Artificial Intelligence in Business: Redefining Competencies, Finance, and Entrepreneurship

Dear Colleagues,

The global rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI)—particularly with the emergence of generative tools like ChatGPT and Bard—has initiated a profound transformation not only in managerial practices but also in the broader domains of business strategy, financial systems, and entrepreneurship. Across industries, AI is accelerating a shift from reactive to predictive management, from static business models to dynamic entrepreneurial ecosystems, and from traditional finance to AI-enhanced forecasting and risk modeling (McKinsey, 2025; Chui et al., 2023).

AI's integration into organizational processes enables decision-makers to convert data into strategic insights, automate both routine and complex cognitive tasks, personalize customer and employee experiences, and manage uncertainty with unprecedented agility. In financial services, AI is being used for algorithmic trading, fraud detection, and credit risk assessment. In entrepreneurship, AI enables lean startups to scale quickly through automation, customer analytics, and agile experimentation (Mei et al., 2024)

This Special Issue invites contributions that examine how AI adoption is reshaping:

• Managerial competencies: New demands for techno-managerial literacy, data interpretation skills, and AI-augmented leadership.
• Entrepreneurial capabilities: The evolution of digital entrepreneurship and how founders leverage AI to identify market opportunities, reduce operational costs, and innovate at scale.
• Financial strategies: The transformation of financial planning, investment behavior, and compliance in an era of AI-assisted analytics and regulation.
• Workforce development: Reskilling needs, digital inclusion, and human-AI collaboration challenges.
• Organizational design: From centralized hierarchies to data-driven, agile, and responsive structures.

We aim to explore both the drivers of AI integration such as national digital strategies, corporate innovation initiatives, and open-source ecosystems and the barriers, including digital divides, ethical concerns, employee resistance, and regulatory gaps (Stahl & Eke, 2024).

Comparative and interdisciplinary contributions are especially encouraged. The issue seeks to connect research from management sciences, finance, entrepreneurship, information systems, human resources, organizational behavior, and ethics. Frameworks such as TAM (Davis, 1989), UTAUT (Venkatesh et al., 2003) are welcome for studies addressing AI acceptability and behavioral intention, particularly in cross-cultural or cross-sectoral contexts. 

The Special Issue also aims to surface practical insights and innovative practices that support sustainable, inclusive, and human-centered AI transformation—especially for SMEs and startups in both developed and developing economies (Bobillier Chaumon, 2013; McKinsey, 2025).

Topics of Interest (include but are not limited to):

• Emerging competencies in the era of AI, automation, and digital finance
• Organizational readiness and technological literacy for AI adoption
• Entrepreneurial strategies and business model innovation with AI
• AI in financial decision-making, forecasting, and risk management
• Human-AI collaboration in complex and high-stakes business tasks
• AI’s impact on SMEs and entrepreneurial ecosystems in developed and developing countries
• Ethical, legal, and regulatory implications of AI in business and finance
• Resistance to AI-driven change and strategies for inclusive transformation
• AI in performance management, employee monitoring, and leadership development
• Industry-specific challenges and case studies (banking, tech startups, healthcare, education)
• Adaptive learning, reskilling, and financial literacy in AI-augmented environments

Methodological Diversity:

We welcome diverse methodological approaches:

• Empirical research (qualitative, quantitative, or mixed-method)
• Conceptual or theoretical frameworks
• Systematic reviews
• Case studies and comparative studies

• Experimental or AI-driven analytics

Manuscript Submission Starts on the 1rst of july 2025 and the Deadline is 31rst March 2026

All manuscripts will undergo rigorous double blind peer review in accordance with Administrative Sciences editorial guidelines. Submissions should be made through the MDPI online submission system, specifying the Special Issue title.

References

Chui, M., Hazan, E., Roberts, R., Singla, A., Smaje, K., & Sukharevsky, A. (2023). The economic potential of generative AI: The next productivity frontier. McKinsey Digital. https://www.mckinsey.com

Davis, F. D. (1989). Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user acceptance of information technology. MIS Quarterly, 13(3), 319–340. https://doi.org/10.2307/249008

Gursoy, D., Chi, O. H., Lu, L., & Nunkoo, R. (2019). Consumers’ acceptance of artificially intelligent (AI) device use in service delivery. International Journal of Information Management, 49, 157–169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2019.03.008

McKinsey & Company. (2025). The state of AI: How organizations are rewiring to capture value. https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/quantumblack/our-insights/the-state-of-ai

Mei, H., Bodog, S. A., & Badulescu, D. (2024). Artificial intelligence adoption in sustainable banking services: The critical role of technological literacy. Sustainability, 16(20), 8934. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16208934

Stahl, B. C., & Eke, D. (2024). The ethics of ChatGPT – Exploring the ethical issues of an emerging technology. International Journal of Information Management, 74, 102700. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2023.102700

Venkatesh, V., Morris, M. G., Davis, G. B., & Davis, F. D. (2003). User acceptance of information technology: Toward a unified view. MIS Quarterly, 27(3), 425–478. https://doi.org/10.2307/30036540 

Prof. Dr. Nada Mallah Boustani
Dr. Elisabetta Magnaghi
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Administrative Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• AI
• automation
• digital finance