic, capturing both numerical trends and nuanced insights from interviews.

After analyzing the data from the 7th General Census of Agriculture conducted by ISTAT, a clear understanding of the sector has emerged, revealing several potential research avenues. It is evident that innovation in the agricultural sector is often driven by the largest and best-capitalized production entities, primarily located in Italy. Conversely, smaller agricultural entities can benefit from networking as new technological assets act as catalysts for new synergies, innovation and competitiveness.

Enhancing the relational contribution within the network and humanizing a fragmented sector are crucial elements for promoting open innovation. Network structuring facilitates the transmission of managerial knowledge, contributing to an overall increase in the intellectual and relational capital of the agricultural sector. These factors, combined with open innovation, enhance the competitiveness of individual firms and elevate the brand of the entire sector, creating a conducive environment for transitioning toward Agrifood 5.0. This transition is characterized by increased interconnection, continuous innovation and overall prosperity. Specific studies on this topic are lacking in Italy, particularly in the southern regions. Therefore, this contribution focuses on investigating the Campania region.

The novelty of this study lies in its investigation of the relationship between agricultural enterprises and innovation in the context of enterprises networking strategies (i.e. associationism and/or cooperation), promoting competitiveness. The limitations of this study are related to the dimension of the sample selected and its relationship with other productive sectors.

This paper aims to explore the intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and marketing within the context of knowledge management (KM). It investigates how AI technologies facilitate data-driven decision-making, enhance business communication, improve customer personalization, optimize marketing campaigns and boost overall marketing effectiveness.

This study uses a quantitative and systematic approach, integrating citation analysis, text mining and co-citation analysis to examine foundational research areas and the evolution of AI in marketing. This comprehensive analysis addresses the current gap in empirical investigations of AI’s influence on marketing and its future developments.

This study identifies three main perspectives that have shaped the foundation of AI in marketing: proxy, tool and ensemble views. It develops a managerially relevant conceptual framework that outlines future research directions and expands the boundaries of AI and marketing literature within the KM landscape.

This research proposes a conceptual model that integrates AI and marketing within the KM context, offering new research trajectories. This study provides a holistic view of how AI can enhance knowledge sharing, strategic planning and decision-making in marketing.

This study aims to verify if information on sustainable development goal (SDG) measurements or achievements is included in nonfinancial reports, highlighting the most disclosed SDGs and the reasons behind their prioritization.

The collocation analysis and logDice measurement were performed on the 206 nonfinancial reports of Italian companies published in 2022.

Companies mainly disclose information on the SDGs they can easily influence through business activities (SDGs 8, 7 and 12) while focusing less on wicked problems, which are more challenging to measure and have less effect (SDGs 1, 2 and 16). The information in the reports is becoming more quantitative. It aims to measure companies’ impact on pursuing the SDGs, and a qualitative description of adopted corporate policies and actions complements it.

Results highlight the need to urge policymakers to create a unified SDG reporting framework. The systematization of the reporting structure would assist enterprises in preparing their reports and help stakeholders compare the results of different organizations. It would prompt companies to improve their internal control activities, consequently positively affecting corporate accountability and the pursuit of SDGs. Furthermore, more training would be needed to educate businesses on the role they can play in all 17 SDGs.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the research is the first attempt to use natural language processing methods in SDG reporting studies. This allowed researchers to study the whole population available, neglecting the sampling process, not missing any data available and bringing insights nonexistent in research.

The paper aims at addressing the following research questions: does institutional quality improve countries' environmental efficiency? And which pillars of institutional quality improve countries' environmental efficiency?

By specifying a directional distance function in the context of stochastic frontier method where GHG emissions are considered as the bad output and the GDP is referred as the desirable one, the work computes the environmental efficiency into the appraisal of a production function for the European countries over three decades.

According to the countries' performance, the findings confirm that high and upper middle-income countries have higher environmental efficiency compared to low middle-income countries. In this environmental context, the role of institutional quality turns out to be really important in improving the environmental efficiency for high income countries.

This article attempts to analyze the role of different dimensions of institutional quality in different European countries' performance – in terms of mitigating GHGs (undesirable output) – while trying to raise their economic performance through their GDP (desirable output).

1. The paper aims at addressing the following research question: does institutional quality improve countries' environmental efficiency?

2. We adopt a directional distance function in the context of stochastic frontier method, considering 40 European economies over a 30-year time interval.

3. The findings confirm that high and upper middle-income countries have higher environmental efficiency compared to low middle-income countries.

4. The role of institutional quality turns out to be really important in improving the environmental efficiency for high income countries, while the performance decreases for the low middle-income countries.

The paper aims at addressing the following research question: does institutional quality improve countries' environmental efficiency?

We adopt a directional distance function in the context of stochastic frontier method, considering 40 European economies over a 30-year time interval.

The findings confirm that high and upper middle-income countries have higher environmental efficiency compared to low middle-income countries.

The role of institutional quality turns out to be really important in improving the environmental efficiency for high income countries, while the performance decreases for the low middle-income countries.

Given the workplace’s reinvention to accommodate the global pandemic’s novel conditions, knowledge hiding (KH) behaviour in knowledge-intensive organisations must be examined from a fresh perspective. In this context, the relationship between workplace ostracism (WO) as KH’s antecedent and quiet quitting (QQ) as its consequence is undertaken via the mediating role of KH behaviour among knowledge workers (KWs).

Through stratified sampling, data from 649 KWs is obtained to test the model. Partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) using SMART-PLS 4.0. software establishes a significant influence of WO on KH and QQ. KH significantly mediates the relationship between WO and QQ, highlighting its critical intermediary role PLSPredict evaluates the model’s predictiveness. WO and KH’s effects on QQ are examined using necessity logic by collectively applying PLS-SEM and necessary condition analysis (NCA).

The model wherein WO plays a significant role in increasing KH and QQ, with KH as a partial mediator in the relationship, has high predictive relevance. Moreover, NCA confirms WO as the key predictor variable that provides variance in QQ, followed by KH. The Importance-performance map analysis technique supports the study’s managerial implications.

This study enriches QQ’s emerging literature by empirically identifying its antecedents-WO and KH. Methodologically, this paper gives a model for using PLS-SEM and NCA together in relation to QQ by identifying WO as its necessary condition. Evidence of selected constructs’ interrelationships may help organisations draft leadership programmes to curtail KH and QQ behaviour.

This study aims to investigate the relationship between corporate sustainable development goals (SDGs) disclosure and analyst forecast quality.

The study focuses on a sample of 95 Italian-listed companies preparing the mandatory non-financial declaration (NFD) according to the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards over a five-year period (2017–2021), corresponding to an unbalanced sample of 438 observations. Analyst forecast quality was proxied by earnings forecast accuracy (FA) and earnings forecast dispersion (FD), built on data retrieved from the Refinitiv database. A manual content analysis was performed on NFDs to derive an SDG disclosure score (SDGD) for each sampled company.

This study provides empirical evidence suggesting that voluntary SDG disclosure matters to the capital market in that it helps enhance the information environment of companies, evidenced by improved analyst forecast quality. In particular, this study highlighted that SDG disclosure positively influences analyst FA while negatively affecting analyst FD.

This study focuses on the Italian context, which has idiosyncratic characteristics regarding the structure of the financial market, the composition of corporate ownership and experience in non-financial reporting practices.

This study indicates to corporate managers that following GRI standards may represent the right way to better integrate SDG disclosure in corporate non-financial reports and increase the relevance of such information for investors and other capital market participants.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that empirically examines the association between SDG disclosure and analyst forecast quality.