Medium-sized Business Enterprises Research Articles

DIRECTIONS FOR THE FORMATION OF AN ADAPTIVE CASH FLOW MANAGEMENT MECHANISM AT SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED BUSINESS ENTERPRISES UNDER CONDITIONS OF NATIONAL ECONOMY RECOVERY

The methodological and practical recommendations for forming an adaptive cash flow management mechanism at small and medium-sized business enterprises under conditions of the post-war recovery of the Ukrainian economy are substantiated. The author's interpretation of the category «cash flow» is proposed as a dynamic indicator that characterizes the constant movement of cash resources as a result of the operational, investment, and financial activities of the enterprise associated with the receipt (incoming cash flows) or spending (outgoing cash flows) of the enterprise's cash resources, which can have a cash and non-cash form, expressed in national or foreign currency and related to a certain point in time. This made it possible to determine the ontological content of the scientific category «mechanism of managing cash flows of the enterprise» and specify its components (management goals and tasks, management criteria, management methods, management levers, management factors, management principles, specifics and features of management, management tools, managerial functions, management resources, regulatory and legal support, and information support). The author's version of the stages of formation of an adaptive cash flow management mechanism at small and medium-sized business enterprises based on the criterion of their optimization is recommended. By the functional specialization of top managers and employees of the financial subsystem, the procedure for making a managerial decision regarding forming an adaptive cash flow management mechanism at small and medium-sized business enterprises is proposed. This clarified the functional responsibilities of employees of the financial subsystem in the cash flow management process. The expediency of using a payment calendar is substantiated, which will help to synchronize cash receipts and payments. A set of measures to increase (decrease) cash flow at small and medium-sized business enterprises has been formed.

TRENDS OF THE SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT IN IVANO-FRANKIVSK REGION

The purpose. Analysis of the activities of small and medium-sized enterprises in the Ivano-Frankivsk region and the study of their development trends. Methods. To achieve the goal, a wide range of general scientific and special methods of analysis and synthesis, economic and logical methods of comparison, grouping, graphic method and others were used. The results. The structure of small and medium-sized business entities by region of Ukraine was studied. The predominance of the number of small enterprises compared to the average in all regions was determined, which is explained by the ease of registering business activities, a simplified taxation system, and less dependence of small enterprises on attracting long-term and significant amounts of financial resources. It is shown that the number of small enterprises in all regions of Ukraine varies between 93-96.5%, and the number of medium-sized enterprises is between 3 and 7%. An analysis of the activity of small and medium-sized business entities in the Ivano-Frankivsk region was conducted, which showed that there was a decrease in the number of employed workers at small and medium-sized business enterprises. Labor costs and volumes of products sold by enterprises of the Ivano-Frankivsk region, which had a steady trend of growth among small and medium-sized enterprises, were also analyzed. On the basis of the conducted analysis, the directions of the economic recovery of the Ivano-Frankivsk region with regard to the activation of small and medium-sized businesses, which will contribute to the improvement of the business climate, the attraction of investment resources and the establishment of competitive economic activity in the region, are substantiated. Scientific novelty. A scientific-methodological approach to assessing the state of small and medium-sized business entities is proposed. The practical significance. The results of the research consist in the possibility of practical use of the mentioned approach for evaluating the activity of small and medium-sized enterprises of Ukraine and recommendations for their development.

INTEGRATION OF UZBEKISTAN INTO THE INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL SYSTEM AND ITS ROLE IN BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

In this article, the activity of international integration associations, the need to develop mutual trade relations with the countries that are part of this association, as well as mutual cooperation relations with international financial organizations have been discussed. Nowadays, the connection of our independent republic with the world's major financial organizations and international funds is increasing. It is explained that this, in turn, will help the entrepreneurs of Uzbekistan to produce goods suitable for the world market and meet world standards, and as a result, economic and social welfare will further develop in the Republic, and small and medium-sized business enterprises will achieve great success.

ЗАСТОСУВАННЯ ПЛАТФОРМ ЦИФРОВОГО ПІДПРИЄМНИЦТВА У МАЛОМУ ТА СЕРЕДНЬОМУ БІЗНЕСІ

In modern conditions of development, digital platforms in small and medium-sized businesses began to be widely used during the development of Industry-4.0 globalization. Modern studies define digital platforms as an electronic environment that includes a general set (list) of goods and services with a corresponding digital configuration. Examples of digital platforms are: digital music platform "Spotify" or "iTunes", digital movie platform "Netflix", etc. The article established that from the point of view of the economy, digital platforms are auxiliary electronic environments (markets) on which sellers and buyers buy and sell goods. And digital entrepreneurship is also considered as the process of creating a new Internet business. In the process of research, it was established that thanks to the spread of digital platforms, entrepreneurs have opportunities to stimulate innovation to create new products or services. In the framework of Industry 4.0, globalization and digitalization have created some benefits for participants based on digital platforms. First of all, through digital platforms, manufacturers can assess buyers and end consumers without going through intermediaries. Also, digital platforms allow sellers to display their products in virtual shopping centers through a website, and consumers can view product information at a time and place convenient for them. It has been proven that small and medium-sized enterprises are one of the main engines of the modern economy, which contribute to the development of the country's economy, the creation of income, employment and innovation in various fields. Small and medium-sized enterprises are the key to economic growth and market competition in most developed economies due to their flexibility and ability to innovate. According to the results of the conducted research, it is confirmed that the use of digital tools and platforms helps small and medium-sized businesses to determine the right direction for improving the efficiency of small and medium-sized enterprises within the framework of Industry 4.0 and digitalization trends. After all, the activity of small and medium-sized business enterprises directly affects the total GDP of the country. Thus, the subject of further research is the study of factors that can increase the productivity of small and medium-sized business enterprises, which is important in determining the directions of the future development of small and medium-sized business enterprises. In addition, within the framework of Industry-4.0. SMEs must take advantage of globalization and digitalization to perform better and achieve greater competitive advantages.

ЗАСТОСУВАННЯ ПЛАТФОРМ ЦИФРОВОГО ПІДПРИЄМНИЦТВА У МАЛОМУ ТА СЕРЕДНЬОМУ БІЗНЕСІ

In modern conditions of development, digital platforms in small and medium-sized businesses began to be widely used during the development of Industry-4.0 globalization. Modern studies define digital platforms as an electronic environment that includes a general set (list) of goods and services with a corresponding digital configuration. Examples of digital platforms are: digital music platform "Spotify" or "iTunes", digital movie platform "Netflix", etc. The article established that from the point of view of the economy, digital platforms are auxiliary electronic environments (markets) on which sellers and buyers buy and sell goods. And digital entrepreneurship is also considered as the process of creating a new Internet business. In the process of research, it was established that thanks to the spread of digital platforms, entrepreneurs have opportunities to stimulate innovation to create new products or services. In the framework of Industry 4.0, globalization and digitalization have created some benefits for participants based on digital platforms. First of all, through digital platforms, manufacturers can assess buyers and end consumers without going through intermediaries. Also, digital platforms allow sellers to display their products in virtual shopping centers through a website, and consumers can view product information at a time and place convenient for them. It has been proven that small and medium-sized enterprises are one of the main engines of the modern economy, which contribute to the development of the country's economy, the creation of income, employment and innovation in various fields. Small and medium-sized enterprises are the key to economic growth and market competition in most developed economies due to their flexibility and ability to innovate. According to the results of the conducted research, it is confirmed that the use of digital tools and platforms helps small and medium-sized businesses to determine the right direction for improving the efficiency of small and medium-sized enterprises within the framework of Industry 4.0 and digitalization trends. After all, the activity of small and medium-sized business enterprises directly affects the total GDP of the country. Thus, the subject of further research is the study of factors that can increase the productivity of small and medium-sized business enterprises, which is important in determining the directions of the future development of small and medium-sized business enterprises. In addition, within the framework of Industry-4.0. SMEs must take advantage of globalization and digitalization to perform better and achieve greater competitive advantages.

AN EXPLORATORY STUDY OF PREDICTORS OF COMPLIANCE WITH OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY GUIDELINES IN EMERGING BUSINESS ENTERPRISES

A key operational and strategic priority of the City of Tshwane is to ensure satisfactory compliance with occupational health and safety guidelines in business enterprises that are formally registered as well as businesses that operate informally without being formally registered. Formal registration enables businesses to benefit from assistance programmes that are meant for small, micro and medium-sized business enterprises. A report published by the Statistics South Africa (2021) shows that 55.6% of South African businesses are formally registered. A study conducted by Mphai (2022) shows that the main shortcomings in terms of ensuring satisfactory compliance are poor awareness and inability to enforce applicable guidelines and municipal bylaws in business enterprises. As part of the survey, quantitative information was collected from 406 businesses in and around the City of Tshwane. The level of compliance with occupational health and safety guidelines was measured by using a set of 24 standard indicators of compliance with occupational health and safety that are used by the WHO and ILO. The level of compliance in businesses that were chosen for the survey was 53%. By WHO and ILO standards, this level of compliance is inadequate. Recommendations are made with a view to improve the current level of compliance.

Entrepreneurial Innovative Skills and Financial Performance of Women-Owned Enterprises in Balogun Market, Lagos Island, Nigeria

This paper explored the relationship between innovative skills and financial performance of women owned enterprises in Balogun Market, Lagos Island, Nigeria. This study was guided by Hoselitz’s Theory of entrepreneurship supported by the innovative theory of entrepreneurship. This study adopted the correlational research design. The target population was 1000 entrepreneurs of small and medium-sized women-owned business enterprises in Balogun market the fluid survey formula was used to select a sample of 280 entrepreneurs. Questionnaires were used to collect the required primary data. The study utilized both descriptive and inferential statistics to analyze and interpret the data, Descriptive statistical techniques comprising of frequency distributions, tabulation, and numerical descriptive measures of percentages, means and standard deviations were used to summarize, organize, interpret and present the primary data. To measure the extent of association between the independent and dependent variables of study the inferential statistical tool comprising of Pearson correlation coefficient was employed. Ethics of objectivity, informed, maintenance of confidentiality, and anonymity, and voluntary participation were strictly adhered to. Findings showed that there is a strong significant relationship between innovative skills and financial performance of women owned enterprises. The study concludes that women entrepreneurs are innovative to some extent though they tend to invest on new products/services without prior market research which may lead to failure especially if the demand for new products is out of a wave that may not last long. Innovation is necessity in entrepreneurship since it has been recognized as a crucial enabler of increased profitability. The study recommended that women entrepreneurs should continuously strive to enhance innovativeness to strengthen the performance of their enterprises. Keywords: Entrepreneurial Innovation, innovative skills, Women-Owned Enterprises financial performance

How SMEs benefit from environmental sustainability strategies and practices

ABSTRACT There is considerable literature on sustainability, but studies that specifically address small and medium-sized business enterprises (SMEs) are limited. This paper addresses the gap in current quantitative research concerning the link between environmental sustainability and performance in SMEs. Stakeholder and neo-institutional theories and resource-based view are used as underpinnings to hypothesise relationships between relational motives, internal sustainable environmental strategies, and operational, economic, and environmental performance in SMEs. We statistically analyse survey data completed by a sample of 49 SMEs in the Houston, Texas metropolitan area by applying regression path analysis, bootstrapped with .95 CI (Bias Corrected and Accelerated) of 2000 samples on all regressions. The results show significant relationships between (1) the relational motives and sustainable internal environmental strategies and (2) sustainable internal environmental management strategies and operational, economic, and environmental performance in the sampled SMEs. Conclusions from the results, managerial and theoretical implications, limitations, and future research opportunities are discussed.

Digitalization of accounting processes at small and medium-sized business enterprises

The article highlights and analyzes trends in the use of information systems in accounting. The main advantages of using software products in the work of accounting staff are revealed. Transformation of professional skills of an accountant requires from him today not only knowledge of accounting methods, but also the ability to quickly and fully master modern technologies for collecting, processing and exchanging information. The history of development and formation of information systems is investigated. The main reasons for the beginning of the use of software products in enterprises in order to simplify and optimize the accounting process in different areas of accounting are outlined. The essence of the concept of "digitalization" is revealed. The orientation of the company's development strategy on digitalization is a prerequisite for its effective work and increase competitiveness. The authors reviewed software solutions of domestic and foreign developers, as well as among them a number of those that can be used by small and medium enterprises to digitize and simplify accounting. Software products greatly facilitate the process of enterprises and their accounting. Information systems speed up the process of information processing, summarization and storage, which in turn reduces the workload of the specialist. Every accounting program is evolving and improving. Given the recent changes in the country, the market of information systems and technologies has increased many times by domestic developments, which, in turn, compete with foreign software products. The information systems market has become attractive for world-class companies that develop lightweight versions of their own programs, as well as adapt them to the needs of Ukrainian users.

Economic aspects of organization of production and processing of hemp products by small and medium-sized business enterprises

The article covers the organization of production of commercial seed and hemp stock with the possibility of there further processing into the same type of fiber by agricultural enterprises of small and medium business.

Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in the Russian Federation: Regularities of Spatial Distribution

Small and medium-sized business enterprises (SMEs) have been operating in the Russian Federation since 1991. The study is devoted to the development of methods and tools for assessing the current structure of production volumes, the number of employees and the number of small and medium enterprises, as well as individual entrepreneurs through: economic and mathematical modeling; analysis of statistics for all SMEs of each of the regions in Russia; modeling of the weights of small, medium-sized enterprises, individual entrepreneurs in the overall indicators of SMEs and their distribution by regions of Russia is based on the functions of the density of normal distribution. Association of regions of the country with similar indicators is based on cluster analysis using the k-means method. The nine functions of the normal distribution density obtained in the course of the computational experiment have a high quality of approximation of the empirical data, which was confirmed by the Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Pierson and Shapiro-Wilk tests. Clusters have been formed that unite the regions of the country with similar indicators, namely, the specific weights of production, the number of employees and the number of business entities. The results can be used to solve the problems of institutional, financial and infrastructural support for the development of entrepreneurship in the regions of Russia, and the proposed methodology is applicable for studying the activities of territorial aggregates of enterprises of any state.

К вопросу о развитии инструментов фондового рынка для субъектов малого и среднего бизнеса

The article focuses on the fact that contribution of enterprises and organizations of the segment of small and medium-sized enterprises to the creation of GDP does not exceed 21.9% in Russia. Entrepreneurial activity remains below the global average, and only 2.9% of the active population show interest in starting their own business, whose involvement in small business in our country is 1.5, 2 and 3 times lower than similar indicators in China, the EU and the United States. Conditions for business development are largely determined by the availability of funding sources. It is shown that one of the problems of small and medium-sized business market segment development is weak availability of bank credit resources. The actual absence of alternative financial sources for small and medium-sized enterprises to bank lending creates serious risks for the economy. The intensification of the use of exchange-traded instruments to finance small and medium-sized business enterprises is very important. The national project “Small and Medium-sized Entrepreneurship and Support of Individual Entrepreneurial Initiative”, the Roadmap of the Bank of Russia for the development of small and medium-sized entrepreneurship financing, the creation of the exchange segment “Growth Sector” on the Moscow exchange, guarantees and sureties of the Small and Medium-sized Entrepreneurship Corporation should implement an effective mechanism to stimulate the entry 
 of business enterprises into the stock market. It has been stated that there remains a set of unresolved problems hindering the achievement of this goal. In order to overcome them, there have been proposed a number of additional measures for the successful implementation of the conditions created for small and medium-sized enterprises to enter the corporate bond market

Evaluating the labour productivity of social enterprises in comparison to SMEs in Australia

Purpose The social economy – including not-for-profits, cooperatives, mutual organisations and social enterprises – is playing a stronger role than ever in the delivery of public policy. Yet, these organisations are often anecdotally viewed as relatively inefficient providers. The purpose of this paper is to compare the profitability and labour productivity of social enterprises in the State of Victoria in Australia with that of small- and medium-sized business enterprises (SMEs) in the same state. This paper found that, although social enterprises generally generated smaller profits and, therefore, could be less profitable, their relative level of labour productivity (value added and income to labour employed) was comparable or higher than that of SMEs. This paper responds to the need for comparative insights about social enterprise performance and considers the implications of these findings for new public governance. Design/methodology/approach The social economy – including not-for-profits, cooperatives, mutual organisations and social enterprises – is playing a stronger role than ever in the delivery of public policy. Yet these organisations are often anecdotally viewed as relatively inefficient providers. Findings This paper found that, although social enterprises generally generated smaller profits and, therefore, could be less profitable, their relative level of labour productivity (value added and income to labour employed) was comparable or higher than that of SMEs. This paper responds to the need for comparative insights about social enterprise performance and considers the implications of these findings for new public governance. Originality/value This is the first work that has been done of this sort that has looked specifically at Australia circumstances.

EVALUATION OF THE CONTENT OF CONTROLLING CONCEPT: HOLISTIC APPROACH

From a scientific point of view, the analysis of the controlling concept and specification of the definition of controlling, taking changing economic, social and cultural conditions into account, are important in order to disclose the meaning and importance of controlling, to identify the object, functions, tasks of controlling and its place in the organisational structure of a company, to form a controlling system and distinguish its elements as well as to create a methodological basis for introduction of a controlling system into a company. Having considered that there is a huge variety of controlling definitions as well as explanations and interpretations of concepts, the content analysis method was used for examining the controlling concept. The analysis of the content of controlling definitions revealed that significant differences among the controlling concepts are related to identification of the research fields of controlling as well as distinguishment of dominant elements defining the goal, purpose and activities of controlling. After systematizing the concepts it was determined that controlling has to be analysed as a system combining narrower fields of research (procedural, functional, instrumental). After carrying out the analysis of dominant elements of controlling provided in the definitions it was revealed that most of them emphasize that controlling is oriented towards achieving the company's goals without specifically mentioning these goals. It is suggested to widen this concept by indicating that controlling has to be oriented towards achieving strategic and operational goals and concrete results of these activities have to be reflected through creation and increase of the company's value. Such approach is based on the attitude that the purpose of creating and introducing every new management system, including controlling, has to be related to additional value which, in the long run, can be created by connecting strategic and operational activities. When analysing the concepts of controlling in the respect of designation of dominant activity fields it was noticed that the management support activity is mentioned the most often and in the controlling system it is realised through various other activity fields. Their recurrence frequency in the provided definitions differ; yet the most frequently mentioned activities are those of planning, control and information support. Taking into account the fact that current controlling definitions do not identify the conditions under which this system would function efficiently it is appropriate to widen the definition of controlling in this respect by indicating that development of a controlling system flexibly responding to the changing external and internal environment as well as oriented towards factors creating a company's value is efficient in competitive and dynamic business conditions. The results of the conducted survey on the essence and the level of perception of the controlling in Lithuanian medium-sized business enterprises show that 54.7% of all surveyed mid-sized company executives and accounting and finance professionals have a clear perception on the controlling. The rest respondents identified controlling as control, internal control, management accounting, or were unable to define this category at all. Analysis of whether the level of control perception depends on the experience of the application of the controlling system in the companies, it has been determined that the perception level of the companies in which the control system has been applied or planned to be applied in the future, is significantly higher.

Inculcating ethics in small and mediumsized business enterprises: A South African leadership perspective

This research provides a much needed and deeper insight into the management of ethics by leaders of medium-sized business enterprises in the South African context. Utilising a mixed methodological approach of qualitative and quantitative analyses, the research describes the unique ethical risks faced by leaders of medium-sized businesses, and how these leaders attempt to mitigate such risks through embedding their personal values within the organisation, and the systems and operational mechanisms adopted to assist them in this regard.

Barriers to the growth of small, micro and medium-sized business enterprises in the Vaal Triangle region of South Africa

The purpose of the study was to identify and quantify factors that are responsible for the high rate of failure in newly established SMMEs in the Vaal Triangle region of Gauteng Province in South Africa. The study was based on a stratified random sample of size N = 303. Stratified random sampling was used for collecting data by using a structured, pre-tested and validated questionnaire of study. Statistical analyses were performed by using descriptive methods such as frequency tables, cross-tab analyses and factor analysis. The study found that 21% of businesses were not viable financially. The study also showed that viability in small and medium-sized enterprises in the Vaal Triangle area was adversely influenced by difficulty in securing loans, lack of training opportunities, and shortage of entrepreneurial skills. The study showed that the growth of newly established businesses was hampered due to difficulty in securing credit on favourable terms from micro lending institutions and the lack of training opportunities on entrepreneurial activities.

Analysis of the Risks of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in the Zilina Region

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are very sensitive to changes in the business environment which after a certain time are always reflected into quantitative characteristics of this sector. In 2013, we accomplished a statistical survey on current trends in the field of business risks for SMEs in selected regions of the Czech Republic and Slovakia. In this article we want to analyze the effects of selected risks of the survey with respect to the length of the small and medium-sized business enterprises in the Zilina region. SMEs should be aware of their risks, mainly due to their importance in the economic system of the Slovak Republic, which mostly lies in their inconsiderable share to create job positions in the region.

English

English

Breastfeeding in the Workplace: What's Wrong with the Right?

There are two main differences between the Philippine and American statutes that promote breastfeeding. First, the Philippine law provides that lactation breaks should be compensated while the American law does not. Second, the Philippine law provides for “culturally appropriate lactation care and services” whereas majority of American states exempt breastfeeding from public indecency laws.Accommodating the need of a nursing employee to take regular breaks to express breast milk is appropriate but giving her full pay while clearly not engaged in her usual duties is undoubtedly the very kind of special treatment that paves the way to animosity not only between employer and employee but also among co-employees. Forty minutes of paid lactation break for every eight-hour working day translates to about twenty-two days of paid leave each year. This is certainly no joke for small and medium-sized business enterprises. On this basis alone, employers already have a good reason to discriminate against the hiring of female employees of child-bearing age.Along the same vein, resentment might also arise among the nursing employee’s co-workers because of possible perception of unfair special treatment. This can be especially true for women who do not breastfeed, whether by choice or by necessity. It is a difficult proposition to advance that a single father, an adoptive mother, or a biological mother who is suffering from a medical condition that precludes her from breastfeeding, might need to work overtime to earn extra income to purchase expensive infant formula while a nursing mother protected under this law receives her regular income even when she is not performing her usual occupational duties. In the end, the privilege can result in subtle discrimination against a nursing employee because of the perception that her family duties are getting in the way of her job performance, and, she even gets paid for it.Finally, the statutory grant of paid lactation breaks might be hovering around excessive government endorsement of breastfeeding to the point of casting stigma on women who cannot or do not want to breastfeed. The bottom line is that breastfeeding should purely be a woman’s choice that must be accorded due respect regardless of whether her decision is to engage or not to engage in such activity, and regardless of her reason, or even the lack of it, behind either decision. Breastfeeding is still an imposition upon a woman’s body, a servitude that cannot be required against her consent. Some, but definitely not all women, may opt to breastfeed their infant, hence, it is enough that we provide the opportunity to express and store breast milk for those who have the capacity and the desire to do the same. However, we should not go further towards discrediting those who cannot or do not.

Verslo subjektų sandorių sudarymo galimybės taikant virtualių tarpininkų teikiamas elektronines paslaugas

The aim of this research: to analyze the transaction methods and tools through a virtual intermediary providing electronic services and functions based on virtual agent generated added value to small and medium-sized business enterprises (SMB) based on transaction cost theory. Used methodology: through a complex and multi-faceted relationship analysis examining the virtual intermediary services to small and medium-sized enterprises, evaluating their performance, highlighting the added component of the value chain and benefits. The research methodology is based on the scientific literature, generalization and comparative analysis. The practical significance: the activities of business enterprises (corporations, organizations) are profitable, if usage of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) is effective. ICT is becoming increasingly important in reducing business operating costs. E-services used in business transactions acquire special significance. European Union (EU) in the inner space in more than 20 million of SMEs and their work areas include more than 170 activities. Both internal and external competition encourages SME operators to increase operational efficiency. The article analyzes the cost-cutting options related to services provided by virtual intermediaries and has practical significance in the national and international companies. Originality/value: looking at cost reduction opportunities through a virtual agent functionality and value-added SME operator justification.