Ana Gargallo Castel

Bio: Ana Gargallo Castel is an academic researcher. The author has an hindex of 2, co-authored 3 publications receiving 13 citations.

Impacto de las Tecnologías de la Información en la Productividad de las Empresas Españolas

Abstract: La importancia adquirida por las tenologias de la informacion y la comunicacion (TIC) en los ultimos anos ha obligado a estudiar en profundidad su repercusion en los resultados organizacionales. Los trabajos existentes difieren en la conceptualizacion de los diferentes elementos y sus interrelaciones. En este articulo se analiza la influencia de las TIC, y de sus relaciones con otros elementos organizativos, sobre la productividad de la empresa espanola. De los resultados se desprende que el compromiso de la direccion y la cualificacion de los trabajadores son algunos de los aspectos a tener en cuenta para conseguir un mejor aprovechamiento de las TIC.

Family involvement and the impact of information and communication technology on performance

Abstract: Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the moderated effect of family involvement on the relationship between information and communication technology (ICT) and firm performance. Design/methodology/approach According to agency and transaction cost theories, distinctive family business characteristics provide a unique context that favours a more efficient use of ICT. The authors perform a multivariate analysis that includes the moderating effect of family involvement and considers the possible endogeneity of the ICT variable. Findings The results, using a large panel of Spanish manufacturing firms, confirm the importance of family involvement for explaining differences in terms of the impact of this technology in family and non-family businesses. The relationship between ICT and performance is stronger for family firms than for non-family firms. Research implications The paper provides new evidence for the academic literature on ICT impact and family firms. It corroborates the importance of using an organizational perspective to explain differences in the effect of ICT on performance. Practical implications Family firms should understand the opportunities that family involvement offers regarding ICT impact on performance, and exploit this moderating effect to achieve competitive advantages. Originality/value No previous studies deal with the impact of family involvement on ICT-performance analysis. This study fills this gap and increases the understanding of how family business involvement moderates the ICT-performance relationship.

Teruel hacia la sociedad de la información y el conocimiento

Abstract: Teruel to the society of information and knowledge. Nowadays new technologies offer strategic opportunities for the development of any territory. Therefore, it is crucial to know the presence of the turolenses’ firms on the Society of the Information if we want to know where we are going. The lack of detailed information for the province of Teruel has motivated the present study. It analyzes the development of the turolenses’ firms in relation with the Society of the Information, as well as their relative position with regard to the national and autonomous average. Special attention is paying to the microfirms due to their great presence in the economy of the province. It is crucial to carry out an exhaustive study on the topic because it will allow encouraging the suitable utilization of the new technologies among the organizations of Teruel.

The influence of family goals, governance, and resources on firm outcomes : some further advances

Abstract: We briefly reflect on the theoretical contributions of the ongoing series of special issues on theories of family enterprise and discuss the contributions of each article and commentary in the current special issue. We observe that the meta-themes—the unique goals, governance, and resources of family firms—are not only primary sources of heterogeneity but key determinants of outcomes such as the continuation of family involvement, firm survival and renewal, and financial performance. We conclude that the importance and interrelationships of goals, governance, and resources suggest that a configuration approach to studying their interactions in family firms might be useful.

Maximizing the positive influence of IT for improving organizational performance

Abstract: In the analysis of whether information technology (IT) has an impact on organizational performance, focus is usually placed on the relationship between an organization's investments in IT and that organization's performance. Therefore, it is standard to devote special attention to the size and complexity of the organization, to the investments in other organizational resources that may affect the performance of IT, and to the manner in which the two variables are measured. However, one area that has not been well explored is the manner in which the relationship between investments in IT and organizational performance develops. In this article, we show empirically that the planning and management of IT influence the organization's endowment of resources (physical and human), which consequently has positive effects on each of the IT-related areas usually found in organizations (applications, reliable and secure systems and communications, and training and support). In turn, the functioning of these areas influences the impact of IT on the organization, which then has positive effects on organizational performance. We have used data corresponding to IT management in Spanish universities, as well as independent rankings that are useful for evaluating their performance.

Returns to education and to experience within the EU: are there differences between wage earners and the self-employed?

Abstract: This paper investigates the returns to education and to experience within the 15 pre-enlargement EU countries, distinguishing between wage earners and the self-employed These returns are estimated by using a comparable data set coming from the European Community Household Panel during the period 1994-2000 To correct for the ability bias and recover the education coefficients, an Efficient Generalized Instrumental Variable technique is applied Although the results differ across countries, two common features can be observed First, the earnings-experience profiles indicate certain traits of competitiveness in the labor markets and, secondly, the returns to education show that signaling plays a relevant role in the earnings of workers

TRADE THROUGH FDI: investing in services

Abstract: The type of relationship between different modes of trading services across international borders is of great interest, not only for the academic literature but also for the formulation trade liberalization offers under the GATS. Even more than for trade in goods, it is thus important to know whether cross-border trade and trade through commercial presence abroad act as complements or substitutes in services. The most commonly used analytical tool in the empirical analysis of this question is the gravity model of trade. This paper offers a consistent theoretical foundation for the application of the gravity model to services and to commercial presence, using a composite demand model with offers testable hypothesis about the complementary or substitutive relationship between different modes of supply. It further links the results to policy variables like market regulations which may act directly or implicitly as barriers to trade. Our empirical test for the sample of OECD countries over the decade 1994- 2004 yields robust complementary effects in the short-run, which is reinforced in the long-run by an increased potential for cross-border imports based on previous FDI inflows. A detailed analysis by individual service sectors highlights business, communication and financial services as showing the largest potential for cross-border trade when market regulations are reduced and when commercial presence increases.

National and International Income Dispersion and Aggregate Expenditures

Abstract: We examine linkages between aggregate household income, distribution of that income, and aggregate cross-country expenditure patterns. We are able to decompose income effects into international income dispersion effects (from variations in average income) and national income dispersion (income distribution) effects. This yields insights for relevant aggregate household specifications in computational policy models emphasizing household distribution of income. This also yields a consumption-pattern based inequality index that summarizes the projection of inequality through expenditure patterns. Estimation of flexible demand systems with representative expenditures (which reflects income distribution within countries) yields a significant relationship between representative consumption and cross-country demand patterns.