Creativity is a crucial skill for business entrepreneurs, particularly in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, the objective of this research is to examine the influence of entrepreneurial creativity using the Cognitive Process Associated with Creativity (CPAC) scale model to examine its influence on business innovation and the success of small business entrepreneurs in the post COVID-19 context according to the concept of CPAC Model as a tool to study, together with, the variables on business innovation and the success of business entrepreneurs. The findings show that the CPAC model positively influences business innovation, which in turn contributes to the success of business entrepreneurs. Thus, the findings of this research suggest that business entrepreneurs need to use creativity so that their performance leads to business innovation and to business success. The results also suggest that the CPAC model be examined in other samples to explore the perspectives of individuals regarding the use of creativity to support the search for leveraging creativity for successful business operations. This research encompasses the CPAC model into entrepreneurship, showing how cognitive processes foster innovation and business success, with both theoretical and practical contributions.

The digitisation of seaports has brought about a significant improvement in efficiency, productivity, and communication within the maritime industry. However, the increasing reliance on technology exposes seaports to cyber threats, constituting significant risk to the economy and national security. This paper addresses the critical need for seaports to implement robust cybersecurity measures. While digital advancements offer numerous advantages, the potential vulnerability to cyberattacks demands a strategic decision-making model for selecting effective seaport cybersecurity strategies. The proposed decision support model integrates the Analytical Hierarchy Process-Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (AHP-TOPSIS). AHP is employed to measure the relative importance of evaluation criteria of seaport cyber threat factors in this decision hierarchy. Subsequently, TOPSIS is applied to rank the cyber threat strategy alternatives. The novelty lies in providing decision-makers with a comprehensive approach that extends beyond technical solution. The results present decision-makers with non-technical strategies, including employee training, awareness program, and educational level, which have the potential to mitigate the technology-related cybersecurity risks more effectively in seaports. This research provides vital insights essential for developing efficient cybersecurity regulations for seaports, thereby strengthening national security and economic stability. By integrating the significance of non-technical measures with conventional technical methodologies, decision-makers can establish a more robust cybersecurity framework. The paper introduces a holistic approach that establishes a fundamental basis for developing comprehensive and adaptable cybersecurity strategies within the maritime industry.

Despite the fact that perceived organisational support (POS) and religious coping have been advocated as a crucial component of the stress model, the roles remain unclear among academics that often associate with heavy workloads. Therefore, this study aims to examine the moderating role of POS, and the mediating role of religious coping between the relationship of workplace bullying and psychological distress among academics in higher educational institutions (HEIs). Data were collected from academic staff from private and public universities in Malaysia, and a total of 219 data were used. The results revealed that workplace bullying has a positive impact on academics’ psychological distress, and the POS significantly moderated the relationship between workplace bullying and psychological distress. However, this study failed to support the mediating role of religious coping. This study adds to our knowledge of the stress model, by focusing more on perceived organisational support in minimising psychological distress and less on personal resources (religious coping).

This paper examines the moderating effect of competition on the relationship between financial leverage and firm performance in Vietnam. Using a dataset created out of 352 firms listed on Vietnam’s stock exchanges in 2015–2019, this paper estimates both the leverage-performance relation and the dependence of this nexus on market competition. The two-step system generalised method of moments is used to tackle the endogeneity, unobserved heterogeneity, and autocorrelation problems in our model estimation. The findings reveal a negative leverage-performance nexus, and increased competition hurts this relationship. In highly competitive markets, debts become more expensive, thus leading to increased financial pressures on leveraged firms. The fiercer competition also creates a risky business environment, so leveraged firms may fail when operating inefficiently and failing to satisfy their debt obligations. Given the results, this paper proposes recommendations on using financial leverage to improve firm performance.

Prior studies document that managers manipulate core earnings through different methods to favourably influence the perception of stakeholders towards the operating performance of the firm. However, it is of interest to examine which core earnings manipulation method is preferred by firms because each method needs a different set of opportunities and incentives. The current study explores the methods of core earnings manipulation, namely expense misclassification and revenue misclassification in terms of opportunities and incentives. Results show that the choice of method largely depends on the size and age of the firm. In particular, results exhibit that large and old firms prefer revenue misclassification over expense misclassification for managing core earnings. This effect is found to be more pronounced among large older firms. Our subsequent tests suggest that Big Four auditors (Deloitte, Ernst & Young, KPMG, and PricewaterhouseCoopers) have a constraining effect on expense misclassification, however, they are unable to mitigate the corporate misfeasance of revenue misclassification, implying the partial effectiveness of Big Four auditors in curbing classification shifting. These results are robust to the alternative measurement of misclassification practices and endogeneity issues. The findings have important implications for auditors, analysts, and accounting standard-setters.

This study assesses the relationship between market competition and corporate governance by analysing 562 non-financial companies listed on the Vietnamese stock market from 2010 to 2019. We used the quantitative method through oridinary least squares (OLS) robust and feasible generalised least squares (FGLS) regression to control heteroscedasticity and autocorrelation, which is suitable with panel data to test the above relationship. According to the research results, market competition has complementary and alternative effects on corporate governance, as reflected in the positive and negative effects of the variable Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI), a proxy for market competition, on corporate governance. Market competition has a support impact on corporate governance, which is more evident in board size, CEO duality, and CEO ownership. In contrast, the impact of market competition substituted corporate governance and reduced the role of corporate governance, as demonstrated by the independent board members. As a result, our study provides an extended understanding of the factors affecting corporate governance, primarily based on contingency theory. Furthermore, this study provides evidence for further research in this field and identifies a number of potential solutions for investors and regulators.

Manufacturing small and medium enterprises (SMEs) need to propel their creativity and innovativeness to enhance their innovation performance in the competitive and fast-changing environment. The current environment has transformed the internal working pattern, structure, and communication system to survive the rough business ecosphere. Consequently, SMEs encountered innumerable barriers to achieve the innovation performance and the SMEs should recognise the internal barriers so that they are able to accelerate their innovation performance. Therefore, this study aims at examining the internal barriers namely constraint in financial resources, constraint in technology, and constraint in human resources that hamper the innovation performance among the Malaysian manufacturing SMEs. This study embarked on two phases of data collection. First phase includes a series of semi-structured interviews with 15 participants from 5 SMEs via snowballing technique to gather their insights on internal barriers that impede innovation performance. For second phase, the survey method was adopted, and 217 SMEs responded to the survey. All the responses were analysed using SmartPLS technique. The interview findings demonstrate that all the internal constraints are indeed important for SMEs to grasp and serve as the obstacles for innovation performance. Nevertheless, from the quantitative analysis, only financial constraints serve as the significant barrier that impede innovation performance. To summarise, this research produces insights on decisive proof regarding internal barriers that inhibit the manufacturing SMEs to achieve innovation performance.

The purpose of this paper is to address the basic question why does high absorptive training programmes are not always beneficial for individual level learning? Thus, we seek to understand when and how cognitive absorption is beneficial for individual learning. The proposed model was tested using data obtained in a field study (N = 371) and in an experiment (N = 119). For field study, data was obtained at two points in time from three data sources (co-workers, subordinates, supervisors) working at a private commercial bank operating in Pakistan. For laboratory experiment, data was collected from the business students of a private sector university in Pakistan. The obtained data for both studies were analysed for random coefficient models with Mplus. Based on the motivation-ability-opportunity theory of behaviour, we proposed a model. It was found that cognitive absorption and highest individual learning was contingent upon the individual level knowledge absorption capacity. It was further found that training programmes with high cognitive absorption are likely to produce high levels of individual learning when the participants also have both high level of knowledge absorption capacity and technological opportunity. With this research, we inform practitioners that in these learner-focused trainings, personal characteristics of the participants and technology play vital role in determining effectiveness for high level of individual learning. The research findings will help practitioners understand what they need to add in training programmes for high level individual learning experience. Doing so will bring best value in form of higher learning to the cost of trainings.