Author: Cristina Bolcaș

Introduction. Contemporary organizations need to understand the meaning of change and to tackle it as a source for improving processes and activities, aiming at increasing the performance and competitiveness.

Aim of the study. The paper presents approaches to organizational change and highlights the fundamental objectives which the organizations set for themselves by designing and implementing organizational change programs. The conceptual framework of the change management is defined and the stages of the change management process are presented. In the final part of the paper the problem of resistance to change is highlighted by explaining the content of the stages that employees go through in the process of adapting to change within organizations.
Keywords: organizational change, change management, resistance to change, objectives, competitiveness.
JEL Classification: M10, M12, L21.

Introduction. The turbulent business environment has inevitably led to an increase in competition, especially in saturated markets of products and services. The economic development of the organization will indisputably depend on the multidimensional concept of intellectual capital. Man continues to be the primary factor within the organization through his creative capacity and also by his receptiveness to self-development. Obtaining strategic advantage is based on innovation, intangible resources of the organization and the use of competitive intelligence.

Aim of the study. In this paper we present a few aspects regarding the reflection of knowledge and intellectual capital focused on organizational processes in relation to the creation and development of the competitive advantage.
Keywords: knowledge, organizational management, competitive advantage, intellectual capital.
JEL Classification: M19, O34, L25.

Introduction. Currently, the small and medium enterprises sector is a factor of sustainable development, with a significant contribution to GDP creation and providing jobs in most economies. Economic strategies and policies in the European Union, USA and Japan lay major emphasis on encouraging entrepreneurship and the development of the small and medium enterprises sector as a balancing factor at micro- and macroeconomic level.

Aim of the study. The paper approaches important issues on the small and medium enterprises sector as a vector of economic development in the contemporary period. It presents the SMEs delimitation criteria in the microeconomic landscape used in the European Union, USA and Japan. It also highlights the preoccupations manifested at European and world level in terms of promoting entrepreneurship activities, materialized in organizing summits and major events dedicated to small and medium enterprises, as well as in the operationalization of funding programs for them. The last part of this paper reflects issues related to the support SMEs receive at institutional level, emphasizing areas of assistance, support programs and services that various institutions and bodies offer to develop the small and medium sector.
Keywords: SMEs, defining criteria, financial support, institutional support, programs, areas of assistance.
JEL Classification: L25, L26, M10, M21, O10.

Introduction. In today’s economic climate, in which great emphasis is laid on information, organizations get the highest value from their intellectual property rather than from their physical assets. Thus the organization is redefined and transformed gradually in the New Economy, which gives up on many of the old methods and approaches, seeking to integrate in the much more complex reality that occurs. The progress of an organization in a knowledge economy is directly proportional to its accumulated intellectual capital and knowledge, regardless of whether we relate to public or private sector.

Aim of the study. In this paper, we present a few aspects on the reflection of knowledge management and intellectual capital in the new economy.
Keywords: knowledge, organizational management, information, economic development, intellectual capital, knowledge management
JEL Classification: M19, O34, L25

Introduction. The entrepreneur is one of the main pawns of a competitive market economy, as he creates and develops organizations, thereby contributing decisively to the strengthening of the small and medium enterprises sector in contemporary economies.

Aim of the study. This paper aims to addresses important issues regarding the economic dimension of the entrepreneurial phenomenon, showing that entrepreneurship also manifests itself in other spheres of human activity such as education, social interaction, culture, politics, etc. The paper summarizes the main coordinates that define the conceptual framework of the entrepreneur and, at the same time, it exposes and analyzes some of the most important qualities that an entrepreneur should have in order to cope with the current business environment successfully.
Keywords: entrepreneur, SMEs, entrepreneurial phenomenon, entrepreneurial environment.
JEL Classification: L26, M10, M21, O10.

Introduction. The evolutionary trend of the global economy brings to the forefront the need to forecast and introduce new modalities to innovate strategic management systems focusing on the preoccupations regarding the continuous modernization and improvement of the strategic variants of coordination of the organization.

Aim of the study. In organizational context, innovation has various materializations, it includes both product and technology renewal, but it also takes into account organizational changes or the application of new business models. Applying such changes may have effects on quality and market share, ensuring improved competitiveness.
Keywords: innovation, innovation in management, organizational management, forecasting tools in innovation
JEL Classification: L21, M20, O31

Introduction. The future of organizations depends decisively on their ability to constantly improve their technologies and processes and, on this basis, to develop new products and services that correspond in quantitative and qualitative terms to the evermore diversified requirements of the demand bearers.

Aim of the study. The paper addresses relevant aspects related to creativity and innovation as inexhaustible sources of sustainable competitive advantages. The conceptual framework of creativity is defined and the important phases of a creative process are delimited. The main types of innovations are briefly presented, while at the same time the variables defining the innovation capacity of organizations are revealed. The final section of the paper highlights the key role of management in stimulating creative and innovative processes within organizations and in developing innovative projects.
Keywords: organization, creativity, innovation, management, sustainable competitive advantage.
JEL Classification: M10, L21, O31, O32.

Introduction. The dynamics of the business environment has led to a growing competition. Everyone dreams of their own business. The question is: how do I create a business and how do I develop it? Do I have entrepreneurial skills? Given the decline in purchasing power, one of the most sensitive aspects of the economic system is also emphasized: the price. The difference between companies lies in the service provided for consumers as an additional element for purchasing the product.

Aim of the study. A new type of economic offer appears: the experience, which represents the quality of the time that the consumer spends with that company. What you sell is the very experience. Experiences are a new source of value and are events that involve people at a personal level. The new offer of experiences occurs whenever a company intentionally uses its services as a stage and its goods as stage props in order to involve a client.
Keywords: entrepreneur, innovation, entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial skills.
JEL Classification: L25, M21, O16

Introduction. The entrepreneur is a key character of the economy with a competitive market that translates into business ideas by taking advantage of opportunities offered by the market.

Aim of the study. The paper sets out representative approaches in relation to the entrepreneur, developed over time by reputed economics and management specialists. The best known and quoted classifications of entrepreneurs set out in the specialized literature, namely the one elaborated by the American Professor John B. Miner and the STRATOS typology, are presented and analyzed in a comparative vision. The strengths and vulnerabilities of each type of entrepreneur in the two types presented are systematically emphasized. Also, the main variables defining entrepreneurial spirit and the most important forces that determine it are highlighted and explained in the paper.
Keywords: entrepreneur, business idea, business opportunity, entrepreneurial spirit.
JEL Classification: L26, M10, M21, O10.

Introduction. Given that organizational development is achieved through the design and implementation of some change projects, several representative models of organizational change developed over time by recognized personalities in the field of change management are presented and analyzed. Based on the analysis of these models, the paper proposes a model of organizational change applicable to companies operating in the contemporary business environment.

Aim of the study. Organizational development is influenced by the continuous improvement of the processes and activities carried out and, implicitly, of the results obtained. In this context, this paper offers a perspective on organizational development by exposing some reference approaches from specialized literature, highlighting the “management system – strategy – organizational culture” trinomial.
Keywords: organization, organizational development, change, change model.
JEL Classification: M10, M21, L21, O21.