Vulnerabilities represent a constant and growing risk for organizations. Their successful exploitation compromises the integrity and availability of systems. The use of specialized tools facilitates the vulnerability monitoring and scanning process. However, the large amount of information transmitted over the network makes it difficult to prioritize the identified vulnerabilities based on their severity and impact. This research aims to design and implement a prioritization model for detecting vulnerabilities based on their network environment variables and characteristics. A mathematical prioritization model was developed, which allows for calculating the risk factor using the phases of collection, analysis, and extraction of knowledge from the open information sources of the OSINT framework. The input data were obtained through the Shodan REST API. Then, the mathematical model was applied to the relevant information on vulnerabilities and their environment to quantify and calculate the risk factor. Additionally, a software prototype was designed and implemented that automates the prioritization process through a Client–Server architecture incorporating data extraction, correlation, and calculation modules. The results show that prioritization of vulnerabilities was achieved with the information available to the attacker, which allows evaluating the overexposure of information from organizations. Finally, we concluded that Shodan has relevant variables that assess and quantify the overexposure of an organization’s data. In addition, we determined that the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) is not sufficient to prioritize software vulnerabilities since the environments where they reside have different characteristics.

Purpose: The objective of the research was aimed at achieving the implementation of the theory of constraints on the operating conditions of a hotel, which differs by its characteristics of traditional processes that have applied this method, from the great heterogeneity of resources needed to meet the demand of customers.Design/methodology/approach: To achieve this purpose, a method of generating conversion equations that allowed to express all the resources of the organization under study depending on the number of customers to serve facilitating comparison between different resources and estimated demand through techniques developed traditional forecasting, these features were integrated into the classical methodology of theory of constraints.Findings: The application of tools designed for hospitality organizations allowed to demonstrate the applicability of the theory of constraints on entities under conditions different from the usual, develop a set of conversion equations of different resources facilitating comparison with demand and consequently achieve improve levels of efficiency and effectiveness of the organization.Originality/value: The originality of the research is summarized in the application of the theory of constraints in a very different from the usual conditions, covering 100% of the processes and resources in hospitality organizations.

The purpose of this research work is to illustrate that using the logic of theory of constraints (TOC) concerning the Throughput is adequate in management decisions to improve performance in the context of small and medium enterprises. The TOC approach assumes the use of Throughput as an indicator of performance, and in this paper the method of chain substitution and successive approximation is proposed to analyze this indicator. After the implementation of the Throughput per hour analysis, the owner-manager changed her perspective about what her priorities should be in the exercise of the administrative process. The identification of the restriction of what prevented him from obtaining more money allowed him to make the decisions or courses of action that maximized the Throughput per hour, thus improving his performance as owner-manager, the performance of his enterprise and the economic situation of his employees. The originality of this article consists in the application of TOC approach through the design of the indicator Throughput per hour to analyse the performance of an entrepreneur and the application of the chain substitution and successive approximation method for the study of the restrictions that inhibit it.

The study provides a discussion about the leadership style of small businesses owner-managers at Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, Ecuador, supported on contingency theory of leadership. And adaptation of Hershey and Blanchard questionnaire was made in order to make it clear to the target population. A total of 175 owner-managers of small businesses and 1218 employees comprised the respondents of the study. The perception of leadership style of owner-managers and employees, style range, and style adaptability and perception of the maturity degree of employees were the variables involved in the hypotheses raised. In spite of totally or partially proving the hypothesis raised, findings of the study revealed mixed support to the theory which impedes giving clear recommendations about how to behave in certain organizational situations in the context of small Ecuadorian businesses. Results of the study caution owner-managers of small businesses to consider carefully the way they behave in certain situation to the enrichment of employee motivation toward work with the purpose to obtain a better performance of their enterprises; but should avoid assuming that there are more or less appropriate leader behaviors based on the results of this research. The study constitutes a starting point to focus the research related to leadership style in small companies, considering the preponderance of this type of business in the economy of Ecuador.

Resumen La concepción ambiental para los recursos construidos de valor patrimonial permitió adaptar e integrar teorías, modelos y sistemas empleados universalmente en la gestión ambiental, urbana y patrimonial, en un modelo conceptual para la gestión ambiental urbana de los recursos construidos de valor patrimonial. Derivado este, se concibió y desarrolló una metodología que incorpora los enfoques ecosistémicos, estratégicos y participativos, así como describe un proceso que transita por tres etapas: valoración-planificación, conservación-implementación y monitoreo-control y un conjunto de herramientas que contribuyó a conservarlos, y enriquecer dicho ambiente de una forma equilibrada, territorialmente factible y equitativa para la sociedad. Su aplicación en tres pueblos cubanos, posibilitó generar cambios e impactos favorables en el desarrollo económico local y en la calidad de su ambiente, propiciando mejores condiciones de vida; a través de ofertas de servicios, empleos, espacios sociales de uso colectivo, entre otros componentes que han ayudado al desarrollo local respectivamente. Es por ello que el objetivo del presente artículo es socializar los resultados de las contribuciones de la gestión ambiental urbana, desde el tratamiento como recurso ambiental a los valores del patrimonio construido, mediante un proceso metodológico que ayuda a su conservación y al desarrollo local.

Purpose: The objective of the present research is to design and apply a methodology to evaluate the logistics system in the transportation process in a base vehicle fleet, which contributes to decrease the costs of distribution and to increase the performance of the logistics system of the organization.Design/methodology: The proposal of a holistic technology for the management of this process is carried out, which integrates indicators and tools that improve control and decision-making activities in this area.Findings: The application of the procedure developed in the selected organization contributed to the identification of deficiencies related to the availability of the equipment and the needs of the clients, the low technical availability of the automotive plant, the low utilization of the capacity of the freight vehicles, the absence of a plan of measures to diminish the empty routes of the transport and the overconsumption of fuel due to the accomplishment of extra trips. Aspects that contributed to the redesign of some of the main functions of physical distribution such as itinerary planning, selection of means of transport and analysis of operating indicators, aspects that favored the optimization of the number of trips and, consequently, the adequate use of the equipment and the loads to be transported, observing a saving of 15% in the fuel consumption per load transported.Originality: The originality of the present research lies in the combination of different theories and techniques that contribute from a holistic approach to the logistics evaluation of the transportation process, facilitating the optimization of transportation requirements, its operation and maintenance.

The phenomenon of job satisfaction generates high costs for organizations, as it impacts on the processes of selection, training, and motivation of their human resources, while affecting the productivity and quality of organizations, even impacting on the loyalty of costumers. For this reason, forecasting or controlling the behavior of the staff turnover is of great importance for a company. However, predicting the behavior of turnover is an almost impossible intention due to the number of variables that condition this behavior. The objective of this research was to try to identify, through the use of neural network analysis, which internal variables of the organization, of an objective nature, of a demographic nature and associated with their human resources, showed a relationship or incidence on the employee turnover. For this purpose, the databases were analyzed with the turnover behavior of personnel in business organizations with different characteristics. The analysis through neural networks allowed to establish a significant relationship between variables such as average income, school level, and age; likewise, no significant differences were found in other variables such as the type of sector, years of experience in the sector, years of work in the position or years of work, the hierarchical position occupied in the organization, and the number of dependents.

The objective of this article is to examine the relationships between organizational values and the performance indicators of an organization. Two work teams were analyzed in a restaurant. To achieve the objective, a Delphi method was developed that allowed knowing the level of consensus of the members of the teams studied among a group of previously identified values, allowing to identify those values that had greater importance and regulation for each team. Through the Mann-Whitney statistical test, the relationship between values and customer satisfaction and productivity were examined, aspects that were measured in the organization studied for each work shift, where the teams analyzed worked. The research made it possible to prove the relationship between values and customer satisfaction directly and productivity indirectly, demonstrating that the work team showed greater consensus on its values in terms of importance and level of regulation showed better results in the dependent variables analyzed. The research carried out allowed the quantitative validation of the hypothesis that the shared values that regulate the behavior of the employees studied are closely related to the performance indicators.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have to face the time post COVID-19. The pandemic impacted the SMEs with great force worsening the well-known situation of lack of resources and its tendency to disappear in the very early years of existence. This systemic crisis jeopardizes SMEs in many ways and it is necessary to find ways to emerge and survive from this crisis. This manuscript conducts a literature study on more than 100 manuscripts that present recommendations from McKinsey & Company for SMEs to face post-pandemic time. Through the application of the entropy-weight coefficient method this paper finds priorities from Ecuadorian SMEs out of essential elements proposed at the literature review, to introducing at the managing process to face post COVID-19 era.

La investigación planteó como objetivo analizar las relaciones de género y formación para la ocupación de posiciones de liderazgo, tomando como referencia empresas ubicadas en la ciudad de Quito – Ecuador, con al menos 5 años de trayectoria, en donde, se aplicó un muestro aleatorio por conveniencia, seleccionado de manera indistinta personas que ocupan posiciones de liderazgo. Se empleó como instrumento de al cuestionario, logrando 218 respuestas validas depuradas y analizadas mediante el software estadístico SPSS. Los resultados evidenciaron la relación positiva del nivel de formación con la ocupación de posiciones de dirección, así como la influencia de la trayectoria profesional y la edad para que dicha relación se presente, mostrando que la condición de género femenino puede considerarse una barrera negativa para la ocupación de cargos de dirección, ampliando la teoría de meritocracia desde una perspectiva de género, que debe extrapolarse hacia la construcción de prácticas empresariales en favor de generar entornos de igualdad para la designación de cargos de alta responsabilidad; adicional el estudio permitió evidenciar que la educación es un eje fundamental para disminuir las brechas de ocupación de posiciones de liderazgo.