Small Organizations Research Articles

Institutional forces, leapfrogging effects, and innovation status: Evidence from the adoption of a continuously evolving technology in small organizations

Although SMEs' innovation adoption has been widely studied, little research has explored how SMEs strategize a continuously evolving technology in a complex institutional context over time. Drawing from institutional perspectives, our case study, based on 44 interviews and field observation, seeks to analyze how institutional forces interact with the Wi-Fi adoption process at three small organizations with different innovation statuses. Results reveal the significance of institutional forces in shaping small organizations' technology adoption process. At the knowledge stage, institutional forces stem from the champion's advocacy and institutional pressures. At the persuasion and implementation stages, they are embedded in organizations' actions in following the institutional trend and complying with institutional norms. At the confirmation stage, they can be observed in organizations' shaping institutional changes or leapfrogging institutional trends. These insights challenge and extend the traditional linear perspective of innovation diffusion and contribute to the literature on technology adoption, digital transformation, innovation leapfrogging, institutional theory, and SMEs. Managerially, we propose three strategic responses (i.e., trend reformulation, service differentiation, complete transformation) that urge SMEs to utilize leapfrogging effects of technologies to renovate their innovation status.

Navigating critical barriers for green bond markets using A fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making model: Case study in Vietnam

As potent financial instruments channeling capital into climate and environmental projects, green bonds' issuance is frustrated by myriad obstacles. Therefore, this study aims to explore the critical barriers to green bond issuance in Vietnam. This study elucidates the salient barriers by utilizing an integrated multi-criteria decision-making methodology synthesizing the Fuzzy set theory-based Delphi, Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL), and DEMATEL-based Analytic Network Process (DANP). An extensive literature review of green bonds delineates five key dimensions related to impediments: Policy, Market, Financial, Capacity, and Awareness, with 38 discrete indicators representing potential obstacles. Firstly, employing a Fuzzy Delphi survey of 16 experts, 32 indicators are distilled for further analysis. Then, Fuzzy DEMATEL modeling evaluates the interrelationships and interactions among barriers. Finally, DANP is applied to obtain the relative importance of key barriers. Results unveil the five most formidable barriers as a weak regulatory framework and infrastructure (PO1), Limited availability of green bond issuance guidelines and templates (PO2), Insufficient incentives or tax benefits for green bond issuers (PO3), Limited coordination and alignment with international green bond standards (PO5), Lack of investor confidence in the quality and credibility of green projects (AW4), and Capacity constraints among issuers, particularly in smaller organisations or government agencies (CA1). The research contributes to the broader literature on green finance and offers valuable insights for promoting sustainable finance practices in Vietnam and other developing economies.

Why co-working spaces in an analogical environment exhibit different recovery abilities under the COVID-19 shock? Evidence from China

Although co-working spaces have attracted significant attention as a type of platform organisation in the sharing economy, little is known about why some spaces faced with an analogical environment demonstrate obvious differences in recovery abilities after sudden shocks, such as the one caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. To understand this novel phenomenon, we collected data from the Chengdu high-tech zone and employed grounded theory and fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) to identify the possible causal configurations for high levels of resilience in small and medium-sized platform organisations. Our findings reveal that (1) there are five antecedent configurations that multi-morphologically lead to the same outcome; (2) compared with other antecedent conditions, networking ability and diverse value co-creation with customers play more important roles in the formation of a high level of co-working spaces’ resilience; (3) under certain circumstances, a substitutional relationship exists between industrial experience and communication ability; and (4) when the endogenous factors of organisations (e.g. their abilities and resources) coincide with complex external environments, organisational resilience is expressed. In this manner, our study contributes to the organisational resilience literature and research on co-working spaces. Some practical suggestions for the sustainable development of co-working spaces are also provided.

Human Resources System Irregularities Impacting Work Scope in Small Mental Health Organizations: Performance Management and Talent Acquisition

This study investigates the impact of human resource (HR) system irregularities on the effectiveness of job scope allocation in small organizations, focusing specifically on performance management and talent acquisition. Using a qualitative approach, data were collected from a small organization providing adolescent mental health services. The findings reveal that role ambiguity, uneven workload distribution, lack of structured feedback, and undefined recruitment processes are key challenges affecting job scope effectiveness. The study underscores the importance of implementing structured HR practices to improve operational efficiency and employee satisfaction in small organizations. These improvements can enhance short-term performance and support long-term sustainability and growth.

Adopting Automated Penetration Testing Tools

Modern society is heavily reliant upon the internet. Accordingly, it is vital to ensure that the data transmitted over the internet is safe. Several tools have been created for cybersecurity experts and organizations to test the security levels of organizational networks and websites. However, due to financial constraints, small organizations need to pay closer attention to managing data with limited resources. This study explores the role of automated penetration testing tools in providing small organizations with an effective and affordable data security system. This study employs a case-study approach using multiple data-gathering methods in a charitable organization. More specifically, data was collected using interviews and experiments evaluating penetration testing tools. The results revealed that cost-effective automated penetration testing tools could safeguard small organizations from cybersecurity threats. The penetration testing tools determined that the organization’s website had various vulnerabilities. The Nessus tool discovered no fewer than 37 vulnerabilities on the website application. The ZAP testing tool showed that the website application was critically failing, leading to the accumulation of vulnerabilities. The system had 3 medium-, 12 low-, and 4-informational-risk vulnerabilities. Through the evaluation of open ports, the NMAP tool identified various vulnerabilities. These findings have important implications for small organizations. First, automated penetration testing tools can be easily conducted by small organizations to safeguard their cybersecurity without obtaining costly expert help. Second, it is recommended in the light of the findings that automated penetration testing tools be used in multiple combinations as different tools have unique contributions to cybersecurity.

The Modern Technologies of Time Management in Small Organizations

The purpose of the article is to reveal the necessity and effectiveness of modern time management technologies in small organizations. The tasks of the article are to study the features of traditional and modern technological methods of time management and their application in organizations, as well as to identify the problems of time management using the example of the Paratus educational center. Empirical research methods were used in the study. As a result of the study, it can be concluded that each organization has its own unique internal culture and its own special attitude towards such an intangible resource as time. Time management allows you to effectively organize working time to achieve optimal results. In the fast pace of competition and changes in the field of information technology, effective time management plays a crucial role in achieving success. In this sense, time management can be considered not only as a way to optimize the processes of setting and solving problems, but also contributes to the maintenance and development of the stability of the organization. As a result of the study, taking into account the specifics of the given organization, ways of increasing the efficiency of time management were developed.

Преимущества применения системного подхода для управления бюджетным дефицитом малых коммерческих организаций в сфере образования в современных условиях

В статье рассмотрены преимущества использования системного подхода в управлении бюджетным дефицитом малых коммерческих образовательных организаций в современных реалиях. Изучены причины возникновения дефицита бюджета в таких организациях. Показано, что системный подход может стать основой для повышения качества образования и оптимизации управления бюджетным дефицитом. Его применение позволяет всесторонне проанализировать финансовые проблемы и выработать стратегии их преодоления. Предлагаются мероприятия по управлению бюджетным дефицитом в коммерческих образовательных учреждениях. The advantages of applying a systematic approach to manage the budget deficit of small commercial organizations in the field of education in modern conditions as an independent direction in the financial management system, the implementation of which is focused on ensuring and maintaining highly productive activities of small commercial organizations in the field of education as part of the implementation of a financial development strategy, are analyzed.

Relevance of IPR in Small Businesses

Small businesses in India have always been one of the major occupations in rural as well as urban terrain and they are major source of income for the middle class group. As urbanization has increased the demand for the small services like grocery shops, bakeries, vegetable shops, laundry shops, juice centers, sweet shops, small hotels etc. Majorly the urban population is a mix of all the classes of people but a considerable portion is occupied by the middle and low income group, which has resulted in requirement of small services, and retail shops. As of a result of which the small businesses mushroom in the different localities, in different sizes so that they can cater to all the segments of consumers. Small business organizations contribute to the economy significantly by distributing the finished goods to the ultimate consumers, and they also create jobs in smaller units. The large business organizations contribute to economy by creating jobs in a bulk, economies of scale. The large scale organizations have the accessibility to hire legal professionals like legal advisers and naturally they give the suggestions on legal aspects for a smooth conduct of the business. In this context large or medium sized organizations have proximity to legal protection for their inventions, design, copyrights, trademarks etc, and they consciously protect their rights by patents or trademark and so on. In this article we have made an attempt to understand the extent of application of IPR in small and micro businesses.

Internationalisation of Network Enterprises from the SME Sector in Poland in 2019-2022 with a Focus on the Łódź Voivodeship

Abstract The aim of this article is to discuss the problem of internationalisation of small and mediumsized enterprises sector organisations in Poland in the years 2019-2022 with a particular focus on the Łódź Voivodeship (9th position from the point of view of entrepreneurship in the regions of Poland). The first part of the article provides the theoretical background of internationalisation of enterprises. The second part contains an analysis of empirical data on the basis of author’s own research and determinants of company growth relating to the internationalisation of the small and medium-sized enterprises sector in Poland in the years 2019-2022 with a particular focus on the Łódź Voivodeship. The main research hypothesis in the article is that the majority of enterprises in the small and medium-sized enterprises sector in the Łódź Voivodeship conduct international activities, although the geographic range of the (international) activities of both transport-shipment-logistics companies and companies from the production and service industry (outside the transport-shipment-logisitcs industry), does not translate into a high share products/services ordered on the international market to the total quantity of products/services ordered by these companies. The article was written on the basis of the literature on the subject, survey results and reports of the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development and documents of the Marshal's Office of the Łódź Voivodeship.

Developing an Evaluation Training Program for Community-Based Organizations: A Participatory Curriculum Development Approach

Community-based organizations increasingly recognize the value of evaluative insights in informing decision-making and improving their services. However, these organizations often lack the capacity to conduct and use evaluations, and traditional evaluation capacity building (ECB) activities are not always adapted to their particular contexts. This practice note introduces an innovative evaluation training program for small grassroots community-based organizations. Employing a participatory curriculum development approach, the training program was tailored to meet the specific needs and realities of the community sector. The authors first outline the collaborative process used to involve community and academic stakeholders in the program’s development. They then present the resulting training plan, consisting of seven self-directed online learning modules with chosen activities to foster learning and knowledge transfer into practice. The potential implications for designing, researching, and evaluating similar initiatives are explored and discussed.

The Effect of Performance Appraisal on Employee Performance at The University of KwaZulu-Natal

Performance appraisal (PA) is commonly used to manage as well as to measure employees’ performance at various organisations. Large or small organisations are always seeking much better ways to effectively enhance and improve employee performance thus maximising profit. The main aim of the study was to investigate the effect of PA on employee performance at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN). The hypothesis for this study was that the PA process will have a positive impact on employee performance at the UKZN while the null hypothesis was that the PA process will not have any impact on employee performance at the UKZN. The study employed a quantitative research method. The study also used a descriptive research design to help the researcher describe the characteristics of the population in an accurate and systematic approach. A stratified random sampling technique was employed, employees were divided and categorised into groups representing departments or schools they belong to, and then a simple random sampling in each group was applied. The sample size was determined to be 225 academic and support staff. Findings showed that PA has a positive impact on employee performance at UKZN. The study recommends that managers and supervisors must continue to set clear work goals and work targets for their employees as it is noted that employees are more effective and highly motivated when they know what is required from them and their work target. Appraisers must give frequent feedback to employees and help them improve in areas where they are lacking.

РИСК-ОРИЕНТИРОВАННОЕ ПРОАКТИВНОЕ УПРАВЛЕНИЕ ДЛЯ МАЛЫХ ФОРМ ПРЕДПРИНИМАТЕЛЬСТВА В АГРОБИЗНЕСЕ

The role of agribusiness in the period of economic transformations and the significant impact of crisis phenomena has increased. Small business is becoming attractive as the most flexible area in the agricultural economy of the country (RF). In a proactive vision of the problems of risks of small business organizations, attention is focused on the role of the concept of the threefold nature of the applica-tion for the formation of risk management policy. The triplicity of risk orientation implies taking into account the economic, social and environmental aspects of ag-ribusiness. The groupings of operational risks, social responsibility of business and environmental ones are given.

The essence and prospects of implementing digital innovations in the activities of small organizations

The essence and prospects of implementing digital innovations in the activities of small organizations

Strategies for Effective Capacity-Building in the Fight Against Commercial Tobacco.

The Center for Black Health & Equity's approach to addressing health inequities relies on the inherent ability within community-based organizations to respond to public health priorities while addressing the political and social determinants of health. By using Dr. Robert Robinson's Community Development Model as a foundational framework, communities can address systemic barriers that impede optimal health outcomes. The model includes community engagement and mobilization activities that motivate communities to achieve equity-centered policy change and offers milestones that show progress made toward their goals and objectives. We operationalized the Community Development Model into the Community Capacity Building Curriculum to train community partners to form a multicultural coalition through asset mapping as a tool for community mobilization. This curriculum is both cost effective and efficient because it enables communities to address health disparities beyond tobacco control, such as food and nutrition, housing, and environmental issues. Coalitions are prepared to identify and make recommendations to address policies that perpetuate health disparities. Facing off against a powerful tobacco industry giant is challenging for small grassroots organizations advocating for stricter tobacco regulations and policies. Such organizations struggle for resources; however, their passion and dedication to the mission of saving Black lives can promote change.

Struggles of village-owned enterprise to improve performance: A case in Kupang Regency, Indonesia

Research aims: This research assessed the struggles of the village-owned enterprise of Raknamo Village in Kupang Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province, to enhance performance.Design/Methodology/Approach: This research used a qualitative approach consisting of stages, such as data collection, data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing. It collected data through in-depth interviews, non-participant observation, and document review. It analyzed data on performance indicators: resource provision, task implementation, outputs, and goal attainment that the village-owned enterprise struggles to accomplish.Research findings: This research uncovered that the village-owned enterprise of Raknamo Village faces difficulties even now, thus generally performing low in its efforts to provide resources needed, such as personnel, finances, and facilities, implement tasks, produce outputs/products, and attain goals. Specifically, it performed relatively well in renting tents and chairs, increasing little profit; however, it performed poorly in the savings and loan business and traditional weaving home industry, thus experiencing financial loss. The primary factors affecting such performance were the core managers' low managerial and entrepreneurial skills, financial inability and low cooperative attitude of the village society to repay loans, inability of village society to do profitable business, and low income.Theoretical contribution/Originality: This research evaluated the struggles of the village-owned enterprise of Raknamo Village in Kupang Regency to boost performance, which prior studies have not widely investigated. Theoretically, this research is expected to add specified academic or analytical insight into the village-owned enterprises struggling as small business organizations to improve performance.Practitioner implication: The finding has profound implications that eliminating difficulties that hinder the village-owned enterprise’s performance and building its ability to perform better hereafter are both necessary. To reach this expectation, the government should create a capacity-building program for the village-owned enterprise.

Semantic-enabled architecture for auditable privacy-preserving data analysis

Small and medium-sized organisations face challenges in acquiring, storing and analysing personal data, particularly sensitive data (e.g., data of medical nature), due to data protection regulations, such as the GDPR in the EU, which stipulates high standards in data protection. Consequently, these organisations often refrain from collecting data centrally, which means losing the potential of data analytics and learning from aggregated user data. To enable organisations to leverage the full-potential of the collected personal data, two main technical challenges need to be addressed: (i) organisations must preserve the privacy of individual users and honour their consent, while (ii) being able to provide data and algorithmic governance, e.g., in the form of audit trails, to increase trust in the result and support reproducibility of the data analysis tasks performed on the collected data. Such an auditable, privacy-preserving data analysis is currently challenging to achieve, as existing methods and tools only offer partial solutions to this problem, e.g., data representation of audit trails and user consent, automatic checking of usage policies or data anonymisation. To the best of our knowledge, there exists no approach providing an integrated architecture for auditable, privacy-preserving data analysis. To address these gaps, as the main contribution of this paper, we propose the WellFort approach, a semantic-enabled architecture for auditable, privacy-preserving data analysis which provides secure storage for users’ sensitive data with explicit consent, and delivers a trusted, auditable analysis environment for executing data analytic processes in a privacy-preserving manner. Additional contributions include the adaptation of Semantic Web technologies as an integral part of the WellFort architecture, and the demonstration of the approach through a feasibility study with a prototype supporting use cases from the medical domain. Our evaluation shows that WellFort enables privacy preserving analysis of data, and collects sufficient information in an automated way to support its auditability at the same time.

The Possibility of Sustainability Accounting Implementation in Village Owned Enterprise

The purpose of this manuscript is to provide a new perspective on the possibility of implementing sustainability accounting in small business organizations, especially village-owned enterprise. We argue that even though small business organizations have limitations in organizational resources, they have a crucial role to play in implementing the concept of sustainability accounting in the business ecosystem. We developed the theoretical arguments based on the results of previous studies. We used the library research method to identify previous research in the context of sustainability accounting and small business organizations. We have found issues related to sustainability accounting and small business organizations. We also identify the issue and elaborate it in the theoretical arguments.

Untangling the cumulative impact of big data analytics, green lean six sigma and sustainable supply chain management on the economic performance of manufacturing organisations

Big data analytics provides up-to-date information to facilitate organisational decision-making and boost economic performance. However, an organisation’s big data analytical capability must be investigated to determine its importance in driving economic performance through continuous improvement and sustainability-related tools such as green lean six sigma and sustainable supply chain management. We conducted an empirical study and obtained 443 effective responses from managerial staff working in small and medium-sized organisations in Pakistan. Using structural equation modelling and artificial neural networks, we investigate the effects of big data analytics, green lean six sigma and sustainable supply chain management on economic performance. Our result shows that green lean six sigma and sustainable supply chain management partially mediate the relationship between big data analytics and economic performance. Although the implementation of sustainable supply chain management is identified, it is supported by technological but not cultural compatibility in the current operating environments of the organisations. As a theoretical contribution, this study enriches the literature on digitisation by relating it to the dynamic capability theory. As per practical contribution, this study reveals that the amalgamation of big data analytics, green lean six sigma, and sustainable supply chain management strengthen the organisation’s economic performance.

Corporate social responsibility: the key to improving brand equity and reputation for local sports associations in Islamic countries

PurposeAttracting resources (financial and non-financial), supporters and the community’s attention to sports and physical activity has become essential for local sports associations (LSAs). Corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives are innovative and less imitable tools for strengthening relationships with customers (Lim et al., 2018), and there needs to be relevant research on CSR and the variables discussed in this study at the level of small sports organizations. Moreover, past research has focused on professional sports organizations in developed and non-Islamic countries. So, the following research questions are: What is the influence of CSR initiatives on the organizational reputation, brand equity and customer satisfaction of LSAs operating in the context of recreational sports, particularly in Islamic developing countries, and how does this relationship evolve within the framework of small sports organizations?Design/methodology/approachParticipants (n = 290) consisted of all customers who used the services of LSAs in the Islamic Republic of Iran). This research seeks to measure the relationship between variables within a causal model based on structural equation modeling.FindingsThis study critically examines the connection between CSR, customer satisfaction, organizational reputation and brand equity in LSAs. This study presents a model that explores how CSR influences customer satisfaction, reputation and brand equity in LSAs in developing countries.Research limitations/implicationsConsequently, customers are likely to feel more satisfied with LSAs that demonstrate a commitment to CSR, and this leads to evaluations of the organization’s reputation and brand equity, ultimately resulting in outcomes for them.Originality/valueThis research presents a comprehensive theoretical model that examines the relationship between CSR, customer satisfaction, reputation and brand equity of LSAs in developing Islamic countries. LSAs must understand and recognize customer interests in social issues and their response to various CSR programs.

Organization of effective accounting in a small enterprise

The article is devoted to the organization of accounting in small enterprises. Proper and effective organization of accounting is of great importance for the development and existence of each enterprise. Choosing the right accounting methods suitable for a particular organization, which take into account all its features of functioning and the specifics of its activities, provide the company with reliable information on the basis of which management decisions are made that are important for the further functioning and development of the enterprise, as well as accounting (financial) statements are compiled. The article provides recommendations on the organization of accounting for small organizations. These include the reasonable choice of the person who is responsible for accounting, the choice of the form of its management, the use of an abbreviated chart of accounts, which groups accounting accounts into enlarged groups, as well as the use of the cash method and the use of abbreviated reporting forms. All the recommendations presented in the article allow you to collect information about the state and movement of accounting objects more quickly and in the most convenient way, as well as reduce the intensity of the accountant’s work.