Sefa Boria-Reverter

This study examines the associations between Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) practices and organizational performance in 283 European hospitals. Drawing on agency theory, stakeholder theory, and the resource‐based view, it analyses ESG indicators as accounting‐relevant information within the institutional context of European healthcare. Using 2021 ESG scores and 2023 accounting and operational outcomes from ORBIS, the study applies PLS‐SEM to examine operating cash flow, profitability (ROA/ROE), and operational efficiency. In the baseline PLS‐SEM model, aggregate ESG is positively associated with all three outcomes, but disaggregation reveals substantial heterogeneity. Governance is positively associated with each outcome, social practices are negatively associated with profitability and operational efficiency, and environmental practices show no significant associations. The study contributes by showing that aggregate ESG scores can obscure pillar‐specific mechanisms and theoretically expected time horizons. In European healthcare, governance displays more direct accounting relevance, whereas the potential benefits of social and environmental practices may be indirect, non‐financial, or deferred.

Purpose: This study aims to examine the indirect influence of national cultural dimensions on environmental, social and governance (ESG) engagement among publicly listed European banks. It highlights the critical role of cultural context in shaping responsible financial practices and supports the design of culturally informed marketing strategies that foster genuine sustainability in the financial sector. Design/methodology/approach: The analysis covers 174 banks from 14 European countries, using data from the ORBIS database (2019–2023) for firms classified under NACE code 6419. It employs the forgotten effects methodology, a quantitative approach rooted in the mathematics of uncertainty, to assess the indirect impacts of Hofstede's national cultural dimensions on ESG criteria. Findings: The results reveal significant indirect effects of cultural dimensions on ESG criteria that have been previously underestimated. Power distance and masculinity exhibit strong second-order impacts on governance and social aspects of ESG, respectively. Long-term orientation and uncertainty avoidance emerge as critical amplifiers of these indirect effects, underscoring the complexity of cultural influences on corporate sustainability. Practical implications: These findings underscore the importance of incorporating cultural context into ESG marketing strategies. Banks and policymakers should consider national cultural profiles to enhance the effectiveness and customer acceptance of sustainability initiatives, improving both brand loyalty and competitive positioning. Originality/value: This research introduces a novel perspective by integrating cultural analysis with the forgotten effects methodology, providing fresh insights into the overlooked role of indirect cultural influences on ESG performance. It bridges the gap between cultural context and financial marketing, highlighting the need for culturally sensitive ESG strategies.

Los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible (ODS) ofrecen un marco estructurado para que las empresas promuevan el desarrollo sostenible mediante prácticas responsables y alineadas con las demandas globales. Las empresas que componen el IBEX-35, el principal índice bursátil de España que reúne a las compañías líderes del país, han desempeñado un rol crucial en su incorporación en las estrategias y operaciones de las organizaciones (GRI, 2021). No obstante, evaluar con precisión estos compromisos es un desafío, debido a la naturaleza subjetiva y la variabilidad de la información que suelen presentar los informes de sostenibilidad (UNGC, 2021). La lógica difusa es una herramienta adecuada para abordar esta incertidumbre (Zadeh, 1965), proporcionando una interpretación flexible tanto de datos cualitativos como cuantitativos (Kaufmann y Gil-Aluja (1987, 1988)). Este estudio analiza cómo las empresas del IBEX-35 integran y aplican los ODS empleando la lógica difusa para manejar la incertidumbre inherente en la evaluación de sus avances, al facilitar una representación más precisa de la ambigüedad en la evaluación de sostenibilidad, ayudando a medir las responsabilidades corporativas de manera más detallada. En este análisis se revisan los objetivos más explicitados en los informes de 2023 y se evalúa utilizando una escala adaptada a la incertidumbre de los datos. Los resultados permiten identificar patrones de su implementación y conocer las diferencias entre sectores, que permite reseñar la necesidad de enfoques adaptativos en este ámbito.

The primary objective of this investigation is to explore the key factors within a large corporation that facilitate the transition from a conventional hierarchical organizational structure to a more agile one. Although there are studies in the literature on the different agile organizational structures, there are no clear guidelines for a large company to transform to an agile framework. This study employs contingency theory as its framework and specifically focuses on the financial sector to identify both opportunities and challenges encountered during this transformation process. Qualitative research methods were employed, involving an analysis of five case studies in which managers served as respondents. This research contributes to the identification of a model as a guideline for the transformation of the organizational structure towards agility that can provide valuable information for companies undergoing such a transformation. The managers surveyed provided their experience and the competencies of their profiles were validated, in addition to the application of the Delphi method to obtain more objective information. The findings underscore that large companies should refrain from adopting a completely flat hierarchical structure. Moreover, there exists a set of strategic-level elements that serve as a guiding framework for the transformation process. Furthermore, it is essential to acknowledge that the transformation process itself does not follow a one-size-fits-all approach; rather, it is contingent upon the unique context of each individual case, and it is also a cultural challenge.

The ordered weighted averaging (OWA) operator was proposed by Yager back in 1988 and constitutes a parameterized family of aggregation functions between the minimum and the maximum. The purpose of this paper is to perform a bibliometric review of this aggregation operator during the last 35 years through the Web of Science (WoS) Core Collection database and the Visualization of Similarities (VOS) viewer software. The results show that the OWA operator is an increasingly popular aggregation operator, especially in Computer Science. The results also allow the assertion that Yager, as expected, is still the most influential and productive author. Moreover, the study reveals that institutions from over 80 countries have contributed to OWA research, highlighting the high presence of Chinese universities and the emergence of Pakistani ones. Other interesting findings are presented to provide a comprehensive and up-to-date analysis of the OWA operator literature.

Purpose: This research examines the applicability of the Employer Branding (EB) Mix model developed by Rayón et al. (2022), one of the few empirically validated models, to promote organizational commitment within the context of the Spanish healthcare sector.Design/methodology/approach: A questionnaire was administered to 310 employees of a national company in the Spanish healthcare sector. Several multiple regression models were run between the EB dimensions and those of employees’ organizational commitment.Findings: The results show that the elements of the EB Mix model have a positive relationship with employee’s commitment, especially affective and value commitment.Research limitations/implications: The existence of causality cannot be affirmed, in view of the sectional design with a single sample taken from the Spanish private healthcare sector. Additionally, it would be worth extending the analysis of the effect of the EB Mix model on the behavior of potential employees.Practical implications: This research is extremely relevant, given that it can help organizations in the health sector to implement EB programs. The model is an effective tool for retaining human talent and can generate a competitive advantage for organizations that use it.Originality/value: The EB Mix model presents a conceptually-based and empirically validated model that incorporates the perception of employees as co-creators of the internal brand, which promotes the democratization of organizations and includes the four Ps of the marketing mix.

La presencia de mujeres en la empresa es cada vez más común y necesaria para lograr una mayor equidad de género en el ámbito laboral. A lo largo de la historia, las mujeres se han enfrentado a barreras y discriminación en el mundo laboral, pero hoy en día, la situación está cambiando gracias a las luchas feministas, a una mayor conciencia social sobre la importancia de la igualdad de oportunidades y al apoyo legislativo. Las mujeres aportan una visión y perspectiva diferente en la organización, lo que puede repercutir en una mayor creatividad, innovación y, por ende, rentabilidad. Sin embargo, todavía existen obstáculos y desafíos que enfrentan las mujeres en el ámbito laboral, como la brecha salarial de género, la falta de representación en cargos directivos y de liderazgo, y la discriminación basada en estereotipos de género. Además, su presencia en cargos directivos y de liderazgo puede fomentar la diversidad y la inclusión en la empresa, por ello es importante conocer la incidencia de la mujer en las empresas que cotizan en el Índice bursátil IBEX-35. Para ello, se utiliza el análisis de datos secundarios de la Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores (CNMV) y se aplica el algoritmo de Pichat a partir de la distancia de Hamming para conocer esas actuaciones. De esta forma, se pretende determinar si se cumple con las recomendaciones de la normativa actual en este campo. Es importante seguir trabajando en la eliminación de estas barreras para lograr una mayor igualdad de oportunidades en el mundo laboral y promover el desarrollo profesional y personal de todas las personas, independientemente de su género.

This paper uses the case of Spain to investigate whether and how disruptive technology impacts banking stock returns under a high volatility regime and a low volatility regime. For this purpose, a two-factor model with heteroscedastic Markov switching regimes has been applied. The results indicate that disruptive technologies have an impact on Spanish banking stock returns and that the effects are volatility regime dependent, having a relevant positive impact in high volatility regimes and a less relevant negative impact in low volatility regimes. These findings suggest that investors are informed about and acknowledge the advantages of disruptive technologies and will use their adoption as a business strategy to offset adverse market circumstances. During stable market conditions, on the other hand, Spanish banking seems to have less expectations about disruptive technology as a business strategy. To summarise, this paper provides insights into the role of the pricing of banking-related assets and has other relevant implications for investors that include disruptive technology or banking exposed investments in their portfolios.