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Based on the theory of planned behaviour and the resource-based perspective, the purpose of this paper is to provide a well-supported explanation of how access to resources, defined as those controlled by the family context and not necessarily controlled by the student, changes attitudes, subjective norms and perceived control and, consequently, the entrepreneurial intentions of secondary students.

In contrast to traditional research methodologies, this study used a different approach based on primary survey data collected from secondary students to study future entrepreneurial intentions. Structural equation models were used in the empirical analysis.

Secondary students with more access to resources – financial and human capital – have stronger entrepreneurial intentions because they have more favourable attitudes and subjective norms, and greater perceived behavioural control. This study finds that cultural capital has no significant impact on entrepreneurial intention.

Key policy actions should increase access to resources for young people.

This study shows that the effect of access to resources on entrepreneurial intention is mediated by attitudes, social norms and perceived behavioural control. The results suggest that the relationship between access to resources and entrepreneurial intentions is more complex and nuanced than previously thought.

A central goal of strategic management is to understand why some organizations outperform others. Based on the literature, we test the links among strategic resources, firm’s strategic orientation, and performance using data from 1,201 Spanish small and medium‐sized enterprises. The results can guide managers to invest in the appropriate resources since there is evidence that technology, innovation, quality, and human resource management leads to better company performance. It is also shown how strategic resources varies according to strategic orientation.

This paper analyzes the effect of strategic context on managerial compensation design, and the interactive influence on firm performance for a set of Spanish companies. Specifically, this study examines the performance implications of the fit between different managerial compensation systems and diverse firm’s strategic orientations – representing various levels of managerial discretion. Based on a framework combining agency theory and managerial discretion concept, a research design with both archival and survey data is used to test hypotheses in a sample of 82 firms. The findings offer sufficient confirmation of theoretical arguments, providing extensions of this research stream for non‐U.S. firms. Results show that firms benefit from the design of managerial compensation systems when they match the managerial control and risk‐bearing requirements imposed by the strategic context. Specifically, risk‐encouraging compensation systems are better for prospector firms – high level of managerial discretion – whereas risk‐discouraging compensation systems are better for defender firms – low level of managerial discretion.

This paper analyzes the links among executive compensation, a firm’s strategic orientation, and firm performance. A number of key questions relative to the relationships among these elements remain unanswered because prior research on this subject has reported mixed results, and, moreover, has been confined almost exclusively to U.S. firms. We develop a framework that draws on arguments from agency theory to identify such links. A research design with both archival and survey data is used to test hypotheses in a sample of 253 Spanish companies. We found that top managers’ compensation systems are linked with a firm’s strategic orientations, but in a different form than that of previous studies. Results show two differentiated groups of firms: (1) prospective firms that adapt their managerial compensation systems to the requirements of strategic context, consequently obtaining positive performance effects; and (2) conservative firms that design managerial compensation systems independent of strategic context, consequently not obtaining additional performance benefits.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a measure of competitiveness of the Spanish autonomous communities from a multidimensional and dynamic perspective for the period 2008-2016.

This paper adopts a broad definition of competitiveness based on five key environments (productive capital, human capital, social and institutional capital, infrastructure and knowledge) and comprising 53 indicators. The method used to construct the competitiveness index is based on the P-distance proposed by Pena Trapero (1979), which objectively assigns weights to the indicators. There is an important advantage in the methodological proposal of this study, as it allows analyzing the behavior of partial and aggregated indicators from a dynamic perspective, taking the same value as a reference for the entire period. Therefore, not only a classification obtained for each year but also the variation that occurs in terms of the reference period can be analyzed.

The classification of the autonomous communities is established using common intervals based on the results obtained for the whole period, i.e. 2008-2016. The data point to the unequal situations of the autonomous communities. The results also reveal that the evolution of the regional competitiveness synthetic index is clearly cyclical and the drop recorded in the recessive period is less pronounced than the increase recorded in the growth phase.

The main innovation of the competitiveness index presented here lies in its allowing comparisons over time.

Most literature on ambidexterity has focused on large firms and on the influence of internal issues in this strategy, that is, organizational structures, top management integration, or internal knowledge management processes (Lutbatkin et al., 2006; Chang et al., 2011; Lee and Huang, 2012). The purpose of this paper is to assess small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)’ ambidexterity strategies during economic recession periods in comparison with those of large firms and identify the managerial external capabilities which are associated with the development of SMEs’ ambidexterity.

A multinomial logit model and a probit model are proposed and tested using data collected from 2,150 Spanish firms during the period of 2009-2013.

The data analysis reveals that SMEs develop more ambidextrous innovation strategies in recession periods than larger firms do. Moreover, two managerial external capabilities have been identified as drivers of SMEs’ ambidextrous behavior in crisis periods: first, the capability of top management to anticipate scenarios; and second, the capacity to acquire adequate external resources through co-operation.

The results show that SME managers wanting to develop ambidextrous strategies in recession periods have to forecast scenarios in terms of innovation difficulties and strengthen their resources through co-operation. Implementation of public policy is encouraged to support these capabilities, thus enhancing SME sustainability in uncertain contexts.

Prior studies have paid little attention to the role of external capabilities. Although their role was revealed as a relevant dimension in the study of SME ambidexterity in adverse contexts by Cao et al. (2010), it remained underexplored. This paper aims to fill this gap.

This paper aims to examine the functioning and organizational structure of the historic Andalusian water courts, institutions of Islamic origin whose basic model should be considered in light of the regulation of modern Islamic banking and finance.

The methodology of this study has been focused on the contextualization of al-Andalus during the European Middle Ages, highlighting its enormous contributions and implications in the creation of Western knowledge. In the same way, the ordinances of the Castilian-Aragonese kings, aimed at the persistence of the Andalusian water courts in the Southeast of Spain after the Muslim period, have been used as the main sources of reference.

This research has detected that the main features of the Andalusian water courts, i.e. integrity, democracy, transparency, credibility, moral authority or simplicity (among many others), can be conveniently replicated in the scope of the current Islamic banking and finance.

Several implications can be derived from this study: first, it highlights the total resilience of a regulatory model that “it was already there,” given by the history of the Andalusian civilization. This model will be always welcomed by the Muslim community in Western countries as it is a matter of regulating themselves according to the way their ancestors did. The main limitation faced by this research is the relative scarcity of original sources, which is justifiable given that most of the royal ordinances come from the 13th century, having unfortunately lost a good number of sources over time.

This paper seeks a feasible alternative to the controversy arising from the resolution of possible disputes in Islamic banking and finance taking into account that Western judges do not know (nor do they have to) the principles on which this discipline is based. The application of the historical Andalusian model would allow the creation of an independent jurisdiction, while subordinated to the established juridic power, without contravening the principle of “jurisdictional unity.” The last element that gives an added value to this research is spreading the achievements of the Andalusian culture and civilization, unjustly omitted by a great part of the existing literature.

The purpose of this study is to explore and conducts a critical literature review to answer a fundamental question in the industrial district literature: are clusters and industrial (clusters/IDs) driving sustainability innovation? By intersecting different yet related strands of literature, the authors take stock of what the authors know about sustainability innovation in clusters/IDs.

This paper reviews the literature for conceptualizing sustainability innovation in clusters/districts.

Insights point out that the sustainability innovation process (development and diffusion) in clusters/IDs and their firms couples into mainstream cluster/IDs framework; clusters/IDs enable sustainability innovation through usual mechanisms, fostering collective change toward sustainability innovation, vis-à-vis other settings and strengthening firm sustainability innovation and performance. Sustainability innovation in clusters/IDs requires coupling different multi-scalar institutional systems effectively, and the cooperation of local organizations and policymakers for co-designing dedicated policies. Collective actions are important and firm heterogeneity needs to be considered in the clusters/IDs framework.

This study is original because it provides state-of-the-art on sustainability innovation in clusters/districts, enabling the topic to advance in this direction.

The aim of this paper is to determine whether the effort invested by service companies in employee training has an impact on their economic performance.

The study centres on an intensive labor sector, where the perception of service quality depends on who renders this service. To overcome the habitual problems of transversal studies, the time effect has been considered by measuring data over a period of nine years, to give panel data treatment with fixed effects.

The prepared models give clear empirical support to the hypothesis that training activities are a positive influence on company performance.

The results obtained contribute empirical evidence about a relationship that, hitherto, has not been satisfactorily demonstrated. However, there may be some limitations related to the use of a training indicator based on effort and not on results obtained, with low representation of what happens in the smaller companies that lack structured training policies, or with no differentiation between generic or more specific training.

The results obtained can contribute towards increased manager awareness that training should be treated as an investment and not considered as an expense.

The main contributions can be resumed in three points: a training measurement has been used, based on three dimensions, which presumes to be an improvement on the more frequent method of measuring this variable. A consistent methodology was used that previously was not applied in the analysis of this relationship, and clear empirical evidence has been obtained concerning a relationship that, frequently, is mentioned with theoretical arguments, but which needs more empirical evidence.

The main purpose of this paper is to analyse the impact of the intellectual capital (IC) on the competitiveness in the manufacturing small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Mexico.

The approach of this investigation is developing a theoretical construct to determine the correlation between IC and competitiveness and find the most relevant factors that impact it, where IC is independent variable and the competitiveness is dependant variable. Using the Likert scale to determine the degree of agreement or disagreement, the survey was applied to 420 SMEs. The results were analysed using confirmatory factor analysis, Cronbach’s alpha and subsequently structural equation models.

The results show that the IC dimensions – the information obtained, IC developed and learning and feedback – have an effect on the competitiveness of SMEs. The paper presents the theoretical validation of the factors that impact on IC and competitiveness and hence they are the key elements that impact mostly on each analysed variable.

The results obtained measure the level of correlation between the variables in the study, helping to design strategies for the key factors needed to integrate the IC and to develop competitive synergies in the manufacturing SMEs.

This study shows the effects of the IC that are directly impacting the competitiveness of SMEs so that each factor of the dependent and independent variables should be analysed separately to propose improvements in implementing IC to seek higher level of competitiveness.