Innovation Competence Research Articles

Development of Students’ Innovative Competence in University Studies of Social Sciences, Applying Industry-Based Technologies’ Learning Resources

The purpose of this article is to highlight the aspects of application of Fast Track Solution SAP Business One Model to the business curriculum of a university study programme. With the SAP Business One, students gain knowledge and understanding on how different areas of business interact and integrate and how information technology-based infrastructure simplify business operations. In addition, this research article introduces and identifies the SAP Business One modules that can be applied to the present business curriculums of university studies, which leads to a blended learning approach when education addresses the needs of industry. Blended learning, as a learning approach that applies the SAP Business One modules, complements the skills required by industries thus fostering the industry-based learning approach. Theoretical knowledge and hands-on experience will make business students gain competitive advantage and competency in innovativeness.

Research Competencies to Develop Academic Reading and Writing: A Systematic Literature Review

Rationale:The development of research skills in the higher education environment is a necessity because universities must be concerned about training professionals who use the methods of science to transform reality. Furthermore, within research competencies, consideration must be given to those that allow for the development of academic reading and writing in university students since this is a field that requires considerable attention from the educational field at the higher level.Objective:This study aims to conduct a systematic review of the literature that allows the analysis of studies related to the topics of research competencies and the development of academic reading and writing.Method:The search was performed by considering the following quality criteria: (1) Is the context in which the research is conducted at higher education institutions? (2) Is the development of academic reading and writing considered? (3) Are innovation processes related to the development of academic reading and writing considered? The articles analyzed were published between 2015 and 2019.Results:Forty-two papers were considered for analysis after following the quality criterion questions. Finally, the topics addressed in the analysis were as follows: theoretical–conceptual trends in educational innovation studies, dominant trends and methodological tools, findings in research competencies for innovation in academic literacy development, types of innovations related to the development of academic reading and writing, recommendations for future studies on research competencies and for the processes of academic reading and writing and research challenges for the research competencies and academic reading and writing processes.Conclusion:It was possible to identify the absence of studies about research skills to develop academic literacy through innovative models that effectively integrate the analysis of these three elements.

Personalised nutrition for older adults: design challenges, SME barriers, and options and competencies for innovation

Personalised nutrition (PN) products and services have the potential to enhance the health and quality of life of older adults. However, PN innovation is challenging and requires specific competencies and supportive collaborations. This paper reports findings from a Collective Intelligence Scenario-Based Design session conducted with PN experts as part of the Horizon 2020 project INCluSilver, which aims to support the development of products, services, and systems that improve the health and quality of life of older adults through innovation in PN. Experts identified challenges to the design of PN products and services and barriers that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) face when innovating PN products and services for older adults. Options to address these barriers were generated and specific SME competencies supporting PN innovation were identified. This study provides a useful framework for understanding the challenges, opportunities, and key competencies needed to innovate PN products and services for older adults.

MODEL FOR OPPORTUNITIES ASSESSMENT TO INCREASE THE ENTERPRISE INNOVATION ACTIVITY

This study shows that the model of assessing the opportunities for innovation activity of enterprises is multivariate and interrelated with such macroeconomic regulators of Ukraine’s development as competitive attractiveness of the country, favorable conditions for doing business in the country and innovation activity of enterprises. The use of a three-dimensional matrix of indicators to assess Ukraine’s competitive attractiveness allowed us to evaluate the significant impact of changes in Ukraine’s Global Innovation Index on the innovation activity of enterprises for the period 2014–2019. Moreover, the greater the value of the indicator of the state’s innovation potential is, the higher the level of innovation activity in the country becomes, which significantly increases the positive image of Ukrainian entrepreneurs at the global level and acts as a “green light” for foreign investors. Given the wide range of parameters that must be taken into account in an integrated assessment of innovation activity of an enterprise, we have used the method of component analysis. The uniqueness of an integrated assessment of innovation activity of an enterprise is carried out in accordance with the concept of value formation of innovations and it is tested on the example of Ferrotrading LLC. The effectiveness of the study consists in the fact that the selected sub-indicators for assessing the innovation activity of the studied enterprise (innovation resources, innovation competencies and innovation abilities) greatly complement the assessment of the opportunities for innovation activity in the proposed model. The conducted study has theoretical and practical significance. It can be used as a basis for further research in this area and can be employed by governments to make management decisions on increasing the innovation activity of business and the state as a whole.

EFFECT OF ENTREPRENEURIAL MINDSET AND ENTREPRENEURIAL COMPETENCE ON PERFORMANCE OF SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISE, EVIDENCE FROM LITRATURE REVIEW

This study was undertaken to review the literature of the impact of entrepreneurial mindset and entrepreneurial competence on performance of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The review employed systematic review and was able to identify several components that contribute for enhancing the firms’ performance. Most significant entrepreneurial competence components positively and significantly affecting the performance include: opportunity and innovation competence, relational, conceptual, commitment, strategic, organizing, capability of managing resources. Entrepreneurial mindset affects positively and significantly the performance of SMEs and parameters includes: seeking opportunity, creativity, innovation, risk taking, pro-activeness, and alertness to take action. The new development is the established relationship between entrepreneurial mindset and entrepreneurial competence that contribute to business success based on this the review developed conceptual modelThe implication includes in order enhancing the performance, entrepreneurs’ in SMEs with entrepreneurial mindset, they should acquire knowledge and skill through education and participating in entrepreneurship program offered by government and non-government organization. The government should give priority for people engaged in running the entrepreneurial venture and should strive to offer the entrepreneurial essential skills that enable the individual/people to become an entrepreneur/s as a result helps to enhance their performance of firms.Keywords: Small and Medium Enterprises; Entrepreneurial Competence; Entrepreneurial Mindset, SMEs Performance, Impact

Facing the Challenges of Covid-19 in the Egyptian Banking Sector: The Role of Bricoleurs in Achieving Organizational Innovations via Learning through Improvisation

The COVID-19 pandemic posed many challenges for organizational survival across the world. Innovative capability became a key force in meeting such challenges and was most evident in Egypt’s banking sector. This paper explores, through semi-structured in-depth interviews with six general managers of multinational banks operating in Egypt, what innovation competences may enable organizational improvisers, or bricoleurs, to challenge, change, and achieve innovation during the COVID-19 pandemic. The results were analyzed through the lens of Senge’s five disciplines of learning organizations (Senge, 1990), with a particular consideration for the role of improvisation, and found that personal mastery is the dominant principle and is linked to achieving innovation in organizations. Within this element, the analysis also suggests that improvisation emerges from creativity, past experience, intuition, and distinct triggers, and that innovation competences appear as complementary elements of an organization’s behavior, encapsulated as a form of bricolage when challenges arise and resource constraints prevail. The results suggest that a set of practices and strategies could be applied by general managers to meet the challenges they face involving constraints, such as a shortage of human resource, and that improvisation can form one of their key innovation competences.

A New Paradigm Through Machine Learning: A Learning Maximization Approach for Sustainable Education

Machine learning algorithms have been used to predict student performance in academic institutions over the last decade. The developed prediction models classified students as either those who were likely to receive a distinctive or those who were likely to be at-risk or withdraw from the class. Although, the early prediction aid in the targeting of educational interventions and achieved a more efficient allocation of educational resources. All proposed solutions fell within the scope of predictions that result in active or proactive actions to support universities and learners. On the other hand, they fail to comprehend the various forms of education systems and whether it appropriate for the twenty-first century and future generations. The paper classifies education into five types based on the design mode, the scope of production, and the interaction between learners and educational systems (Push, Pull, coupling, Integrated, and Sustainable). The paper proposes a sustainable education paradigm that maximizes the knowledge and skill matrix accumulated for the desired program. The proposed theory implementation phases are modelled and demonstrated using 21st-century technologies, such as personalized and coaching education based on the learner’s learning style and remediation actions for strong learners with innovative competencies. The study emphasized various aspects of sustainable education systems that are required for smart city transition. The limitations and proposed solutions for dealing with anticipated issues were demonstrated, and the benefits of sustainable education are based on the proposed maximization theory rather than the current block-based learning of outcomes.

СУТНІСТЬ ПОНЯТТЯ «ІННОВАЦІЙНИЙ ПОТЕНЦІАЛ» ЯК ЕКОНОМІЧНОЇ КАТЕГОРІЇ

The essence of the concept of «innovation potential» as an economic category highlights the essence of the concept of innovation potential and scientific approaches to its interpretation. The concept of «innovation potential» has become «a conceptual reflection of the phenomenon of innovation activity». An enterprise can develop innovation activities only if it has sufficient innovation potential. Innovative development depends on the size and structure of the innovation potential. That is, if an enterprise has the necessary resources, it can develop and implement various innovations in its economic activities. If innovation opportunities are limited, then it is necessary to increase them and choose a follower strategy, that is, to implement improving technologies. Innovation potential as a set of resources, the use of which will lead to the achievement of advantages and strategic goals, needs to be increased and developed. The views of various foreign and domestic scientists on the concept of innovative potential are systematized. Various scientific views of domestic and foreign scientists on the essence of the concept of innovative potential are studied. Interpretation of the concept of innovation potential can be carried out from different approaches, namely: structural-functional, integral, behavioral and process approaches. Each approach has its own understanding of the essence of innovation potential. Scientists have not yet given a general definition of the concept of innovation potential, so depending on the scope of application, innovation potential can be considered as a set of material and non-material resources, as a process of using innovations in economic activities, as the ability of an enterprise to adapt the internal environment to change environmental factors with the use of available resources and opportunities. The components of innovation potential are characterized in accordance with various scientific approaches. It is proposed to define the innovative potential of the enterprise as a set of integrated characteristics, existing and hidden opportunities that allow efficient use of innovative resources (raw materials, labor, information, technology) through innovative competencies and innovative organizational skills to achieve innovative development goals.

Research on the Development of Primary School Students' Key Literacy in Western China

With the continuous advancement of global education reform, "key literacy" has become an important indicator to measure the development status and potential of students. To develop students' key literacy in western China, researchers went deep into the actual education situation in western China and collected status data, then summed up outstanding experiences and found challenges and put forward feasible strategies. The research subjects were students from six urban primary schools and four rural primary schools in Lanzhou, Gansu Province. This research adopted questionnaire survey, focus group interviews and individualized interviews. 3025 students were quantitatively investigated by using network-based questionnaire in the early stage. Later, focus group interviews and individualized interviews were conducted to investigate the development of students in all aspects. The quantitative and interview data shows that the development level of primary school students' cultural understanding and inheritance competence, communication competence and cooperation competence in the western region are good, while the critical thinking and innovation competence need to be strengthened. The development level of key literacy of urban school students is generally higher than that of rural school students. The development of rural schools is relatively backward, which is not only reflected in hardware equipment and resources, but also in the literacy level of teachers and students. Finally, some feasible strategies are put forward, such as increasing investment in rural schools and resources; developing urban and rural teaching community; exploring the development path of in-depth integration of information technology and curriculum.

Developing the intellectual and social capital of universities for sustainable development: innovative competence of the teacher and knowledge management

Intellectual and social capital is becoming an important economic resource for the development of an organization and a country. Universities that represent education, science and innovation are increasingly focusing on improving the intellectual and social capital of workers and organizations. The purpose of the article is to identify the features of the increment of the innovative potential of the university for the development of the intellectual and social capital of the organization as an economic resource for the sustainable development of the university in the era of the Internet and the knowledge society. The study found that in order to increase the intellectual and social capital of an organization, it is necessary to create a special innovative environment for interaction, discussions and trainings at the interdepartmental and interfaculty level of staff and students. The development of the intellectual potential of employees can be ensured through the improvement of the innovative competence of teachers and students. This competence is proposed to include information on knowledge management, knowledge flows, diffusion of innovations,etc. Innovation competence will help to give not only a certain economic effect through the creation of new innovative products or educational services based on cooperation of scientists from different directions, but also strengthen the professional pedagogical competence of teachers.

A Design Thinking Approach to the Development of Agile Skills of Digital Economy Professionals

The digital economy requires a person to have interdisciplinary knowledge and broad competencies in different sectors of the economy, rather than a narrow profile. Innovative competencies and creative abilities, the ability to think outside the box and find alternatives under uncertain conditions, are in demand. This article raises the importance of complementary ICT skills for organizations that are actively adopting digital technologies. Key features of design thinking in solving problems of IT specialists' teamwork skills, creative thinking, and adaptation to change are considered. Design Thinking methodology-based project activities of students are highlighted.

COMPLIANCE OF PROFESSIONAL TRAINING OF SPECIALISTS IN CIRCULAR ECONOMY WITH FINLAND’S OBJECTIVES OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

The article focuses on the analysis of the experience of Finland in specialists’ training in the circular economy under the goals of the national economy aimed at the transition to a new economic model. This analysis is based on the review of authentic sources available on this issue, including the EU and Finnish strategic plans, economic reports, road maps, publications, and guidelines for training in the circular economy developed by Finland. It is shown that Finland is one of the first countries in the world that began the national economic transformation to move to a circular model and started implementing the circular economy principles at all the levels of education in 2017. Thus, despite the short term, Finland has managed to gain some educational experience and disseminate it to other countries. It is concluded that the Finnish experience provides for the higher education transformation, particularly in training in the circular economy under the goals of the national economy aimed at the transition to a new economic model. Such a transformation of higher education means employers’ active involvement in training in the circular economy on project-based methods. Furthermore, it is noted that essential aspects of didactics and education in a circular economy are the development of systemic thinking and innovative competencies, as well as involving students in networking between all participants in the educational process, including students, teachers and all other stakeholders.

Intellectual Capital of Technological Transformation of Economy of Industrial Region

The relevance of the research topic is due to the need to strengthen and expand the technological transformation of the Russian economy, which should contribute to the growth of high-tech products production and increase the competitiveness of domestic manufacturers in the world market. The hypothesis of the study is that the component features of the intellectual capital of the industrial region determine the predisposition/absence of predisposition of its economy to make a transition to a new dominant technological structure. The purpose of the scientific research is to identify the types of intellectual capital and which of them form the predisposition of regions to the technological transformation of their economies. During the study, the following tasks were solved: structural elements of intellectual capital that affect the innovative and technological development of the region, namely: education, are justified; innovative competencies; innovative skills; altruism; cognitive and non-cognitive competencies; sensitivity to change and adaptation to technological changes. Extractive, mono-inclusive and multi-inclusive type of intellectual capital of industrial regions, corresponding to the fourth, fifth and sixth technological framework, respectively, is disclosed. A methodology for estimating intellectual capital, which determines the dominant technological structure of the economy of the industrial region, has been developed on the basis of the use of the matrix method and Frobenius norms, which make it possible to conduct research over a long-time interval taking into account the dynamic trends of the main capital elements. The testing of the author's methodology revealed that such territories as Kemerovo Region, Nizhny Novgorod Region, Perm Territory, Republic of Bashkortostan, Republic of Tatarstan, Sverdlovsk Region, Udmurt Republic, Chelyabinsk Region, Chuvash Republic and Yaroslavl Region have intellectual capital for further technological development of the region's economy. The novelty of the obtained results lies in the development of a typology of regions, which enables one to identify the territories most prone to further technological transformation of the economy in the context of types of intellectual capital. The practical significance of the results obtained lies in the possibility of their use by authorities as a tool for developing a strategy for industrial development and structural adjustment of the economy of industrial regions.

CONCEPT OF COMPETENCE IN THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY IN THE INTERNATIONAL SCIENTIFIC DISCOURSE

The article presents an analysis of the concept of “competence in the circular economy” in the international scientific area. This analysis was carried out through the study of foreign scientific literature, in particular, modern reports of educational organizations, projects, guidelines of leading universities and publications on this issue. The components of competence in circular economy are shown, the detailed content of competences in circular economy, the matrix of competences in circular economy consists of five levels of training, comparable to Bloom's taxonomy. The didactic approach to training is given. It is concluded that this is a complex concept, understood in a broader and narrower sense. In a broad, general sense, “competence in the circular economy” includes the components needed to make decisions in complex transition processes, in particular systems thinking, design, and multi-perspective thinking, which are integrated with innovative competencies. In a narrow sense, “competence in a circular economy” includes components specific to a particular professional field.

ЗАНЯТОСТЬ И ФОРМИРОВАНИЕ ПРОФЕССИОНАЛЬНЫХ КОМПЕТЕНЦИЙ «РАБОТНИКОВ БУДУЩЕГО»

In the context of the general transformation of the leading sectors of the economy, the general employment paradigm is also changing, namely, the approach to the formation of professional competencies for job seekers in the labor market. These trends are increasing with the acceleration of the digitalization of society, which also penetrates into the analyzed processes. The article provides an overview of the models of professional competencies and their development, as a result of which the author has developed her own approach to this issue. Namely, it has been determined that the ongoing transformations increase the importance not only in the existing competencies of applicants, but also in the personal and intellectual abilities they have. In the modern world, the advantage is given to people belonging to the category of “work for the future”. They are the ones who strive to achieve the highest possible results, while finding ways for continuous development, and are more adaptable to digital transformation, including in the labor market. Despite the fact that the goals and objectives of the evaluation system of applicants’ professional competencies will remain the same for they seem common in the analyzed area of management and meet strategic corporate goals of companies’ development. The new will be the information support, which includes artificial intelligence, which first forms the set of applicants’ professional competencies, and then evaluates them. Taking into account the ongoing transformations, the article proposes a new model for the formation of professional competencies. The harmonization of the competency model of each applicant will form a single ensemble that does not contain incompatible competencies (for example, high innovation and strict compliance with regulations). The innovation of the developed model lies in the systematic distribution of competencies among employees, their direct management, and companies’ management. It is by using the proposed model, university graduates and people with experience who decided to change the profession will be able to determine their direction, to evaluate the correctness of the choice of profession, to present themselves to potential employers not only as high professionals in their field, but also to reveal their psychological data, cognitive abilities that are focused on results. Singularity of the changes that occur proves the relevance of the model and determines the aim of the article, which is to develop a model for the formation of professional competencies in the employment market, taking into account the ongoing changes and the growth of society’s technological activity.

The effect among innovative accountant competency, business management efficiency, financial reporting quality, and firm growth

The effect among innovative accountant competency, business management efficiency, financial reporting quality, and firm growth

Comparative Analysis of the Level of Development of Entrepreneurial Competencies among Students in Russia and the Czech Republic

The role of universities in the development of entrepreneurship is increasing. Within this context, universities are introducing specialized programs and disciplines aimed at developing students’ innovative and entrepreneurial competencies. This article presents the results of a comparative analysis of the level of development of students’ entrepreneurial competencies in Russia and the Czech Republic. To implement the key task, the authors analysed approaches to the classification of entrepreneurial competencies. On the basis of relevance and objectivity, the authors selected the EntreComp classification from 2016, which subsequently formed the basis for the developed methodological tools for the empirical research. The method was tested in three universities in the Russian Federation and one in the Czech Republic. The total number of participants was 436. The results of the analysis of the entrepreneurial competencies revealed significant statistical differences between the respondents from the two countries for 10 out of 15 evaluated competencies. At the same time, 68% of respondents in the Russian Federation and 64% in the Czech Republic were found to have an advanced level of development of one entrepreneurial competence. This fact is indicative of the similarity of the vast majority of the final results for the respondents from both countries and confirms the hypothesis that most students participating in the test did not have a lower than average level of competence development. The results of the study may be of interest to scientists and practitioners who study the assessment and development of entrepreneurial competencies in students and specialists.

ДІАГНОСТИКА ПЕРЕДУМОВ ІННОВАЦІЙНОГО РЕГІОНАЛЬНОГО РОЗВИТКУ ЯК ОСНОВА ФОРМУВАННЯ ТРАНСФОРМАЦІЙНОЇ МОДЕЛІ УПРАВЛІННЯ

The article is devoted to the improvement of management organizational support of innovative regional development of Ukraine on the basis of generalization of conceptual prerequisites and identifying complementary factors that are influencing on the regional innovative development management. The research methodology consists of formulating the essential characteristics of innovative development preconditions through dialectical, abstract-logical methods, as well as using a systematic approach, methods of comparison and generalization to form the concept of transformational model of innovative development. The results of the study indicate the existence of a number of prerequisites that form a unique context in terms of managing the innovative development of the region. A retrospective analysis of the processes of organization of innovation-oriented development of territories was made, countries innovation capacity features were generalized. The evolution of worldview preconditions of innovative development was analyzed and the presence of knots which should be considered during the development of corresponding innovation policy is stated. The specifics of the conditions for innovative development in Ukraine explained, a number of destructive factors have been identified that hinder the process of effective management of innovative development in the region. Emphasizing the available factors, the basic provisions of the transition from traditional to smart management of innovative development of the regions are determined. The conceptual basis for an estimation of preconditions of multilevel division of innovative development management competences were offered. Transformational model of innovation development management has been developed, taking into account the factors of influence, which will accelerate the process of innovation development as a result of changing the paradigm of community thinking. The practical significance of the study indicates the need of developing a set of specific indicators based on certain prerequisites as a basis for the transition to transformational management of innovative development.

Педагогічні умови готовності майбутніх учителів фізичної культури до інновацій та лідерства в умовах нової української школи

In the work, the main attention is paid to the development and implementation of pedagogical conditions, the establishment of criteria and characteristics of readiness of future physical culture teachers for innovations and leadership in the conditions of the New Ukrainian School. The following pedagogical conditions have been determined: development of innovative and professional competence in teaching disciplines of the professional training cycle in higher education applicants majoring in «Secondary Education (Physical Education)»; assistance in the development of leadership qualities of student youth in the conditions of the New Ukrainian school by means of physical education (during the period of pedagogical (work experience) practice). New types of physical activity have been introduced into the physical education lessons: kid's strength, aero kids, fitball, functional training «Intelligent Body» with game elements; interactive teaching methods based on learning through acting, reproducing situations, relationships, tasks of students’ daily activity. Comparison of the experimental data has shown that as a result of the introduction of pedagogical conditions of readiness for innovations and leadership of future physical culture teachers in the conditions of the New Ukrainian School, positive changes occurred in the experimental classes. Thus, in grade 3, the number of students with a high level increased from 8.3% to 14.0%. The control group has shown almost no changes. This demonstrates the effectiveness of the introduction of interactive teaching methods, functional training with game elements, games and game situations for initiative and leadership development.

Dominant determinant characteristics of innovative behavior of new entrepreneur candidates

In the global competition era and in Covid 19 pandemic period, the innovative competence of emerging entrepreneurs relies on the positive characters they should have. The present study was aimed to formulate a reinforcement model of innovative behavior through the identification of dominant determinant factors. The study employed survey methods and involved variables of innovative behavior (Y), creativity (X1), technology literacy (X2), and risk-taking behavior (X3). The respondents were 86 final year students of Faculty of Business Economics (emerging entrepreneur candidates) as the samples, and the data were further analyzed by multiple regression. The creativity (X1), technology literacy (X2), and risk-taking behavior (X3) contribute simultaneously at 45.70 percent to the development of innovative behavior (Y); b) the applicable prediction model of innovative behavior is Y=1.171+0.622X1+0.170X2 -0.080X3; meanwhile, the creativity yielded the most significant sensitivity in developing the innovative behavior variable compared to the technology literacy and risk-taking behavior variables; c) it is worth noting that risk-taking behavior is not among the contributing factors; in fact, this variable constrains an individual to be innovative (if it is too high); e) the variable of creativity is in line with innovation.