news

Economics / Business - 09.06.2021

Executives aren’t sold on strategy planning
New research shows executives doubt the effectiveness of strategy planning, which is conducted by an overwhelming majority of large companies in the United States. That attitude may doom such plans' successful implementation, the researchers argue.

Economics / Business - Pharmacology - 27.05.2021

Executives wildly overestimate financial benefits of strategy planning
New research shows executives are likely to overestimate the financial benefits of strategy planning - as conducted by an overwhelming majority of large companies - by a factor of five. Executives at 88% of large companies engage in strategy planning, according to the research featured in a chapter of " Focus: How to Plan Strategy and Improve Execution to Achieve Growth ,” a new book co-authored by Vikas Mittal , professor of marketing at the Rice's Jones Graduate School of Business, and Shrihari Sridhar , professor of marketing at Texas A&M University's Mays Business School.

Health - Economics / Business - 07.05.2021

Regular virus tests can curb infection rates
Since February 2021, the canton of Grisons is using saliva-based PCR mass testing within its mobile workforce as a potential means to contain the COVID-19 pandemic and reduce infection rates. Empa researchers are now leading the analysis of data from the first eight weeks of the testing regime. They observed a reduction in the incidence rate between 20 and 50%, depending on the business sector, and a noticeable reduction in the test positivity rate among those who were regularly tested.

Economics / Business - 05.05.2021

European arms industry remains too national in approach
VUB research shows that national tendencies can hurt companies on the global market and risk the loss of core capabilities Wednesday, May 5, 2021 — Mitja Kleczka's doctoral research at Vrije Universiteit Brussel demonstrates that it's absolutely vital that Europe's national arms industries be further integrated.

Economics / Business - Psychology - 04.05.2021

Loan applications processed around midday more likely to be rejected
Bank credit officers are more likely to approve loan applications earlier and later in the day, while 'decision fatigue' around midday is associated with defaulting to the safer option of saying no. This is clear evidence that regular breaks during working hours are important for maintaining high levels of performance Tobias Baer These are the findings of a study by researchers in Cambridge's Department of Psychology, published today in the journal Royal Society Open Science .  Decision fatigue is the tiredness caused by having to make difficult decisions over a long period.

Health - Economics / Business - 04.05.2021

Study explores how private equity acquisitions impact hospitals
Private equity investment in hospitals has grown substantially in the 21st century, and it accelerated in the years leading up the COVID-19 pandemic. Now a new study of short-term acute care hospitals acquired by private equity firms finds they not only have higher markups and profit margins, they're also slower to expand their staffs.

Economics / Business - Environment - 22.04.2021

Survey reveals many people have reservations about flying in future
More than half of adults plan to fly less or much less, even after they have been vaccinated against COVID-19, citing worries about the virus and climate change, according to a survey carried out by the University of Bristol The snapshot survey , conducted by researchers at the university's Cabot Institute for the Environment, captured views of nearly 500 respondents about how they might fly in the wake of the global pandemic.

Economics / Business - Career - 22.04.2021

Research analyses workforce reduction policies in family firms
A study carried out by researchers from the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M, Spain), the LIUC Università Cattaneo (Italy) and the University of Foggia (Italy) indicates that family businesses tend to protect their employees more than non-family businesses, by generally avoiding workforce reduction practices.

Environment - Economics / Business - 22.04.2021

How Techno-economic Analysis Can Improve Energy Technologies
A Q&A with Berkeley Lab researcher Hanna Breunig on techno-economic analysis, and how she uses it to make negative emissions technologies more competitive For new energy technologies, the time elapsed from when a breakthrough is made in a laboratory setting until when it is validated, scaled up, piloted, and then widely commercialized can be years or even decades.

Economics / Business - 21.04.2021

Bankers’ tone of voice can boost stock markets and soothe investor fears
Financial leaders sounding positive when they answer journalists' questions can boost share prices and soothe investors' fears about market risk, a new study reveals. Using sophisticated computer algorithms, researchers analysed the tone of voice used by US Federal Reserve (Fed) Chairs during Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) press conferences and examined the impact on financial markets.

Career - Economics / Business - 13.04.2021

Paid family leave does not hurt employers
With the battle over federal paid family leave heating up again, a new Stanford study has answers to a key question at the heart of the debate: Are businesses hurt when workers take time off with pay to care for a child or ailing family member? The answer is no, according to research by Maya Rossin-Slater , an associate professor of medicine and a SIEPR faculty fellow.

Health - Economics / Business - 13.04.2021

Researchers chart path to drastically lower administrative costs of health care
A new analysis by Stanford researchers suggests the health care industry can reap many of the economic benefits of a "Medicare for All" program through incremental changes to the private health care market. Researchers at the  Stanford School of Medicine  have developed a novel framework that can be used to lower health care administrative costs so they're the same, or even less than, those of a single-payer system.

Materials Science - Economics / Business - 02.04.2021

Self-healing composites extend a product's lifespan

Environment - Economics / Business - 31.03.2021

How much are invasive species costing us’
A + A Scientists from the CNRS, the IRD, and the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle have just released the most comprehensive estimate to date of the financial toll of invasive species: nearly $1.3 trillion over four decades. Published in Nature (31 March 2021), their findings are based on the InvaCost database, which is financed by the BNP Paribas Foundation and the Paris-Saclay University Foundation's AXA Chair of Invasion Biology.

Media - Economics / Business - 29.03.2021

Fake news and patriotic journalism were at the centre of media coverage of the events of 1 October
A study by the researchers Lluís Mas, Frederic Guerrero, Xavier Ramon and the alumni Laura Grande, of the Department of Communication published in the journal The Political Economy of Communication . The Spanish daily newspaper El País applied interpretative frames of patriotic journalism to cover the events of the Catalan process in October 2017.

Economics / Business - 24.03.2021

World’s first room-temp quantum computer set for release
The world's first room-temperature quantum computer is in the final stages of development and is set to be installed at the Pawsey Supercomputing Centre in Perth and activated later this year.

Economics / Business - Environment - 18.03.2021

Planning tool for cargo bike logistics
Research team explores potential for package delivery Cargo bikes could play a much bigger role in urban package delivery. This conclusion was reached in a study based on the cities of Munich and Regensburg, where around one seventh of delivery-related CO2 emissions could be reduced. The research team has developed a planning tool to help companies and municipalities identify the potential for cargo bikes in city districts.

Agronomy / Food Science - Economics / Business - 18.03.2021

Sugar Tax in Spain has led to only tiny reduction in calories in shopping basket
New research suggests sugar taxes only slightly changed consumer behaviour, arguing that a combination of different policies is fundamental to tackle obesity. Last updated on Friday 19 March 2021 The introduction of a sugar tax, increasing the price of fizzy drinks and other products high in sugar content, has had only a limited, moderate effect in shifting people's dietary habits and behaviours, according to a new study.

Environment - Economics / Business - 10.03.2021

How global sustainable development will affect forests
Global targets to improve the welfare of people across the planet will have mixed impacts on the world's forests, according to new research. The United Nations’ 17 key areas for global development – known as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – range from tackling poverty, hunger and sanitation to promoting clean energy, economic growth and reducing inequality.

Economics / Business - Innovation - 02.03.2021

Energy switching decisions could widen social inequalities
New energy tariffs designed for a low carbon future could leave people on bad deals even worse off, research has found. The Leeds-led study found new types of contracts could benefit all types of customer, with opportunities to sell excess energy from solar panels or incentives for using energy at off-peak times.