Purpose – The article aims to present the results of adapting the team boosting behaviors (TBB) scale to Polish cultural conditions and validating it.
Design/methodology/approach – The research methodology consisted of three steps. In the first step, I translated the TBB scale into Polish using a rigorous back-translation method. Next, to assess content validity, nine domain experts reviewed the initial version of the instrument for clarity and relevance. Finally, I applied the scale to a sample of 532 team members and underwent thorough psychometric testing to assess construct validity. I employed structural equation modeling (SEM) with the partial least squares (PLS) factor-based algorithm technique for confirmatory factor analysis to assess the scale’s reliability and validity. Findings – After development, the Polish version of the TBB scale kept its three sub-scale structures. However, the validation process led to a slight reduction in the number of test items compared to the original scale.
Research limitations/implications – The findings imply that the Polish version of the scale is a valid and reliable tool for assessing TBB. However, I recommend additional studies to confirm this instrument’s structure.
Originality/value – The results confirmed the reliability and relevance of the tool for measuring TBBs in Polish cultural conditions. The tool provides the basis for implementing further research with the TBB construct in Poland and internationally.

Purpose – The study aims to examine the digital competence of young employees (under 30 years of age) who graduated from the technical university. Self-assessment of selected digital competencies was examined along with the determination of a self-efficacy level in the area of using digital competencies.
Design/methodology/approach – Quantitative research was conducted using the computer-assisted web interview method on a sample of 4532 respondents.
Findings – Young employees’ self-assessment of digital competencies and self-efficacy in the area of using them is high, and it can be assumed that they perceive themselves as digitally competent. Both digital self-efficacy and assessed digital competencies have a positive impact on satisfaction with the university.
Research limitations/implications – The research sample consisted only of employees who graduated from the technical university, but the results may provide feedback on the demand for digital competencies sought in the labor market and constitute valuable information useful in university curriculum development and in vocational education and training.
Originality/value – This is the first study that focuses on the Kozanoglu and Abedin approach to the concept of digital literacy in the context of research on self-assessment and self-efficacy in using digital competencies among technical university graduates, adapting the creative self-efficacy scale by Tierney and Farmer, for measuring digital self-efficacy.
Highlights/value
(1) Young employees’ digital competencies self-assessment is high.
(2) Young employees’ self-efficacy of using digital competencies is high.
(3) Graduating from a DT-focused department has a positive impact on satisfaction.
(4) Digital self-efficacy has a positive impact on satisfaction with the university.
(5) Assessed digital competencies have a positive impact on satisfaction.

Purpose: This study aims to verify the quality of the teacher competency inventory as a pedagogical competencies measure of teachers in higher education institutions.

Design methodology: The development and testing of the teacher competency inventory covered three phases: (1) item generation, (2) dimension identification and data reduction (factor analysis), and (3) scale evaluation. The current study tests its construct validity, using an independent samples t-test, variance analysis, and Anova in two different environments.

Findings: Results indicate that the inventory measures unitary constructs and provide its predictive capacity. The developed instrument measures levels of future-oriented pedagogical competencies with comparable reliability and validity.

Practical implications: Teacher competency inventory may be applied to teachers’ recruitment, selection, development, and performance evaluation with the goal to identify current and required levels of competencies. The inventory allows one to compare teacher competencies with the expected competency profile. Possible differences may indicate deficits or overruns in relation to the expected profile.

Originality: Teacher competency inventory is a meaningful tool to improve human resource practices – including recruitment, selection, and teacher performance monitoring – and to indicate the current and required level of competencies. The identified competency gap can help plan teacher development to increase job performance.

Purpose: This study presents a nine-factor, 32-item measure of work environment scale in the service sector. A healthy work environment is one in which employees trust the people they work for, have pride in what they do, and enjoy working with the people (Levering and Moskowitz, 2004).

Methodology: This instrument builds on the conceptual model espoused by Insel and Moos (1974), Gordon (1973), Fletcher and Nusbaum (2010), Amabile et al. (1996), and Spector (2003). The scale included items elicited through a literature review, the use of the Delphi technique with a panel of experts, and tested on 824 full-time employees from nine service sector industries and five major cities in India.

Findings: The Work Environment Services Scale (WESS) is a reliable and valid scale useful for measuring the nine work environment factors in the Indian services organization, with its own norms and a detailed manual.

Originality/Value: The prevailing scales for measuring work environment do not capture the influence of ethics, recreation facilities, and the impact of social giving on the work environment. Most scales were suitable for sectors in the Western context, and there were no Indian scales measuring service employees’ perception of their work environment.

Purpose: Strategy determines the patterns of internationalization. The speed, scale, and scope of
internationalization are important dimensions from the perspective of firms’ behaviors and activities.
The aim of the article is to identify and verify the relationship between the international
strategy and its impact on three dimensions of the studied phenomenon.

Methodology: The article uses a quantitative approach. The survey was conducted on a sample of
355 internationalized firms from Poland, varying in size.

Findings: The analysis with t test and U test (ANOVA) shows a correlation between a company’s
international strategy as a planning instrument and the speed and scope of internationalization.

Research limitations/implications: While considering a firm’s development, especially its international
growth, one should plan the activities related to entering into foreign markets. The results
presented in this article are just a starting point for further analyses. In an attempt to eliminate its
limitations, further research should focus on building a comprehensive model that includes the
remaining components of international strategy and other categories that stimulate internationalization
processes.

Originality: The originality of this article lies in three elements: (i) the article comprehensively
captures the scale, scope, and speed of internationalization at the same time, (ii) the strategy is
introduced as a determining factor of the scale, scope, and speed of internationalization, and (iii)
the article enriches empirical studies about emerging markets such as Poland.

Purpose: To compare two transformational leadership instruments, Bass’s Full Range Leadership Model and its instrument Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire with the Transformational Leadership Scale proposed by Rafferty and Griffin (2004), using empirical evidence from a single sample.

Methodology: The sample includes participants from different levels of the Estonian Defence Forces’ military hierarchy (N = 2570). The structures of the Transformational Leadership Scale and Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire were examined with exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, while other methods were used to compare the two instruments.

Findings: The Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire is statistically significantly better at predicting outcome variables like satisfaction with leader, effectiveness, and extra effort; however, the Transformational Leadership Scale did predict outcome variables at a sufficient level.

Research & Practical Limitations/Implications: The current research contributes to the validation of the Transformational Leadership Scale proposed by Rafferty and Griffin (2004). The results indicated that the Transformational Leadership Scale is a valuable research tool to study transformational leadership; however, some subscales require further development. Moreover, we may conclude that there is a difference between subsamples – e.g. between commanders and conscripts – that describe outcome variables using the Transformational Leadership Scale as a transformational leadership instrument.

Originality/value: There is very limited research that compares different transformational leadership instruments.

Purpose: The goal of this paper is to develop a framework describing the mechanisms which explain how and when CSR engagement affects company’s bottom line, based on a review of the business case for CSR literature.

Approach: This article is conceptual and based on literature review. By using a CSR stage development model, behavioral and stakeholder perspectives, it offers a descriptive multi­dimensional integrative framework of the business case for CSR.

Findings: The fndings show that the relationship between engagement in CSR activities and corporate performance (CP) depends on a CSR development stage, managerial interpretation of CSR issues, stakeholder management model and moderating factors.

Originality: This article integrates disconnected models and conceptualizations in the subject literature and contributes to the theoretical discussion by arguing that type and scale of benefts from CSR activity progress along the stages of organizational CSR development. Moreover, it also shows that the CSR­CP relationship depends on internal and external factors (mediators and moderators). It therefore supports the contingency argument.

Purpose: Sixty-five HR general managers representing companies from a variety of industries took
part in the research that we conducted between April and October 2013. They had identified leadership
development as the most significant factor in the growth of the top firms in Poland’s economy.
We have conducted in-depth interviews to understand the perception of the leadership concept.
We have found that they tend to focus on the following dimensions of leadership: conveying
a vision, inspiring, being charismatic, being credible, being able to manage others, and having good
interpersonal skills.

Research limitations and implications: The main limitation of the research is that it does not allow
for generalization of findings on perceived dimensionality of leadership on larger population of HR
Executives. Our findings imply that leadership development will soon be a strong priority among
HR teams of 500 largest companies, but several dimensions are not present in their description of
leadership.

Originality/value: Our paper makes three contributions to the literature. We have developed a managerial
attention view of the firm by surveying senior HR executives. CEOs, CFOs, and top management
teams tend to be subject of studies in this theoretical tradition more often than HR executives,
Another contribution is the use of mixed methods that is rather rare yet offering vast opportunities
for triangulation and knowledge building in the discipline. Our third contribution is that we applied
a standard scale of the multidimensional leadership concept.

Purpose: The aims of the completed studies were: (1) systematization of perceived positive and negative changes in consumers’ self-image due to the usage of service brands and (2) development of multidimensional tool to measure these changes.

Methodology: To accomplish these aims qualitative and quantitative studies were held. In the qualitative study, total number of 318 people aged between 13 and 82 (M = 37,64, SD = 16,69; 47,2% women) were examined by individual interview method, which led to collection of a set of positive (benefi ts) and negative (loses) changes in self-image due to the usage of service brands. This set was later minutely categorized. Based on the results of the
categorization, a questionnaire in form of semantic differential was elaborated.

Findings: An analysis of the study results led to identifi cation of 9 dimensions of perceived changes in self-image due to the use of service brands. Based on the results, a multidimensional questionnaire to measure changes in self-image was developed, which has very good psychometric indices, taking into account reliability of measure and validity of predicting service brands preference.

Practical implications: An innovative, multidimensional tool, useful in practical service brand management was developed. The identified dimensions of perceived changes in consumers’ self-image can make a practical hint of what should be followed in marketing communication.

Originality: The results of the study and the developed scales are breaking a long-time deadlock in the theory and methodology of research into relations between self and the brand.

Purpose: The paper discusses issues associated with using funds that support the development of entrepreneurship – the purpose of the paper is to answer questions regarding the purposefulness and effectiveness of financial instruments from EU funds aimed at the development of emerging businesses (startups).

Methodology: The paper analyzes previously conducted research studies in the fi eld of the discussed topic, it systematizes and describes the fi nancial instruments from EU funds supporting self-employment and startups in their early stages of activity. It also provides an overview of evaluation reports concerning these instruments.

The paper also contains a case study: an analysis of the effectiveness of a selected project supporting the development of entrepreneurship (co-fi nanced from EU funds), in which the method of evaluating the net effect of the support in the short term has been used.

Findings: An analysis of previously conducted research studies has shown that properly designed State aid targeted at those starting up their own business is sensible, as it provides them with seed capital and it helps them survive the most diffi cult period of the so-called “startup”. However, there is a lack of comprehensive studies to confirm the positive impact of business support interventions carried out using EU funds. The methodology of evaluating the net effect used by the Author in the conducted study has made it possible to identify the actualsize of the – positive – impact of the selected project on the growth of self-employment.

Limitations: The study revealed some limitations – the method and time of the study allow to capture the phenomenon on a micro-scale, in the short term. The institutions that are involved in the process of allocating funds should develop a comprehensive methodology that implements the idea of evaluating the net effect, allowing to assess the effectiveness of the support at regional and national level in the long term.

Originality: The originality of the paper consists in applying the theories and results of previous studies to the Polish practice of supporting businesses at their early stages of development as well as applying the method of evaluating the net effect, which allows to determine the actual impact of the intervention.