Strategic Management Decisions Research Articles

The Role of Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) in Supporting Strategic Management Decisions

The Role of Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) in Supporting Strategic Management Decisions

Methodology for managing the transparency of enterprise development in condition of convergence of investment processes

Methods. In the process of improving the methodology of transparency management of the development of enterprises in the conditions of convergence of investment processes, methods of analysis and synthesis, empirical methods, methods of induction and deduction, graphic and logical methods were used. The methodological basis of the research is parametric and classification methods, the results of which allow improving the methodology of transparency management of the development of enterprises in the conditions of convergence of investment processes. Results. The article improves the methodology of managing the transparency of the development of enterprises in the conditions of convergence of investment processes, the main purpose of which is to create and implement the necessary management resources and competencies that determine the maximization of the level of development. The methodology is necessary to ensure the competitive stability of industrial enterprises, which, in turn, requires them to make strategic and effective management decisions in order to achieve the main goals of enterprises - maximizing production, sales, profit, resources, thereby ensuring an effective development and potential management policy. Novelty consists in improving the transparency management methodology of enterprise development in conditions of convergence of investment processes. Practical value. The development of a methodology for managing the transparency of the development of enterprises in the conditions of the convergence of investment processes is one of the most important prerequisites for achieving the maximum level of development, competitiveness and security in the current and future time space. The determined methodology includes a complex of interconnected elements, takes into account the presence of short-term and long-term equilibrium interaction and cause-and-effect relationships between the researched components of development transparency and investment processes at industrial enterprises, which makes it possible to assess the positive development effect of financial and investment activity in dynamics, in particular, it allows to identify and predict nonlinear cyclical processes in enterprises as a whole and in certain local directions of transparency of development, to determine the characteristic trends and interrelationships of the behavior of strategic trajectories of the transparency management system of the development of enterprises in the conditions of convergence of investment processes, which is a renovation basis for the formation of a set of general justified strategies and mechanisms of development of industrial enterprises.

Проблемы и развитие когнитивных методов в стратегическом управлении

Managing an educational organization as a complex system in the modern dynamic world is a non-trivial task, given the fierce competition in the educational space, the pressure of economic factors, high requirements for student training and end-to-end digitalization. This, in turn, predetermines the need to use new models and approaches to the development and justification of management decisions in a strategic perspective. One of these approaches is cognitive modeling, which allows us to establish a scenario for the development of events under a set of interrelated factors corresponding to the current situation. Cognitive modeling is an effective ap-proach to studying the development of a situation based on the construction of a graph model. It makes it pos-sible to study and predict the state of a certain object; its constituent elements are: self-development, modeling of external influences and purposeful development of the situation (controlled development). The cognitive model has the advantages of a simulation model, but is easier to develop. The purpose of the article is to con-sider the problems and opportunities for the development of cognitive methods in the strategic management of an educational organization. The study analyzed the possibilities of using cognitive methods in the process of forming a set of scenarios to model trends in the development of a problem situation based on selected control factors. The stages of cognitive modeling in the strategic management of an educational organization are also outlined. Particular attention is paid to impulse modeling of potential scenarios in which an educational organi-zation may find itself under the influence of certain environmental disturbances. In addition, requirements for the cognitive model are formulated, the fulfillment of which will improve its accuracy and efficiency in the pro-cess of making strategic management decisions for an educational organization.

Cost Drivers - An Influencing Attribute in Profitability and Strategic Cost Management Decision Making

Cost Drivers - An Influencing Attribute in Profitability and Strategic Cost Management Decision Making

Impact of ET and biomass model choices on economic irrigation water productivity in water-scarce basins

Using Economic Irrigation Water Productivity (EIWP) as an indicator for on-farm irrigation decision-making is of utmost importance in addressing the challenges posed by poor policies in managing agricultural water use, particularly in water-scarce basins. Various modeling systems are available for quantifying crop actual evapotranspiration (ETa) and biomass needed for measuring the economic output obtained from each unit of irrigation water utilized. The difference in ETa and biomass estimates between the modeling systems could translate into a difference in EIWP outcomes, which influences the basin-wide irrigation water management. In this paper we examine the influence of selecting different ETa and biomass models, particularly the hybrid single-source energy balance HSEB, the Global Field-Scale Crop Yield and ET Mapper in Google Earth Engine GYMEE, and FAO’s WaPOR V2, on evaluating EIWP on a basin-wide level. The method includes combining remote sensing and economic data to compare variability in ETa, biomass, and EIWP values derived from HSEB, GYMEE, and WaPOR. The approach is demonstrated with field survey data from the upper hydrologic unit of Lebanon’s largest catchment, the Litani River Basin, in its three productive districts Baalbak, Zahleh, and West Bekaa for the year 2021. Field-scale mean monthly ETa and biomass estimates for all crops, obtained from both models, are very comparable. On a district level, the results reveal a reasonable model agreement for the four crops in the estimation of ETa with moderate to strong correlation (0.75 < r < 0.95). WaPOR consistently produces slightly higher mean ETa values for potato, wheat, and table grapes when compared to HSEB. Both models reasonably agree when estimating biomass for the four crops with high correlation (r > 0.9). Contrary to the ETa results, the GYMEE model consistently estimates slightly higher mean biomass values for all crops compared to WaPOR. The EIWP values produced by both models consistently indicate that potato holds the highest EIWP across all districts, followed by onion, table grapes, and wheat. The mean district HSEB-GYMEE model derived EIWPs are slightly higher than those derived from the WaPOR model for most crops. For EIWP obtained from HSEB-GYMEE, mean EIWP for potato is 12 times higher than that of wheat. As for that obtained from WaPOR, mean EIWP for potato is 10 times higher than that of wheat. The paper establishes a basis for future research on the application of remote sensing models in addressing water-stressed and socioeconomically challenged basins, with the potential to inform strategic irrigation management decisions based on model selection.

Relationship between Strategic Management Practices and Performance of Agro-Veterinary Based Industries: A case Study of Highchem Agro-Veterinary Division

The general aim of this study was to examine the relationship between strategic management decisions and performance in HighChem Agro-veterinary Division. The objectives of the study were to establish the effect of strategic innovation on performance of the Agro-veterinary industry; to investigate the impact of effective cost leadership on the performance of Agro-veterinary based industry; to examine how product differentiation affects the performance of Agro-veterinary based industry; to establish the effects of resource allocation on of the performance of Agro-veterinary based industry. The study has been anchored on three major theories. These theories are the Porter’s framework of competitive advantage; Resource-based theory and blue ocean theory. The study adopted a descriptive cross-sectional analysis. The study’s target population comprised of HighChem Agro-Veterinary Division employees and their distributors. The sample size used was 98 respondents who were selected conveniently. Online questionnaires were used for data collection which had both open and closed ended question. Linear regression was used to establish the relationship between the study variables. The study concluded that strategic resource allocation decisions and cost reduction strategies positively affects the performance of HighChem Agro-Veterinary Division while, strategic innovations and product differentiation negatively affected the performance of HighChem Agro-veterinary Division. Consequently, the study recommended that HighChem Agro-Veterinary Division should continue with its cost reduction strategies as well as its strategic resource allocation decisions while re-looking at its product differentiation and strategic innovation techniques.

The high-end bias - A decision-maker preference for premium over economy innovations

Deciding which new product concepts to develop is an important strategic management decision. One part of it is to decide whether to develop “premium” products, priced above the average product on the market, or “economy” products, priced lower than the average product on the market. We hypothesize that, ceteris paribus, firms and individual decision makers prefer premium over economy innovation projects. Building on implicit attitude and status discrimination theories, we argue that the origin of the bias lies in the implicit decision-making system of the mind, such that decision-makers inherently prefer premium innovations and that this implicit high-end bias affects their explicit preferences. We use the results from one longitudinal set of archival sales data covering 2312 new product introductions and three experimental studies with decision makers, including practicing managers, to provide evidence for the high-end bias. With these findings, we extend status theory as well as discrimination theory from well researched personnel decisions to managerial decisions about inanimate objects such as product concepts. We further augment literature on low-end innovation by identifying an important constraint for managers and researchers who work on inclusive innovation, frugal innovation, social responsibility, and Base of the Pyramid innovation.

Стан та проблеми в реалізації комунікаційних стратегій органів публічного управлінні

The article examines the state and identifies systemic problems in the implementation of communication strategies by public authorities in Ukraine, which do not allow to increase the efficiency of their work. The positive sides and shortcomings in the development and implementation of communication strategies in the field of public management and administration are analyzed; the requirements and factors that most significantly influence the content of communication processes in the public sphere are determined. It has been proven that the positive perception of the activities of public authorities is influenced not only by the information field formed by the Ukrainian mass media and interested parties, but also by informational messages of Russian propaganda, countering which should be the task of the structural units of public authorities responsible for communication. Suggestions for improving communication activities in the public sphere are provided. It is substantiated that when developing a communication strategy, public authorities should ensure the reduction of uncertainty and the risk of failure when making strategic management decisions. The essence of the interaction of public authorities with target audiences is determined, which consists in ensuring effective state policy, adapting state reforms to possible future changes in the external environment. It is emphasized that the achievement of these tasks is impossible without increasing the level of trust and image of public authorities among citizens; raising citizens’ awareness of the processes taking place in them; ensuring active participation of the public in the process of making management decisions and establishing feedback; improving cooperation with national and international mass media; strengthening the presence of public authorities at the international level; optimization of internal communications and information exchange in public authorities. Keywords: information, communications in public administration, strategic communications, communication risks, target audiences, communication channels.

Comparing established practice for short-term forecasts and emerging use of climate projections to identify opportunities for climate services in Australian agriculture

The use of climate services in agriculture to improve both tactical and strategic management decisions on farm is an area of increasing societal interest and technological development in Australia, as climate change increases climate variability and risk. Yet the focus of most uses of climate services remains on weather and seasonal forecasts and tactical farm responses, with longer term climate projections less often empirically examined. In this paper we analyse 25 interviews with farmers in Australia and use social practice theory to compare farm risk management decisions utilising short-term weather forecasting and longer-term climate projection planning. We identify different elements of climate risk management as a social practice, looking particularly at materials (objects and tools), meanings (beliefs and thinking) and competencies (skills and knowledge) associated with climate services. We find that there are significant differences in how decisions are made using different temporal data scales and furthermore, that there are large gaps in the materials, meaning and competencies for the use of longer-term climate projections. This analysis allows us to clearly identify opportunities for the agricultural sector in Australia, and globally, to better support decisions in both weather and climate timeframes by treating these as distinctly different capabilities and addressing the different elements of social practice outlined here.

ПІСЛЯВОЄННЕ ВІДНОВЛЕННЯ ТА ЗРОСТАННЯ ОБСЯГІВ БУДІВНИЦТВА АВТОМОБІЛЬНИХ ДОРІГ

The socio-economic development of a country and its integration into the global community largely depend on the level of road maintenance. The issue of road maintenance has become especially relevant and important during the period of martial law, since, for obvious reasons, roads are critical infrastructure facilities. Of course, the treatment of such facilities should be appropriate to their purpose. All of this requires research, assessment of the effects of the war on the condition of roads due to their destruction, and development of measures to improve the state of road construction. An important role is assigned to the resource base of road construction - first of all, the availability of bitumen and mineral fillers.&#x0D; The length of public roads in Ukraine is analyzed in comparison with the leading countries of the world. Positive trends in the market of road construction and repair related to the reform of the road sector are identified. The quality of roads and their saturation in comparison with other countries of the world is assessed.&#x0D; The problematic issues of domestic production and imports of bitumen are investigated. The article shows Ukraine's import dependence and lack of organic binder, as well as the practical absence of concrete road construction. The author analyzes the development and improvement of the regulatory framework for the design and construction of roads.&#x0D; Prospects for the implementation of the public-private partnership mechanism are shown, taking into account international experience The necessity of implementing the public-private partnership mechanism, in particular, through the concession mechanism, is substantiated. The regulatory framework needs to be updated to meet EU requirements and implement international standards. The implementation of these measures will help to increase the level of validity of operational and strategic management decisions to ensure the effective functioning and development of Ukrainian road sector enterprises.

APPROACHES TO EVALUATION OF FINANCIAL RESULTS OF RA COMMERCIAL BANKS

The study evaluates the interaction of macroeconomic variables, regulatory changes and internal operations of banks in the context of financial results formation. The research applies certain approaches to the evaluation of financial results to create an appropriate framework, that reflects the dynamics of financial results of the RA banking sector. A wide range of factors including macroeconomic indicators, regulatory changes, market competition and strategies of Armenian banks are assessed to build a complete picture of financial performance that will also enable financial managers to make strategic and financial management decisions.

DEFINING CULTURE IN A MARKETING MANAGEMENT PERSPECTIVES

The purpose of this paper is to redefine the construct of culture both in marketing and in management perspectives. This research is focused on qualitative approach that is focused on a sound systematic literature review, and a sound documentary analysis on the construct of culture. The results indicate that culture can include several dimensions such as the aspect of religious beliefs, lifestyles, habits, and customs. Culture can also be viewed as these set of life styles, beliefs, and habits that are inherited, created, either imitated or imported by a group of individuals or a community and that govern their daily lives. The findings imply that there should be a consideration of culture for both marketing and management strategic decisions. To the best of author’s knowledge, this original research add more value to the numerous previous research papers that are focused on defining the construct of culture in a marketing perspective and in a management perspective.&#x0D; Keywords: Culture, Marketing, Management, Companies, Organizations, Africa.

The valuation of real options for risky barrier to entry with hybrid stochastic and local volatility and stochastic investment costs

Real options are a type of investment choice that supports decision-makers in making better strategic management decisions while simultaneously reducing uncertainty in investments. This study presents a new model to help investors flexibly handle uncertain investment environments. First, we adopt a hybrid stochastic and local volatility model to efficiently describe the uncertain effects of the external environment on the project value in decision-making cases. Second, we set the investment cost (or sunk cost) as a geometric Brownian motion (GBM) to illustrate the opportunity costs that originating from discarding alternatives to invest in complex decision-making circumstances. We derive partial differential equations (PDEs) for the value of real options, and then use asymptotic analysis to obtain analytical solutions. Additionally, we analyze the price accuracy of the approximate formulas compared with that of the solutions obtained from a Monte Carlo simulation. Finally, we investigate the numerical effects of various parameters related to stochastic volatility on real options to observe their economic implications.

Recommendations regarding technology for making an well-grounded choice of enterprise development strategy

Introduction. Recently, more and more theorists and practitioners of management emphasize the importance of strategic planning, in particular, the formation of a development strategy, the main purpose of which is to determine directions for increasing competitiveness, which would ensure the long-term perspective of the successful functioning of the enterprise. The purpose of the paper is to study the process of making strategic management decisions; analyzing the criteria for choosing development strategies; development of the technology for the justified choice of a development strategy based on the parameters of demand and profit on the basis of the identification of selection criteria and the systematization of potentially possible types of strategies. Results. The recommended technology for the justified choice of a development strategy based on the parameters of demand and profit involves the implementation of certain stages: preparation of information support for further development of the development strategy; definition of strategic goals and tasks of development; strategic research and analysis of the competitive environment and development potential; formation of a justified set of criteria for choosing a development strategy based on demand and profit parameters; reasoned choice of strategic tools for developing a development strategy; formation of strategic development alternatives; formation of a justified development strategy and corresponding functional strategies; assessment of the level of implementation of the development strategy and strategic decisions according to performance criteria. Conclusion. The technology of formation of the development strategy is a priority element of the strategic planning system. Particular importance is attached to the methodological base, which ensures the processes of formation and implementation of planning technology, allows to achieve the goal of strategic planning in the formation of a sequence of defined justified actions, aimed at the implementation of effective functioning and long-term perspective of development.

IDENTIFYING AREA HOTSPOTS AND TAXI PICKUP TIMES USING SPATIAL DENSITY-BASED CLUSTERING

Taxis are one of the competitive sectors of transportation and are recognized as convenient and easy means of transportation to meet individual needs. However, in the operation of a taxi there are some problems that would make the taxi service less optimal, such as the difficulty with finding a taxi at specific hours, the imbalance between demand and taxi supplies, and the length of passengers waiting for a taxi. Therefore, to optimize taxi service, a knowledge base is needed for strategic management decision making. In the study, data of exploration taxis uses a DBSCAN algorithm aimed at identifying and clustering pickup hotspots based on time during weekday and weekend time from Queens, New York City. As for the features used which are pickup latitude and pickup longitude. Accuracy scores for modeling use coefficients to achieve accuracy scores of 0.80 on weekdays and 0.77 on weekends where the accuracy score falls into the accurate category in modeling. Results show that there are three areas of taxi pickup centers based on high taxi demand in January 2016, where they are at LaGuardia airport, John f. Kennedy international, and the area around Steinway Street.

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic: Perceived risks, management strategies and emerging opportunities for small and medium agri-food enterprises in a developing country

The Covid-19 pandemic has posed unprecedented challenges to small- and medium-sized agrifood enterprises (SMAEs) in developing countries. However, research investigating what risks Covid-19 posed to these firms, how they responded, and what business opportunities emerged to SMAEs from the pandemic remains scanty. Drawing on a sample of 166 specialist SMAEs in Egypt, this study addressed these entwined questions by using multiple indicators and multiple causes (MIMIC) and mediation analysis. Our results point out that the Covid-19 pandemic exposed Egyptian SMAEs to complex and multidimensional risks, and caused profound effects on both upstream and downstream stages of their supply chains. In general, Egyptian SMAEs adopted a ‘wait-and-see’ approach to cope with such Covid-19 risks and impacts, which was attributed to their lack of sufficient financial resources to develop risk management strategies and formalize structures to deal with unexpected events. Interestingly, the results showed that several business opportunities emerged from pandemic; but SMAEs' resource disadvantages constrained their capacity to seize and exploit these opportunities. Moreover, we found that mitigation strategies adopted by SMAEs present a mediating factor between perceived Covid-19 risks and perceived business opportunities. Overall, our findings call for a paradigm shift in relation to enterprise risk management in developing countries' SMAEs toward more holistic frameworks to enhance their preparedness to future shocks, make mature operational and strategic management decisions, and exploit strategic opportunities.

The Concept of an Information System to Support Decision-Making to Improve the Efficiency of the Forest Complex

The article is devoted to the discussion of the possibilities of improving the efficiency of the forest industry of the northern and arctic border regions of the Russian Federation in the new geopolitical and economic conditions. This goal is planned to be achieved through the use of a new type of regional information system of scenario modeling and support of strategic management decisions of the upper level. The need to develop such a system is due to the changes taking place in the Russian economy in recent years. They include the course on wide import substitution, development of deep processing of natural resources inside the country, reduction of export of goods with low degree of processing, sanctions policy of some Western countries, etc. These changes require the development of science-based effective solutions for the use of wood for industrial and consumer purposes. This problem is especially relevant for the border areas, for a long time largely focused on the export of many types of products. Describes the concept of the regional information system of scenario modeling and support for strategic management decisions of the upper level, its functions and structural and functional model scheme of the subject area. The requirements for the system are formulated and its top-level architecture is proposed. The structural model of integration of this information system into the management scheme of the system "forest complex — environment — regional economy" was developed. It is emphasized that the use of the system will allow one tochoose the most effective options for the development of the forest complex, taking into account all the requirements for the provision of rational and sustainable forest management and sustainable development, taking into account the characteristics of the border regions of the North and the Arctic.

DIGITALIZATION OF MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTING WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE PROCESS MANAGEMENT CONCEPT

Digitalization of administrative accounting leads to an increase in the efficiency of management in a complex competitive business environment. The growing volume of information and the need for its reliable and timely interpretation contribute to the formation of conditions for the use of digital technologies in order to obtain a clear understanding of business processes and market trends, as well as to make timely strategic management decisions. The purpose of this study was to determine the feasibility and ways of implementing the digital transformation of administrative accounting to improve the efficiency of controlling the movement of inventory. The paper highlights a number of stages of digitalization of administrative accounting and control of the movement of inventory: Stage 1: digital consistency based on the use of smart technologies, cloud infrastructures, automated accounting and distribution tools, stage 2: automation through the use of wireless data transmission, stage 3: forecast implementation, inventory optimization and improvement of supply chain organization, stage 4: strategic partnership with suppliers and customers, stage 5: using artificial intelligence. As part of the process approach, the authors have created an algorithm for modeling effective administrative accounting based on digitalization. This algorithm was the basis for the formation of a modernized model of administrative accounting based on digitalization, including the study of managerial and supporting business processes, as well as continuous monitoring of the model's compliance with business goals and the elimination of “bottlenecks”.

Medical imaging utilization and associated radiation exposure in children with down syndrome.

To evaluate the frequency of medical imaging or estimated associated radiation exposure in children with Down syndrome. This retrospective cohort study included 4,348,226 children enrolled in six U.S. integrated healthcare systems from 1996-2016, 3,095 of whom were diagnosed with Down syndrome. We calculated imaging rates per 100 person years and associated red bone marrow dose (mGy). Relative rates (RR) of imaging in children with versus without Down syndrome were estimated using overdispersed Poisson regression. Compared to other children, children with Down syndrome received imaging using ionizing radiation at 9.5 times (95% confidence interval[CI] = 8.2-10.9) the rate when age <1 year and 2.3 times (95% CI = 2.0-2.5) between ages 1-18 years. Imaging rates by modality in children <1 year with Down syndrome compared with other children were: computed tomography (6.6 vs. 2.0, RR = 3.1[95%CI = 1.8-5.1]), fluoroscopy (37.1 vs. 3.1, RR 11.9[95%CI 9.5-14.8]), angiography (7.6 vs. 0.2, RR = 35.8[95%CI = 20.6-62.2]), nuclear medicine (6.0 vs. 0.6, RR = 8.2[95% CI = 5.3-12.7]), radiography (419.7 vs. 36.9, RR = 11.3[95%CI = 10.0-12.9], magnetic resonance imaging(7.3 vs. 1.5, RR = 4.2[95% CI = 3.1-5.8]), and ultrasound (231.2 vs. 16.4, RR = 12.6[95% CI = 9.9-15.9]). Mean cumulative red bone marrow dose from imaging over a mean of 4.2 years was 2-fold higher in children with Down syndrome compared with other children (4.7 vs. 1.9mGy). Children with Down syndrome experienced more medical imaging and higher radiation exposure than other children, especially at young ages when they are more vulnerable to radiation. Clinicians should consider incorporating strategic management decisions when imaging this high-risk population.

EVALUATION OF DIGITALIZATION WITHIN STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT PERSPECTIVE

Purpose- In the light of the information mentioned above, in the current study, it is aimed to evaluate digitalization, which is an important element for businesses, from a strategic management perspective. Methodology- The research carried out has a qualitative characteristic. A qualitative study was carried out in the light of the information given and document review. In the study, reviews were presented using the document review method. Literature, reports and archives related to the concepts of digitalization and strategic management were searched. A profile has been created on the impact of digitalization on strategic management decisions. Findings- There is an increase in the productivity of the enterprise due to the transformation in the business processes to be realized in the light of the relevant developments. It is more possible for businesses where digitalization is intensely felt to gain competitive advantage, to access new markets and to stand out. Conclusion- In the light of these developments, it is aimed to increase the flexibility of enterprises and awareness of digital transformation by revealing the importance, scope and qualifications of digitalization in terms of strategic management. Keywords: Strategic management, digitalization, organizational management, digital business strategy JEL Codes: M10, M11, O30