Purpose:
The fundamental driving force of entrepreneurship is the individual with their ambitions and entrepreneurial spirit, but also with their obstacles that prevent them from following an ...entrepreneurial path. These obstacles can be of a personal nature, but also factors of the immediate living environment, the prevailing cultural values, the general attitude of society towards entrepreneurship, etc. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the known barriers to early-stage youth entrepreneurship compared to the total population based on the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) data for the 34 countries studied.
Methodology:
The methodology includes frequency distribution, descriptive statistics and linear regression analysis. Data from GEM 2016-2020 on early-stage entrepreneurial activity, perceived skills, and fear of failure were used.
Results:
We showed that there are differences in perceived entrepreneurial skills between youth and the total population, namely that youth perceive lower levels of entrepreneurial knowledge, experience, and skills. We confirmed that perceived entrepreneurial skills have a positive, statistically significant impact on total early-stage entrepreneurial activity, which is true for both the total population and youth. The test of the influence of fear of failure on total early-stage entrepreneurial activity for a sample of the total population and youth indicates a negative influence, but it is not statistically significant.
Conclusion:
From the study, recommendations emerge for policymakers regarding entrepreneurship education as a key intervention to help youth acquire and develop relevant entrepreneurial skills that are thus beneficial for the youth to better overcome obstacles in the business environment as well as in various life situations.
The article explores the implementation of digital technology in small and medium-sized Slovenian enterprises (SMEs), with a focus on understanding existing trends, obstacles, and necessary support ...measures during their digitalization progress. The surveyed companies mainly rely on conventional technologies like websites and teamwork platforms, emphasizing the significance of strong online communication and presence in the modern business world. The adoption of advanced technologies such as blockchain is limited due to the perceived complexity and relevance to specific sectors. This study uses variance analysis to identify potential differences in the digitalization challenges faced by companies of different sizes. The results indicate that small companies face different financial constraints and require more differentiated support mechanisms than their larger counterparts, with a particular focus on improving digital competencies among employees. Despite obtaining enhancements such as elevated operational standards and uninterrupted telecommuting via digitalization, companies still face challenges of differentiation and organizational culture change. The study emphasizes the importance of recognizing and addressing the different challenges and support needs of different-sized companies to promote comprehensive progress in digital transformation. Our findings provide important insights for policymakers, industry stakeholders, and SMEs to formulate comprehensive strategies and policies that effectively address the diverse needs and challenges of the digital transformation landscape.
At the end of the last century, digital technology emergence enabled millions of people to compete globally by remotely offering their knowledge and skills. In addition, business processes are ...becoming fragmented into smaller components, so-called short-term projects. These work arrangements are often carried out by so-called independent professionals (contractors), better known as freelancers. A literature review has shown that the research topic of freelancing from an entrepreneurial perspective is relatively new and has its assumptions and gaps. Different stakeholders and institutions connect, mediate and manage the services of the entrepreneurial ecosystem to support entrepreneurs. As freelancers belong to the self-employed entrepreneurial category, they are engaged in business activities and need support from their environment. To contribute to this topic, we have analyzed the relationships between freelancers’ job and career satisfaction, digitalization and entrepreneurial ecosystem factors, with the aim of making policy recommendations. Regarding the entrepreneurial environment, we analyzed the cultural and social norms and government programs that provide support, based on the measurement instrument, developed in the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) research. We surveyed 200 freelancers (respondents) in Slovenia. Using factor analysis and structural equation modelling, the empirical results suggest that digitalization and cultural and social norms are significant factors that promote the success of new careers as freelancers in terms of job and career satisfaction. The results show that both positively influence job and career satisfaction, while government programs indirectly influence the job and career satisfaction of freelancers. This explains how the entrepreneurial ecosystem, plays a special role in supporting freelancers on their career path.
Nowadays, the development of Internet technology and the effects of digital transformation are leading to the need for more skilful information and communications technology (ICT) specialists in ...almost every sector of the economy, in order to benefit from technological innovations. That also leads to the need for every employee to be prepared for new changes in production and service delivery processes in their professional life within a modern society. In this study, the factors of digital skills in enterprises that significantly affect the digital entrepreneurship start-up sub-index and digital entrepreneurship scale-up sub-index in the EU countries, are identified and the models are designed to analyse the relationships between the factors. In an increasingly digital world where production processes and service delivery are continuously evolving, EU countries, that is, policymakers and entrepreneurs should be aware of the digital transformation which is happening right now and, thus, pay attention to the digital skills and provide learning opportunities and supportive environment for the workers in acquiring the new skills and knowledge.
New business models have emerged in the late 20th century due to Internet technology (IT) development and digital transformation. One of them - known as the gig economy - represents a new business ...concept that stands for a market system in which individuals offer their services on a fixed-time basis to other businesses through a digital platform. The purpose of this paper is to explore the relatively new field of the gig economy and its context based on previous findings and literature. Accordingly, the concept of the gig economy is based on a triangular relationship between the individual (worker; provider), the digital intermediary of the process (online labour platform) and the end-user of the service (employer). Such a concept implies various benefits for all parties involved but also brings many challenges. The paper aims to provide a descriptive insight into the literature and findings and introduce terminology related to the gig economy concept. It also aims to discuss the nature of work within the gig economy, its current dimensions, its value creation for firms and entrepreneurship, and the issues that need to be addressed for the gig workforce and its likely future policy implications. The paper's limitations are the lack of agreement on standard definitions and national and international frameworks of the gig economy workforce, even though studies suggest that gig workers are among the fastest-growing forces in contemporary work arrangements. Therefore, the paper encourages the development of policies and programs to identify the specifics, benefits, and challenges of the gig economy and its impact on society in order to facilitate and promote this new, growing entrepreneurial category.
Novi poslovni modeli pojavili su se krajem 20. stoljeća razvojem internetske tehnologije (IT) i digitalne transformacije. Jedan od njih – poznat pod nazivom gig ekonomija – predstavlja novi poslovni koncept koji se odnosi na tržišni sustav u kojem pojedinci nude svoje usluge na određeno vrijeme drugim tvrtkama putem digitalnih platforma. Svrha je ovog rada istražiti relativno novo područje gig ekonomije i njezin kontekst na temelju prethodnih istraživanja i literature. Prema tome koncept gig ekonomije temelji se na trokutastom odnosu između pojedinca (radnika; davatelja usluga), digitalnog posrednika procesa (mrežne platforme rada) i krajnjeg korisnika usluge (poslodavca). Takav koncept podrazumijeva različite koristi za sve uključene strane, ali donosi i brojne izazove. Cilj je rada pružiti opisni uvid u literaturu i istraživanja te uvesti, odnosno predstaviti terminologiju koja se odnosi na koncept gig ekonomije. Također je cilj raspraviti o prirodi rada unutar gig ekonomije, njeznim trenutnim značajkama, stvaranju vrijednosti za tvrtke i poduzetništvo te pitanjima koja treba riješiti vezano za radnu snagu gig ekonomije i budućim implikacijama na politiku. Ograničenja rada su nedostatak sporazuma o standardnim definicijama i nacionalnim i međunarodnim okvirima radne snage iako studije sugeriraju da je radna snaga gig ekonomije među najbrže rastućim silama u suvremenim radnim odnosima. Stoga rad potiče razvoj politika i programa za identificiranje specifičnosti, koristi i izazova gig ekonomije te njezinog utjecaja na društvo kako bi se olakšala i promovirala nova, rastuća poduzetnička kategorija.
Digital technologies are underpinning a wide range of products, services, processes, and business model innovations that are significantly transforming industries, organizations, and society. They ...are increasingly permeating every aspect of our daily lives. In this paper, we looked at the challenges of digitalization, leading to a new way of working in the market and new business models, such as the gig economy. Individuals are becoming more mobile and self-directed in their careers, as opposed to traditional careers. We investigated the demographic characteristics of the new, growing group of self-employed, so-called freelancers, at the national level in Slovenia and investigated the relationships between human capital and their subjective (job and career satisfaction, life satisfaction) and objective success (income satisfaction). The survey was conducted among 200 freelancers (respondents). The empirical results show that most Slovenian freelancers working from home work in professional, scientific, and technical occupations; are between 35 and 44 years old; have completed the second level of tertiary education; work more than 40 hours per week; and have 16 years or more of work experience. To explore the quality of life of freelancers, empirical analysis showed that human capital factors are important for the success of a new career as a freelancer. The results show that freelancers’ human capital factors (education and experience, skills, and training) positively influence subjective and objective success. Using structural equation modeling, we also confirmed that human capital has a greater impact on freelancers’ subjective success (life satisfaction, career satisfaction) than on objective success (income satisfaction), suggesting that job and life satisfaction should be considered an important resource that freelancers rely on to determine their quality of life.
The development of Internet technology (IT) at the end of the 20th century and its integration into the business sector has led to the emergence of digital labour platforms that provoke a ...reorganization of work arrangements by matching the demand and supply of goods and services, known as the "gig economy". The "gig economy" stands for economic activities or work arrangements related to the performance of very short-term tasks facilitated by digital platforms and can include freelance work, temporary work, work on-demand and contract work. Our paper focuses on the new, growing workforce of freelancers. Freelancers belong to the self-employed category of entrepreneurial activity who do not employ workers, who pay their own taxes, work on projects, work for several clients, and work remotely, usually from home. According to various sources and findings, they are also referred to as entrepreneurs, solopreneurs, digital micro-entrepreneurs, hybrids of employees and entrepreneurs, enablers of entrepreneurship, potential entrepreneurs, etc. The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between freelancers and entrepreneurs. The paper will use a literature-review approach to highlight the similarities and main differences between freelancers and entrepreneurs and to find an answer to the question whether freelancers can be considered entrepreneurs or not. In addition, the paper provides insights into freelance work and highlights the benefits and challenges that freelancers face in the labour market.
Sustainable development considers the development that achieves the present economic goals, without obstructing the future development in a sense of satisfying the needs of society and endangering ...the environment. Recently, the entrepreneurship phenomenon has been widely recognized as an important path towards sustainable development, positively contributing to the development of society. Thus, in the paper, the empirical evidence on linkages between entrepreneurial activity indicators and social development goals is provided. To examine the linkages, the data from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor and Sustainable Development Goals Index were used. The empirical results suggest that entrepreneurship represents an important factor for fostering sustainability, particularly in opportunity-driven and innovative entrepreneurial activities. The results show, that both of them have a positive impact on sustainable development, while the necessity-driven entrepreneurial activity negatively affects sustainable development. This could be explained by the fact that necessity entrepreneurs are not likely to become the entrepreneurs to implement a promising business opportunity, but rather to earn an income. To achieve the sustainable development goals as well as entrepreneurship should become the national priority by introducing new policies and measures, that is, making the conditions, through which entrepreneurship could achieve positive contributions to the development of the society.
Zrównoważony rozwój to taki, który osiąga obecne cele gospodarcze, nie utrudniając przyszłego rozwoju w sensie zaspokajania potrzeb społeczeństwa i narażania środowiska. Ostatnio zjawiska przedsiębiorczości zostały powszechnie uznane za ważną ścieżkę do zrównoważonego rozwoju, która pozytywnie przyczynia się do rozwoju społeczeństwa. Dlatego w artykule przedstawiono empiryczne dowody na powiązania między wskaźnikami aktywności przedsiębiorczej a celami rozwoju społecznego. Do zbadania powiązań wykorzystano dane z Globalnego Monitora Przedsiębiorczości i Indeksu Celów Zrównoważonego Rozwoju. Wyniki empiryczne sugerują, że przedsiębiorczość stanowi ważny czynnik wspierający zrównoważony rozwój, szczególnie w przypadku działań zorientowanych na możliwości i innowacyjnych działań przedsiębiorczych. Wyniki pokazują, że oba te czynniki mają pozytywny wpływ na zrównoważony rozwój, a przedsiębiorczość zorientowana na konieczność negatywnie wpływa na zrównoważony rozwój. Można to wyjaśnić faktem, że przedsiębiorcy zorientowani na konieczność prawdopodobnie nie podążą w kierunku realizacji obiecujących nowych możliwości biznesowych, ale raczej w celu uzyskania dochodu. Aby osiągnąć cele zrównoważonego rozwoju, jak również przedsiębiorczość, powinny się one stać priorytetem krajowym poprzez wprowadzenie nowych polityk i środków, co oznacza stworzenie warunków, dzięki którym przedsiębiorczość mogłaby osiągnąć pozytywny wkład w rozwój społeczeństwa.
Competitiveness represents a concept that has occupied a great deal of the economic theorists ' attention for decades. Due to its complexity and different perceptions, it has not been uniquely ...defined yet and neither has its measurement system been completely developed. The problem of the conducted research arises from the fact that the countries mostly due to structural and other constraints in the economy (or in cases where they have high levels of GDP) do not use the available inputs in the best way, i.e. they do not achieve a satisfactory level of economic efficiency, which is then reflected on the competitiveness of their economies. The aim of the research paper is to demonstrate how a combination of using Data Envelopment Analysis Method (DEA) and the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) in ranking the countries according to the macroeconomic competitiveness is more realistic than it is in the case of using the traditional indicators. In the paper, in evaluating the competitiveness of selected EU Member States the Data Envelopment Analysis Method (DEA) is used. Based on the previous researches and our research results it is found that the traditional indicators of competitiveness are incomplete because they do not consider the macroeconomic efficiency of the country. Therefore, we propose to apply a combination of GCI and the efficiency results obtained by DEA in order to achieve a more realistic evaluation ofmacroeconomic competitiveness. As a key outcome of the research, the new measure of competitiveness is proposed: a combination of traditional competitiveness indicator and the results of the evaluation of countries' macroeconomic efficiency obtained by applying BCC model of DEA method.
Purpose. The aim of the paper is to analyse the model of public-private partnership in Varaždin County for the purpose of developing educational infrastructure and strengthening the pedagogical ...standard. Design. A public-private partnership stands for a joint activity of the public and private sectors in the production of public goods or the provision of public services, either at the central government level or at the local self-government unit. The need for public-private cooperation is more common at the local level because global trends such as decentralization bind the local self-government to search for effective responses on their responsibilities. Based on the theoretical background of public-private partnership and the analysis of the external environment of the public-private partnership model on the example of the Varaždin County in the field of education, key factors that influence the model of public-private partnerships have been identified. Moreover, the effects of such partnerships between the public and private sector have been identified too, as well as the weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in applying such a model at the local and regional level and in the education sector. Findings. In order to increase the efficiency of the country in the terms of publicprivate partnership, the benefits of a public-private partnership model should be recognized and the limitations should be reduced by providing the set of standards for the co-financing the model of public-private partnership for each sector separately (education sector, public transport, healthcare, environment, public order and safety, energy and etc.).
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