Data are clear: humankind is facing a global socio-economic crisis. Global bodies search tbr solution in ending the neoliberal monopolistic, rather than free market, economy, and in introduction of ...systemic behavior under the label of social responsibility. To support this effort, the research that is reported about in this contribution, suggests systemic perception of social responsibility to cause the end of abuse, strategy of promotion of social responsibility, and of suitable economic preconditions, supported by several lines of action, which everybody can trigger.
Forests are a source of renewable biomass, and their utilisation will play a vital role in the transition towards a climate-neutral economy. Small-diameter tree management could contribute to this ...transition via providing renewable biomass for sustainable uses and fostering tree growth towards long-lifecycle bioproducts. The utilisation of small-diameter trees in the EU is still low since new technologies and work models are required to make the operations economically profitable, environmentally sound, and socially attractive. The supply of biomass from small-diameter tree stands is dependent on forest owners with diverse perceptions on their forests and diverse ownership objectives. However, there is scarce research on forest owner perceptions on small-diameter tree management, which encompasses home consumption, self-active work, and commercial forestry services. A survey in four EU countries was designed to identify the main factors affecting the motivation of forest owners to mobilise biomass from small-diameter stands. Factor and clustering analyses were used to identify four forest owner segments: weakly-engaged traders, well-being seekers, self-active profit-seekers, and well-informed service users. The willingness to utilise biomass from small-diameter tree stands and participate in the market was shaped by forest owner knowledge of forestry, economic and socio-cultural motivations, and sensitivity to service offerings. Forest owner preferences for market participation are heterogenous, and thus different policy implementation approaches are needed and proposed.
•The study improves the understanding of the factors motivating forest owners to mobilise small-diameter biomass.•Small-diameter stand management may not be attractive as a stand-alone activity.•Home consumption positively affects the supply of biomass from small-diameter stands to the market.•Forest owner preferences for market participation are heterogenous.
Family businesses (FB) are important in the most of national economies. We explored whether successors' innovativeness is positively associated with the transfer of the founders' innovativeness ...through knowledge transfer and creation processes in a form of the internal transfer of founders' tacit and experiential knowledge and skills and with the external transfer of knowledge, when potential successors attend educational programs, external training, or gain working experience in other companies. Our research reveals that when the actual forms of internal knowledge transfer are discussed, the positive correlations exist between innovativeness of successors and their early inclusion into FB, apprenticeship, inclusion of successors into meetings with business partners and strategic planning before they get involved in FB. Our survey partially confirmed that regarding external transfer of knowledge, working experiences of successors in other companies and participation in academic courses are positively associated with their innovativeness.
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) becomes one of the prerequisites for success of contemporary organizations aimed at humankind's survival by sustainable development. As SR behavior can generate ...significant benefits, more and more organizations are developing SR strategic plans and implementing SR initiatives. In ISO 26000, CSR has three basic concepts: Responsibility for one's influences over society, interdependence and holistic approach. Therefore, authors focus on systemic approach to CSR. The purpose is to demonstrate how combined use of appropriate systems theories can help dealing with CSR. Accordingly, Dialectical Systems Theory (DST) and System Dynamics (SD), as relevant systems theories, i.e. methodologies stemming from different systemic paradigms, were selected. DST helped to identify some relevant aspects and components of CSR which were empirically tested in businesses in the Republic of Serbia. Hence, the following factors, i.e. groups of SR activities are selected as relevant for improving organizational performance: General CSR activities; CSR activities towards consumers; CSR activities towards environmental protection and beneficiaries' health, and Socially responsible after sales activities. In addition, empirical research results indicating the influence of the above factors on performance were the basis for using the tools of SD, such as stock and flow diagrams and causal loop diagrams. SD tools contribute to simulating the system's future behavior, i.e. future performance level after improving these CSR activities. Authors introduce a new, systemic approach to conceptualizing and researching CSR by providing appropriate methodological support for exploring relevant interdependencies of CSR aspects.
Purpose
– Socially responsible innovative behaviour should reduce the incidence of one-sidedness in the behaviour of persons employed or active in tourism organizations. People with disabilities are ...often poorly integrated, even in the advanced societies. The paper aims to discuss these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
– With a requisitely holistic approach in dialectical systems theory and an overview of relevant literature, the common characteristics of tourists with disabilities are briefly described. A dialectical systemic analysis was used to determine whether people with disabilities want to travel and what their requirements are. A questionnaire was used to identify their recent travelling experiences; tourism organizations were interviewed about their experiences, too. A model of a travel agency, specialized for people with disabilities, is presented.
Findings
– The usual approach to people with special needs is too one-sided. A more requisitely holistic approach to understanding their needs in tourism, based on existing literature and an empirical analysis, is presented. A more innovative management of tourism organizations is proposed, increasing social responsibility (SR).
Research limitations/implications
– The authors contribute to the integration of people with disabilities in society, focusing on innovation in the management of tourism organizations.
Practical implications
– This new, more systemic and socially responsible innovative management in tourism is widely applicable. Tourists with disabilities, their family members, and their travelling companions could become more included in tourist activities and represent a potentially significant share of the market. A requisitely holistic approach can provide advantages for tourists with disabilities and tourism organizations.
Originality/value
– The concepts were not found in available literature neither is the selection of viewpoints of dialectical systems thinking and SR in tourism. They support understanding, designing and managing activities in tourism for people with various limitations or specific needs.
Purpose - Development or existence of human society depends on innovations and the end of one-sidedness of behavior. The complexity of innovative processes has been widely studied, yet the success ...rate is still low. The purpose of this paper is to identify by the dialectical systems approach how some concepts, important for development of inventions into innovations can better support requisitely holistic innovative behavior.Design methodology approach - System theory, theory of innovations and social responsibility are used to understand diffusion of innovations as part of the innovative processes.Findings - Many established theories, methods, procedures and standards support innovation management, but its economic success remains poor. Invention-innovation-diffusion processes (IIDP) remain poorly managed, especially the non-technological. The usual approach is too one-sided. Invention and innovation phases received more attention than the requisitely holistic consideration of the diffusion phase. Social responsibility can help.Research limitations implications - The paper adds to requisite holism of IIDP management. It focuses on diffusion and its link with social responsibility.Practical implications - The new approach to IIDP is widely applicable for requisitely holistic rather than one-sided political or strategic decisions and actions. ISO 26000 can increase success of IIDP.Originality value - The concepts presented here are not detected in literature and offer great value for further research and understanding, designing and managing of IIDP. The selected dialectical system of viewpoints is original.
Modelling is a crucial tool in research and development, but models simplify one's perception of systems as mental pictures of reality, maybe too much. Therefore one must be aware of the addressed ...relations, typology of models, and apply 'USOMID - 6 Thinking Hats' method of creative cooperation to attain requisite holism of approach and requisite wholeness of outcomes.
In the current real life, systems theory is an abstract background of systems thinking, which is a part of systemic behavior. The systemic behavior is the alternative to the currently prevailing ...one-sidedness that puts all of humankind in danger of self-destruction due to the crucial over-sights (all the way to world wars) that unavoidably result from the current over-specialization (along with crucial, but partial insights), if the specialists fail to practice creative interdisciplinary cooperation. This contribution is a next phase of research after the contributions by Matjaz̆ Mulej, Zdenka Z̆enko and Viktor Z̆akelj (2017) and by Matjaz̆ Mulej, et al. (2013). Although the abstract background and thinking that the systemic behavior applies, are very necessary, theory and thinking are no longer enough for systems science to be a relevant science and practice helping humankind find the way out from the current blind alley and survive as a healthy civilization with a healthy social and natural environment. The suggestion in this contribution therefore reads: Let us systems and cybernetics scientists make/enable the transition to systemic behavior, which applies all the many theories, which are components in the background of systemic behavior in practice, next to each other and/or in synergy. Analysis, i.e., studying per isolated parts is too overlooking and one-sided to be enough. So is teaching on a single one out of several systems theories. Reality is too complex. Teaching is a part of this necessary effort, which must lead to a global peace and survival of humankind of today instead of the current hating the human descendants.
Background: The contemporary world-wide socio-economic crisis tends to escalate and contribute to the global crisis. Limitation of education to one-sided ‘knowledge management’ rather than socially ...responsible ‘knowledge-cum-values-management’ is one of the crisis’s causes. Objectives: The limitations to current knowledge management should be analyzed with systemic thinking. Which values are prevailing in it now and which values will enable the survival of humankind? Methods/Approach: In the first part, literature is reviewed for analysis and conceptual generalization of knowledge management. The theoretical framework based on ‘system theory’, ‘knowledge management’ and ‘knowledge-cum-values management’, and ‘values of social responsibility’ is introduced. In the second part a new theoretical concept “A potential methodological support for human transition from one-sided to requisitely holistic behavior via social responsibility” is discussed. Results: Knowledge management is a too narrow concept, it tends to leave aside human values, an impact on the natural environment, and extremely growing differences. Humankind needs consideration of responsibility, interdependence and holism in order to minimize detrimental impact of individual behaviour on society, i.e. humans and nature. Conclusions: The research indicates that individuals should attain more requisite holism, and should not be irrational by trying to attain only rationalism in human decision-making and action.