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We examine whether the US stock market significantly responds to the movement of commodity spot prices during the COVID-19 crisis. We regard gold and crude oil as representatives of the commodity spot market, movements in the S&P 500 index as a proxy to the US stock market performance and movements in sector-specific weekly market capitalization as the sector performance. Our empirical findings show that the movement of the S&P 500 index is significantly associated with fluctuations in gold prices but not in crude oil prices during the Covid-19 crisis. However, the 2SLS regression results show a significant comovement between commodity spot prices and the index, the results consistent with the potential omitted variable bias issues in our original regression analysis. The incremental effect of gold (crude oil) price on the index movement was dominant in the post-lockdown (pre-lockdown) period. During the COVID-19 crisis, both gold and crude oil prices had a unidirectional negative effect on the performance of specific sectors such as healthcare and energy. Only crude oil prices have a significantly negative effect on the performance of consumer discretionary, IT and utility sectors, whereas only gold prices significantly negatively impacted the performance of others such as industrial, materials, real estate, financial and communication services sectors. Uniquely, gold prices positively influence the performance of the consumer staples sector during the crisis. Our findings are robust with the instrumental variable approach and immune to simultaneity bias. Our study is the first to explore the association between commodity spot prices and the US stock market performance during the COVID-19 crisis while controlling for the effects of market and economic factors.

COVID-19 became a global health crisis affecting all collective spheres. French nonprofit organizations (NPOs) are trying to participate in the crisis response, but they are suffering from the consequences of the crisis and a structural lack of re- sources. The aim of this article is to understand how they reacted to the crisis and how they coped with the associated lack. It is based on an extensive survey of French NPOs during the first lockdown. The results show that NPOs consider- ably reduced their activity while trying to maintain social links. Despite the reorganization of working arrangements during COVID-19, the economic impact of the crisis was very strong. RÉSUMÉ La crise sanitaire du Covid-19 devient une crise globale qui touche toutes les sphères collectives. Les associations fran- çaises tentent de participer à la réponse à la crise mais, en dépit de cet engagement, elles subissent de plein fouet les conséquences de la crise et souffrent du manque de ressources qui est déjà structurel chez elles. L’objectif est de com- prendre comment elles ont réagi à la crise en composant avec ce manque. L’article s’appuie sur une enquête de grande ampleur auprès des associations durant le premier confinement. Les résultats montrent que les associations ont consi- dérablement réduit leur activité, tout en essayant de maintenir des liens sociaux si possible. L’impact économique est cependant très fort, malgré la réorganisation des modalités de travail.

We examine whether the US stock market significantly responds to the movement of commodity spot prices during the COVID-19 crisis. We regard gold and crude oil as representatives of the commodity spot market, movements in the S&P 500 index as a proxy to the US stock market performance and movements in sector-specific weekly market capitalization as the sector performance. Our empirical findings show that the movement of the S&P 500 index is significantly associated with fluctuations in gold prices but not in crude oil prices during the Covid-19 crisis. However, the 2SLS regression results show a significant comovement between commodity spot prices and the index, the results consistent with the potential omitted variable bias issues in our original regression analysis. The incremental effect of gold (crude oil) price on the index movement was dominant in the post-lockdown (pre-lockdown) period. During the COVID-19 crisis, both gold and crude oil prices had a unidirectional negative effect on the performance of specific sectors such as healthcare and energy. Only crude oil prices have a significantly negative effect on the performance of consumer discretionary, IT and utility sectors, whereas only gold prices significantly negatively impacted the performance of others such as industrial, materials, real estate, financial and communication services sectors. Uniquely, gold prices positively influence the performance of the consumer staples sector during the crisis. Our findings are robust with the instrumental variable approach and immune to simultaneity bias. Our study is the first to explore the association between commodity spot prices and the US stock market performance during the COVID-19 crisis while controlling for the effects of market and economic factors.

Global epidemic crises, such as the coronavirus (COVID-19), usually expose small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to various kinds of challenges and may put their lives at risk. This study aims to develop a theoretical model to provide insights about the association between innovation practices and the SMEs’ performance and survival while underlining the auxiliary role of external support in such a relationship. Online questionnaire has been used to collect the data from 259 randomly selected SME managers in Saudi Arabia, and the data was analyzed using the SmartPLS3 software. The structural equation modeling results showed that the innovation practices adopted by SMEs to face the repercussions of COVID-19 had a positive impact on the performance and likelihood of business survival. PLS-SEM bootstrap results indicated that external support aids strengthen the positive impact of SMEs’ innovation practices on business survival rather than its performance. The study has several significant practical implications for SME managers, governments, and policy makers that have been stated.

Purpose This paper aims to discuss the theoretical impact of COVID-19 social distancing outbreak on audit quality. Design/methodology/approach This paper uses a desk study method to explore the possible impact of COVID-19 crisis on five key considerations for audit quality during the pandemic. These include audit fees, going concern assessment, auditor human capital, audit procedures and audit personnel salaries. Findings As many believe that the COVID-19 outbreak is as yet not a financial crisis, the authors, on the contrary, believe that the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic would be the toughest challenge for auditors and their clients since the 2007–2008 global financial crisis. Specifically, the authors believe that the COVID-19 social distancing can largely affect audit fees, going concern assessment, audit human capital, audit procedures, audit personnel salaries and audit effort, which ultimately can pose a severe impact on audit quality. Practical implications Due to the implementations of work-from-home strategy, audit firms are highly recommended to invest more in digital programs, including artificial intelligence, blockchain, network security and data function development. This can help them to be more adaptable to working from home experience, which is ultimately expected to enhance the effectiveness and the flexibility of communication between auditors and their clients. Also, the authors recommend stock markets and other governmental bodies to provide temporary relaxations in compliance requirements to corporations. This procedure is expected to help firms that apply work-from-home strategy to report better earnings figures, which is appeared to be positively associated with audit quality. Originality/value To date, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, there is no academic study that explores the potential impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on audit quality. This paper, therefore, fills an important research gap in the auditing literature. In addition, this paper can be used as a base to construct a research instrument (e.g. questionnaire or interviews) to provide empirical evidence on the potential impact of COVID-19 on audit quality.

The study aims to investigate the impact of New Human Resource Management Practices (NHRM) on innovation performance mediating by organizational innovation and innovative work behavior in the educational sector during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, experiential proof to determine this relationship is inadequate. Consequently, quantitative statistical tools were implemented in the study. Using data gathered from 450 employees in the Ministry of Education in Amman-Jordan who participated in the online survey the present results indicate that there is a significant positive relationship linking NHRM practices and innovation performance. Additionally, a mediating role of organizational innovation and innovative work behavior was found. Moreover, the results identified that the relation increases more by organizational innovation mediator. Therefore, based on the results, boosting NHRM practices in the Ministry of Education will reinforce managerial implementation, fostering innovative performance. During the COVID 19 pandemic, the cruel challenges obliged the educational sector to use organizational strategies to achieve innovation within the crucial and unpredictable period, which needs practical, swifter technological practices, making it unbeatable, creative, and motivational competitive. Therefore, applying NHRM can present solutions, resolve problems, and enhance innovation among employees during the response time of a crisis. Form, execution and improved environmental sustainability within organizations that rely on permanent innovation are associated with HR practices.

The crisis caused by the COVID-19 virus has far-reaching effects in the field of education, as schools were closed in March 2020 in many countries around the world. In this article, we present and discuss the School Barometer, a fast survey (in terms of reaction time, time to answer and dissemination time) that was conducted in Germany, Austria and Switzerland during the early weeks of the school lockdown to assess and evaluate the current school situation caused by COVID-19. Later, the School Barometer was extended to an international survey, and some countries conducted the survey in their own languages. In Germany, Austria and Switzerland, 7116 persons participated in the German language version: 2222 parents, 2152 students, 1949 school staff, 655 school leaders, 58 school authority and 80 members of the school support system. The aim was to gather, analyse and present data in an exploratory way to inform policy, practice and further research. In this article, we present some exemplary first results and possible implications for policy, practice and research. Furthermore, we reflect on the strengths and limitations of the School Barometer and fast surveys as well as the methodological options for data collection and analysis when using a short monitoring survey approach. Specifically, we discuss the methodological challenges associated with survey data of this kind, including challenges related to hypothesis testing, the testing of causal effects and approaches to ensure reliability and validity. By doing this, we reflect on issues of assessment, evaluation and accountability in times of crisis.

PurposeThe rich qualitative study builds on 11 semi-structured interviews with nine neurodivergent employees and two business professionals supportive of neurodiversity to understand the lived experiences of dealing with crisis in a remote working environment.Design/methodology/approachThe purpose of the reported research is to understand how neurominorities experience remote working in the times of crisis and what the implications of this are for human resource (HR) professionals.FindingsMoving to remote work resulted in a lack of routine, distractions and working long hours, which can all be difficult for line managers to monitor. Further problems with communication in a virtual environment and lack of understanding by others were found to be particularly burdensome to neurodivergent individuals. On the positive note, remote working in the times of crisis allowed for avoiding sensory overwhelm and was seen as an important step in creating a healthy work–life balance (WLB).Practical implicationsThe findings of this study point HR practitioners' attention towards building a more neurodiversity friendly post-pandemic workplace and prompt employers to offer working arrangements, which better suit employees' domestic and personal circumstances.Originality/valueThis study addresses the lack of research on the impact of the Covid-19 crisis on neurominorities. In doing so, it answers recent calls to move away from universal HR as a route to positive employee outcomes and facilitates a more accurate reflection of organizational reality for disadvantaged members of society.

Τhe COVID-19 pandemic has mental health implications for both healthcare workforces and general population, particularly in regions heavily hit by the crisis. Τhe study aimed (i) to investigate anxiety- and depression severity differences between staff of a COVID-19 treatment unit (N = 84) and a hospital without such a unit (N = 55) in comparison to participants of a convenience general population online survey (N = 240) and (ii) to explore relations between such symptoms and hospital staff reaction to COVID-19 in a low COVID-19 burden setting. Anxiety was studied with the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-Item in hospital workforces and with the Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale (HADS) in online survey participants. Depression symptoms were assessed with the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 in hospital employees and the HADS in the online survey sample. Symptoms were classified as absent/minimal, borderline abnormal or indicating clinical caseness. Staff reaction to COVID-19 was tapped with a 9-item-questionnaire and the 22-item Impact of Event Scale-revised (IES-R). Proper tests for differences and stepwise ordered logistic regression models were employed. Anxiety- and depression severity was higher in hospital workforces than in online survey participants (P < 0.05). Anxiety was more severe in frontline- compared to backstage employees (P < 0.001) was inversely correlated with age (P = 0.011) and positively with avoidance (P = 0.028). Both anxiety and depression symptoms related to intrusion symptoms (P < 0.001). Regarding the relatively long data collection period, an inverse association between crisis duration and depression symptoms was detected (P = 0.025). These observations point to the urgent need for distress-mitigating interventions for hospital workforces even in low COVID-19 burden settings.