The research objective is to empirically assess the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the operation of medium-sized enterprises in Serbia. The main research question is how the COVID-19 crisis has affected the operation of medium-sized enterprises in Serbia with focus on major problems faced by these enterprises in times of the state of emergency over the epidemic. Also, considerable research attention is on policy measures to alleviate the negative impact of the COVID-19 outbreak with comparison of measures between Serbia and selected countries. To empirically assess the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on medium-sized enterprises in Serbia, an online survey research was conducted during the period of March and April 2020. The survey results show that the COVID-19 crisis has affected the daily business of medium-sized enterprises in different ways and with varying intensity. Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, 20% of the surveyed enterprises have moved their employees to work from home, while a decline in liquidity and in business capacity utilization, as well as supply chain disruptions have occurred in 16% of enterprises each. Less than 10% of enterprises expressed other problems such as payment of wages, insufficient workforce utilization, reduction in business hours, production disruptions, limited access to resources etc.

We aimed to assess the efficiency of the selected national innovation policy programs in the Republic of Serbia. We analyzed the impact of the Innovation Fund’s Mini-Grants and Matching Grants programs on the operating revenue growth of beneficiary micro, small, and medium enterprises. An econometric analysis of panel data was conducted. Because of the small number of periods observed, a model of individual effects was applied. Conclusions and recommendations were based on the results of random effects models. The findings indicate that program funding increased business revenues compared to the period before and that there was a direct link between indebtedness and revenue growth, which confirmed the positive impact of financing on the sustainable development prospects of beneficiaries through facilitating access to funding and innovation capacity improvement. These findings can have important policy implications as they provide guidelines for designing future actions and empirically confirm the need to increase public expenditures for innovation policy.

Each national economy has specific characteristics that determine its innovative capabilities to a greater or lesser extent. National innovation capacity can be a source of prosperity and growth for the national economy. Measuring national innovation capacity is very important because it provides knowledge about the dynamics of inventions in economic activities. By measuring the innovative capacity of the economy, indicators are obtained that are significant for the creation of development policy and are an important element in evaluating the success of its implementation. The connection between innovation and competitive advantage is direct and positive because the innovative capacities of companies can create, support, and make sustainable competitiveness both in the domestic and foreign markets. This paper aims to determine whether there is a relationship between national innovative capacity and competitiveness. To allow for data mutual comparability and generalization, the research included four countries: Serbia and three neighboring European Union member countries (Bulgaria, Hungary, and Romania). The evaluation was conducted using statistical data from international databases (WEF, INSEAD, and WIPO) covering 2008 to 2018. The findings indicate a positive relationship between a country's competitiveness and innovative capacity, as measured by the Global Innovation Index and the Global Competitiveness Index. In the cases of Serbia and Bulgaria, there was a strong correlation between national competitiveness and the country's innovation index. In Hungary and Romania, on the other hand, the correlation coefficient is low. The paper's originality is reflected in the analysis and comparison of the innovation capacities four Eastern European countries (Serbia, Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania), which are rarely the subject of research in innovation.

The aim of the research is to identify medium-sized agricultural enterprises with the greatest potential for innovation development. The subject of the research is the key financial performance of the observed enterprises in 2017. Data were obtained from official financial statements publicly available on the website of the Serbian Business Registers Agency (SBRA). The aim of the research was realized by applying financial analysis methods and the Altman Z-score model. The purpose of the research is to improve the efficiency of limited funds for financing innovative activities in the agricultural sector. The research results are data on enterprises with negligible probability of bankruptcy and which thus have the greatest potential for innovation development.

The research objective is to identify causes and alternatives for exiting the loss zone for agricultural enterprises in Serbia. The subject of the research is financial performance of agricultural enterprises in 2010-2014. Economic and financial power of all medium sized agricultural enterprises was determined by applying financial analysis. Based on the sample of least successful entities, the causes and alternatives for exiting the loss zone were identified. The results show that loss appears due to a reduction in operating income or in contribution margin, or due to an increase in financial expenses. The first suggested alternative refers to increasing the volume of production and sales at current global price parity, while the second assumes shifting global price parity in favour of sales prices at current real capacity utilization rate. The effects of proposed alternatives are evaluated by two measures of profitability - return on assets and return on equity.

The main objective of the research is to analyse and assess the innovative potential of women entrepreneurs in Serbia. A field survey was conducted in order to realize the research objective. The questionnaire was designed to gather perceptions of women entrepreneurs on the following five factors: motivation of women to be entrepreneurs, conditions and opportunities for conducting innovative activity in Serbia, investments in innovative activity, level of cooperation with relevant institutions in national innovation ecosystem, and familiarity with the role and measures of institutions supporting innovative activities in Serbia. Considering an even geographical coverage the sample included 30 women entrepreneurs in 6 areas. Based on the survey results, the innovative potential of women entrepreneurs in Serbia can be assessed as relevant but underdeveloped. In order to develop their innovative potential, improve innovative performances and increase the level of participation in innovative activities, a set of recommendations for policy makers is suggested in the paper.