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The principal objective of this study is to identify and recommend auspicious research directions within the field of family business research, with a specific focus on the wealth creator. In conjunction with these research trajectories, the paper also aims to elucidate the potential implications of cultivating these lines of inquiry on the existing family business literature.

This perspective paper adopts a comprehensive approach to examine the multifaceted role of the wealth creator in the context of family businesses. It reviews the last decades of research that resulted in the identification of this role within family business and proposes future research avenues to further address their characterization and importance.

Investigating the wealth creator's attributes can provide insights into their role, the importance of timely identification and its preparatory elements. Furthermore, this exploration can shed light on the dynamics of inter-family relationships within family businesses and enrich the literature on power transition and continuity in family enterprises. Additionally, the maturation of the wealth creator concept may significantly impact the management of wealth portfolios, facilitating smoother wealth transfer, strategic portfolio management and the preservation of multi-generational wealth.

This research offers a diverse understanding of the role of the wealth creator in family businesses. The findings also enhance the comprehension of family business dynamics, enriching the literature on succession. Lastly, the offered research avenues contribute to addressing the challenges of sustaining family wealth and ensuring the continuity of family businesses across generations.

This study explores the impact of new technologies, such as simulation and virtual reality, on the pedagogy and learning of engineering students. It aims to compare the effectiveness of these digital tools against traditional teaching methods in enhancing student learning experiences.

Utilizing a quantitative research approach, the study involved third-year engineering students from the “Production Management” course at the School of Engineering of Vitoria-Gasteiz. Data were collected through an ad hoc questionnaire and analyzed using SPSS software, focusing on student satisfaction, challenges in adopting new technologies and the evolving roles of students and teachers.

The research highlighted several key aspects. Firstly, it identified the need for adapting teaching methods to incorporate new technologies effectively. Secondly, the integration of simulation and virtual reality was found to facilitate a deeper understanding of real-world problems, as students could engage with these issues in a simulated, virtual environment. Finally, the study emphasized the importance of pedagogical approaches that leverage these technologies to increase student involvement and motivation. The results suggest a positive impact of digital tools on the learning process in engineering education.

The study’s scope was limited to one course within a single institution, suggesting the need for broader research across various disciplines and educational settings.

This research offers valuable insights into the integration of simulation and virtual reality in engineering education, underscoring their potential to enhance the learning experience and knowledge acquisition among students.

This research aims to analyze the customer satisfaction associated with experiences from 14 ecological hotels in Ecuador by exploring online guest reviews and classifying the most influential factors.

This study applied big data exploration, semantic network analysis, EFA and linear regression. It processed 22,629 online reviews from Google/travel, extracting 100 words with the highest frequency. In addition, CONCOR analysis built a comprehensive structural model gathering essential keywords. Furthermore, exploratory factor analysis and regression were conducted to explore the elements that best express customer satisfaction in ecological hotels.

The words such as green, sustainable, recycle, environment and ecological were not found among the main attributes extracted. Nonetheless, the keywords obtained reflect customer satisfaction, revealing that green practices do not affect comfort and the guests' experience. CONCOR analysis displayed four categories associated with satisfaction: tangibles, experience, location and empathy. Then, EFA restructured and revealed the factors: facilities feature, assurance, reliability, location and experience. Lastly, the regression disclosed location, assurance and facilities features as the most significant factors for customer satisfaction in the 14 ecological hotels. The terms related to the hotel area, staff care and hotel amenities were decisive for guests.

This study demonstrated that employee courtesy and location are the keys to enhancing customer experience and satisfaction. Hotel managers must promote green attributes and practices to increase customer awareness through constant staff training and information disclosure in common areas.

These findings provide insight and empirical evidence for hoteliers to understand how and what guest perceive to be green practices. By identifying the main features or concepts associated with satisfaction in Ecuador's green hotels, hoteliers could address new strategies to respond to expectations, effectively satisfy customers and provide a superior experience.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on company innovation, specifically centering on the quantity and quality of innovation. The paper aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of whether the epidemic inhibits innovation and the role of digital transformation in mitigating this negative impact.

The paper uses a quasi-experimental study of the COVID-19 pandemic and constructs a differential model to analyze the relationship between the epidemic and firm innovation in three dimensions: total, quantity and quality. The paper also uses a difference-in-difference-in-differences model to test whether digital transformation of firms mitigates the negative impact of the epidemic and its mechanism of action.

The results show that COVID-19 significantly reduced the overall level of firm innovation, primarily in terms of quantity rather than quality. Furthermore, this study finds that digital transformation plays a pivotal role in mitigating the pandemic’s adverse impact on innovation. By addressing financing constraints and countering demand insufficiency, digital transformation acts as a catalyst for preserving and fostering innovation during and after the pandemic.

This study extends the current research on the pandemic’s impact on firm innovation at the micro level. It offers valuable insights into strategies for fostering digital transformation among Chinese enterprises in the post-pandemic era.

Advances in technology have given rise to an increased demand by small businesses for personalised e-government services. Given the importance of small businesses to the Australian economy, it is vital to deliver small business-centric services that offer potential to generate value. To do that effectively, government departments need to understand factors that affect small business. The purpose of this study is to explore how preferences for personalised services and the use of intermediaries affect small business participation behaviour and, in turn, stimulate positive outcomes that are of interest to the government.

This study draws on secondary data from a survey of 800 Australian small businesses about the digital services offered by a large government department. Structural equation modelling was used to empirically test the model.

The findings demonstrate that whilst preference for personalisation has a positive relationship with participation behaviour, reliance on an intermediary does not. While such behaviour fosters emotional connection and perceptions of partner quality, the results of this study show no significant impact on satisfaction.

This study advances knowledge about how small businesses can gain value from personalised support services. Importantly, it focuses on participation behaviour and small business – both of which are largely absent from existing studies. The findings can assist government departments to design personalised services that are valued by small businesses.