The socioeconomic changes that many countries have been experiencing in recent decades, caused by structural factors or by specific circumstances, where the pandemic crisis of COVID-19 is only the most recent example, have posed challenges to organizations, which present themselves more and more and in various forms as threatened by the possibility of fulfilling their mission. Public and private sectors increasingly present themselves as insufficient to respond effectively to day-to-day requests. This context of instability and the resulting impacts for non-profit organizations pose serious problems to the way in which governance is exercised and served as a motivation for carrying out a study that aimed to understand the influence of strategy and human resources on the governance of these organizations. A review of the literature on the variables under study made it possible to identify the sub-dimensions associated with each one of them and the respective indicators. Thus, for a quantitative study, it was possible to apply a questionnaire to 242 Holy Houses of Mercy in Portugal to understand the direct and indirect influences of strategic management and human resources management on the governance of these institutions. The results obtained show the existence of a positive relationship between the variables under analysis, confirming that not only do these variables influence, by themselves and directly, the governance of the institutions studied, but also the strategy influences human resources policies, which in turn have implications for the way the Holy Houses of Mercy deal with aspects associated with governance. It is concluded that, in general, for these organizations to be more effective in efforts to improve their governance processes, they must focus on strategic management and human resources management instruments.

The present research aims to compare the entrepreneurial intention of university students before and during the Covid-19 pandemic. For this purpose, some dimensions were analyzed, such as the availability of this target audience to undertake an activity at their own risk, the preference for a future while employed by others, their perception of the values that society places on entrepreneurship, and the entrepreneurial abilities/skillsets. A comparative study of a quantitative nature was used, associating two samples composed of students of higher education in Portugal, the data were obtained before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The analysis of the results permits us to conclude: (1) in the circumstances of macroeconomic changes resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, entrepreneurial activity does not decrease; (2) respondents are less interested in being employed by others and more attracted to being entrepreneurs; (3) there is a growing concordance with the values that society places on entrepreneurship; and (4) there is now a greater aptitude for entrepreneurial activity. The present research is original, as it compares data obtained in different contexts of economic and social stability. It contributes to theory and practice, in the sense that it points to conclusions in the opposite direction of other studies carried out in situations of disasters of another nature, and can serve as a reference for the development of strategies to promote entrepreneurship, within higher education institutions and official entities to publicize and promote new public policies.

This research aims to study the determinants of entrepreneurial intention in academia and compare the outcomes from two different moments, before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. For this purpose, a quantitative methodology was used, whereby a questionnaire was given to higher education students in these two chronological moments. From the obtained results, it was possible to ascertain that, given the motivational dimension, the attitude towards behavior and perceived behavioral control are having a positive impact on entrepreneurial intentions during the pandemic and that subjective norms have a negative impact on entrepreneurial intentions. This relationship of influences is unchanged, either before or during the pandemic. Regarding the environmental dimension, both of the variables under analysis are having a negative impact on entrepreneurial intention during the pandemic period, which corresponds to an aggravation or loss of positive influences when compared to the context before the pandemic, and the next assessment had a positive impact on entrepreneurial intentions. On the theoretical contributions, the findings are very important, as they strengthen the literature on entrepreneurial intentions, and in specific contexts of social and economic instability. As for practical contributions, this research suggests actions to agents with an important intervention role in the community, one of these agents is Higher Education Institutions, which play a determining role by creating a positive environment to support their students’ entrepreneurial intent. This research is original, as far as we are informed, and it is the first to study entrepreneurial intention in academia during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Portuguese context. Moreover, we suggest that the obtained results should be succeeded by further studies to confirm the evolutionary trends now identified on the subject under analysis.

The last two decades were characterized by an increase in attention on entrepreneurship. An emerging trend in the literature is associated with the different contributions that genders may have regarding entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial intentions. This paper assesses gender impact on entrepreneurial intention in a peripheral region of Europe. The methodology used is quantitative and based on a sample of 1114 observations. The obtained results suggest that women’s perceived behavioral control does not have a less direct positive impact on entrepreneurial intention when compared to men’s. Women’s personal attitude has a less direct positive impact on entrepreneurial intention when compared to men’s, as social norms, on the one hand, have a less direct positive impact on women’s personal attitude when compared to men’s, and, on the other hand, have a less direct positive impact on women’s perceived behavioral control when compared to men’s. Finally, it was also verified that social norms have a less positive indirect impact through personal attitude and perceived behavioral control on women’s entrepreneurial intention when compared to men’s. These findings contribute to enlighten the literature by strengthening the theoretical framework on women’s entrepreneurial intention in peripheral regions. Regarding practical contributions, suggestions are addressed to public decision makers, universities, and civil society, to adopt practices to increase entrepreneurship in women. This research is original because it is the first to perform this study in Portugal, a peripheral region of Europe.

Academic entrepreneurship is becoming increasingly important to the field of research as well as to policy makers due to its ability to contribute to the economic, technological, and social development of regions and countries. This research aims to evaluate the determinants that influence the interest of Portuguese higher education students (HEI’s) to become entrepreneurs. The methodology used is quantitative and uses structural model equations. The results obtained demonstrate that the student’s perception of business skills, business growth skills, strategy, and successful business are key factors that students take into account in their entrepreneurial orientation. The research contributes to this theory by adding new knowledge to the literature on the perception of the HEI’s students to become entrepreneurs, specifically the students of Portuguese universities. In practical terms, the contributions offered within this research are based on suggestions for the third mission of universities, explicitly knowledge transfer to the community, business groups, and policy makers, as well as the creation of the essentials within university boundaries to promote entrepreneurship amongst its students. The research is original and innovative, as no research on this field with all the aggregated elements under study has been previously performed in Portugal. Furthermore, the obtained results can translate into ideas that potentially create jobs.

Communication in organisations is essential for them to be competitive in a global world that is constantly changing. Internal communication especially can be a highly effective and useful strategic tool for improving organisational performance through employee motivation and satisfaction. Based on a questionnaire survey completed by 426 employees of Portuguese organisations, this work aims to understand, using a partial least squares structural equation model, the importance of internal communication in the motivation and satisfaction of Portuguese employees. The results show that internal communication in organisations directly influences job satisfaction and also indirectly, through motivation at work, giving motivation at work the role of mediator. It is therefore important for Portuguese organisations to invest in effective internal communication strategies in order to promote employee motivation and satisfaction, recognising motivation as a key mediator in the relationship between internal communication and job satisfaction.