The purpose of this paper is to analyse customer experience (CX) in the fintech sector. Fintech is a dynamic and innovative field that fully benefits from advances in information and communication technology. The concept of customer experience is multidimensional, analysed from various perspectives, and with distinct valences in different industries. Based on the stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) approach, we proposed a model in which customer experience in fintech is the result of customer’s evaluation of the stimuli proposed by fintech companies. Using partial least squares equation modelling (PLS-SEM), we tested a series of hypotheses and validated the proposed model. The results showed that perceived value, customer support, assurance, speed and perceived firm innovativeness are positively related to customer experience in fintech. In turn, customer experience is positively associated with loyalty intentions of the customer. Our paper contributes in identifying the dimensions, the determinants and the outcomes of customer experience in fintech, while from a managerial perspective, we demonstrate how fintech companies must integrate customer experience in their business models.

Promoting the principles of circular economy and the new business models advocated by the circular economy can represent a solutionfor a more prosperous society, less dependent on primary and energy resources andmore environmentally friendly. The sharing economy, which primarily involves the transformation of traditional market behaviors into collaborative consumption models,that ensure a more efficient and sustainable use of resources, is part of the circular economy and has generated business models that are compatible with it. This article discusses the possibility for the sharing economy to bring about profound changes in consumer behavior towards products and servicesandto highlight the factors that drive consumers’shifttowards the sharing economy. For this purpose wedevelopedand tested a model in which the change in consumer mindset has as the main direct determinants the satisfaction with the services of the sharingeconomy and the intention to access such products and services. The study uses data collected through a questionnaire, applied to a sample of 320 customers ofUber –a symbol of the sharingeconomy,and processed usingstructural equation modelling. Research results show that there are premisesfor switching to anaccess-based consumption model.

Sports organizations worldwide are discovering their power of influence over the fans and communities in which they operate, making more and more specialists and practitioners question these organizations’ social responsibility and sustainable development. In sports organizations, although research is increasing, social responsibility and sustainability are topics that require special attention because sports organizations can instill values in a large number of people in different fields. In our paper, we propose a conceptual framework that allows for integrated research into corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the sustainability of sports organizations for sustainable management and identifies their influences on the overall performance. Based on the conceptual framework, we developed a scale for measuring sports organizations’ social responsibility and sustainability, which we applied within sports organizations in Romania. The empirical study involved 280 respondents selected from the first two leagues of four sports areas (football, handball, volleyball, basketball). To support the conceptual framework, we used quantitative research methods in a transversal analysis: structural equation modeling and artificial neural network analysis. The conclusions of the empirical study in Romania show that social responsibility and sustainability are essential for the sustainable management of sports organizations and significantly influence the organization’s overall performance. Among the pillars of sustainability, the social and human impact performance, given the specifics of sports organizations (involving large masses of people). Furthermore, legal and philanthropic responsibilities significantly influence CSR and organizational performance among CSR responsibilities.

In contemporary social life, both ordinary people and political and cultural personalities value sport as a phenomenon with special functions in the development of the individual and through its socio-economic implications. Through its economic-financial implications such as the ever-flourishing industry of sports equipment and technology, huge amounts of money, accumulated and handled by clubs and sportsmen, advertisements, legal implications concerning national and international regulations, political implication in relationship with competition between countries, national pride, cultural implications including media, spectators, fanaticism, health implications in correlation with the obsession with the healthy body and others, it can be said that today sport is a major social phenomenon. This is valid for the developed countries, but also for the developing countries even if the agreement of opinions is not so high in this regard. In our paper we analyze the social and economic dimensions of the sport and of how it came to influence sustainable development today, as well as a presentation of the gains generated by some of the most important sporting events over time.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to reveal the conditions that facilitate or hinder a favorable reaction of fans to the resurrection of sport club brands.Design/methodology/approachThe proposed model was empirically tested by applying partial least squares-SEM to a sample of 462 fans of five Romanian football and handball clubs that were resurrected in the last five years.FindingsThe study showed that a positive relationship between the new and the old club owners, the keeping of the brand name, and the involvement of the club’s historic figures are favorable conditions for a successful resurrection. The faded brands that enjoy salient heritage and numerous loyal fans are more likely to be successfully resurrected. Moreover, when the resurrection is undertaken immediately after the old club’s bankruptcy, fans tend to alienate from the brand, as they consider the new club to be trying to counterfeit the meaning of the faded brand.Research limitations/implicationsThe cross-sectional nature of the study and the narrow scope of the empirical data are the major limitations of the study.Practical implicationsBased on the empirical findings, the authors made recommendations to sport entrepreneurs who consider reviving faded clubs, and highlighted the difficulties of the resurrection process.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study of brand resurrection in the sports industry.

Globally, sponsorship has grown impressive over the last 30 years, receiving an increased importance in the communication mix of companies. Sport organizations have understood the importance and the role sponsorship it plays for the financial support they need. Sponsorship is the material support of an event, activity or organization by an unaffiliated partner. It is a good way to increase brand awareness, which helps to generate consumer preferences and promote brand loyalty and also improves the brand image. Brands play an important role in the development of companies because they bring a number of benefits to them. The paper "Innovation’s impact on sponsorship activation" aims to present a series of theoretical elements of activating sponsorship, as well as the element of innovation in this process, an element represented by the social media presence in our lives and in the last part of the paper is presented a study based on a survey on our topic. REZUMAT. Rolul social-media în activarea sponsorizării. La nivel global, sponsorizarea a crescut impresionant în ultimii 30 de ani, primind o importanță crescută în mixul de comunicare al companiilor. Organizațiile sportive au înțeles importanța și rolul de sponsorizare pe care îl joacă pentru sprijinul financiar de care au nevoie. Sponsorizarea este sprijinul material al unui eveniment, activitate sau organizație de către un partener neafiliat. Este o modalitate bună de a crește gradul de conștientizare a mărcii, care ajută la generarea preferințelor consumatorilor și la promovarea loialității mărcii și, de asemenea, îmbunătățește imaginea mărcii. Mărcile joacă un rol important în dezvoltarea companiilor, deoarece le aduc o serie de beneficii. Lucrarea „Impactul inovației asupra activării sponsorizării” își propune să prezinte o serie de elemente teoretice ale activării sponsorizării, precum și elementul de inovație în acest proces, element reprezentat de prezența social media în viețile noastre și în ultima parte a lucrării este prezentat un studiu bazat pe un sondaj pe tema noastră. Cuvinte cheie: Marcă, Activare Sponsorizare, Rețele Sociale, Sportiv.