Family Business Adapting a New Digital-Based Economy: Opportunities and Challenges for Future Research

Firms need to transform dramatically to maintain their operations and survive. The pandemic has shown how family businesses (FBs) are solving complex problems faster than non-family. They have demonstrated the flexibility to transform and adapt because of their closeness to the firm's processes and management and their social network inside and outside organizations that allow them to respond quickly to market needs based on a fast-making decisions process. FBs' knowledge, which is embedded in their values, making decisions process, and remaining for generations, requires resilient and robust management. The relationship between family values and FB management differentiates by their complexity and generational aspect. These relations demonstrate that personal values can influence professionalization, succession, and innovation processes. In this regard, there is a lack of research to understand the findings, practices, and processes associated with managing the knowledge flows through which FBs execute innovation strategies and to build on professionalization and succession capabilities that could provide different avenues of innovation and adaptation for dealing with turbulent and uncertain times. This editorial intends to provoke discussion on what we know about family businesses and how they face different challenges in a complex world to survive. FBs must develop adaptive strategies and strengthen crucial processes to generate a competitive and sustainable advantage. Knowledge management provides models and tools to reinforce tacit knowledge management's relevance in the professionalization and succession processes. Knowledge management becomes critical in an era in which uncertainty seems to be permanent.

Family Business Adapting a New Digital-Based Economy: Opportunities and Challenges for Future Research

Firms need to transform dramatically to maintain their operations and survive. The pandemic has shown how family businesses (FBs) are solving complex problems faster than non-family. They have demonstrated the flexibility to transform and adapt because of their closeness to the firm’s processes and management and their social network inside and outside organizations that allow them to respond quickly to market needs based on a fast-making decisions process. FBs’ knowledge, which is embedded in their values, making decisions process, and remaining for generations, requires resilient and robust management. The relationship between family values and FB management differentiates by their complexity and generational aspect. These relations demonstrate that personal values can influence professionalization, succession, and innovation processes. In this regard, there is a lack of research to understand the findings, practices, and processes associated with managing the knowledge flows through which FBs execute innovation strategies and to build on professionalization and succession capabilities that could provide different avenues of innovation and adaptation for dealing with turbulent and uncertain times. This editorial intends to provoke discussion on what we know about family businesses and how they face different challenges in a complex world to survive. FBs must develop adaptive strategies and strengthen crucial processes to generate a competitive and sustainable advantage. Knowledge management provides models and tools to reinforce tacit knowledge management’s relevance in the professionalization and succession processes. Knowledge management becomes critical in an era in which uncertainty seems to be permanent.

Hyaluronic Acid-Dexamethasone Nanoparticles for Local Adjunct Therapy of Lung Inflammation.

The delivery of a dexamethasone formulation directly into the lung appears as an appropriate strategy to strengthen the systemic administration, reducing the dosage in the treatment of lung severe inflammations. For this purpose, a hyaluronic acid-dexamethasone formulation was developed, affording an inhalable reconstituted nanosuspension suitable to be aerosolized. The physico-chemical and biopharmaceutical properties of the formulation were tested: size, stability, loading of the spray-dried dry powder, reconstitution capability upon redispersion in aqueous media. Detailed structural insights on nanoparticles after reconstitution were obtained by light and X-ray scattering techniques. (1) The size of the nanoparticles, around 200 nm, is in the proper range for a possible engulfment by macrophages. (2) Their structure is of the core-shell type, hosting dexamethasone nanocrystals inside and carrying hyaluronic acid chains on the surface. This specific structure allows for nanosuspension stability and provides nanoparticles with muco-inert properties. (3) The nanosuspension can be efficiently aerosolized, allowing for a high drug fraction potentially reaching the deep lung. Thus, this formulation represents a promising tool for the lung administration via nebulization directly in the pipe of ventilators, to be used as such or as adjunct therapy for severe lung inflammation.

Baseline well-being, perceptions of critical incidents, and openness to debriefing in community hospital emergency department clinical staff before COVID-19, a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Emergency department personnel routinely bear witness to traumatic experiences and critical incidents that can affect their own well-being. Peer support through debriefing has demonstrated positive impacts on clinicians' well-being following critical incidents. This study explored community hospital emergency department staff's perceptions of critical incidents, assessed openness to debriefing and measured baseline well-being. Our analysis provides a baseline of provider well-being immediately prior to the local onset of COVID-19. The potential need for additional resources to support frontline providers during the pandemic can be evaluated. METHOD: We conducted a cross-sectional study for 4-weeks prior to the first COVID-19 case in Connecticut using a survey offered to an interprofessional group of emergency department clinical staff. The main outcome measures were the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the Professional Quality of Life (ProQOL) scale. Pearson's chi-square test was used to identify significant differences in perceptions of critical incidents and debriefings between professional categories. One-way ANOVA and Tukey's test were used to analyze significant differences in well-being between professional categories. RESULTS: Thirty-nine clinical personnel from St. Vincent's Emergency Department responded to the survey. Events frequently selected as critical incidents were caring for critically ill children (89.7%), mass casualty events (84.6%), and death of a patient (69.2%). Critical incidents were commonly reported (81.6%) as occurring once per week. Additionally, 76.2% of participants reported wanting to discuss a critical incident with their team. Across all respondents, 45.7% scored borderline or abnormal for anxiety, 55.9% scored moderate for burnout, and 55.8% scored moderate to high for secondary traumatic stress. CONCLUSIONS: At baseline, providers reported caring for critically ill children, mass casualty events, and death of a patient as critical incidents, which typically occurred once per week. Death of a patient occurs at increased frequency during the protracted mass casualty experience of COVID-19 and threatens provider well-being. Receptiveness to post-event debriefing is high but the method is still underutilized. With nearly half of staff scoring borderline or abnormal for anxiety, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress at baseline, peer support measures should be implemented to protect frontline providers' well-being during and after the pandemic.