Purpose – I aimed to obtain a deeper insight into the link between supplier involvement in product development (SIPD), supplier relationship resilience and company performance.
Design/methodology/approach – To collect data, a survey among 500 Polish manufacturing companies was conducted. I used quantitative methods (structural equation modeling) to test several research hypotheses referring to a single supplier–customer relationship. Thanks to the use of multi-construct measurement of SIPD and supplier relationship resilience, the study provides detailed research results on the topic.
Findings – Collaborative practices implemented during SIPD increase procurement flexibility and decrease redundancy in the relationship with the involved supplier. Communication during SIPD increases supplier flexibility and procurement flexibility. Increased supplier flexibility and increased procurement flexibility in the relationship with the involved supplier as well as collaborative practices during SIPD positively impact company performance. I confirmed the indirect effect between communication during SIPD and company performance when the mediators are supplier flexibility and procurement flexibility. Decreased redundancy in relationship with involved supplier does not impact company performance.
Practical implications – Supply chain managers need to rethink SIPD practice to effectively ensure supply chain resilience (SCRES), especially in the face of the contemporary global crisis and black swans affecting the supplier base. My article provides important managerial insights into drivers of SCRES and company performance. Originality/value – To the best of my knowledge, this research is among the first to conclude that SIPD does not have an unequivocally positive or direct impact on supplier relationship resilience. The research fills the gap by analyzing the impact of SIPD on two main SCRES elements. The study examines supplier relationship resilience, understood as flexibility and redundancy elements, in a single supplier–buyer relationship perspective. Thus, the presented considerations go beyond the traditional understanding of flexibility and redundancy in supplier relationship management, that is through the prism of double or multi sourcing and having back up-suppliers.

Purpose – With pay transparency (PT) as an emerging trend in organizations around the world and the European Union promoting open pay regulations, PT is of increasing interest to scientists, managers and policymakers. However, it is still unclear what people think about PT and what theoretical perspectives might explain people’s views on transparent pay. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to explore and systematize opinions about PT and to propose theoretical frameworks to understand different reactions to it.
Design/methodology/approach – Qualitative reflexive thematic analysis of the Internet debate that emerged in Poland in 2019 in response to the proposition of new law regulations aimed to improve PT by introducing obligatory pay ranges in job offers.
Findings – The author’s analysis revealed a set of 41 specific and often opposite opinions about PT, which allow for the systematization of hopes and concerns related to PT around the 7 favorable and 6 unfavorable higher-order themes.
Social implications – The author’s results might inform policymakers and managers about the possible risks and benefits of PT implementation. Revealed opposite opinions about PT raise awareness that PT policies, while solving some social problems, might simultaneously create others.
Originality/value – The author provides new insights into opinions that people hold about transparent pay based on real-world data. The author suggests theoretical perspectives for understanding and predicting reactions to PT, such as Hobfoll’s Conservation of Resources Theory and Adam`s Equity Theory. Based on this, the authors propose that opposite opinions about PT might be explained by (a) perceived pay dispersion fairness and (b) perceived PT costs-benefits ratio.

Purpose: This article aims to review critical thinking (CT) as a future skill in business.

Design/methodology/approach – The study employed two research methods: science mapping analysis based on bibliometric keyword co-occurrence data and systematic literature review following PRISMA guidelines. The application of two distinctive research methods meant that we could obtain a broad picture thematic overview as well as a detailed, fine-grained insight into the content of CT business research.

Findings – Research in CT in business studies is dominated by themes related to education, university and learning that far outweigh CT business application, which focuses on three research axes. These are specific business functions (e.g. accounting, marketing, human resources and identifying business opportunities), certain skills used in business (e.g. decision-making and creativity) and other business-related topics (including ethics, stakeholder relations and individual employee performance).

Practical implications – The article identifies new research gaps related to the link between CT and business performance, a firm’s ability to innovate and company characteristics. Moreover, the article highlights that CT positively influences business decision-making under the influence of cognitive biases and heuristics.

Originality/value – The article provides the first literature review on CT in business research. It uses a novel method of science mapping analysis to show unbiased algorithmic-based insight into the structure of the research, followed by a systematic literature review.

Purpose: The aim of this study is to determine a structure of brand personality at an ecological level and to develop norms for positioning a particular brand in relation to other brands by means of brand personality scales.

Methodology: We present the results of a study in which 1,642 participants aged 15 to 82 (mean 35.3; 51.9% females) were involved. Each respondent marked three to four brands from different categories of goods and services on a 20-item adjectival list for measuring brand personality. As a result, 6,548 descriptions of 224 brands from 46 categories were collected. Findings: Our analyses show that the structure of the differences among brand personalities on the Polish market can be described in terms of four dimensions: competence, spontaneity, subtlety, and egoism. The established dimensions explain 85% of the variance. A distribution of the results within the scales applied served as a basis for establishing specifc norms for each of the four scales.

Limitations: The norms established have a country-level character and are inclusively adequate and reliable for companies that purchase products and services on the Polish market.

Originality: Our study presents a new, ecological approach to thinking about brands. Namely, it enables a more precise determination of the position of a certain brand in relation to many other competing brands and allows for a more effcient use of the potential for constructing brand personality.

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to identify what are the cause-effect patterns of how company actions influence value drivers in Polish frms.

Method: The method used in the study consists of (1) the generation of informant reports (stories) about what actions performed in their frms influenced the value drivers and (2) the identifcation of the repeating (replicating) patterns of such influence.

Results: The study identifes fve actions that reduce the unproductive time of participants of business processes and three actions influencing new product introductions or modifcations.

Managerial implications: Managers should (1) use standardization and automation, delegation of secondary activities, and trainings in teamwork to reduce unproductive time, more quickly fulfll contracts (with current products), and influence four fnancial value drivers. Moreover, they should (2) gather knowledge about the alternative ways of thinking about particular problems and (3) use personal participation of knowledge possessor’s teams in clients’ problem-solving places.

Limitations and future research: The author identifes fve limitations of the performed study and formulates relevant suggestions for future research.

Originality/value: The study contributes to management theory by (1) clarifying conceptual relations between the actions of frms (causes) and value drivers (effects) and (2) analyzing the manager reports about the real business value-creation processes.

Purpose: This article informs readers about the theoretical and practical origins of the behaviorally
informed interventions (BIPI), analyzes examples of the BIPI from different policy sectors and
strategies they offer for policy and regulatory design, and discusses applications and implications
of BIPI for public interventions.

Methodology: This paper is based on a review of literature, as well as an inspection of administrative
practices in OECD countries. It encompasses a systematic analysis of scientific papers from
the SCOPUS database and a query carried out at the library of George Washington University.

Findings: The traditional approach to public policy research is based on rational choice theory. It
offers limited support, because by assuming perfect rationality of policy decisions, it overlooks
existence of systematic errors and biases of human decision-making. The authors argue that behaviorally
informed public interventions (BIPI) might contribute to improving the effectiveness of
a number of public measures – regulation, projects, programs, and even entire policies.

Practical implications: The behavioral approach allows decision-makers to better understand the
decisions and behaviors of citizens, as well as to design more effective interventions with minimum
effort by adapting the existing solutions to real decision mechanisms of citizens.

Originality: By combining the concepts of traditional approach with the growing behavioral
approach, the authors aim to propose a new theoretical framework (BIPI) to be used as a tool for
policy design, delivery and evaluation.

Purpose: Modernity consists of many confl icting aspects: It brings many empty promises, yet has resulted in new institutions that create bridges between the values and interests of millions of people who seek freedom, prosperity, quality of life, strengthened democracy and social justice. In this paper I attempt to a gain and loss account against modernity, because institutional rules are not only conducive to cooperative interactions, but to hostile interactions as well. People are not always guided by moral commitment, but rather more often driven by cold calculation or coercion.

Methodology: Modernity has at least three defi nitions. The fi rst defi nition is based on ideas that took over the imagination of the era. The second defi nition is based on an analysis of the behavior of people who respond to reason as well as emotion and believe that they act more rationally than their ancestors or the traditional “others”. The third defi nition is the one closest to my heart, consisting of the use of institutional categories.
Institutions offer practical ways of connecting ideas and people. The challenge for them is the result of deepening local and national interdependencies, but increasingly often also regional (e.g. European) and global. Interdependencies are the result of the scientifi c and technological revolution, global markets, global governance mechanisms, the emergence of new social forces and cultural confl icts (against the background of reconciling identity and differences).

Conclusions: The most important task is to identify the mechanisms of complex systems so that people know how to act under conditions of uncertainty, risk and crisis. Hence, the expectations toward institutions often exceed their abilities. Even though new institutions are being created and old ones are being fixed, we are witnessing and participating in, institutional paralysis and the decay (e.g. corruption). In this situation, it is imperative not only to improve control methods (e.g. legal), but also to resort to normative systems (values and identity) and knowledge (competence and skills). The source of this paralysis is often man himself, convinced of his own maturity and equipped with all sorts of rights, but manipulated on a scale not yet seen in the past. We are experiencing our own struggle as to what roles are closest to us, e.g. consumer, investor, or citizen?

Research Implications: Modernity is an emblematic, but confusing term. Therefore, the most important task is to identify the activities of complex systems, so that people know how to act under conditions of uncertainty, risk and crisis. People – agencies must operate in structures that defi ne the boundaries of their actions. The main task of social sciences is to identify the conditions for the construction of successful confi gurations of agencies and structures.

Originality: Sometimes the “old” is better than the “new”, but to adopt this as a principle of life would be a mistake. It is better to think that the “new” is a metamorphosis of the “old”, sometimes expected, sometimes not. Based on the example of capitalism – fi rst commercial capitalism, then industrial capitalism, and today financial capitalism – I demonstrate how the mechanisms of institutional morphogenesis work, with emphasis on structured cooperation and organized conflict.

Purpose: The article aims to assess the informative value of the financial statements of public enterprises, auxiliary enterprises and budget institutions which have been transformed into public sector enterprises (IGB). The goal of the article is also to interpret the data included in financial statements, from the property and structure management point of view.

Metodology: The main research tool was the economical analysis of the chosen elements of the financial statements of public sector enterprises. Review of the data which describe the public sector enterprises which conduct business activities was done. In relation to “Center of Logistic Services” entity, the method of case study was used.

Findings: The analysis shown in the article implies that the legal and organisational changes have not improved the public finance sector operations in this area. It results from the fact that the changes in management, way of thinking should be directed to managerial model.
Research implications: The article is the first author’s insight into the problem of public sector enterprises. There is no doubt, this type of research should be continued in many aspects.

Originality: The author presented the interesting and current problem concerning public finance sector. Stated in the article theses and the analysis of the financial standing of the public sector enterprises is one of the opinions in the debate on the expected direction of changes in the organisation of public finance sector.

Purpose: The article describes the essence of strategic thinking in the context of changes taking place in the process of creating and implementing strategies in organizations. The aim of the article is analyzing this concept – as a synthesis of strategic planning, creative analysis and inspiring vision.

Methodology: The fieldwork of the study was carried out by the PAPI method – additionally, the quantitative study used open and standardized data collection methods.

Findings: The article presents a part of the research results, which confirm that strategic thinking is now becoming a necessary addition to the existing decision-making process, replacing complex and inflexible development plans and compensating the existing deficiencies in the strategic planning process.

Practical implications: It seems that more often strategy will take the form of an informal concept, which evolves during the implementation, replacing complex formal documents, which do not leave any room for flexible adaptation.

Originality: The presented results concern an important topic and make an important contribution to the ongoing debate around the concept of strategic thinking.

Purpose: This article aims to analyze business models and their key elements. In light of the considerations on the merits and circumstances of innovation in business models, it presents the results of a panel discussion conducted in this area during the interdisciplinary conference “Time to develop. Strategic thinking in work and everyday life”.

Methodology: Discussion, literature studies, the results of studies carried out by international research centers and the results of a panel discussion conducted during the conference.

Results: As a result of the discussion the Authors conducted an analysis of the components of the business model, demonstrated the circumstances in which changes in the business model are needed and outlined the main stimulators and inhibitors of change.

Originality: The topic of innovation in business models is current and important for the development of both theory and practice, but is rarely addressed in Polish scientific studies. In times of economic crisis, when more and more companies are considering the revision of the current model, an accurate identification of the key conditions is important for the effective implementation of innovation in the business model.

Purpose: The article concerns the contemporary approach to employees in organizations, and the research question is whether strategic thinking about employees is a possibility or necessity of the contemporary organization.

Methodology: Literature research was the basis for the deliberations and proposals, which were analyzed using several empirical studies conducted by Polish and international research centers.

Results: The presented discussion suggests that contemporary organizations should think strategically about their employees if they want to succeed. But this approach cannot be limited only to investing in employee competencies, but should also take into consideration building a working environment that ensures the success of both the organization and the worker.

Originality: The article suggests the necessity of a strategic approach regarding employees in the contemporary business world. At the same time it indicates that organizations cannot treat employees only with the organizational profits in mind. In strategic thinking about employees there must also be room for other benefits, such as the success of an employee.