The combination of accelerated digitalization and the recent COVID-19 crisis has increased the number of remote workers worldwide to unimaginable proportions. Among the large number of remote workers that execute their projects from home, there is a significant number of permanently self-employed remote workers, usually referred to as freelancers. Despite the importance of this kind of business activity for modern project management society, perceived drivers of freelancing are still unknown. The goal of this paper was to shed some light on the general subjective well-being of freelancing activity and investigate differences concerning gender, age, and education. The study was performed in late 2020 and included 471 freelancers from Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, and Montenegro that participated in an online questionnaire evaluating their subjective well-being while participating in the “gig” economy. Factor analysis was used as a primary statistical method and two major groups were identified: (1) Impact of working from home on a freelancer’s personal life and health and (2) Fulfillment of expectations in the economic and professional sense. Gender was found not to be significant for overall work satisfaction. However, older freelancers proved to be more satisfied with the fulfillment of economic and professional expectations, which correlate with years of professional experience. Another conclusion is that more educated freelancers are generally less satisfied with both groups of drivers - fulfillment of personal life and professional expectations. Understanding how the combination of occupations, technological infrastructure, and demographic characteristics in the region has affected the well-being of freelancers may help policymakers and organization owners, as well as future entrepreneurs, better prepare for this model of work in the future. It also increases the possibility of exploring individual dimensions of wellbeing useful for targeting interventions at the level of each country separately. In line with this, the present study contributes to the existing body of knowledge and the impact of hybrid models of work on the subjective well-being of workers in the “gig” economy.

The crisis caused by the COVID-19 virus is not just a global health crisis. The impact of the pandemic, caused by this virus, has strongly affected almost all vital economic sectors of the United States, which has seriously affected the global economy and other financial markets around the world. Significant declining incomes at all levels, rising unemployment, and disruptions in the industrial and transportation sectors are just some of the consequences caused by this virus in the economy of the United States. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, the United States strongly opposes further reductions in economic growth and profits with several measures taken to mitigate the effects of the virus. In that sense, proactive action by the Government of the United States is necessary to protect economic prosperity and maintain sustainable economic growth for a longer period.

In this exploratory research, we examined the socio-economic aspects of working from home for men and women in Serbia, their psychosocial adjustment to that work, and especially the differences among Serbian freelancers by gender. In an electronic survey participated 180 women and 228 men. According to socio-demographic variables, it was determined that women are significantly younger, that they work significantly shorter at home, and that there are significantly fewer of them in predominantly "male" occupations: IT sector, construction, and transport. According to several economic variables, no statistically significant differences were found by gender, except that women are significantly more likely to be guided by a good business idea and higher earnings when starting a business at home, and more often consult a psychologist when in crisis. No statistically significant differences were found in terms of psychosocial adjustment, but also among men and women - freelancers, with some minor exceptions. Based on the analysis of the content of three types of questionnaires, the social profiles of women and men working at (from) home are described. In the final part of the study, unexpectedly similar research results by gender were elaborated in detail.

This study aims to indicate the importance of the factors connected to the digital knowledge and skills of women (WDKS) and the institutional support of digitalization (DIS), for women's inclusion in the labor market (WLMI) and employment in a digital age. The impact was valorized by 224 women, as participants in the research provided in 2022 in Serbia, through the Likert scale instrument for 15 claims within the defined research variables, and regression analyses. Findings showed that knowledge and digital skills, and competencies of girls and women (WDKS) are strongly correlated with their social inclusion in the labor market (WLMI). The impact of the DISF, institutional measures, and policies as a set for digital infrastructure, networks, and lows adjustments for the digitization process development is important too as a national framework for the digital economy. These findings of the research contribute to the literature on digitization and new technologies knowledge development, the SDGs goals on gender divide and equality, as to further feminist economics scientific works.

Digitization is moving most business processes into the virtual arena. The fact is that digitized companies and new concepts of organizational functioning are creating our new reality. Defining the meaning of the term digitalization creates a lot of controversy, which reflects the fact that it is a relatively new concept where there is no consensus and common understanding. Some of these controversies focus on whether the term should describe the use of digital technology to change certain business operations or create brand new business models. Notwithstanding these differences in approach, the aim of this paper is to show that digital transformation is an inevitability in contemporary business driven by the evolution of the new digital technology. Accordingly, the paper points to the specifics of the functioning of organization in terms of organizational structure, communication methods, employee agility and virtual team formation. It concludes that businesses that do not adapt quickly enough to new technologies that affect business and society can very quickly fall out of business because of product obsolescence.

Digital skills are becoming an important prerequisite for employment worldwide, but a significant portion of the population still lacks the skills needed to function in a digital business environment. Although young people are often considered "digital connoisseurs", most of them do not actually have enough of these competencies relevant to starting their own entrepreneurial businesses or filling jobs where there is a need for advanced digital skills. Those with the lowest levels of digital skills would be most affected, as well as those who are least willing to upgrade their skills. Accordingly, it is necessary to promote digital entrepreneurial skills and introduce them into education programs through different forms and levels of education. The main objective of this paper is to explore the possibilities of improving entrepreneurs' competencies through e-learning. In line with this, the authors stressed the need for policymakers to develop a comprehensive and coherent approach to fostering learning and activating digital entrepreneurial skills among young people, while measuring progress towards the goals set, is emphasized. In addition to these, there are many other reasons why digital knowledge must be considered a priority in modern education processes. Accordingly, long-term, and short-term goals and their impact at the level of the individual and organization, as well as at the level of economy and society, have been determined.