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Open Access
Article
Publication date: 4 March 2021

Angel de la Fuente

This paper aims to review the economic impact of Covid in Spain and propose policies to deal with them.

9309

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to review the economic impact of Covid in Spain and propose policies to deal with them.

Design/methodology/approach

Not relevant.

Findings

The pandemic is having a very severe effect, which varies across sectors and regions. Given the severity of the problem, a comprehensive policy strategy is needed. Specific proposals about such a strategy are made, distinguishing between the short and the long run.

Originality/value

It provides a discussion about the main measures that have been taken to mitigate the economic consequences of Covid in Spain and about what else should be done.

Details

Applied Economic Analysis, vol. 29 no. 85
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2632-7627

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 3 April 2023

Miguel Jerez, Alejandra Montealegre-Luna and Alfredo Garcia-Hiernaux

The purpose of this paper is to estimate the impact of the 2008 and 2020 economic crises on employment in Spain.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to estimate the impact of the 2008 and 2020 economic crises on employment in Spain.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors perform a counterfactual analysis, combining intervention (interrupted time series) analysis and conditional forecasting to estimate a “crisis-free” scenario. These counterfactual estimates are used as a synthetic control, to be compared with the observed values of the main variables of the Spanish Labor Force Survey (EPA).

Findings

The authors measure the effect on Spanish employment of the 2008 recession and the ongoing COVID/Ukraine crisis and the speed of recovery, which yields a rigorous dating for the beginning and end of the crises studied. Finally, the authors provide estimates about which part of the employed and unemployed people was in furlough (ERTE) based on microdata provided by the Spanish Institute of Statistics.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, there are no counterfactual studies covering all the basic variables in EPA and no estimates for the effect of ERTEs on the basic employment variables. Finally, the authors combine well-known intervention and forecasting techniques into an integrated framework to assess the effects of both, past and ongoing crises.

Details

Applied Economic Analysis, vol. 31 no. 92
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2632-7627

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 29 July 2021

Elizabeth Miller and Iro Konstantinou

Reflection on performance and progress prepares students for workplace environments where self-management is expected, and yet this is something students are not often required to…

4275

Abstract

Purpose

Reflection on performance and progress prepares students for workplace environments where self-management is expected, and yet this is something students are not often required to do formally in higher education (HE). This paper explores this gap in students' ability and seeks to address it through a reconsideration of summative assessment practices which, particularly in light of COVID-19, must align with the needs of graduates and their employers.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper draws from data collected from the summative reflective assessment reports that degree apprentices (DAs) submitted during the final year of their Business Management degree while undertaking a problem-based module. We undertook a document analysis of these reports and used thematic analysis where we systematically looked for repeated themes in students' reflections.

Findings

Students problematise the skills needed during COVID-19, and beyond, both in their academic studies and the workplace. Authentic assessment provides opportunities for students to work on skills and projects which are relevant to them. Through reflective accounts of skills they developed, students were able to bridge academic and professional practice and identify areas of convergence. Students engaged with academic theories in a constructive and meaningful way which suggests that authentic reflective accounts as part of assessment have the potential to maintain academic rigour.

Originality/value

Skills development can bring the workplace into HE in a meaningful and systematic way and this article provides guidance for those looking to introduce reflection on skills to other courses. We suggest how this model can be utilised across modules which do not have work-integrated learning in their delivery.

Details

Journal of Work-Applied Management, vol. 14 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2205-2062

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 5 September 2022

Debora Gottardello and Solmaz Filiz Karabag

Using the lens of crisis innovation and strategic alignment, this study explores how a segment of the restaurant sector that may be less agile than others—Michelin-starred…

2255

Abstract

Purpose

Using the lens of crisis innovation and strategic alignment, this study explores how a segment of the restaurant sector that may be less agile than others—Michelin-starred restaurants—perceives and aligns with the challenges brought about by the COVID-19-pandemic.

Design/methodology/approach

The study collected data from 19 Michelin-starred restaurants in Spain using a qualitative interview method. The data were analyzed qualitatively and organized thematically.

Findings

Four key categories of strategic challenges were identified: human resources, uncertainty, control and economic challenges. In response, chefs displayed both behavioral and organizational strategies. Those organizational strategies were new human resource management, reorganization, product and service innovation and marketing. While the new human resource management actions adopted to align with the human resource challenges identified, a misalignment remains between some of the other strategic actions, such as product and service innovation, marketing and economic and uncertainty challenges.

Originality/value

The findings offer new insight into Michelin-starred restaurant chefs' challenges and (mis)alignment strategies, an area that has been understudied in the current literature on innovative responses in the hospitality sector post-pandemic.

Details

International Hospitality Review, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2516-8142

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 7 July 2022

Paweł Chudziński, Szymon Cyfert, Wojciech Dyduch and Maciej Zastempowski

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the leadership decisions taken during the crisis and their influence on the goals recognized by managers as crucial for surviving.

1594

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the leadership decisions taken during the crisis and their influence on the goals recognized by managers as crucial for surviving.

Design/methodology/approach

During the survey, conducted in April 2020 (one month after the first economic lockdown in Poland), as part of a research project called Sur(VIR)val – Survival during the virus, data was collected from 178 leaders from randomly selected companies from Poland using the CAWI method. Ordered logistic regression modeling was used to examine the impact of the decisions taken by company leaders on the goals seen by leaders as most important for company survival.

Findings

The results obtained in the study show that during the first Covid-19 lockdown in 2020, leaders made decisions that can be seen as oriented toward survival and continuity. Changing to remote working, extending payment deadlines for customers, as well as selective employment reduction turned out to have the greatest influence on strategic support for maintaining current production levels and retaining competent employees in order to survive the crisis.

Research limitations/implications

This study has certain limitations. First, the list of leadership decisions and company goals used as dependent variables is not exhaustive. Second, the selection of business goals oriented toward survival may not derive directly from the lockdown situation. Third, our study did not measure the actual accomplishment of the company goals, but the managerial perceptions as to which ones are crucial for company survival during crises, and which of them should be given strategic support respectively. Fourth, the research sample was randomly constructed and covered only business organizations in Poland. Fifth, the hypotheses were formulated in a way that treated leadership decisions as one construct. Finally, we used survey, with a scale measuring managerial perceptions.

Practical implications

Leaders should ensure that proper IT tools are developed within the organization, and that the skill level of employees is high enough for fast shifting employees on to remote working. At the same time, it is important to maintain IT infrastructure at a high level. In terms of general recommendations for leaders, they should make quick decisions, maintain the most valuable resources of the company (human resources and cash flow) and take actions aimed at taking advantage of opportunities (R&D) during and after the crisis.

Social implications

Additionally, due to the key importance of human resources for the survival of the organization, leaders should respond quickly by making flexible decisions about sending employees on leave and downtime. As human resources are the most valuable assets of the company from the point of view of its survival, decisions concerning employment reduction should be taken carefully. Leaders who acted in panic after the first lockdown and made employees redundant, later on had problems recruiting skilled employees back and strived to return to full organizational capacity.

Originality/value

Although scholars have investigated leadership decisions and actions taken during economic crises, little is known about how leaders behave when taken by surprise, and what decisions they make when the duration of a crisis is difficult to predict. The results of this study show which leadership decisions during the first Covid-19 lockdown in 2020 influenced prioritizing critical company goals oriented toward survival.

Details

Journal of Organizational Change Management, vol. 35 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0953-4814

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 24 June 2022

Jennifer E. James, Meghan Foe, Riya Desai, Apoorva Rangan and Mary Price

The purpose of this paper is to provide a historical overview of compassionate release policies in the USA and describe how these policies have been used during the COVID-19…

1496

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide a historical overview of compassionate release policies in the USA and describe how these policies have been used during the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors then describe how these programs have been shaped by COVID-19 and could be reimagined to address the structural conditions that make prisons potentially life limiting for older adults and those with chronic illness.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper is primarily descriptive, offering an overview of the history of compassionate release policies before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors augmented this description by surveying state Departments of Corrections about their utilization of compassionate release during 2019 and 2020. The findings from this survey were combined with data collected via Freedom of Information Act Requests sent to state Departments of Corrections about the same topic.

Findings

The findings demonstrate that while the US federal prison system saw a multifold increase in the number of individuals released under compassionate release policies in 2020 compared to 2019, most US states had modest change, with many states maintaining the same number, or even fewer, releases in 2020 compared with 2019.

Originality/value

This paper provides both new data and new insight into compassionate release utilization during the COVID-19 pandemic and offers new possibilities for how compassionate release might be considered in the future.

Details

International Journal of Prisoner Health, vol. 19 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1744-9200

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 1 November 2022

Tshinakaho Nyathela-Sunday, Nina Septoe, Celiwe Zorah Menze, Ilhaam Banoobai-Anwar, Beverley Seager, Nadia Davids and Cindy Buser

This paper aims to address the following questions: What is the impact of the pandemic on the hospitality industry in South Africa? Which innovations and strategies are in place…

1531

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to address the following questions: What is the impact of the pandemic on the hospitality industry in South Africa? Which innovations and strategies are in place to rebuild hospitality in South Africa?

Design/methodology/approach

This article emanates from the resent pandemic situation, and it is structured to include conceptual information drawn from the literature, empirical study and industry observation. These were conducted in 2020 and 2021 using, concepts from the literature, online questionnaires and observation to gather data about the impact of COVID-19 on hospitality operations across South Africa.

Findings

Historically literature shows that the hospitality industry positively impacts the economy and employment However, the pandemic greatly affected these contributions. The findings reported in the empirical study revealed that the pandemic affected business operations and employment and caused financial hardship for the industry.

Originality/value

There are relatively few studies that report on the issues relating to the pandemic and the hospitality industry in South Africa. This paper contributes to the literature regarding a pre-COVID-19 overview, the impact of the pandemic and the innovations and strategies in place to rebuild the hospitality industry.

Details

Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes, vol. 14 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1755-4217

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 5 January 2021

Juan J. Dolado, Florentino Felgueroso and Juan F. Jimeno

This paper aims to review the experience so far of the Spanish labour market during the Covid-19 crisis in the light of the existing institutions, its performance during past…

5866

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to review the experience so far of the Spanish labour market during the Covid-19 crisis in the light of the existing institutions, its performance during past recessions and the policy measures adopted during the pandemic. Emphasis is placed on the role of worldwide trends in labour markets because of automation and artificial intelligence, in shaping a potential recovery of this (hopefully) transitory shock through a big reallocation process of employment and economic activity. It also highlights some innovations to employment and social policies needed to smooth the reallocation process and lessen the rise in inequality associated to technological trends.

Design/methodology/approach

Theory and empirics.

Findings

The Spanish labour market will subject to a great reallocation shock as a result of Covid-19 and secular technological changes. Reforms need to be undertaken.

Originality/value

An overview and some new results.

Details

Applied Economic Analysis, vol. 29 no. 85
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2632-7627

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 21 April 2022

Ahmad Arslan, Samppa Kamara, Nadia Zahoor, Pushpa Rani and Zaheer Khan

This paper explores the survival strategies and coping mechanisms of ethnic minority entrepreneurs operating in the hospitality sector in northern Finland during the ongoing…

2502

Abstract

Purpose

This paper explores the survival strategies and coping mechanisms of ethnic minority entrepreneurs operating in the hospitality sector in northern Finland during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper utilizes qualitative research approach based on six exploratory case studies. The in-depth interviews in two phases were conducted with owners/mangers of ethnic minority entrepreneurial restaurants.

Findings

The findings reveal that all studied case firms undertook quick adjustments in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, staff working hours were reduced through mutual consultation, and readjustments to the supply chain were made so that critical ingredients remain available despite the forced lockdown and supply chain bottlenecks. However, the readjustment of the supply chain was not visible in all case firms. Some of the owner-managers who were interviewed decided to keep doing business with the ethnic minority suppliers, despite some transportation problems due to lockdowns, especially in the early phases of COVID-19. Findings also suggest that the support grants announced by the state appeared not to be particularly useful for these restaurants due to restrictive eligibility criteria that many microbusinesses potentially fail to meet. Finally, the sample microbusinesses (restaurants) entrepreneurs recognize the importance of home delivery for their business survival, although they were critical of online food delivery service providers (apps) due to their high charges. Some of the case restaurants gave customers incentives for directly ordering from them, as an alternative strategy.

Originality/value

This paper is one of the first studies to specifically highlight the peculiarities of ethnic minority entrepreneurship and survival dynamics in northern Finland, where running the restaurant operations, including ensuring the supply chain management, is more complex than in the case of ethnic minority restaurants in more well-connected European countries and cities with an established history of immigrant businesses. This study is also novel in terms of specifying the strategies adopted by ethnic minority businesses in adjusting to the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and surviving through it. At the same time, it has shown limitations and some problems associated with accessing state support announced for the hospitality industry in response to COVID-19. Finally, it offers a new angle by explicitly highlighting the power dynamics between restaurants and food ordering platforms (apps) and the potential alternatives in this specific context.

Details

International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, vol. 28 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1355-2554

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 21 March 2024

Aina Pont and Alexandra Simon

The study aspires to enhance comprehension of the intricate interplay between supply chain management (SCM) and resilience in family businesses, thereby offering valuable insights…

Abstract

Purpose

The study aspires to enhance comprehension of the intricate interplay between supply chain management (SCM) and resilience in family businesses, thereby offering valuable insights to managers and policymakers endeavouring to foster resilience in uncertain environments.

Design/methodology/approach

Commencing from the premise that family businesses (FBs) prioritize the preservation of socio-emotional wealth (SEW) when formulating strategic decisions, this study endeavours to advance understanding of supply chain practices adopted by FBs and their direct impact on resilience during crisis situations or economically challenging periods. Through an exploratory case study of nine FBs, the present research reveals four pivotal strategies in SCM that contribute to their resilience: (i) reorganization of inventory management; (ii) cultivating close relationships with suppliers; (iii) emphasizing product quality and customer retention; and (iv) implementing cost reduction measures to bolster resilience. The aim of the study is to provide an in-depth understanding of the intricate interplay between SCM and resilience in FBs, thereby offering valuable insights to managers and policymakers endeavouring to foster resilience in uncertain environments.

Findings

Our approach offers a theoretical framework for SCM aligned with prior research on the interplay between characteristics of family businesses and resilience strategies. Furthermore, this paper illustrates how factors such as the emphasis on high-quality products and services by family businesses contribute to achieving non-economic objectives that owners adopt to reconcile family and business needs, creating intrinsic added value for the company. It reveals various challenges in SCM, including inventory organization changes, supplier closures and the significance of customer retention. Family businesses are implementing product and technology enhancements and leveraging digitization to enhance supply chain processes.

Originality/value

This paper contributes significantly to the field of FBs by highlighting the crucial role of SCM in enhancing business resilience during crises. It empirically examines how the SEW characteristics of FBs influence the reconfiguration of their supply chains to enhance resilience, presenting a theoretical model for this context. Our theoretical framework employs an SEW perspective to elucidate how FBs respond to the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic by adapting their SCM processes to safeguard their social and emotional legitimacy, organizational visibility and reputation. These adaptations gain particular relevance during crises or turbulent conditions, potentially leading to alterations in how FBs formulate their supply chain strategies and manage supply chain-related processes.

Details

Journal of Family Business Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2043-6238

Keywords

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