Group Of Small And Medium-sized Enterprises Research Articles

Knowledge Management in the Ecolabnet Project: Practical and Theoretical Utilisation of Eco-innovations

The underlying objective of the paper is to analyse the process of managing theoretical and practical knowledge about eco-innovations, utilising it in ECOLABNET project. A network of project partners consisting of RDI institutions, Intermediary Organisations, and universities was established to promote exchange and dissemination of knowledge on eco-innovative solutions and services among Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) in the countries of the Baltic Sea Region. The paper presented the principles applied in the knowledge management (KM) process within the project with a particular stress on the research conducted on the group of European SMEs form the Baltic Sea Region (BSR), first stage of ECOLABNET project implementation. The research provided much needed knowledge on the project’s beneficiaries – SMEs form the BSR region and facilitated the adjustment of the offer of the project consortium. Expert knowledge, eco-innovative products and services that have been provided by the network of partners assist SMEs in implementing and commercialising eco-innovative solutions. In this way they significantly contribute to practical application of sustainability principles by expanding the offer of project beneficiaries (SMEs) with environmentally-friendly products and services. In addition, the author also, highlights the advantages of a combined approach including expertise in the form of theoretical knowledge being supported by prototypes of eco-innovations. Their particular role in strengthening the eco-innovative capabilities of the entire network and the overall success of the project have been detailed as well.

Does offshoring boost productivity? A comparison of SMEs and large firms for Germany

We use plant-level evidence for Germany to explore the productivity effects of offshoring of small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) and compare them to those derived for a sample of large companies. SMEs usually face tighter resource constraints than larger companies, thus making it harder for them to reap the potential productivity gains associated with offshoring. We find evidence for the group of SMEs that plants that offshore business activities tend to be among the more productive ones, ex ante. However, offshoring plants lose this edge over their non-offshoring counterparts. The initial productivity gap is reversed, and the productivity of offshoring plants lags behind even several years after offshoring has actually taken place. Neither observation can be confirmed for large companies.

The role of guarantee organisations in crisis management

In this study, we examined the role of guarantee programmes in crisis management and we have also examined their regional effects. We are presenting the guarantee programs of various institutions and their most important parameters. By differentiating the counties of Hungary, we have examined the correlation between loan transactions and guarantee programmes established in each region, and we have also analysed the data with a regression function and as a result we were able to formulate useful statements. The role of guarantee programmes is not negligible, they have a huge impact on the financing situation of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) because without these programmes SMEs would not be able to improve their investments and they would not be able to develop. The development of these enterprises is an essential macroeconomic task because 99.8 per cent of Hungary’s enterprises belong to the group of SMEs. At the end of the study we are dealing with the current and near future role of the guarantee institutions and guarantee programmes and their prospects from the point of view of the SMEs.

Mind the gap: Towards a systematic circular economy encouragement of small and medium-sized companies

Despite a growing number of circular economy (CE) strategies, reports, methods and tools, researchers have provided little empirical evidence on the corporate practices in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that are crucial to affect the transition towards a CE. Although there is an increase of studies on barriers for and driver to CE, there is little knowledge about what represents CE for SMEs and which topical areas are of central interest especially for SMEs. Based on CE related literature, we identified sustainability, resource efficiency, differentiation, cooperation with stakeholders, independence from resource supply and life cycle knowledge as such topical areas. Drawing on empirical survey data gathered from a cross-sectional sample of N = 183 SMEs in Austria, we first applied an Importance-Performance Analysis (IPA) to identify gaps between the perceived performance and importance ratings, reported by SME representatives, in those topical areas. The identified gaps give a direction which topical areas offer opportunities for further improving a company’s performance. The findings reveal that the efficient use of resources as well as the procurement of resources plays a major role for Austrian SMEs. Cooperation with stakeholders, however, seems to be an underestimated topical area in the present sample. Based on the results of this IPA, we carried out a cluster analysis to identify groups of SMEs that vary according their overall perceived performance in and importance of the topical areas of CE. The result reveals four strategic groups of SMEs, namely CE frontrunners, fast followers, a late majority and laggards, which provide a basis for policy makers, intermediaries or cluster representatives to effectively address diverse SMEs as specific target groups by addressing topical areas of CE in order to facilitate a shift towards CE.

THE EXHIBITION AND COMMUNITY: HOW THEY SUPPORT SMALL MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES

The study intended to elaborate on the contribution of exhibitions and community for the development of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). This qualitative research employed a case study design, as the group of SMEs in Tangerang Selatan became the analysis unit. 25 SMEs, which are engaged in fashion, craft, and culinary participated in the study. The researchers obtained the data from observation, interviews, and document analysis. The research has revealed that participating in exhibitions brings an economic impact on their sales ranging from 20-80 percent. In terms of the involvement of the SME community, entrepreneurs obtained a lot of beneficial impacts on the improvement of their products as well. It implied the more exhibitions the more benefits SMEs obtain.

In search of high-performance workplace factors among SMEs

Purpose. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are essential contributors to employment creation and global economic growth. For long-term survival in the market, SMEs need the capabilities to organise their resources in a way that leads to high performance and competitive advantage. Based on the conceptual framework of entrepreneurial orientation and the resourcebased view of the firm, performance-influencing organisational factors among SMEs providing manufacturing services are analysed. Methodology. In this study, the financial performance of 47 SMEs was analysed, and a survey of 499 employees was conducted. Financial performance was evaluated by ROA and ROS, and productivity was measured by turnover and net profit per employee to identify high-performance SMEs. Competitive aggressiveness was measured by changes in the market share to verify whether the high-performance group of SMEs corresponds to the entrepreneurial orientation construct. A questionnaire with a six-point Likert scale and the Mann–Whitney U test were used to test the hypotheses. Findings. The managerial capabilities to create strong workplace performance exist where: (a) management has a respectful attitude toward employees, (b) management supports the development of employees’ professional skills, (c) employees are provided with everything they need to achieve high job results, (d) employees want to work for the company in the long term, (e) remuneration to employees is fully in line with their level of professional skills, (f) co-workers perform their work effectively, (g) employees work shorter job shifts. These elements constitute the knowledge-based resources of high-performance SMEs, giving them, at a minimum, a temporary competitive advantage. Value. The findings of this article contribute to the literature on entrepreneurial orientation, supplementing the construct of organisational factors with the characteristics of managerial capabilities leading to high performance and competitive advantage. Keywords: entrepreneurial orientation, managerial capability, performance, forestry SMEs Paper category: research paper

THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR RISK MANAGEMENT IN THE SLOVAK SMEs FROM THE POINT OF VIEW OF THE HUMAN RESOURCES IN THE PERIOD OF QUALITATIVE ECONOMIC CHANGES

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in developed countries represent an important part of their economic environment. They belong to accelerators of economic development in regions and countries. One of the specifications of SMEs is that they allow people to learn to use their own entrepreneurial skills. Thus, the success of SMEs depends on the skills of the person who is responsible for business management in the enterprise. Without skilled and competent managers no activity will be performed effectively. The development and changes in the economic environment, in which SMEs operate, cause the various reversals connected with uncertainty and the resulting risks. A competent person (owner/manager) in SME will need to anticipate these risks and develop appropriate mitigation and strategies for them. The owner/manager of SME should consider the fact, that there could be deviations in the realization process against the planned goal. This deviation presents the risk and the representative of SME should know, how it is possible to manage this risk. It means to reduce its negative impact. The lack of knowledge is a fundamental problem in the failure of most initiatives in the SMEs and the lack of experience can become a major risk to business survival. The goal of owners/managers in SMEs should be to reduce the possible errors and risks in that way that the SME gets into a situation in which it can anticipate changes, and it is able to respond to them and exploit them to their advantage. Each SME is unique and the risk may occur differently in comparison with other SMEs. Risk management and mitigation of risk are important to ensure the security of the company and its continuous development. The risk management in SMEs is perceived as a means of the improvement of SMEs’ success in their activities, due to the fact, that in most cases the unpredictable situations represent a serious loss-making exposure for the SMEs business sector which leads to the loss. For those SMEs whose capital base is insufficient, they can have catastrophic consequences in the case of realized activities, and they can lead to financial losses and subsequently to possible bankruptcy. For this reason, risk management is a prerequisite for minimization of the negative effects of unexpected situations. Still, a lot of SMEs rarely carry out process-related activities risk management. It is affected by limited resources (financial, human), which SMEs have, and which process risk management. There is a wide range of studies focused on risk management in SMEs, but only several of them are focused currently on the responsibility for risk management. This paper contributes to the dissemination of knowledge about the responsibility for risk management in SMEs and provides wider analysis in ways of responsibility for it. To reach the main of the paper, questionnaire surveys among 1018 Slovak SMEs were conducted. We compared the responsibility for risk management in SMEs between two groups of SMEs – technological and tourism from the point of view of sized category, and regional of SMEs. For the evaluation of differences and dependencies among three groups of respondents’ answers, according to their size category, economic branch in which they operate, and regional location, the Chi-square test was used. The associations among respondents’ answers were evaluated through Cramer’s V. The results showed the differences in responsibility for risk management among Slovak SMEs. The results of this study may provide implications for subsequent research focused on responsibility for risk management in the wider context.

Quality of Business Environment of the SME: A Sectoral View

The aim of the article is to find out differences in the perception of selected factors that determine the business environment among selected groups of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), divided according to the sector of the national economy they belong to. The first group included SMEs from the sector of transport and services. The second group included SMEs from the construction, manufacturing and agriculture sectors. The questionnaire was completed by 459 SMEs in the Czech and the Slovak Republics. To evaluate the formulated hypotheses, the Chi-square test and the Z-score were used. The case study showed interesting findings. The SMEs in transport and services perceive the competitive environment as more acceptable than the SMEs in construction, manufacturing and agriculture. In addition, the SMEs in transport and services are of the opinion that customers accept prices of their products and services to a greater extent than the SMEs in construction, manufacturing and agriculture. There are also significant differences between selected groups of SMEs in assessing the quality of the judicial system in commercial law and the view that the current level of macroeconomic indicators supports entrepreneurship and creates interesting business opportunities. The national economy sector is not an important criterion in assessing financing, the family environment, R&D infrastructure, the quality of the business environment or the quality of education. The paper brings interesting findings and new incentives for small and medium-sized enterprises; for organizations supporting the business environment; for further research and discussion on the cross-sectoral assessment of the business environment quality and its important factors.

Value Creation Attributes—Clustering Strategic Options for Romanian SMEs

Value proposition can be an important source of competitive advantage for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Unlike large companies which follow a rational and sequential process, developing a value proposition in an SME is instead a trial and error process. Therefore, those companies are experimenting with various options. The purpose of this paper was to identify the value strategies used by SMEs based on value dimensions and attributes and to find specific groups of SMEs with a similar market approach. We present a theoretical framework on customer value creation and customer value communication, followed by a quantitative research on 399 Romanian SMEs. We used a principal component analysis to reduce the number of choices and afterwards we ran a cluster analysis to identify the distinct groups of SMEs using specific value propositions. We found that there are three major strategic options based on customer experience, affordability and customization, and four distinct clusters: customer delight (A), multiple sources of differentiation (B), one-to-one marketing (C) and cost—effectiveness (D). Three groups use distinct value propositions—A focuses on customer experience, C on customization, D on affordability—while B mixes all of them.

TECHNICAL, INFORMATION AND INNOVATION RISKS OF INDUSTRY 4.0 IN SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES – CASE OF SLOVAKIA AND POLAND

The implementation of Industry 4.0 concept brings many risks mainly for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The objective of the study is a diagnosis and comparison of the perception of selected risk issues connected with Industry 4.0 implementation in Slovak and Polish SMEs, which have knowledge or experience with cluster cooperation. This category of SMEs is specific due to the fact, that not all of the SMEs have experience with cluster cooperation or know this form of doing business. For this purpose, the questionnaire survey of 787 respondents was conducted, focused on the risks of Industry 4.0 that are the most important for SMEs included in three categories: technical readiness, risks of innovation and risks of information. The statistical analysis of the survey results with the application of software STATISTICA and Social Science Statistics calculator leads to the conclusion that, except for the kind of risk of “New products and services”, all the observed risks are perceived as higher by Slovak SMEs than by Polish SMEs. The novelty of this research and its contribution to the body of knowledge lies in identification and evaluation of most important risks for specific group of SMEs related to Industry 4.0 implementation compared in two countries. The results of this research provide useful information for the practical fine-tuning of the policy aimed at transfer to Industry 4.0 in specific field – cluster cooperation, depending on the size of the enterprise.

Administrative Barriers in the Field of Employment in the EU: Empirical Evidence from Croatia and Slovenia

Purpose: Administrative barriers to employment pose a problem in Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) which have an essential role in the European economy, compared to large ones. The existing rigidity and inflexibility of the labor market have further slowed down their position in creating new jobs. Therefore, the main goal of this paper is to evaluate the current state of administrative barriers to employment for SMEs in Croatia and Slovenia. Design/methodology/approach: Applying descriptive statistics and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) on a survey data for 699 Croatian and 747 Slovenian SMEs. Findings: The empirical results on a sample of about 700 SMEs for both countries expose some differences between them. In respect of administrative barriers to employment for SMEs, the most noticeable problem in Croatia is associated to frequent changes in the regulation, while in Slovenia the most highlighted problem is associated to additional time and unnecessary number of documents. Moreover, the empirical results reveal significant differences concerning the perception of the extent of administrative barriers to employment between different groups of SMEs, whereby not all of the characteristics have the same implications on this perception. Practical Implications: The overall findings are important especially for economic policy makers, who need to consider the specific characteristics and needs of SMEs when preparing legislation. Originality/Value: The combination of primary research and comparative perspective represents the main originality and value of the paper.

Performance Management of Supply Chain Sustainability in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Using a Combined Structural Equation Modelling and Data Envelopment Analysis

Although the contribution of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to economic growth is beyond doubt, they collectively affect the environment and society negatively. As SMEs have to perform in a very competitive environment, they often find it difficult to achieve their environmental and social targets. Therefore, making SMEs sustainable is one of the most daunting tasks for both policy makers and SME owners/managers alike. Prior research argues that through measuring SMEs’ supply chain sustainability performance and deriving means of improvement one can make SMEs’ business more viable, not only from an economic perspective, but also from the environmental and social point of view. Prior studies apply data envelopment analysis (DEA) for measuring the performance of groups of SMEs using multiple criteria (inputs and outputs) by segregating efficient and inefficient SMEs and suggesting improvement measures for each inefficient SME through benchmarking it against the most successful one. However, DEA is limited to recommending means of improvement solely for inefficient SMEs. To bridge this gap, the use of structural equation modelling (SEM) enables developing relationships between the criteria and sub-criteria for sustainability performance measurement that facilitates to identify improvement measures for every SME within a region through a statistical modelling approach. As SEM suggests improvements not from the perspective of individual SMEs but for the totality of SMEs involved, this tool is more suitable for policy makers than for individual company owners/managers. However, a performance measurement heuristic that combines DEA and SEM could make use of the best of each technique, and thereby could be the most appropriate tool for both policy makers and individual SME owners/managers. Additionally, SEM results can be utilized by DEA as inputs and outputs for more effective and robust results since the latter are based on more objective measurements. Although DEA and SEM have been applied separately to study the sustainability of organisations, according to the authors’ knowledge, there is no published research that has combined both the methods for sustainable supply chain performance measurement. The framework proposed in the present study has been applied in two different geographical locations—Normandy in France and Midlands in the UK—to demonstrate the effectiveness of sustainable supply chain performance measurement using the combined DEA and SEM approach. Additionally, the state of the companies’ sustainability in both regions is revealed with a number of comparative analyses.

Artificial Intelligence Based Commercial Risk Management Framework for SMEs

Risk management in commercial processes is among the most important procedures affecting the competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), their innovativeness and potential contribution to global sustainable development goals (SDGs). The ecosystem of commercial processes is the prerequisite to manage risk faced by SMEs. Commercial risk assessment and management using elements of artificial intelligence, big data, and machine learning technologies could be developed and maintained as external services for a group of SMEs allowing to share costs and benefits. This paper aims to provide a conceptual framework of commercial risk assessment and management solution based on elements of artificial intelligence. This conceptualization is done on the background of scientific literature, policy documents, and risk management standards. Main building blocks of the framework in terms of commercial risk categories, data sources and workflow phases are presented in the article. Business companies, state policy, and academic research focused recommendations on the further development of the framework and its implementation are elaborated.

Evaluating management practices in horizontal cooperation SMEs networks: the Ecuadorian context

Abstract Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) play an important role in the economic growth of a country and of a sector. They seek to be incorporated into permanent productivity and competitiveness dynamics through a cooperation strategy. This article evaluated the application of management practices to horizontal SMEs networks of the dairy sector in Ecuador by following the constructivist methodology. The literature review and exploratory research indicated an understanding of cooperative work in the networks or Milk Collection Centers (MCCs) and identified the need to evaluate performance when applying management practices as an unavoidable element to enhance their operation and development. The construction phase took as reference a model for the evaluation of management practices in cooperation networks and contextualized it to the Ecuadorian environment. In the evaluation phase, three networks were evaluated, from which results and conclusions were obtained. The developed model identified six criteria with which the evaluations of MCCs were made, whose analysis allowed their performance level to be quantified and a proposal of some specific improvement opportunities for this sector and a group of SMEs.

The Perception of Administrative Barriers and Their Implications for SMEs’ Performance: Evidence from Slovenia

Abstract The importance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is widely recognised for the Slovenian economy. However, the issues regarding legislative and other administrative barriers and their perception by SMEs as a heterogeneous group of enterprises are not yet fully investigated. The main research hypothesis concerns that there exist significant differences in the perception of administrative barriers among characteristic SME groups. Consequently, this paper aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the key administrative barriers SMEs face in Slovenia. This entails three activities: (1) identifying the main areas in which barriers are found; (2) establishing what they imply performance-wise; and (3) providing policymaker guidelines tailored to different SME groups (size, legal form, sector, age). The empirical results, based on one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Bonferroni post hoc tests on a sample of 925 SMEs, show differences in the various groups of SMEs mentioned above. Thus, it is shown that it is most promising to address the administrative barriers through an in-depth approach that targets specific enterprise groups and is reflected within guidelines for responsible policymakers.

Communicating sustainability: Curating the ‘Making it Real’ installation, Trinity Leeds

Abstract With growing drives towards greater sustainability within the retail sector and growing requirement to conform to existing and emerging legislation, companies from ostensibly disparate sectors face the common challenge of encouraging the reduced consumption of saleable products, while simultaneously maintaining financial prosperity. Initially focused on knowledge exchange between the energy and water utilities and fashion retailers, TRANSFER (Trading Approaches to Nurturing Sustainable consumption in Fashion and Energy Retail) is now working together with a diverse group of large and SME (small- and medium-sized enterprises) retailers from a number of sectors, with the aim of successfully addressing this paradox. Combining the experiences of our commercial partners with academic expertise from a team of psychologists, fashion and management experts from the University of Sheffield and University of the Arts, London, TRANSFER is also investigating how efforts to promote sustainable consumption within retail are received and responded to by consumers. In fulfilling the project aims we hope to foster a more complete understanding of how retail sector initiatives can be successfully designed and implemented in order to have a positive impact on both retailers and their customers. This article provides a summary of the TRANSFER ‘Making it Real’ installation, held at Trinity Leeds shopping centre, (February 2015). This innovative, interactive exhibition was conceived of and developed upon the basis of discussions held with TRANSFER partners at a commercial partner workshop held in April 2014. TRANSFER is a knowledge exchange project funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Retail Sector Initiative 2013 (ES/L005204/1).

Public vs Private SMEs: A Comparison of Distress Hazard

This study considers listed and unlisted small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) of the United States separately while developing one-year financial distress prediction model for them. Empirical analysis performed using discrete-time duration-dependent hazard rate modelling technique with logit link and a set of financial covariates suggest that, at any given age the survival (hazard) likelihood of listed SMEs is significantly higher (lower) than their unlisted counterparts. Although factors affecting financial distress of both listed and unlisted SMEs are almost identical, but there exist significant difference in their scale of effect in respective groups. Further, Average Marginal Effects of respective covariates for unlisted group of SMEs are strikingly higher than their listed counterparts, suggesting higher vulnerability of unlisted SMEs due to changes in financial ratios. Our findings support the view that stock exchange listing can relieve SMEs from external financing constraints, thus reducing their likelihood of financial distress.

A perspective ON OPEN INNOVATION IN SMALL- AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES IN SOUTH AFRICA, AND DESIGN REQUIREMENTS FOR AN OPEN INNOVATION APPROACH

This paper provides key results from an exploratory research study aimed at understanding the current landscape in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in South Africa with regard to their appetite for, and use of, open innovation. The survey, which was conducted within a contained group of SMEs that belong to business network groups on LinkedIn, explored the current use and perception of open innovation. It was found that collaboration is the approach most preferred by the SMEs surveyed, with customers and suppliers as their preferred innovation partners. Based on the findings of the survey, this paper proposes 25 design requirements, grouped into five functional categories, for an open innovation approach. The design requirements have been developed as a primer to a more complete open innovation approach for SMEs.

The Survey on Cores Supplies in the SME in Automotive Remanufacturing Sector

Background: Remanufacturing of automotive components is a developing sector. The majority of companies in this sector belong to the group of SMEs. The remanufacturing benefits to the circular economy concept. The used products referred as are in the remanufacturing process bring back to as good as new condition. Supply management of cores faces a number of problems, which are discussed in the literature but there is still a lack of empirical studies in this domain. Material and methods: The research methodology consists of a literature review, where research papers from the Scopus, Science Direct and Business Source Premier databases were used. On the basis of literature review the problems are identified. The pilot survey was elaborated in order to get in depth knowledge on the organization of the cores' supplies in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Results: The survey was conducted among 40 SMEs in automotive remanufacturing sector. The paper presents the characteristics of the respondents and it identifies sources of the cores supplies. Authors discuss also the main problems which appear by organization of these supplies. Conclusions: A remanufacturing process is more complex than the respective production process. The cores' supply management is crucial for profitability of remanufacturing. This paper provides in depth view on the practical issues in the cores supply management regarding source of cores, quality problems, material matching restriction problems and high variety of cores.

Knowledge Management in the Project Life Cycle - Initial Research on Polish Smes

Abstract Contemporary organizations run their activities in an environment, which might be defined as fully uncertain and turbulent. Due to variations that occur in the surrounding environment, an increased attention of management practitioners and theoreticians is paid to new management concepts frequently in an integrated version. The authors express a deep belief that consolidation of approaches to project management and knowledge management constitutes a response to challenge for modern organizations. Research into the issue was based on an attempt to determine significance of the knowledge management issue in a life of projects performed by Polish small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Systemizing of desired knowledge management results in a project, from the point of view of its crucial success factors, is essentially substantiated in providing success of projects performed. Preliminary research included SMEs in construction engineering industry. The enterprises perform project- driven orders or apply a project approach in economic activities that they execute. Research conducted by the authors so far, implies, that the SME sector is characterized by a particularly low efficiency in project management. Hypothetic assumptions indicate that one of the main reasons of reaching an unsatisfactory level of project proficiency shaped mainly by processes of synchronizing and coordination of project activities, is an insufficient level of development of social, organization and technological systems and methods of capitalization, as well as transmission of useful project management knowledge. Essential function is performed by a group of selected respondents - 25 enterprises from the group of SMEs, including 5 micro enterprises, 12 small enterprises, and 8 medium-sized enterprises. Analyses performed so far, take into consideration the economic situation of SMEs in Poland.