Journal of Economics - Obsahy ročníkov

The paper evaluates the qualitative aspects of the Czech Republic position in the global economic flows in terms of their knowledge intensity. The stress is being put on structural characteristics of value-added, FDI and R&D and innovation activities indicating the change of competitive advantage towards the increasing role of internal innovation capacity and unique product and processes. This change, however, may not be fast enough to compensate for weakening cost-based competitiveness. Despite the increasing share of FDI companies in domestic R&D activities, their average knowledge intensity remains low. The prevailing competitive strategy relies on adoption of foreign technology knowledge to local needs, possibly with minor adjustments. Keywords: technology intensity, FDI, value chain fragmentation JEL Classification: O13, O33, O38

The paper examines theoretical and practical issues connected with performance evaluation, performance management and performance financing in public administration, using cases from the Czech Republic and Slovakia to draw conclusions, focusing on the specific environment of transitional societies. The cases examined are the civil service performance evaluation, performance management in the public administration offices and performance financing of universities. All selected cases show that the potential of performance evaluation, performance management and performance financing is significantly limited by concrete ways of their implementation and also because of specific environment of developing democracies. Because of this fact we propose to focus more on the benchmarking, which should serve as more effective tool for given environment. Keywords: new public management, performance evaluation, performance management, performance financing, Czech Republic, Slovakia JEL Classification: H83, H41

The concept of market orientation is a modernized form of orientation of an enterprise at the customer which each enterprise should be aware of. It repre-sents a transversal concept with regard to the fact that it is connected with marketing, strategy, organisation, human resources management and culture of an enterprise. In the sphere of purchase it makes enterprises increase their endeavour to carry out the changes in their relationships with suppliers as well as change internal processes with the aim of increasing the competitiveness of an enterprise. The access of this article is characterized by two levels, a theoretical level, which presents a synthesis of contemporary scientific knowledge on this specific problem and an operational level which is presented by the results of a research illustrating and explaining the concept of market orientation in the sphere of purchase of industrial enterprises. Keywords: market orientation, marketing, purchase, suppliers, competitiveness of an enterprise, industrial market JEL Classification: M31

Insurance industry belongs to the most important branches of economy. It per-forms a couple of very important functions from the macroeconomic point of view: accumulation, redistribution, stimulation and control function. Insurance companies are big players on the financial market so insurance system deserves adequate attention. This paper deals with the development and comparison of insurance market in Slovakia and Hungary. Insurance becomes more and more significant and its development correspondents tight with national economy. We focused our attention on the selected most important indicators as follow: gross written premium, indemnity costs, technical reserves, investment activity and concentration in an insurance industry. Keywords: premium written, penetration, technical reserves, investment activity, Herfindahl-Hirschman Index JEL Classification: G22

Experience of most OECD countries reflect that conflict between social solidarity and economy efficiency has been reduced to they should be compatible nay complementary. Social expenditures can at the same time to reduce poverty and prefer labour productivity and technical-technologic changes. Our Slovak system of social protection will be vigorous when two conditions are achieved: first condition gives volatility against stability of rules, which refer redistribution. Compatibility of system of social protection with existence regulation and regime of economic growth is the second condition. Keywords: welfare state, workfare, welfare, flexicurity, social protection systems, reform of social protection JEL Classification: I30, I31, I39