1424 research outputs found
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Management 4.0 in Theory and Practice: The Strategic Role of Digital Solutions in Selected Organizations [védés előtt]
Full text linkIn my doctoral dissertation, I aim to answer the question of what the role of digital solutions in strategy is. I examine the question in two different contexts: the internationalization of SMEs and the digital transformation of public services. In my dissertation, I use the theoretical foundation of dynamic capabilities. After reviewing the key milestones in the evolution of strategic management and providing a theoretical foundation, I present a conceptual framework that explains how dynamic capabilities erode and are built. It helps us understand how and why organizations can (or cannot) stay competitive in the digital era: if they cannot react successfully to the changes triggered by digitalization, their dynamic capabilities, thus their competitiveness erode, but if they are successful, their dynamic capabilities become stronger. Digital solutions, at the same time, can improve organizations' dynamic capabilities. Then, I define the concept of Management 4.0, and summarize the results of a systematic literature review about the drivers and barriers of digital solutions. The next three chapters present the articles that comprise my dissertation. The first article (Szedmák and Szabó, 2025) explores and contextualizes the success factors of digital solution implementation - technological factors, technology – organization fit, and management competence - through a systematic literature review (PRISMA) and qualitative interviews. The qualitative research emphasizes the crucial role of project champions, process orientation, and experiential learning in the success of digital solution implementations in the Hungarian context. The second article (Szabó et al., 2021) uses a questionnaire-based survey of 316 SMEs to investigate how digital solutions can contribute to the growth of the firm, and points out that the use of most digital systems is a major driving force in internationalization. The third article (Szedmák et al., 2025) analyzes the main steps, goals, and benefits of the digital transformation of public services, and highlights that digital transformation delivers significant value to citizens, shortens administrative lead times, and leads to the optimization of organizational processes. The main results of my dissertation are the following. (1) It highlights the strategic role of digital solutions: they can be the source of competitive advantage. (2) The implementation of digital solutions often takes years to (fully) materialize, and failures are costly. (3) Successful digital solution implementation is critical for successfully shaping the environment, reacting to changes, and rebuilding the business model. Otherwise, through several steps, dynamic and ordinary capabilities erode, and competitive advantage weakens or disappears. (4) Finally, the dissertation points out important research directions for investigating the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on organizations
Challenges Caused by Socioemotional Wealth and Their Management During the Internationalization of Family Firms [védés előtt]
Full text linkThis dissertation examines how socioemotional wealth (SEW) influences the internationalization of family firms, and how this process is connected to entrepreneurial orientation (EO) and innovation. SEW ensures continuity, the preservation of family identity, and transgenerational succession; however, its protective logic may often restrict risk-taking and hinder international expansion.
The dissertation, structured around three articles, explores this paradox from multiple perspectives. The first article develops a conceptual framework demonstrating how SEW and EO can be aligned to support innovation and internationalization. The second article provides a systematic literature review and proposes a theoretical model that reveals the component-level relationship between SEW and EO. The third article applies quantitative analysis to Hungarian family firms using the FIBER scale, identifying which SEW dimensions facilitate or impede foreign market entry, and employing cluster analysis to distinguish different firm profiles.
The research contributes to the theoretical integration of SEW and EO, provides empirical evidence on the relationship between SEW dimensions and internationalization, and offers practical guidance for family firm leaders. Its findings suggest that consciously managed SEW does not suppress but rather directs entrepreneurial behavior, fostering international growth while preserving family values
Exploring the Links between Camp governmentality and Agentic Responses of Rohingya Refugee in Bangladesh
Full text linkThe debate is that a particular form of governmentality is acknowledged in the different studies on refugee camps governance but those studies consider only the power of state actors and humanitarian organizations. This thesis found that consideration incomplete and partial view of camp operations in protracted refugee situation (PRS). Rather the camp governmentality necessarily encompasses power of the refugees, their microphysics of power in the long-term camps. This understanding of governmentality result in an essential link with refugee agency with a view to operate the camps peacefully in extended period. This dissertation deals this aspect based on the empirical evidence from Rohingya refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar of Bangladesh. The exploration of connection between these two phenomena of refugee camps resolves the research question that why and how the refugee agency emerges and sustain in the camp governmentality. This dissertation considers refugee, member of government organizations (state actors) and humanitarian organizations (non-state actors) as the main actors of the Rohingya refugee camps. In this hindsight, I ask here how camp governmentality in the form of exercising power by these three actors is (re)constructing ambivalent relationships-interactions and (un)linked them with emerging agencies of refugees in protracted situation (PRS). To that end, it takes up Michel Foucault’s governmentality theory in discerning the camp governmentality while on the same ground it challenges the default understanding of refugees’ agency from a sociopolitical lens rather than from a political lens or cultural perspectives alone. Put differently, the study extends the scope of camp governmentality investigation beyond the sovereignty-territorial, juridico-political narrative to microphysics of power of the actors in the ‘state of exception’ of refugee camp
Reinterpreting The Moral Economy – Building on the Economic Possibilities of Selflessness [before doctoral defense]
Full text linkThe term moral economy has originally been used to describe agricultural communities with shared values and practices of economic justice. Its reinterpreted form, which this dissertation has arrived at, reflects a social system realising the economic potential of selflessness, which economies above subsistence levels, and at any scale, have the capacity to evolve into. Here, the moral economy becomes intertwined with moral economics, cultivation of economic science that involves the incorporation of ethical elements, not as value judgements and policy suggestions primarily, but as explicit building blocks of economic theories and models.
The dissertation was written during a critical phase of the economic science and of the economy. Developed economies themselves, and the broader societal context in an interaction with technology, have been depicted as systems that – primarily through the economies and the mechanisms of algorithms – encorach on individual freedoms and human agency. Meanwhile, societies are unreasonably slow at imagining and acting upon desired forms and states of coexistence and progress. In the field of economics, internal scrutiny appears to have transgressed constructive levels.
The connection between the moral economy and moral economics concepts is established in an unprecedentedly broad and systematic way, and the synthesis uncovers constructs hitherto undiscussed in economic science
Construction 4.0 Digital Maturity Model Development [védés előtt]
Full text linkThe construction industry faces growing pressure to adopt efficient tools and processes to meet the demands of providing solutions for labour shortages, rising global population, sustainability goals and technological backlog. These challenges manifest a significant economic impact on construction companies, resulting in only a one per cent productivity increase until 2020. A growing body of literature has been published focusing on Construction 4.0, which offers promising solutions. This phenomenon encompasses integrating advanced technologies, including Artificial Intelligence, Building Information Modelling, the Internet of Things, and Construction Robotics, to address productivity and sustainability challenges. Despite technological advancements, a significant research gap exists in developing a systematic approach to integrate diverse technologies effectively. This indicates a need to understand the various pillars of construction companies' digital maturity that can further drive the industry’s productivity.
The present dissertation aims to address the identified gap by developing a Construction 4.0 Digital Maturity Model. The purpose of the Construction 4.0 Maturity Model is to provide a robust framework for evaluating digital transformation in construction companies. The C4MM has been demonstrated to offer distinct advantages in addressing integration challenges, identifying areas for improvement, solving problems resulting from Construction 4.0, and implementing targeted strategies to enhance productivity and innovation. By applying Design Science methodology, this dissertation aims to create a C4MM that addresses these gaps and provides a robust framework for evaluating digital transformation in the construction sector. The dissertation follows an iterative process during model development through literature review, qualitative research, ontology development, and case studies.
The results of the final iteration evaluate the following six key dimensions: Culture and Knowledge Management, Digital Synchronisation, IT Management, Organisation and Structure, Process Management, and Technology for Construction 4.0. Applying ontology engineering ensured precise model verification and provided a machine-readable format to be the foundation of an AI-based maturity assessment system development
The Heterogeneity of Consumer Behavior: Analyzing Entertainment Expenditures in Relation to Lifecycles, Business Cycles and Demographic Influences [védés előtt]
Full text linkThe current study moves beyond traditional assumptions of homogeneous consumer behavior to investigate the diverse factors that shape consumer choices. The dissertation specifically focuses on entertainment expenditures, a significant, but often underemphasized, component of household spending to demonstrate how consumers behave in relation to this discretionary spending category. The research employs a multifaceted approach, using quarterly household-level data from the U.S. Consumer Expenditure Survey (CEX) to explore how entertainment spending patterns differ across various income levels, lifecycle stages, and macroeconomic conditions and how these differences change through time. The first empirical part analyzes the income elasticity of entertainment expenditure during business cycles, particularly focusing on the impact of the Great Recession and comparing low- and high-income US households. Using panel regression models with household and time fixed effects for years 2005-2010, the findings reveal heterogeneous responses across income groups. Low-income households exhibit substantially lower income elasticity, which remains unchanged even during economic downturns, suggesting that entertainment may function more as a necessity for than a luxury. In contrast, high-income groups adjust their entertainment consumption more readily during recessions. Additionally, the time series analysis of this empirical part indicates a widening gap in the level of entertainment spending between the bottom and top income quintiles over the period of 1996 to 2019. The second empirical part broadens the scope to explore entertainment expenditure through a lifecycle perspective, employing a pseudo-panel methodology with CEX data (2000-2010) using synthetic cohorts. This section connects to the Life-Cycle Hypothesis while highlighting the significant role of demographic factors—such as age, marital status, and the presence of children—in shaping expenditure patterns throughout the lifecycle. This cohort-level analysis suggests that the positive effect of income on entertainment expenditure can be even stronger during recessionary periods, observed across total entertainment and Televisions, Radios, and Sound Equipment spending category, implying the occurrence of the lipstick effect. Beside the significant effect of demographic variables, such as marital status, urban residency and having children, seasonal variations in entertainment spending are also observed. Collectively, these findings show the importance of disaggregated consumption analysis to demonstrate heterogeneous consumer behavior. The dissertation presents empirical evidence that considering business cycles, lifecycle stages, and demographic characteristics is crucial for a comprehensive understanding of consumer behavior and consumption inequality, showing the heterogeneity of consumption behavior. The results of the dissertation might also be useful for more effective policymaking and business strategies in the analyzed sector
Some problems in discounted stochastic games [védés előtt]
Full text linkThis thesis addresses three problems in the theory of iscounted stochastic games, all motivated by the effects of time-dependent dis-counting.
First, it investigates the Nash equilibrium of finite stochastic games with generalised discounting. By employing the framework of gener-alised continuous games, it is shown that every finite stochastic game with generalised discounting admits a Nash equilibrium. Moreover, an example is provided to illustrate that a stationary Nash equilibrium does not necessarily exist in these stochastic games.
Second, the thesis examines zero-sum stochastic games with sepa-rable discounting. Using the concept of supergames, it is demonstrated that every zero-sum finite stochastic game with separable discounting admits a value. Furthermore, it is established that, under certain conditions, this result can be extended to zero-sum countable stochas-tic games with separable discounting. In addition, three models of zero-sum infinite stochastic games with separable discounting - Borel, Suslin, and Nowak - are considered, and the existence of a value is established for each case.
Finally, the thesis investigates finitely additive Markov decision processes under separable and ripple discounting. In the case of sep-arable discounting, it is shown that the player always possesses an optimal Markov strategy. In contrast, under ripple discounting, only the existence of an optimal behavioural strategy can be guaranteed
Beneath The Ruin Bars: A Philosophical And Empirical Journey Through The Multi-Layered Tourism Milieu Of Budapest's Party District [védés előtt]
Full text linkUrban tourism transforms not only the economic and physical landscape of cities but also the affective, symbolic, and perceptual dimensions of place. This dissertation examines the tourism milieu of Budapest’s District VII, focusing on Inner Erzsébetváros, the historically Jewish Quarter, as a site of both tension and possibility. Drawing on a multi-layered conceptual model that integrates ontological situatedness, epistemological framing, phenomenological engagement, and anthropological mediation, the study explores how tourism is co-produced, experienced, and governed in a post-socialist urban context.
The research employs a two-phase qualitative design. Phase 1 combines visual analysis of student-generated photographic data with interviews of tourism professionals, entrepreneurs, and public-sector stakeholders to capture how the district is perceived, symbolically represented, and socially experienced. Phase 2 focuses on cultural program directors and institutional staff, examining how municipal actors respond to tourism saturation through creative programming and community engagement. Analyses are informed by constructivist grounded theory, phenomenology, and interpretivist approaches, emphasizing the relational, embodied, and contested nature of urban space.
Key findings reveal a district characterized by overlapping and often conflicting place imaginaries. Tourism generates economic benefits and global visibility, yet also produces social fatigue, spatial saturation, and contested identities. Visual and narrative data highlight the dominance of ruin bars and nightlife branding alongside emerging initiatives rooted in cultural care, participatory engagement, and creative tourism. Cultural institutions function as epistemic mediators, balancing local identity and heritage preservation against global tourism pressures, yet structural and regulatory constraints limit their transformative capacity.
The study demonstrates that the tourism milieu is neither fixed nor homogeneous; it is a co-constructed, multi-actor field shaped by perception, governance, and symbolic labor. By foregrounding experiential, ethical, and participatory dimensions of urban tourism, the dissertation advances theory and practice, proposing pathways to reframe District VII from a nightlife-dominated economy toward a culturally grounded, socially inclusive, and creatively co-produced urban space. The findings offer transferable insights for urban cities worldwide seeking to reconcile economic vibrancy with social sustainability in tourism-intensive contexts
Change Management's Role in the Evolution of Financial Institutions in Kazakhstan and Hungary [védés előtt]
Full text linkThis dissertation examines the role of change management in the banking sectors of Kazakhstan and Hungary, focusing on how institutional, cultural, and historical contexts influence the implementation and outcomes of change management strategies. The study explores the intersection of global pressures (digital transformation, regulatory compliance) with local conditions (leadership style, national culture, historical legacies) and aims to extend existing change management theories to emerging and transitional economies.
The research employs a qualitative, comparative case study design, using interviews with banking professionals in both countries to gather insights into how leadership, employee engagement, customer orientation, and cybersecurity strategies shape the success or failure of change initiatives. The analysis is grounded in change management frameworks (Kotter, Lewin, ADKAR, etc.), enriched by empirical data that reveal how these models need to be adapted to different cultural and institutional contexts.
Key findings show that Kazakhstan’s banking sector, influenced by a post-Soviet legacy and hierarchical leadership, experiences rapid but unstable change, while Hungary’s EU-regulated banking system promotes structured, predictable transformations through participatory leadership. The study highlights the importance of cultural and institutional fit in shaping effective change management practices and demonstrates that change is a continuous, multi-dimensional process rather than a one-off event.
This dissertation contributes to theoretical development by refining existing models and proposing a new conceptual framework that integrates regulatory, technological, leadership, and cultural factors in managing change. It also provides practical recommendations for financial institutions in emerging and transitional economies seeking to manage digital disruption, regulatory compliance, and employee engagement effectively
Minőségbiztosítás A Felsőoktatásban, A Változó Ökoszisztéma Hatása A Tárgyfejlesztésre [védés előtt]
Full text linkA felsőoktatás az elmúlt évtizedben jelentős változásokon ment keresztül: a digitalizáció fokozatos térnyerése és a COVID–19 pandémia sokkszerű megjelenése, a hallgatói csoportok változása gyökeresen alakították át az oktatási gyakorlatokat. Ezek a körülmények új kérdéseket vetettek fel a tanulás és tanítás minőségével, a hallgatói motivációval és az oktatói módszertanok alkalmazkodóképességével kapcsolatban. A „Minőségbiztosítás a felsőoktatásban, a változó ökoszisztéma hatása a tárgyfejlesztésre” c. doktori értekezés e kihívásokra keresi a választ, különös tekintettel arra, hogyan formálódhat egy nagy hallgatói létszámot érintő alapozó kurzus – a Számvitel alapjai – a hallgatóközpontú tanulás, a minőségbiztosítási szempontok és a digitális átállás összefüggéseiben.
Az empirikus vizsgálat két szinten zajlott: egyrészt több féléven átívelő, összesen több, mint ezerháromszáz hallgató bevonásával készült kérdőíves adatfelvétel és klaszterelemzés révén, másrészt oktatói interjúk kvalitatív feldolgozásával. A kvantitatív kutatás négy hipotézis vizsgálatára épült: a tudásközvetítési módszerek hallgatói preferenciáinak rangsorolására, az online és offline időszak közötti különbségekre, a preferenciák alapján elkülöníthető hallgatói csoportokra, valamint az online aktivitás és a tanulmányi eredmények kapcsolatára. Az eredmények igazolták, hogy a tanulási módszerek megítélése eltér a jelenléti és a digitális oktatásban, továbbá sikerült azonosítani különböző motivációval és aktivitással rendelkező hallgatói klasztereket. A vizsgálat részben megerősítette az online aktivitás és a tanulmányi sikeresség közötti pozitív összefüggést is.
A kutatás rámutatott arra, hogy a digitalizáció nem pusztán technológiai váltás, hanem mélyebb pedagógiai és tartalmi átalakulás katalizátora is: a hallgatók nagyobb rugalmasságot és önállóságot igényelnek, ugyanakkor értékelik a strukturált jelenléti kereteket és az oktatói támogatást. A dolgozat újdonsága abban áll, hogy a minőségbiztosítás, a hallgatóközpontú tanulás és a digitális átállás összekapcsolásával ad iránymutatást a jövőbeni tananyag- és módszertani fejlesztésekhez. Az eredmények túlmutatnak a számvitel oktatás keretein, és hozzájárulhatnak más, hasonlóan alapképzési tárgyak korszerűsítéséhez is