Transformations  in
Business & Economics

JEL classification: Y20.

Contemporary economies across the world struggle with the challenges of economic recession triggered by the 2007-2009 crisis. The problems affect both smaller and large economies, developed as well as emerging ones. As a consequence, appropriate measures need to be taken not only by the whole economies but also by other decision makers - enterprises and consumers facing problems in the market. The activities which transform the entire economies as well as individual entities striving to adapt to the new reality are the focus of this issue of TIBE. All the topics discussed in this issue are grouped into five main sections, starting with an analysis of general effects of structural transformation and the functioning of the market and behaviour of agents, and concluding with insights into selected problems of the Polish economy. The opening section, "Effect of Structural Transformation and Economic Growth", focuses on economic transition of the European countries. References are made here to the effects of both the Great Recession and economic growth, the functioning of the institutions and economies during transition, and an analysis of specialisation in international trade as a driver of economic development. In section two, various economic instruments are evaluated in the light of their contribution to the development and welfare of countries. The issues discussed here are based on: the New-Keynesian models employed in the analysis of national data, anticyclical policies followed by contemporary economies, the methodology of economic research related to the quality of life and welfare, and regional differences across Europe in terms of innovation performance. Section three provides a microeconomic approach to the problems faced by contemporary economies and entities which operate in them. It explores the following topics: relationships between the natural monopolisation of markets and anti-monopoly policies, market strategies of economic entities, and determinants of the internal structure of the business sector. This section is concluded with two case studies - a sports club and the global IT giant IBM are analysed with regard to the problems of competitiveness and trends of the information society development, respectively. The next section focuses on the challenges which need to be addressed by public finance management. First, the methodological aspects of modernisation of public finance in Poland are investigated. Next, the problems related to the restructuring of the European tax systems are presented. The last part of this section addresses bank efficiency modelling. The final section provides an insight into selected economic issues in Poland. The problems refer to the demographic transformation in Poland and its impact on the labour market, internationalisation of Polish enterprises, and the evaluation of the behaviour displayed by Polish consumers in their leisure time in the light of the recent studies. This issue of TIBE is a reflection of the current tendencies and most recent developments in the studies on transition processes in economies, industries and individual entities thus providing interesting insights to any reader .

Habil. Dr. Tomasz Bernat
Guest editor
University of Szczecin
Poland,
24th July, 2013