Agnė Šimelytė

Factors driving turnover and retention of information technology professionals

Taking into consideration turnover phenomenon and retention issues, the purpose of the paper is to reveal the employee perceptions on organisational and job-related factors impacting decisions to leave and to stay with the current employer. Based on theoretical discussion related to voluntary turnover and retention of employees, the research instrument was developed. A total of 143 responses were collected from employees working in private IT companies of Lithuania. The results revealed that base pay and challenging work content were perceived as the most important employment characteristics. Turnover prediction models disclose turnover intentions of project managers, which can be explained by participation in strategy development, support of top managers and negative perception of the base pay. Meanwhile, turnover intensions of heads of departments/ high level managers can be explained by negative associations with performance incentives/ bonuses, career opportunities and working conditions. The findings of the paper let us to develop theoretical insights and provide manager recommendations leading to the retention of information technology professionals.

Government incentives directed towards foreign direct investment: a case of central and eastern europe

This article examines the government incentives towards foreign direct investments (further -- FDI) of Central and Eastern Europe countries by evaluating the external influencing factors of foreign investment. It is argued that the major incentive affecting FDI inflows involves more fiscal than financial incentives. Tax deduction is considered to be the most significant influencing factor on attracting FDI. Hence, the empirical analysis is based on exogenous variables. The empirical model was used to determine causal relationship between macroeconomic variables and FDI intensity in Central and Eastern European countries. The article introduces some policy recommendation for the increase of FDI intensity in Central and Eastern Europe.

Analytical network process based on BOCR analysis as an approach for designing a foreign direct investment policy

Foreign direct investment is significantly important for the emerging market countries or countries in transition. Scientific literature provides plenty of evidence that FDI may have both negative and positive influence on economic growth. However, research proves that just specific type of FDI may bring benefit to the host country. Thus, a targeted FDI policy is essential for directing foreign capital into problematic business areas or regions. The goal of the article is to propose a complex targeted FDI policy, the employment of which would give benefits to the host country and achieve its strategic goals. Benefit-opportunities-costs-risks analysis and analytic network process method are used for the empirical research. Final results reveal that Lithuania, attracting FDI into research and development area, gains great benefits and exploits opportunities. At the same time, the highest costs might be generated while implementing a FDI policy in this area. A FDI policy towards service sectors would cause the least amount of risks. These results are significant for academics as the basis for further research, and decisions-makers as guidance for the development of the national FDI policy.

Foreign Direct Investment Policy–Friendly Business Environment in R&D Sectors: Baltic States versus Visegrad Countries

This article examines the impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) policy on inward FDI in the Visegrad and Baltic countries. The analysis of business environment highlights that the countries in both regions attempt to create a friendly business environment by means of similar methods. However, the countries in both regions focus on fiscal incentives such as taxes, which do not play a major role in attracting inward FDI in R&D. The results of attracting FDI are better in the Visegrad countries, which implement financial incentives toward inward FDI along with fiscal incentives. According to empirical analysis, it is noticed that a higher intervention level and a higher support level guarantee the volume of inward FDI. The countrys introduced FDI policy enables it to orient industry and to implement economic strategic targets. FDI policy does have an impact on promoting the development of the entire country.

The Impact of Scandinavian Inward Foreign Direct Investment on the Baltic States

Although foreign direct investment (hereinafter FDI) has been the matter of discussion since the early 1970s, it is still one of the most controversial topics in both economic and political terms. The intensity of FDI shows the host country’s openness to the foreign capital, its integration into the international market and economic growth. The proponents of the positive attitude state that foreign capital increases competitiveness and labour productivity in the host country and creates new jobs and the host country adopts new technologies. Other scientists are not so optimistic in respect of FDI impact. Inward FDI may be determined by political decisions of the host government. However, some researchers even point out that stimulation of FDI is harmful for the host economy. FDI promotion is acceptable if indirect initiatives are adopted and an appropriate legal system for controlling multinational corporations’ (hereinafter MNCs) activities exists. It is noticeable that the main negative consequence of activating inward FDI stimulation is that the host economy becomes dependent on a foreign capital over a certain period of time and MNCs have effect on decisions of the host government. Some studies show that the mobility of foreign capital may exist under an imperfect market conditions only. MNCs are likely to invest into economically weak countries benefiting from a low labour cost. Thus, under the present economic conditions, it is important to identify the benefits of FDI for the host country and to analyse MNC motives for investment.

EXPORT, ENERGY CONSUMPTION AND ECONOMIC GROWTH INTER-LINKAGES: THE CASE OF LITHUANIA

Abstract This paper has aimed to examine the causal relationships between energy consumption – economic growth, export – energy consumption and export – economic growth in Lithuania during the period of 1998 – 2015. Descriptive statistics analysis and econometric techniques have been applied for this purpose. Granger causality test has been used to a time series data set to determine the causality between variables. The results of Granger causality test have shown unidirectional causality running from GDP to energy consumption, from export to GDP and from export to energy consumption. It is obvious that GDP and export play significant roles in accelerating energy consumption in Lithuania. The determination of the causal links between energy consumption – economic growth, export – economic growth and energy consumption – export has provided policy makers with the main insights to formulate future policy directions for sustainable economic development in Lithuania.

Government expenditure and economic growth in the European Union countries

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to provide more reliable estimates of the relationship between government spending and economic growth in the European Union (EU) during the period of 1995-2015. Design/methodology/approach - The methodology consisted of several different stages. In the first stage for an assessment of dynamics of government spending and economic growth indicators over two decades, descriptive statistics analysis was employed. Correlation analysis helped to identify the relationships between government expenditures (GEs) and economic growth. In the third stage, for modeling the relationship and the estimation of causality between GE and economic growth, Granger causality testing was applied. Findings - The research indicated that eight EU countries have a significant relationship between government spending and economic growth. Research limitations/implications - This study has been bounded by general GE and economic growth only. The breakdowns of general GE on the basis of the activities they support have not been considered in this paper, which is the main limitation of the research. Despite the limitation, it might be maintained that the research highlights key relationships in the EU countries. Originality/value - These insights might be useful for policy makers. In countries with unidirectional causality running from GE to economic growth, the government can employ expenditure as a factor for growth. The governments should ensure that resources are properly managed and efficiently allocated to accelerate economic growth in the countries with unidirectional causality from GDP to GE.