Regional Formation and Development Studies

This issue of the journal is rich in interdisciplinary scientific papers. The largest group of papers address the topical issues of business and organizational management predominant in different regions. C. R. Ruzsa reveals potential prospects for regional development through establishment of service centres, whereas S. Jekabsone and I. Skribane analyse investments in Latvia. S. H. Pramudya focuses on migrant entrepreneurs analysing factors of their entrepreneurship, yet A. Ahrens, J. Melnikova and J. Zaščerinska present in the article new teaching methods that promote students’ innovative competence. This volume is also full of comprehensive theoretical articles: R. Viederytė analyses cluster life cycles, while V. Moskaliova, S. Girdzijauskas, and R. Čiegis investigate the market transformation based on compatibility of classical and Keynesian theories. Next, J. Dvorak and S. Savickaitė proceed on examining personalisation of psychosocial services, while A. Petrulis studies ethical leadership. Another group of papers refers to the impact of state regulation and public administration. Though interdisciplinary character here is maintained too. Environmental aspects of coastal management in different municipalities are discussed by I. Pommerane, K. Osniece, A. Lontone-Ievina, R. Ernsteins and another group of authors as J. Ulme, S. Graudina-Bombiza and R. Ernsteins. Furthermore, the influence of state regulation on the food supply chain is analysed by S. Bormane, D. Škiltere and A. Batraga. Finally, public institutions’ communication with citizens are highlighted by E. Gaušis, and A. Garczewska discusses the labyrinth of online press in the Polish law. Thus, you will definitely enjoy winter reading.

The aim of the paper is to define the legal basis of registration of the on-line press with the use of the analytical method. The press in the Polish law is defined as a periodical publication transmitted by print, audio or audio and video, or published on the Internet, or have both printed / audio / video and on-line issues. The registration is mandatory only for daily newspapers and magazines, whether they are traditional or on-line publications. Lack of registration can happen due to the court or due to the publisher, the latter being a petty offence. Registration requirements for the on-line press are constant conflict issues in contemporary Poland as it is the subject of wide interpretation. The Press Law was enacted thirty years ago and has been slowly amended, though the lack of unified interpretation makes it difficult for the people engaged in on-line activity to know, understand, and predict the legal frame of their work.

Shared Service Centres (SSCs) may lead to job creation in the professional field in the less developed EU region. By 2015, in the CEE region, the number of employees in this sector exceeded 335 000 and the trend tends to be increasing heavily. Looking at the actual numbers of the sector, the author tries to define the main decision making factors for a SSC to settle down in the region. The paper focuses on the evaluation of possibilities, arguing if the development of the SSC sector can continue creating jobs in this region.

This article reflects the impact of regulatory decisions of the Republic of Latvia on the food retail sector and sustainable product supply provided by food retail chains, as well as on operational trends. Attention has been drawn to the law of the Republic of Latvia on the key characteristics of foodstuffs and sales on the market. The research covers development of classification of the main instruments characterizing the products subject to the national regulation, as well as development of a scheme of the impact of the Latvian authorities on the operation of food retail chains. To implement the goal and tasks of the research, the authors have applied quantitative and qualitative research methods of economics, i.e., comparison, grouping, graphical, assessment and analytical methods. The research is based on the results of the previous research conducted by the authors so far, the law of the Republic of Latvia, scientific works published by other scientists, general and special literature and periodicals. The authors have summarized the findings and conducted comparative analysis of the regulatory decisions of the Republic of Latvia as well as presented a market survey within the research.

The effective attraction of investments to the national economy is a key factor, which provides favourable conditions to perform structural changes in the national economy, regional development as well as promotes technical progress. Therefore, investments in the public and the private sectors conduce development of the national economy and provide conditions to increase the overall competitiveness of a country. The purpose of research is to evaluate investment processes in Latvia before and after the global financial crisis, revealing investment-related problems. Also, to calculate the level of the desired investment, which would ensure the Latvia’s average GDP growth of 5% per year, according to the target set by the NDP. The analysis employs different qualitative and quantitative analysis methods, such as: scientific literature and empirical research analysis, modelling tables, charts and schemes, calculations of average and relative values, grouping, comparison and other. Publications on investment and research by Latvian and international scholars are analysed seeking to define the investment role on the economic growth process. The authors use the data available in the Central Statistical Bureau of the Republic of Latvia and Eurostat data bases, reports by the Ministry of Economics of the Republic of Latvia, the World Bank, the OECD and other studies of international organizations, as well as information provided in the Internet. As a result of research there have been defined the investment policy directions and essential obstacles that delay investment attraction in Latvia.

Civic engagement is a core value of democracy that approves legitimacy of democracy itself and decisions made by public institutions. In Latvia, civic engagement rates are decreasing, thus for public institutions it is important to find new ways how to engage citizens in the decision-making process. In the twenty-first century, it means that public institutions should also be present in social media. The objectives of the article are to identify foreign experience how public institutions are using social media for civic engagement and evaluate the reasons for Latvian public institutions to learn from this foreign experience. Accordingly, methods of the research are analysis of scientific publications covering examples about digital democracy, civic engagement and use of social media by public institutions, as well as analysis of data about the Internet and social media usage in Latvia. The study findings suggest that Latvian public institutions are already using social media for one-way communication. Moreover, in Latvia, availability of the Internet and participation rates in social media are above the EU average, thus there is potential to use social media also for two-way communication and foster civic engagement.

The purpose of this article is to highlight the aspects of application of Fast Track Solution SAP Business One Model to the business curriculum of a university study programme. With the SAP Business One, students gain knowledge and understanding on how different areas of business interact and integrate and how information technology-based infrastructure simplify business operations. In addition, this research article introduces and identifies the SAP Business One modules that can be applied to the present business curriculums of university studies, which leads to a blended learning approach when education addresses the needs of industry. Blended learning, as a learning approach that applies the SAP Business One modules, complements the skills required by industries thus fostering the industry-based learning approach. Theoretical knowledge and hands-on experience will make business students gain competitive advantage and competency in innovativeness.

This paper presents a thorough theoretical scientific analysis on cluster life cycles and highlights in detail the main structuring of the life-cycle types. Moreover, based on the provided example of the maritime industry cluster conditions, the author presents a deductive analysis of the entire cluster life cycle distinguishing the main local and global driving factors. Using scientific literature analysis and synthesis, systemization, as well as deduction there are outlined the emergence and evolution of the key cluster driving forces. Finally, the paper provides the most important findings on the cluster life cycle conditions that have impact on the cluster development processes.

The migrant entrepreneur plays a crucial role in economic development of the city. However, scant attention has been given to the study of the characteristics of migrant entrepreneurs in the context of urban areas in Asia, especially in Indonesia. Therefore, this paper identifies the main characteristics of migrant entrepreneurs in South Jakarta. The research itself involves sixty-eight first-generation migrant entrepreneurs as respondents of the survey. The characteristics of migrant entrepreneurs are analysed using descriptive statistics method of frequency distribution analysis. The analysis has been conducted based on background characteristics, cultural characteristics, business-related goals, business strategy, and performance. The analysis has revealed that the existence of migrant entrepreneurs in Jakarta has a positive impact not only on the development of the city but also on the development of their own homeland.

Straipsnyje pateiktas naujas požiūris į ekonominį augimą ir jo tvarumą. Požiūris grindžiamas nauja bendrųjų procentų idėja. Pristatomas apibendrintas ekonominis logistinis augimo modelis. Straipsnyje parodoma, kad iki šiol egzistuoja nepakankamai ištirtas didėjančio produktyvumo fenomenas, pasireiškiantis kaip bendrųjų procentų augimo normos priklausomybė nuo rinkos prisotinimo laipsnio. Atskleidžiama procentų įtaka rinkos virsmui ir besivystančios sistemos augimui. Tyrimo tikslas – remiantis bendraisiais procentais atskleisti ir pagrįsti klasikinės bei keinsistinės ekonominių teorijų suderinamumą. Atliktas tyrimas rodo, kad įmanoma suderinti klasikinės ir keinsistinės teorijų prieštaras. Parodoma, kad, atsižvelgiant į rinkos prisotinimo laipsnį, t. y. pasiūlos ir paklausos santykį, rinka gali būti įvairių tipų. Pasiūlos ir paklausos santykio pasikeitimas lemia rinkos virsmą. Būtent rinkos virsmas leidžia pagrįsti klasikinės ir keinsistinės teorijų suderinamumo galimybę.