Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Small and medium retailers'
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Gunawan. "Performance measurement among small-and-medium-sized UK Internet retailers." Thesis, Loughborough University, 2007. https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/2134/7897.
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Internet retailing is one of the fast-growing business sectors in the UK, and this sector is currently entering a more stable development stage. In this stage, the issue of business strategy and performance measurement, often neglected during the dotcom era, is gaining in importance. Although various studies have been done, the investigation of this issue is limited. This study helps to fill this gap by investigating performance measurement and business strategy of Internet retailing business, and their significance in enhancing business performance. A mail questionnaire was used in a survey of UK Internet retailers. The questionnaire contained variables of performance indicators, use of performance measurement, strategic orientation, businessp erformance, and business profile. The survey produced 252 responses of small-and-medium-sized internet retailers, defined as having less than £10 million of annual online sales turnover. By factor analysis, strategic orientation can be treated as having two dimensions:( 1) conservativeness, and (2) aggressiveness; business performance, two: (1) financial, and (2) operational; and performance measurement, one: the number of performance indicators measured. The findings show that UK Internet retailers are likely to concentrate their performance measurement more on financial, market-sales, and web-related indicators rather than customer and process. After controlling for variations of business size, the empirical results reveal that (1) more conservative retailers are likely to measure more performance indicators, (2) retailers using more performance indicators are likely to have better operational performance, and (3) less aggressiveness retailers tend to be associated with better financial performance. This study has provided evidence that strategic orientation is associated with the financial aspect of business performance, and performance measurement with the operational aspect of business performance. The results provide useful insights for Internet retailing managers, especially concerning the importance of performance measurement, and the choice of strategic orientation. More importantly, this study opens up possibilities for further study of performance measurement and businesss strategy of internet retailing business
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Okonkwo, Godwin Oseloka. "Innovation Strategies of Small and Medium-Sized Central North Carolina Discount Retailers." ScholarWorks, 2016. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/2166.
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In central North Carolina, small and medium-sized discount retailers have had a high failure rate, which is troubling considering that small businesses create jobs and drive successful innovation that is critical for economic development. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore experiences regarding successful innovation strategies of 20 discount retail industry owners and general managers located in central North Carolina. This study was grounded in Rogers`s diffusion of innovations conceptual framework and Christensen`s disruptive innovation theory. Data collection occurred through semistructured face-to-face interviews with owners and general managers of discount retail industry. Data analysis strategies included a modified Van Kaam method to identify essential ideas and coded data into categories of relevant themes. Three prominent themes emerged during data analysis: (a) Discount retailers supported innovation, (b) innovation was the source of economic growth for these retailers, and (c) discount retailers said they need innovation for competitive positioning. The results may help strengthen innovation strategies of local discount retail businesses, which could produce greater profitability and growth. Further, social change implications include the potential to provide business owners with new ideas, leading to increases in tax revenues, which could help local governments provide better services in their communities.
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CHEUNGSUVADEE, Kittima, and kittimatom@gmail com. "BUSINESS ADAPTATION STRATEGIES USED BY SMALL AND MEDIUM RETAILERS IN AN INCREASINGLY COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT: A STUDY OF UBON RATCHATHANI, THAILAND." Edith Cowan University. Business And Law: School Of Management, 2006. http://adt.ecu.edu.au/adt-public/adt-ECU2007.0002.html.
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This thesis presents a study of business adaptation strategies employed by small and medium retailers in order to be sustainable in a climate of rapid and significant environmental change in regional Thailand. The study was carried out in Ubon Ratchathani, a large regional city in North Eastern Thailand which shares many of the difficulties encountered by regional businesses in regional Thailand. Changes over the last ten years have been considered in this work and recent strategies adopted by the small and medium retailers have been investigated. Using extensive input from a study group which represented approximately 10% of all small and medium retailers, the study attempts to isolate the successful strategies for the region.
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Cheungsuvadee, Kittima. "Business adaptation strategies used by small and medium retailers in an increasingly competitve environment: A study of Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2006. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/57.
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This thesis presents a study of business adaptation strategies employed by small and medium retailers in order to be sustainable in a climate of rapid and significant environmental change in regional Thailand. The study was carried out in Ubon Ratchathani, a large regional city in North Eastern Thailand which shares many of the difficulties encountered by regional businesses in regional Thailand. Changes over the last ten years have been considered in this work and recent strategies adopted by the small and medium retailers have been investigated. Using extensive input from a study group which represented approximately 10% of all small and medium retailers, the study attempts to isolate the successful strategies for the region.
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Cheungsuvadee, Kittima. "Business adaption strategies used by small and medium retailers in an increasingly competitive environment a study of Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand /." Connect to thesis, 2006. http://portal.ecu.edu.au/adt-public/adt-ECU2007.0002.html.
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Musika, Fred Angels Amulike. "Relationship marketing of small to medium sized textile retailers in the Northwest Province / Fred Angels A. Musika." Thesis, Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education, 2002. http://hdl.handle.net/10394/1468.
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Luong, Ngoc Anh Minh, and Liangqi Wang. "Factors Influencing E-commerce Usage within Internationalisation : A study of Swedish small and medium-sized fashion retailers." Thesis, Uppsala universitet, Företagsekonomiska institutionen, 2019. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-387796.
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Purpose − Previous research has shown that Swedish Small-and-Medium enterprises (SMEs) have a relatively low level of digital maturity when it comes to export, thus limiting growth potential in international markets. This study aims at investigating this phenomenon with a focus on e-commerce, as it is among the top digital channels that have a large impact on international expansion. Factors influencing the usage of e-commerce channels within internationalisation by Swedish SME fashion retailers will be investigated. Design/methodology/approach −The overall methodology used in this study is qualitative with an abductive mode of reasoning. The study follows a case study approach using multiple cases with interviews as the primary data source. Based on literature review, thirteen factors are identified to have a certain influence on the usage of e-commerce within internationalisation. Semi-structured interviews are conducted with seven cases to examine the identified factors from literature and explore new factors if possible. Findings − The results present eleven critical factors including eight identified factors from the literature together with five newly discovered factors. They are Relative Advantage, Perceived Usefulness, Compatibility, Costs, Customer Reachability, Branding and Advertising, Time-efficiency, Technology Competence & Configuration, Organisation Size, Competitive Pressure, and Main Product Features. These critical factors have various effects depending on companies’ business operations and the degree of online internationalisation. The results further confirmed that the Uppsala Model is still applicable in the context of Swedish SME fashion retailers internationalising with e-commerce. Value − This study has contributed to the existing research on e-commerce and internationalisation in terms of the influence on firms’ e-commerce usage within internationalisation in the post-adoption phase, and under the specific business context of Swedish small-and-medium sized fashion retailers. Based on the conclusion, practical implications are offered for similar companies in this industry
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Raksawong, Boon-arak. "The effects of creolisation on Thai fashion consumers, retailers and their supply chain." Thesis, University of Gloucestershire, 2015. http://eprints.glos.ac.uk/4258/.
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This research aims to investigate the effects of creolisation (in a manifestation of cultural change, cultural mixing and ethnicity) on consumer behaviour and fashion supply chain management in a Thai retailing context. In this study, creolisation is the process of cultural crossover that appears when local culture has been influenced and integrated with foreign culture. This doctoral study develops a theoretical and conceptual framework that addresses the main question of how creolisation impacts on Thai fashion consumers, retailers and their supply chain. Based on reviewing literature, there is lack of studies exploring the relationship between creolisation, consumer behaviour and fashion supply chain management in Thailand. It is expected that the study will complete this gap by providing the empirical findings to the literature. The study was based on the scientific realism position with a deductive (Thai fashion consumers) and an inductive (Thai fashion retailers and their supply chain) approach to gain a detailed understanding of their relationships. This also relates to mixed methods approach, including the three main methods used. Quantitative questionnaire surveys were conducted with Thai fashion consumers, whereas qualitative interviews and document analysis were used to collect the data from Thai fashion retailers and manufacturers. In terms of data analysis, the data from questionnaire survey were analysed by descriptive statistics and multiple-regression analysis, whereas the interviews data and document analysis were analysed by directed content analysis. In particular, the literature review and the findings from qualitative interviews were used to construct hypotheses to be tested in the quantitative analysis. Overall findings were integrated in the interpretation stage based on the suggested conceptual framework. Furthermore, the triangulation approach was considered to validate the research findings on the relationship between creolisation, Thai fashion consumer behaviour and Thai fashion supply chain management. The study contributes to the extant literature by providing not only new insights into its deficiencies, but also developing a suggested conceptual framework to inform practice. In particular, Thai fashion retailers may have interest in the suggested conceptual framework and apply it in order to enhance an understanding of the relationship between creolisation, consumer behaviour and supply chain management. Moreover, the findings could contribute to the responsiveness strategy in fashion supply chain management. In terms of research methodology, the study also contributes to a methodological foundation of supply chain management research. There is the using of mixed methods approach which integrates a quantitative method and qualitative method in order to investigate the effects of creolisation on consumer behaviour and fashion supply chain management in Thailand.
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Pereira, Diego Campos. "Sistemática para implantação de gerenciamento por categorias em supermercados de pequeno e médio porte." reponame:Biblioteca Digital de Teses e Dissertações da UFRGS, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10183/164601.
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Com maior acesso à informação, disponível em múltiplos meios de comunicação, o comportamento do consumidor vem sofrendo uma acelerada transformação. O cliente, neste trabalho denominado de shopper, que realiza compras em um ponto de venda, está cada vez mais consciente e exigente com relação a o quê, quando, como e onde comprar. Diante deste desafio, a presente dissertação se propõe a definir um sequenciamento de etapas e ferramentas para operacionalização do gerenciamento por categorias (GC) em varejos de pequeno e médio porte, de forma a auxiliar o gestor no processo de tomada de decisão, visando atender às necessidades dos seus clientes. Desta forma, primeiramente, foi desenvolvido e aplicado um método para a identificação e priorização de atributos de compra que influenciam o shopper. Com base nestes atributos, em um segundo momento, foi desenvolvida uma sistemática para implantação de GC em varejo de pequeno e médio portes. Esta sistemática está baseada em um conjunto de ferramentas e de indicadores de desempenho que permitem às organizações melhorar a gestão dos seus departamentos. Por fim, a sistemática foi aplicada a um supermercado de médio porte, em seu departamento de hortifrutigranjeiros, sendo apresentados os resultados oriundos desta aplicação.Considering the easier access to information, available in different types of media, the customer’s behavior is changing and very fast. The customer, so called shopper, who makes purchases in a selling point, is increasingly aware of what, when, how and where to buy things. Based on this challenge, this thesis aims to define a sequence of steps and tools for implementation of category management (CM) in small and medium-sized retailers, to help managers in the decision-making process, to meet the customer needs. Thus, first, it has developed and implemented a method for identification and prioritization of purchase attributes which influence the shopper. Based on these attributes, in a second moment, it was developed a systematic of CM applied to small and medium-sized retail. This systematic is based on a set of tools and performance indicators that enable organizations to improve their departments’ management. In the end, the systematic developed was applied to a medium-sized supermarket, in their fresh produce department, and the results arising from this application were presented.
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Piato, Éderson Luiz. "Análise do alinhamento da estratégia de marcas próprias do atacado distribuidor em relação às perspectivas dos clientes varejistas." Universidade Federal de São Carlos, 2011. https://repositorio.ufscar.br/handle/ufscar/3375.
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Previous issue date: 2011-04-29Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais
For the past few years, wholesalers have shown strong involvement with marketing strategies, including private labels management. This study aims at evaluating the alignment between wholesalers private labels strategy and its retailing customers perspectives, analysing the marketing elements involved in this relationship. This is a qualitative research with exploratory purpose. The research was developed in five sequential phases. In phase one, secondary data was collected though bibliographic research. During phase two, research s elements and questions were defined. Wholesalers were contacted during phase three, asking for retailers contacts from their database (retailers that buy private labels from the wholesalers). During this phase, a pre-test of the study was developed with two different retailers. In phase four, semi-structured interviews with managers and owners of fifteen food retailers in Sao Paulo and Minas Gerais were developed. The interviewed retailers are wholesalers private labels customers. Phase five was characterized by the data analysis, using content analysis and data sources triangulation. As a result, the study presents an analysis of wholesalers private labels strategy based on retailers perspectives about the marketing elements involved in this strategy. Through a comparative analysis of these elements, it was possible to evaluate how retailers understand the marketing elements developed and managed by wholesalers. It was also possible to analyse which aspects facilitate or not the alignment between agents perspectives, as well as strategic and managerial implications of the gaps in this strategy. From the results, it was possible to develop an analytical scheme with suggestions to facilitate the alignment between wholesalers private label strategies and the role of its customers (the interviewed retailers), specially in terms of joint management and implementation of the strategy. Finally, limitations of the research and suggestions for future researches were presented.
Nos últimos anos o setor atacadista tem apresentado forte envolvimento com estratégias mercadológicas, incorporando às suas atividades tradicionais o gerenciamento de produtos com sua própria marca, a exemplo do que já vinha ocorrendo no setor varejista. O objetivo desta pesquisa é avaliar o alinhamento da estratégia de marcas próprias do atacado distribuidor em relação às perspectivas dos clientes varejistas, analisando os elementos de marketing congruentes e incongruentes dessa relação. Esta pesquisa é qualitativa com propósito exploratório e foi realizada em cinco fases sequenciais. A primeira consistiu no levantamento de dados secundários por meio de pesquisa bibliográfica. Na segunda fase foram definidos os elementos, pressupostos e questões da pesquisa que orientaram o processo de coleta de dados. Na terceira fase da pesquisa foi solicitada a colaboração de atacadistas distribuidores para a disponibilização do banco de dados de clientes varejistas que compram produtos de marcas próprias. Nessa fase também foi realizado um estudo piloto com dois clientes varejistas de diferentes perfis. Na quarta fase da pesquisa, foram realizadas entrevistas semi-estruturadas com gerentes e proprietários de 15 estabelecimentos varejistas supermercadistas dos estados de SP e MG, que compõem a carteira de clientes de marcas próprias do atacadista distribuidor que colaborou com a pesquisa. A quinta e última fase caracterizou-se pelo processo de análise dos dados que utilizou técnicas de análise de conteúdo e triangulação das fontes de dados. Como resultado, o estudo apresenta uma análise da estratégia de marcas próprias do atacado distribuidor com base na perspectiva dos clientes varejistas sobre os elementos de marketing envolvidos na estratégia. Por meio da análise comparativa desses elementos, foi possível avaliar como os clientes varejistas compreendem os elementos de marketing desenvolvidos e gerenciados pelo atacadista distribuidor e que aspectos favorecem e ou dificultam o alinhamento entre as perspectivas dos agentes, assim como as implicações estratégicas e gerenciais provocadas pelos gaps da estratégia. A partir dos resultados foi proposto um esquema analítico com sugestões para auxiliar o alinhamento da estratégia de marcas próprias dos atacadistas distribuidores em relação aos gaps e ao papel dos clientes varejistas no esforço conjunto de desenvolver e gerenciar a estratégia. Por fim, foram apresentadas as limitações desta pesquisa, assim como sugestões para trabalhos futuros.
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Chen, Lingxin, and Jiahong Xu. "Optimization of soft beverage inventory managementin practice for SMEs : A case study of JN Ltd. In China." Thesis, Internationella Handelshögskolan, Högskolan i Jönköping, IHH, Företagsekonomi, 2015. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-27350.
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Introduction: Nowadays beverage companies must focus on maintaining healthy finishedgoods inventory stocks in order to be able to decrease inventory costs, meet customerrequirements and to obtain competitive advantage. However many beverage SMEdon’t have an accurate planning and forecasting to manufacturing inventories. Thereforethey often face the problem of optimization in inventory management due to several differentreasons. As a result, company loses its competitiveness. Thus, there is a need tocoordinate Inventory activities of beverage SMEs to improve inventories’ planning. The purpose of this study is to analyze how inventory management is organized in a small Chinese beverage company. Frame of reference: This research is based on the theoretical framework relates with InventoryManagement (IM) and Retailer-managed inventory (RMI), vendor-managed inventory(VMI) and Collaborative Planning, Forecasting and Replenishment (CPFR).Empirical Data were collected through personal interviews and organization documents. Methodology: The research strategy for this paper is a single case study. This strategy allows investigating topic in its real life context. The inductive approach is used for this research based on qualitative data. The major source of data collection was semi-structured interviews and the company's documents. For analyzing data categorization approach was applied. Conclusion: The study found that inventory management theories presented in scientificliteratures are used in practice. To achieve better inventory management for beverageSMEs, the authors summarize four importance parameters based on literatures and findings.The authors also provide some suggestions based on the importance parameters inthe conclusion to optimize the case company’s inventory management.
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Jenkins, Mark. "Subjective strategies for small business growth : an evaluation of the causal maps of small independent retailers." Thesis, Cranfield University, 1995. http://dspace.lib.cranfield.ac.uk/handle/1826/10031.
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This study concerns the issue of small business growth. It has been widely established that small business growth is important to a region, both economically and socially, most notably through the generation of employment. However, a number of studies have revealed that only a small proportion of small businesses generate this growth. There is a lack of understanding concerning the reasons why some small businesses grow and others do not. This study considers the subjective strategies of small business owner-managers as a basis for drawing comparisons between growers and non-growers. A causal mapping methodology is used to represent subjective strategy. These causal maps provide a representation of how individual owner-managers see the development of their business. A series of propositions, developed from the existing literature, provide an indication of the characteristics which may discriminate between growth and non-growth oriented owner-managers. These propositions allow for the comparison of the causal maps which are elicited from thirty owner-managers of independent retail businesses. The thirty respondents are grouped into comparative categories based on growth and non-growth intentions and behaviours. The evaluation of these propositions indicates that the owner- managers of growing businesses hold subjective strategies that are more coherent, and include a greater proportion of performance measures than their non-growth oriented counter parts. The maps of non-growth oriented owner-managers show a greater proportion of concepts relating to control and the individual's personal needs and values.
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Mbambe, Putumani. "Construction small and medium enterprise development." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/11681.
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The objective of this treatise study was to determine the leading causes which limit the development of SMME contractors, to ascertain the accessibility of SMME incubators available to support SMME development and to identify the cause of poor management performance by SMME contractors based in the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality. A qualitative method was adopted for this study. The primary data was collected using a structured interview guide which incorporated the sub problems and the research questions. The salient findings of this study are: SMME contractors are unaware of the available business information and government support programmes designed to assist them; SMME contractors do not receive capital from banks when they don‟t have collateral; Desperation to secure projects among SMME contractors is the leading cause for under-pricing; SMME contractors are still paid later than the 30 day period for completed work; SMME owners who had started their construction companies lacked training and do not have the relevant experience and knowledge required to manage a construction company. In summary the study concluded that SMME who have access to capital have high growth prospects than those that have not. Accessibility to information and awareness of available opportunities remains significant for the growth of SMMEs. Construction related knowledge and training for SMME owners contributes vastly to the success of SMME companies. The study recommended that; Government needs to promote the accessibility of SMME incubators and ensure institutions designed to assist SMMEs with finance are accessible; The effectiveness of current development programs for small enterprises and skills development programs should be reviewed; MMBM should setup a mentoring program to help train SMME contractors theoretically and practically; NMBM local government should promote women to own SMMEs in order to close the gap of inequality in the built environment; Banks must work with government institutions to ensure that they are able to fund SMMEs.
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Ravarini, Aurelio. "Information technology capability within small-medium enterprises." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2010. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/151.
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The study presented in this thesis investigates the influence of IT capability on the relationship between IT expenditures and long term business performance. To do so, the Resource Based View (RBV) has been used as the theoretical framework, and, within such a framework, the concept of sustainable competitive advantage has been used as a point of reference. IT capability, a term often mentioned in the scientific literature dealing with the applications of RBV in the IS field, has been the subject of this study. Within the IS discipline, IT capability is perceived to have considerable influence on the effect of IT expenditure on the long term results of an organization. However, few studies have identified the extent of this influence and indeed the very definition of IT capability has been so ambiguous that no measurement instrument has been developed and universally accepted.
In this thesis we recognized this lack and carried out a multi-method study, to first identify a comprehensive definition of IT capability and then to develop and validate a measure of IT capability and evaluate its role on business performance.
The empirical study was performed within the context of small-medium enterprises (SMEs),which implies a lower level of organizational complexity but in order to reflect the reality ofmodern business all such organisations were involved in inter-organisational networks within industrial aggregations in Italy. Eleven SMEs were involved in a multiple case study, and 77 SMEs (belonging to the textile and the mechanical industrial districts in Italy) were surveyed and these results analysed and aggregated to form some conclusions with respect to the meaning and influence of IT capability.
The study was conducted over a number of stages to allow an initial definition of IT capability to be evaluated within a case study context and then expanded prior to the main survey. As such the literature review and analysis of previous studies was carried out in two different time periods as the scope of the study was refined.
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Hung, Pui-ling Elsa. "Government support for small and medium enterprises (SMEs)." Click to view the E-thesis via HKUTO, 2003. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record/B31967206.
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Jensen, Joan, and n/a. "Electronic Commerce and Small and Medium Business Enterprises." University of Canberra. n/a, 2005. http://erl.canberra.edu.au./public/adt-AUC20070517.130605.
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The aim of this research was to discover the issues influencing the adoption of e-commerce by small and medium business enterprises (SMEs) in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). The demand aspect of the theory of diffusion of innovation enabled the formulation of a number of research propositions which formed the focus for this research. Seventy-five randomly-selected SMEs within the ACT were interviewed. Of these seventy five, fifty had adopted e-commerce and twenty-five had not.
Findings complemented results from other studies, but also added to them. Factors from the demand aspect of the theory of time, resources (personnel, financial, technological), business organisation, size, return on investment, push by outside agencies or clients, and communication channels were found to be of little importance. Of greater importance were characteristics of the SME operators themselves (such as their innovativeness, their relative youth and educational level), the size of their business, the number of years it had been operating, and marketing issues. A prime consideration was that of attaining and maintaining a competitive edge over their competitors. Security and privacy issues were of little consideration prior to the adoption process, but became of much greater importance once SMEs had adopted e-commerce.
Some things discovered by this research that have not appeared in the reporting of other studies included:
� The importance of tertiary education for the primary decision-makers in the organisation;
� The role banks played in the adoption process;
� The high cost and difficulty of compliance with government regulations, especially regarding the employment of staff; and
� The lack of use of specifically established communication channels, set up by government bodies or associated industry organisations to educate and inform SMEs about the potential and process of e-commerce.
Results of this research have implications for a large number of associated stakeholders � government, educational institutions, and trade, industry and professional associations � and as such deserve to be widely disseminated.
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Juell-Skielse, Gustaf. "ERP adoption in small and medium sized enterprises." Licentiate thesis, Stockholm, 2006. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:kth:diva-3982.
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Rauch, Andreas. "Success factors of small and medium sized enterprises." [Amsterdam] : Amsterdam : University of Amsterdam, Faculteit Maatschappij- en Gedragswetenschappen ; Universiteit van Amsterdam [Host], 2000. http://dare.uva.nl/document/57256.
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Rayner, R. "The Experience of Small and Medium Sized Firms." Thesis, University of Bradford, 2010. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.521455.
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熊佩玲 and Pui-ling Elsa Hung. "Government support for small and medium enterprises (SMEs)." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2003. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B31967206.
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Yeung, Ka-wing Ricky, and 楊家榮. "IT implementation in small and medium manufacturing enterprises." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 1997. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B31268432.
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Ismail, Noor Azizi. "AIS alignment in small and medium sized firms." Thesis, Loughborough University, 2004. https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/2134/7715.
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The concept of alignment orfit has been discussed in the literature, both in accounting and information systems (IS). Most of prior studies either focused on the alignment between accounting information systems (AIS) and contingency factors or information technology (IT) and contingency factors. However, none has attempted to investigate the alignment between organisational information requirements and information processing capacity. This study helps to fill this gap by exploring the alignment of AIS requirement and AIS capacity among Malaysian manufacturing SMEs with less than 250 employees, and examining its impact on performance. Using a mail survey, datafrom 310firms was collected on nineteen AIS characteristics so that AIS requirement and AIS capacity could be compared. Data was also collected on firm performance, information systems (IS) success, various contingency factors and standard demographics. Based on the nineteen AIS characteristics, the measurement of AIS alignment was explored visually and using two analytic measurement methods: (1) the 'moderation' approach and (2) the 'matching' approach. Using cluster analysis, three distinct groups of SMEs were identified for both approaches. The results indicated that a significant proportion of Malaysian SMEs had achieved high AIS alignment. The group of SMEs which has a higher degree of AIS alignment was found to achieve greater IS success and better organisational performance than the group of SMEs with a lower degree of AIS alignment. Interestingly, the findings of this study also indicate that AIS alignment is positively related to the level of IT sophistication, CEO commitment to IT, and internal expertise, AIS capacity is positively related to the level of IT sophistication, but there was little evidence of the contingency factors affecting AIS requirement. Further, the findings of this study also provide support for past observation that the 'moderation' approach of measuring fit is more meaningful than the 'matching' approach when performance criterion is included in the research model. In summary, this study has deepened current understanding of AIS alignment, and has provided useful insights for CEOs of SMEs in planning their IS implementation. More importantly, it opens up possibilities for further study of AIS alignment in SMEs, both in Malaysia and on a global basis.
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Khater, Mohamed Mohamed Ahmed Rashad. "Identifying make competences in small and medium manufacturers." Thesis, University of Cambridge, 2013. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.608014.
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Van, Niekerk Dirk Bouwer. "Small and medium enterprise transformation (South African manufacturing)." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2002. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/53055.
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Thesis (MScEng)--University of Stellenbosch, 2002.ENGLISH ABSTRACT "The environment sets many new requirements and SMEs can reactively adapt or they can design themselves to affect and operate in the environment as effective as possible. " - Trade and Industry Minister Alec Erwin (2000). The objective of this thesis is to assess how applicable transformation methodologies (essentially a design process) are to South African small and medium manufacturing enterprises (SMEs). Enterprise Engineering was chosen as the reference discipline for this study. Enterprise Engineering is an emerging discipline that draws upon a wide variety of reference disciplines as a foundation. Transformation from an Enterprise Engineering perspective is considered as a rigorous engineering approach through careful planning to transform an enterprise from a current state to desired future state. Two methodologies from the Enterprise Engineering discipline were chosen, and their applicability to serve as transformation methodologies was assessed for South African manufacturing SMEs. The thesis starts by stating the thesis objective, problem statement, approach followed, limitations of the research and thesis outline. Global competitive trends for nations and manufacturing enterprises are then discussed. The current South African environment for manufacturing SMEs is reviewed in order to better understand the specific needs for transformation. Current literature on the reference disciplines of Enterprise Engineering is introduced to establish a sound foundation for understanding the transformation concepts. Transformation, Enterprise Engineering methodologies and the type of transformation that each methodology presents are defined, and some important concepts of the methodologies are discussed and evaluated against prevailing South African practices. A pre-transformation assessment method is established to help in the decision process of whether a SME should go ahead with transformation at all, and if so, what the extent and type of transformation approach should be. An application for each of the two transformation methodologies is done. The Transform Enterprise Methodology was applied at a small manufacturer of microwave components for the electronic warfare industry, and the Master Planning methodology was applied to a business unit that specialises in rapid product development. The results of the applications are included in this report. Lessons learnt and conclusions drawn are presented in the sections following.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: "Die omgewing stel baie nuwe vereistes en klein en medium ondernemings kan reaktief aanpas of hulle self herontwerp om die omgewing te beinvloed en om so effektief as moontlik daarin te werk. " - Handel en Nywerheid Minister Alec Erwin (2000). Die doewit van die tesis is om te bepaal hoe toepasbaar transformasie metodologië is tot Suid Afrikaanse klein en medium vervaardiging ondernemings. Ondernemings Ingenieurswese is gekies as verwysings disipline vir hierdie studie. Ondernemings Ingenieurswese is 'n opkomende disipline wat gebaseer is op 'n wye verskeidenheid verwysings disiplines. Transformasie vanuit 'n Ondernemings Ingenieurswese oogpunt kan beskou word as 'n werksintensiewe ingenieurs benadering om 'n onderneming te transformeer van 'n huidige tot 'n toekomstige begeerlike toestand in ooreenstemming met 'n plan. Twee metedologië vanuit die Ondernemings Ingenieurswese disipline is gekies, en hulle toepasbaarheid om as transformasie metedologië gebruik te word is bepaal vir Suid Afrikaanse klein en medium vervaardiging ondernemings. Die tesis begin deur die tesis doelwit, probleem stelling, benadering gevolg, begrensing van die navorsing en oorsigtelike skema te gee. Globale kompeterende tendensies vir nasies en vervaardinging ondernemings word daarna bespreek. Die huidige omgewing vir klein en medium vervaardiging ondernemings in Suid Afrika word dan beskou. Dit word gedoen om beter te verstaan wat die spesifieke behoeftes vir transformasie is. Huidige literatuur oor Ondernemings Ingenieurswese verwysmgs disiplines word bekend gestelom 'n goeie fondasie daar te stel vir begrip van transformasie konsepte. Transformasie word gedefinieer en twee tipes transformasie metedologië word bekendgestel. Die belangrikste konsepte van die twee metedologië word dan bespreek en geevalueer teen algemene Suid Afrikaanse werkpraktyke. 'n Pro-transformasie evalueerings metode is opgestel om te help met die besluitneming of daar voortgegaan moet word met transformasie in 'n onderneming, en indien wel, watter tipe metedologie gebruik moet word en wat die omvang van transformasie moet wees. Toepassings van beide metedologië is gedoen. Die Transformeer Onderneming Metedologie is toegepas op 'n klein vervaardiger van mikrogolf komponente vir die elektroniese oorlog industrie, en die Meester Plan metedologie is toegepas op a besigheids eenheid wat spesialiseer in pas komponent vervaardiging.
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Suijker, Dylan. "Ecodesign strategies in Small- and Medium Sized Companies." Thesis, Uppsala universitet, Institutionen för geovetenskaper, 2018. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-354983.
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The objective of this study is to find out how and why Small to Medium sized Enterprises (SME’s) practice ecodesign. This problem is investigated by conducting seven qualitative interviews with spokesmen from ecodesigning SME’s in The Netherlands. The motivations for the researched SME’s to practice ecodesign are that there are new business opportunities, that it improves the corporate image, that they have a desire to change production to benefit the environment, and out of (expected) governmental legislation. In this thesis it was found that the researched SME’s get their knowledge to ensure that their products are sustainable firstly from their employees. They also apply the method of trial and error, they consult scientific publications, suppliers, and on sustainability events. The Life Cycle Assessment was the only scientific method or tool that was used by the businesses of the respondents. The benefits of practicing ecodesign for the SME’s are that the demand for ecodesigned products is growing, that it improves the corporate image of the company, that it improves business to business relations, that it increases the loyalty of employees to their businesses through working on values that are important to them, and that it provides a new base for innovative ideas. Obstacles to practicing ecodesign seem to be that trade-offs have to be made and that consumers perceive that the ecodesigned products are overpriced.
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Mohammad, Fedek. "Sustainability drivers in Small and medium-sized enterprise's." Thesis, Högskolan i Gävle, Avdelningen för industriell ekonomi, industridesign och maskinteknik, 2020. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hig:diva-33220.
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Problem: There is little amount of research focused on small and medium-sized enterprise’s (SMEs) and their work with sustainability. Most research on sustainability drivers has been developed on large organizations which makes this thesis provide a perspective on the most important sustainability drivers in SME’s and how they are embedded in SME’s. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to deepen and enrich knowledge of sustainability drivers in SME’s with the aspects internal and external drivers. Method: This thesis has a qualitative and quantitative research approach where the interview included qualitative questions and quantitative rankings of the internal and external drivers by the interviewed SMEs. Findings: The findings of the qualitative and quantitative research indicate that SMEs have embedded sustainability in their work by ranking the most important drivers. The highest ranked internal drivers are proactive leadership, company culture and moral and ethical obligations. The highest ranked external drivers are regulation and legislation, customer demands and expectations, society’s raising awareness and market demands. Conclusion: The main contribution of the thesis is presented by highlighting the most important drivers in SMEs, external stakeholders might have an idea of which driver influences SMEs to make them sustainable; if sustainability is not embedded in the SME. This thesis did not aim to generalize the findings about SMEs sustainability drivers, but to obtain a deeper insight by the interviewees experiences.
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Mehra, Vikram. "Online Marketing in Small and Medium sized companies." Master's thesis, Vysoká škola ekonomická v Praze, 2009. http://www.nusl.cz/ntk/nusl-76923.
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Online marketing plays a significant role in business and the World Wide Web has proven to become a platform for success for many enterprises and industries. The advantages that comes with the use of the internet platform for the marketing goods and services makes it imperative for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to adopt, in order to stay competitive in the fast changing global market. The main objective of this study is to explore the dynamics of the Internet in connection with (SMEs). The case study approach is used in this study. Hence, this thesis provides an analysis of the internet marketing strategy in the company NWT a.s. and its e-shop Patro.cz. The study found that, the internet as a marketing tool can enhance customer relationship and enable SMEs in particular to maintain close contact with their customers and provide them with a compelling shopping experience so as not to lose them to other competitors.
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Yeung, Ka-wing Ricky. "IT implementation in small and medium manufacturing enterprises /." Hong Kong : University of Hong Kong, 1997. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record.jsp?B18873406.
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Ion, E. (Elena). "Brand building for small and medium sized companies." Master's thesis, University of Oulu, 2018. http://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:oulu-201810052882.
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Small and medium sized companies represent 99% of businesses in the European Union and provide two thirds of the total private jobs. Despite the importance of SMEs category, there is scarce literature that covers the topic of brand creation in SMEs context. Knowing that SMEs have specific characteristics and encounter different kind of problems than large corporations, there is a clear need to create a better understanding about brand creation in SMEs environment.
The purpose of this study is to describe brand creation and brand building activities of six companies from Oulu area. Besides that, topics that are considered important in brand creation process, as perceived relevance of branding and most often encountered errors are also covered.
The study was done using qualitative methods. The research was implemented as a case study, in which in-depth interviews with representatives of companies and investigation of company websites, press releases were main sources for acquiring empirical data. Theory development was done using abductive reasoning.
Present study gives concise information about most important aspects of branding, together with several easy to follow solutions for brand creation. Empirical analysis offers an overview of contemporary branding practices employed by SMEs. It points out significant changes in attitudes towards branding among SMEs owners/managers. It shows that branding is perceived as an important activity that have potential to bring future benefits for firms. Modern entrepreneurs are aware of branding and make visible efforts in creating meaningful brands starting from early stage of development of firms. They tend to consult firm’s stakeholders and use professional help for the design of visual elements. SMEs owner still plays an instrumental role in defining and managing the brand, but in our days, he is helped by at least one employee. SMEs from Oulu area tend to use unconventional branding activities, like using products created and produced under own name, participation in professional events and fairs, PR activities and social media. Focusing branding activities towards a wrong target is reported to be one of the biggest error in branding.
Entrepreneurs that know little about branding, because learning from real-life situations might provide a useful tool to deal with actual problems. Scholars that study entrepreneurship, because it offers fresh information about branding practices.
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Nazari, Shahriar. "Small to Medium Enterprise Business Leaders Managing Change." ScholarWorks, 2017. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/4393.
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Organizational change is necessary for businesses to survive and prosper. One of the main reasons organizational change is unsuccessful is the inadequate leadership style used by business leaders. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore leadership strategies business leaders used to manage change. The target population comprised a purposeful sample of 15 business leaders from various businesses located in the metropolitan area of Southern California. The conceptual framework for this study was the transformational leadership theory, which holds that leaders can use inspiration and motivation to inspire employees, especially during times of organizational change. A pilot study confirmed that all research questions were relevant to the research topic. Data were collected through face-to-face semistructured interviews and company document reviews. Data analysis included identifying relevant themes using a thematic approach to pinpoint, record, and examine patterns. Data were compared during each phase of the data collection process, revealing themes of managing employee's needs, mentoring/training programs, motivation, influence, and communication. Member checking was used to validate themes and strengthen the trustworthiness of the interpretations. The results from this study may assist business leaders in facilitating organizational change. The implications for positive social change include the potential to contribute to job growth and employee prosperity in local communities.
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Hottentot, Lars. "Investigating the Barriers Small Independent Retailers Must Overcome to Enter E-commerce in Sweden." Thesis, KTH, Industriell Marknadsföring och Entreprenörskap, 2017. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:kth:diva-209674.
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In today’s society, it is increasingly important for retailers to have an online presence, yet the adoption rate of e-commerce by small retailers is still lagging behind the that of larger retailers. This is due to the difficulty small retailers have to overcome the barriers to develop their web-shops, such as cost and time. This thesis will examine the barriers of single-store independent retail businesses to sell and market their goods online. It will use the Technology Acceptance Model framework developed by Davis (1986) to help understand how the barriers affect the retailers attitude towards the process of developing their web-shops. Specifically, it will ask the retailers, through interviews, what barriers exist, what their perception of difficulty to overcome these barriers is, and what their perception of importance to overcome these barriers is. The major findings show that the barriers for retailers have not changed in the past decade, nor has the difficulty level of overcoming these barriers. The majority of small retailers who have not yet developed their web-shops don’t feel that the effort to do so is worth the potential gains, yet the small retailers who have already developed their web-shops did feel it was worth the effort. The retailers all felt that the process was more difficult than it should be, and insisted they would make the leap if the cost and effort required was reduced.
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Kotzé, Clifford Jennings. "The development and evaluation of an andragogic training programme for Ciskeian retailers." Thesis, Rhodes University, 1992. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002801.
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One of the greatest challenges facing South Africa and the "independent states" of Transkei, Bophuthatswana, Venda and Ciskei over the next decade will be job creation and the development of the skills of the people. This is particularly true of Ciskei with its rapid population growth, unemployment, shortage of skilled manpower and over abundance of unskilled labour. Small business and, in particular, retailing with its relatively low entry requirements, can play a significant role in the creation of jobs. Small business, and small business retailing in particular, suffers, however, from a high failure rate resulting in a waste of financial and human resources which a developing nation like Ciskei can ill afford. The training of people involved in small business retailing is, therefore, of great importance. There is no unanimity of opinion, however, as to what training models or approaches are most appropriate. The purpose of this study was, thus, to design a training model, develop an andragogic training programme for Ciskeian small retailers based upon the model and test it. In accordance with the model developed, the nature of the retailers performance problem was established, the job of the small retailer was analysed, the training needs of retailers were identified, performance standards were set, the course curriculum was developed, training strategies and styles were selected, the necessary training resources were obtained and the training programme was implemented. A pilot training programme was run in 1987 and then the amended programme was run for two years. The results of the training were measured in terms of: -the delegates reaction to the training programme -what the delegates learnt -changes in the business as perceived by regular customers -reaction of the delegates to the training programme one year later -case studies and survival rates Statistically significant positive results were obtained in all aspects evaluated. It can, therefore, be concluded that the andragogic training model for Ciskeian retailers resulted in a positive reaction of delegates to the training, an improvement in the retailer's knowledge of retailing, positive changes in the businesses as perceived by regular customer and improved survival rates of these small retail businesses.
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Ohlenschlager, Moritz. "Exit Strategies of German Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises." St. Gallen, 2008. http://www.biblio.unisg.ch/org/biblio/edoc.nsf/wwwDisplayIdentifier/03606399002/$FILE/03606399002.pdf.
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Gebramicheal, Zelalem Berhanu, and Tsegahiwot Teketel Habtegiorgis. "Internal Control in Swedish Small and Medium Size Enterprises." Thesis, Umeå University, Umeå School of Business, 2009. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-35030.
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Small and medium size enterprises are currently the major part of economic activities through out the world. Nowadays, they represent about 99% of all types of enterprises in Sweden, with providing high job opportunities to its labour force as these enterprises need focus in their development; the internal control mechanism is a means and a way of directing, monitoring and measuring the SMEs resources. It plays an important role in preventing and detecting fraud and protecting the physical and intangible resources as well as leading to high efficiency of the business operation. one since it contributes a lot for the majority of business enterprise involved in SMEs.
This study examines and describes the effectiveness of internal control systems in Swedish small and medium size enterprises. The study focuses on the main five components of internal control and their impact on achieving the company’s objectives. In so doing, the study creates a better understanding of effective internal control that may be applicable to the context of SMEs and establish theoretically the features of an effective internal control for sampled SMEs. To achieve this objective we formulate one research question: system of SMEs comply with the principles of effective internal control? into how closely SMEs follow the virtues of effective internal control in their business operation.
Applying an inductive approach in qualitative interview, the study found out that, contrary to what is generally suggested, SMEs are aware of the importance of having a good internal control system. The findings of the research enabled the emergence of a theory grounded in the collected data. Indeed, the major features of an effective internal control system applicable for SMEs are found to be control activities, effective information and communication system, effective monitoring and evaluation system framework.
Key words: SMEs, internal control, control environment, risk management, control activities, information and communication, monitoring and evaluation
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Mayanja, Jamiah. "Business ethics in Ugandan small and medium-sized enterprises." Thesis, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/8521.
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SMEs have been acknowledged by governments globally as a prime source of economic growth and development. In Africa there has been a noticeable increase in the number of SME establishments. In Uganda, SMEs are the most popular business choice and play a major role in the national economy. Although SMEs significant economic contributions are generally acknowledged, being ethical and successful has become a challenge, as many SMEs in Uganda have not fully adopted and integrated ethics into their business strategies. Understanding the reasons for the increased unethical behaviour in SMEs is central to their continued business success. The primary objective of the study was to investigate the factors that influence ethical business conduct in Ugandan SMEs. From a comprehensive literature review, three main independent variables (staff-, business- and external environment factors) were identified as variables influencing ethical business conduct (dependent variable) of SMEs. A hypothetical model was developed to determine whether the independent variables have an influence on the dependent variable. Twelve hypotheses were formulated to test the relationships between three staff factors, five business factors, four external environment factors and ethical business conduct. The study sought the perceptions of SME owners or managers in the Kampala District and utilised the quantitative research paradigm. A survey was conducted with the aid of a structured self-administered questionnaire distributed by three fieldworkers. A combination of convenience and snowball sampling was utilised. The final sample comprised 384 respondents. The validity of the measuring instrument was ascertained by using exploratory factor analysis. The Cronbach‟s alpha values for reliability were calculated for each of the factors identified during the exploratory factor analysis. A total of ten valid and reliable factors were retained. Pearson product-moment correlation and multiple regression analysis were used to test the correlation and statistical significance of the relationships hypothesised between the various independent and dependent variables. One statistically significant relationship was found between the staff factors (employee attitude) and ethical business conduct. Two statistically significant relationships were found between the business factors (knowledge acquisition and management practices) and ethical business conduct. Three statistically significant relationships were found between the external environment factors (legal requirements, industry norm and media power) and ethical business conduct. External environmental factors seem to have a greater influence on SME ethical business conduct in Uganda. Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) was used to identify if significant relationships exist between the eight demographic variables and seven reliable and valid independent variables. Furthermore, post-hoc Scheffé tests identified where the significant differences occurred between the different categories. Cohen‟s d-values were calculated in order to assess the practical significance of the mean scores. A total of twelve practical significant relationships were identified. SME owners or managers should consider employing staff with the right attitude to uphold sound ethical business values. They should implement ethical management practices to promote ethical business conduct amongst employees and ensure that employees are made aware of what is regarded as acceptable ethical business behaviour. SME owners or managers should adhere to legal requirements and industry norms to be known as businesses exhibiting ethical behaviour and utilise media to instil and guide ethical values in employees. Lastly, they must pay attention to the role that demographical variables such as: gender, level of education, current employment status, number of years in business and number of employees, play in behaving ethically in business.
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McElroy, Rachelle, Itzel Orozco, and Renee Simard. "Applying Strategic Sustainability : For Small and Medium Sized Enterprises." Thesis, Blekinge Tekniska Högskola, Avdelningen för maskinteknik, 2006. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:bth-3015.
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Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) are an underutilised sector to disseminating sustainability within communities. Entrepreneurs are action-oriented individuals who enjoy challenges and act upon environmental feedback, making them ideal change agents. However, there is a lack of tools specifically targeted towards SMEs to help them act strategically towards sustainability. In order to support entrepreneurs and motivate them into becoming catalysts for change towards sustainability the research team identified the need to provide them with a customized tool. The tool will be focused towards entrepreneurs interested in starting up new businesses with a core strategy of sustainable development. If the entrepreneur is able to apply sustainability at the beginning of their business venture, it reduces the need for later corrections. The research examines what is needed in a tool to support entrepreneurs and how to encourage them through the conception of adopting sustainable strategies.Renee Simard #1066 Amphion St., Victoria, BC V8S 4G3 Rachelle McElroy 637 Cowper St. Victoria, BC V9A 2E8 Itzel Orozco 1138 E 22nd Ave Eugene OR 97403 United States
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Ploybut, Sutthirat. "Financial reporting by small and medium enterprises in Thailand." Thesis, University of Portsmouth, 2012. https://researchportal.port.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/financial-reporting-by-small-and-medium-enterprises-in-thailand(e3301103-2044-412e-94a6-9d76c5e727d9).html.
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The increasing complexity of financial reporting requirements, especially accounting standards, leads many countries to consider moving to simpler reporting requirements for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in order to reduce reporting burdens. In response to such concern, the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) also released the IFRS for SMEs, an international accounting standard intended for SMEs worldwide. In Thailand, SMEs are required by law to prepare and publish general purpose financial statements for statutory reporting, but the Thai financial reporting framework is complex. Thus, it would be beneficial for Thai SMEs if their reporting burdens were reduced. The IFRS for SMEs might be considered as an alternative set of accounting standards in Thailand, so its suitability to Thai SMEs is worth evaluating. This present study examines SME reporting in Thailand to ascertain its features and to evaluate its costs and benefits to SME stakeholders. Both qualitative and quantitative approaches are adopted in the study. Semi-structured interviews of SMEs, users and other stakeholders are conducted and the data are analysed using Strauss and Corbin’s grounded theory approach. A questionnaire survey of directors or managers of SMEs and a review of SME financial statements are also undertaken. Univariate and multivariate data analysis is carried out with these two data sets. Overall, the interview and survey research concludes that SMEs in Thailand prepare and publish their financial reporting largely in order to meet legal requirements. They rely on their accountants in fulfilling these reporting obligations. For SME directors, costs of reporting are not considered to be an undue burden. Tax authorities, entities’ managements and lenders, in order, are perceived to be the most important users. However, it appears that the financial information in SME financial is unable to meet the needs of these main users. Preparation of financial statements with tax motivation, limited disclosures and out-of-date information are identified as the main weaknesses in SME financial statements. The analysis of SME financial statements shows that: the majority of SMEs engage in simple business transactions and non-compliance with mandatory accounting standards exists among many SMEs. SME stakeholders generally support using simpler accounting standards for SMEs. The IFRS for SMEs seems to be too complicated for many Thai SMEs and inconsistency with tax rules is an issue. The findings of this study are of interest to standard setters and other SME stakeholders in Thailand and other countries. The study also provides implications for SMEs, their accountants and their stakeholders.
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Leith, Andrew R., of Western Sydney Hawkesbury University, and Faculty of Management. "Competitiveness of Australian small to medium enterprises in Indonesia." THESIS_FMAN_XXX_Leith_A.xml, 2000. http://handle.uws.edu.au:8081/1959.7/512.
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The purpose of this research is to determine whether Indonesian business practices and culture inhibit the competitiveness of Australian small to medium enterprises in Indonesia. Prior to the current economic demise of the Indonesian economy, Australia's trade relations with its closest Asian neighbour were not as significant as trade with countries far removed from Australia's shores. Previous research has identified that cultural problems and inadequate communication contribute towards the lack of competitiveness of international small to medium enterprises.However there has been no rigorous and comprehensive research specially related to Australian entrepreneurs and the problems they encounter in Indonesia.Several key themes emerged from this study which indicated that thorough planning and market research are more important than a comprehensive understanding of business practices and culture. What the research brings to extant literature is a rigorous and methodological analysis of Indonesian business practices from an Australian entrepreneur's perspective. This provides a structured link between the parent disciple of cross cultural communications, the plethora of information on Asian business practices, and the reality of Australian small to medium enterprises attempting to enter the Indonesian marketDoctor of Philosophy (PhD)
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Ghanatabadi, Firouzeh. "Internationalization of small and medium-sized enterprises in Iran /." Luleå, 2005. http://epubl.luth.se/1402-1544/2005/01.
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Leith, Andrew Roydon. "Competitiveness of Australian small to medium enterprises in Indonesia /." View thesis View thesis, 2000. http://library.uws.edu.au/adt-NUWS/public/adt-NUWS20030429.163902/index.html.
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Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Western Sydney, 2000.A thesis submitted as part of the candidature requirement for the award of a Doctorate of Philosophy, November 2000, University of Western Sydney. Bibliography : leaves 204-215.
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Martínez-Mejía, Pablo Rolando Molnar Joseph J. "Understanding small and medium scale tilapia culture in Nicaragua." Auburn, Ala., 2006. http://repo.lib.auburn.edu/2006%20Fall/Dissertations/MARTINEZ-MEJIA_PABLO_53.pdf.
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Partskhaladze, Vakhtang. "Development perspectives of small and medium businesses in Georgia." Phd thesis, Universität Potsdam, 2011. http://opus.kobv.de/ubp/volltexte/2013/6639/.
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After the collapse of the Soviet Union the former member states have started the transformation process. The transformation process from planned to market economy includes not only the adaptation of the economy to the new market rules but also the profound social and political transformation. For this reason such processes present huge challenges to affected societies.
The transformational recession in Georgia was significantly enhanced by the civil war and by ethnic conflicts in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. During the ethnic conflicts and civil war the business and technical infrastructure were damaged and most of them were completely destroyed. Poverty and political instability were predominated. The trade relations with the member countries of Council of Mutual Economic Assistance (Comecon) were aborted. Moreover, the conflict in South Ossetia hampered the power supply from Russia and a conflict in Abkhazia, the production and trade with tea and citruses, which were major trade commodities at that time.
In the beginning of 90-ies, Georgian government with the assistance of international organizations, such as International Monetary Fund and World Bank started to elaborate political and economical reforms. The reforms included several aspects, such as the transfer of public assets to private through privatization, the liberalization of domestic market and trade and the creation of market-oriented institutions.
Because of lack in implementation neither economical nor political transformation has been achieved. For instance, by the begin of market oriented reforms the awareness of policy makers about the importance of entrepreneurship, in particular small and medium ones for the economy was low. The absence of previous experience prevented the elaboration of appropriate policy instruments and methods for the development of competitive market economy. The stimulation of private sector has been generally neglected. This had a severe affect on political, social and economical problems, which still hampers the development of middle class in Georgia.
The presented research indicates that productive entrepreneurship is a driving force of an economy. The entrepreneurial activities on the one hand facilitate the resource allocation and on the other through the development of new products and services urge the competition. Furthermore, they contribute to technological improvements through innovation, create jobs and thus boost the economic and social development of a particular region or country. However, it is important that the legal and institutional framework is appropriately settled.
Unlike mature market economies, Georgia is not characterized by well-developed sector of small and medium sized businesses. Most existing SMEs are operating in local markets and predominantly in the shadow economy. It is also noteworthy that small business in Georgia belongs to so called “mom and pop” rather than to innovative, growth oriented businesses. They are mostly engaged in trade and craft. In addition of poor performance, the business activity of SMEs is very centralized. The vast majority of them are operating in the capital Tbilisi.
The poor performance of small and medium businesses in Georgia and their negligence by the market forces is among others due to the armed conflicts and state failure. As in the beginning of transformation process, down to the present day, the state fails to provide necessary conditions, such as rule of law, the protection of property rights and competition, transparent and uncorrupted public administration. The result is the weak middle class. The weak middle class by itself has a negative impact on economic development and democratization process in Georgia.Nach dem Zusammenbruch der Sowjetunion haben die ehemaligen Mitgliedstaaten angefangen, ihre Wirtschaftssysteme zu transformieren. Beim Prozess der Transformation von einer Planwirtschaft zu einer Marktwirtschaft handelt es sich um mehr als um einen Prozess der wirtschaftlichen Umwandlung: Er beinhaltete sowohl einen tiefgreifenden sozialen als auch einen politischen Wandel. Aus diesem Grund stellen derartige Transformationsprozesse eine große Herausforderung für die betroffenen Gesellschaften dar. Die transformationsbedingte Rezession in Georgien wurde in der Anfangszeit durch den Bürgerkrieg und ethnische Konflikte wesentlich verstärkt. Im Laufe der Kriegszeit wurden sowohl die technische als auch die geschäftliche Infrastruktur im Wesentlichen zerstört. Es herrschten Armut und politische Instabilität. Die Handelsbeziehungen mit Mitgliedstaaten des Rates für Gegenseitige Wirtschaftshilfe (RGW) wurden abgebrochen. Zudem behinderte einerseits der Krieg in Südossetien Energielieferungen aus Russland andererseits schwächte der Krieg in Abchasien die Produktion von Zitrusgewächsen und Tee sowie den Handel mit ihnen. Diese Produkte gehörten damals zu den wesentlichen Exportgütern von Georgien. Im Jahr 1994 wurden die marktwirtschaftlichen Reformen in Georgien durch den Internationalen Währungsfonds und die Weltbank unterstützt. Die Unterstützungsmaßnahmen konzentrierten sich zunächst auf den Privatisierungsprozess, auf die Stabilisierung und die Liberalisierung der Märkte. Die Stabilisierungs-und Liberalisierungsmaßnahmen wurden durch diese Unterstützung effektiv durchgeführt. Dadurch wurde ein gewisses Maß an wirtschaftlicher Stabilisierung erreicht, was jedoch die Privatisierung anbetrifft, blieben die Ergebnisse des Prozesses insgesamt mangelhaft. Es ist ganz offensichtlich, dass mit dem Beginn der marktwirtschaftlichen Reformen das Bewusstsein für die volkswirtschaftliche Bedeutung des Unternehmertums, insbesondere der KMU, unter den politischen Entscheidungsträgern allerdings nicht mit der notwendigen Geschwindigkeit gewachsen ist. Die Rolle der kleinen und mittleren Unternehmen für die Volkswirtschaft sowie die Instrumente und Methoden, um eine moderne wettbewerbsfähige Marktwirtschaft aufzubauen und institutionell zu kräftigen, waren den Entscheidungsträgern in den Georgien aus Mangel an früheren Erfahrungen zunächst unbekannt. Deswegen wurde es versäumt, Maßnahmen zur Förderung der kleinen und mittleren Unternehmen zu erarbeiten. Dies führt bis heute zu transformationsbedingten politischen, wirtschaftlichen und sozialen Problemen, welche die Entstehung eines starken Mittelstands bremsen. Die Ergebnisse der Forschung zeigen, dass auf die makroökonomische Ebene bezogen das produktive „Entrepreneurship“ einen Schlüssel zu Wachstum und Dynamik der Wirtschaft darstellt. Unternehmerische Aktivitäten ermöglichen einerseits eine effiziente Allokation der Ressourcen, andererseits treiben sie durch die Entwicklung neuer Produkte und Dienstleistungen den Wettbewerb an. Darüber hinaus erfüllen sie im praktischen Wirtschaftsleben aber noch weitere wichtige Funktionen: Vor allem gewährleisten sie den technischen Fortschritt, indem sie Innovationen durchsetzen, sie tragen zum Entstehen von Arbeitsplätzen bei und beschleunigen die wirtschaftliche und gesellschaftliche Entwicklung, indem sie brach liegende Potenziale mobilisieren. Es ist jedoch unbedingt notwendig, dass die rechtlichen und institutionellen Rahmenbedingungen korrekt festgesetzt sind, damit die Entrepreneure diese Ziele erreichen können. Die Analyse des Status quo in Georgien hat verdeutlicht, dass die überwiegende Zahl der kleinen und mittleren Unternehmen in den Bereichen Handel und Dienstleistungen beschäftigt ist. Die Tätigkeit von vielen davon ist eher als „Proprietorship“ statt „Entrepreneurship“ zu charakterisieren. Die Ursache, dass sich in Georgien eine unproduktive Form unternehmerischer Tätigkeit entwickelt hat, ist u. a. auf Staatsversagen zurückzuführen. Wie in der Anfangsphase versagt der Staat bis heute bei der Bereitstellung der notwendigen Rahmenbedingungen und der Festlegung gerechter Spielregeln, und darunter leiden kleine und mittlere Unternehmen stärker als die großen. Da die notwendigen Rahmenbedingungen in Georgien noch nicht im gewünschten Maße bereitgestellt sind, und die Institutionen einfach fehlen, erschwert das weiter die Funktion der Märkte, sodass die kleinen und mittleren Unternehmen auch durch die Märkte benachteiligt werden.
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Stripeikis, Osvaldas. "Entrepreneurship formation in Lithuanian small and medium sized firms." Doctoral thesis, Lithuanian Academic Libraries Network (LABT), 2008. http://vddb.library.lt/obj/LT-eLABa-0001:E.02~2008~D_20081211_105353-24127.
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Increased interest in small business (SME) and entrepreneurship, foster researchers to discuss about methodology of this object and to look for possible ways of development of this sector. In spite of that interest, there is a lack of common, unified methodology, accepted in all countries. Absence of systematic research of entrepreneurship process- is relevant scientific problem, which should be solved. Author describes term “entrepreneurship process” and it’s main elements. Also is presented a broad analysis of terms “entrepreneurship” and “entrepreneur” in different economical schools. Is analyzed impact of small and medium seized business on economy and it’s place in entrepreneurship process. Business environment is changing radically and one of the main tasks for organizations – to become entrepreneurial. Research model of Lithuanian entrepreneurship process is composed. According this model, level of entrepreneurship process researches, implemented in Lithuania, is identified. Varies factors, influencing entrepreneurship process, are described and presented in dissertation. In order to solve identified problems, model of formation enterprising business in SME is presented. Activities of entrepreneur are formulated in order to implement enterprising culture in organization and to foster entrepreneurial behavior of such organization.Išaugęs susidomėjimas smulkiu ir vidutiniu verslu ir jo reikšme pasaulio ekonomikai ir visam verslininkystės procesui, skatina mokslininkus diskutuoti apie šio objekto tyrimo metodologija. Nors ir visuotinai pripažįstama, kad verslininkystė yra vienas iš svarbiausių veiksniu, įtakojantis pokyčius ekonomikoje, reikia pastebėti, kad nėra nusistovėjusios vienos visoms šalims priimtinos metodikos. Tad nepakankamai ištirtas verslininkystės procesas – yra aktuali mokslinė problema. Disertacijoje atskleidžiamas šiuolaikinis požiūris į verslininkystės reiškinį ir jo reikšmę. Pateikiama išsami „verslininkystės“ ir „verslininko“ sampratų analizė skirtingose ekonominėse mokyklose. Taip pat pristatomas smulkaus ir vidutinio verslo vaidmuo šalies ekonominiuose procesuose. Analizuojama verslininkystės proceso samprata. Nagrinėjamas antrepreneriškumo reiškimasis versle ir antrepreneriškos organizacijos samprata. Parengiamas Lietuvos verslininkystės proceso tyrimo modelis. Remiantis juo, identifikuojamas Lietuvos smulkaus ir vidutinio verslo ir verslininkystės proceso ištirtumo lygį. Išryškinami veiksniai, įtakojantys Lietuvos smulkaus ir vidutinio verslo būklę ir vystymosi galimybes. Taip pat išryškinamos probleminės sritys, trukdančios verslininkystės proceso raidai. Siekiant spręsti tyrimo metu išaiškėjusias problemas, pateikiamas antrepreneriškos verslininkystės formavimo modelis smulkiame ir vidutiniame versle.
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Dabo, Danjuma A. "Financing of small and medium sized enterprises in Nigeria." Thesis, Loughborough University, 2006. https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/2134/7838.
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The objective of this study is to assess factors which affect the performance of SMEs in Nigeria. The literature shows that economic development, growth and poverty alleviation are vitally linked with reliable and sustainable operations of SMEs. This is particularly relevant to Nigeria which seeks to diversify its real sector by reducing over-dependence on the volatile oil sector. In recognition of these problems the Nigerian government set up the Small and Medium Industries Equity Investment Scheme (SMIEIS) for SMEs. Nonetheless, as it is the case in many developing countries, SMEs are faced with poor access to financial resources, and little research seems to have focused on factors affecting the performance of SMEs in Sub-Saharan African economies including Nigeria. The study is primarily based on an extensive mail survey of 502 SMEs in Nigeria's two regions and three main sectors (manufacturing, business services, and trade sectors). Accordingly, a broad range of testable hypotheses have been formulated which tend to capture peculiarities in the Nigerian economy using correlation and logistic regression analysis. Access to finance, difficulties encountered, financing decisions and desire for Islamic finance turned out to be the major factors affecting regional and sectoral performance of SMEs. The study reveals some significant differences in the regional performance of SMEs. Most important amongst these differences are: ease of `access to finance', `difficulties encountered' in the process, decisions about `accepting or rejecting' bank financing, and the regional appeal of `Islamic finance' with its different financing modes. It also reveals significant difficulties in obtaining external finance by the entire survey respondents. The study concludes that characteristics internal to the SMEs (like Firm age and size, location and legal form) and their owner-managers characteristics (like education, experience and age) seem to determine the demand for and use of external financing. It recommends policy makers and SME stakeholders to review the existing SMIEIS policies which unduly exclude most SMEs from having access to such finance.
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Panayiotou, Panayiotis. "Automated visual inspection in small and medium sized enterprises." Thesis, University of Sheffield, 2000. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.339935.
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Smith, Mark T. "Eco-design innovation in small and medium sized enterprises." Thesis, Open University, 2000. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.341364.
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Al-Ghailani, Hamed Hashim Al-Dhahab. "Innovation effort in small and medium-sized manufacturing companies." Thesis, Cranfield University, 1996. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.360071.
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GIRALDI, NARA LISSIA KATSUKI. "THE WORKING CAPITAL MANAGEMENT IN SMALL AND MEDIUM INDUSTRIES." PONTIFÍCIA UNIVERSIDADE CATÓLICA DO RIO DE JANEIRO, 2008. http://www.maxwell.vrac.puc-rio.br/Busca_etds.php?strSecao=resultado&nrSeq=13455@1.
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PONTIFÍCIA UNIVERSIDADE CATÓLICA DO RIO DE JANEIROEsta dissertação analisa o perfil de pequenas e médias indústrias do Rio de Janeiro e São Paulo na administração do capital de giro. Para tanto, foi conduzida uma pesquisa de campo com questionário estruturado para uma amostra significativa destes dois estados. A pesquisa visava identificar comportamentos padrão na utilização de 7 ferramentas de administração de capital de giro selecionadas, além de delinear grupos de empresas com características e condutas semelhantes. O resultado obtido por tal pesquisa foi a identificação de quatro grupos distintos de empresa com relação ao gerenciamento do capital de giro: empresas com foco na gestão do crédito, empresas com foco na gestão financeira, empresas com foco na gestão de estoques e empresas sem foco específico na gestão do capital de giro. Adicionalmente, foram confirmadas semelhanças de comportamento frente a condições parecidas a que as empresas são submetidas.
This essay analyses the outline of small and medium industries in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo on working capital management. With this purpose, a survey using structured questionnaire was conducted in a valid sample of those two states. The research intended to identify patterns on the usage of 7 selected working capital management routines and beside that categorize groups of firms with similar characteristics and behavior. The results obtained with the research was the identification of four different types of companies with regard to their working capital management routines: firms focused upon credit management, firms focused upon cash management, firms focused upon stock management and firms with no focus on any specific working capital management routine. In addition, similarities in behavior among firms were confirmed when they were put through similar conditions.
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Wadzwanya, Faith Chivimbiso. "Managing small and medium enterprises using project management principles." Thesis, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11838/2652.
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Thesis (MTech (Business Administration (Entrepreneurship)))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2017.Although SMEs are aware of project management, it seems that a vast majority of firms are not actually well-informed about what project management is, and therefore, might not even be adhering to project management principles. Hence, the main objective of this study was to determine the extent to which SMEs (involved in construction, events and information technology and located in the Cape Metropolitan area in South Africa) apply project management principles. This study used a mixed method approach (both qualitative and quantitative) and various relevant instruments to collect and analyse data. A total of 223 questionnaires were administered to employees working in conjunction with a project management department, and five face-to-face interviews were conducted with owner-managers of selected SMEs. The statistical package for social science (SPSS) was used to analyse the quantitative data with results presented in a tabulated format; content analysis was used to transcribe qualitative data and categorise this data into themes. The study found that the project management sector is still predominately male-dominated, and project teams are not selected on the basis of experience. Furthermore, those who lack experiences are not trained. The nature of work done, company understaffing, time and financial constraints and poor team dynamics were all cited as factors affecting the application of project management principles within SMEs. Several recommendations emerged from the findings. First, it was recommended that women be empowered as active participants in project management, thereby reducing the evident gender imbalance; training and development should regularly be conducted to fully equip employees with vital skills and competencies. This will more strongly ensure that clients are satisfied with quality outcome and thereby establish a good reputation for SMEs. Project managers should create contingency plans for potential challenges. Additionally, the project manager should ensure that by virtue of the company being understaffed, specific roles and responsibilities of individuals should be clearly delineated, clearly communicated and clearly understood. Alternatively, the company may employ more personnel for particular projects, or independent contractors could be hired to assist. Moreover, time constraints can be eradicated by establishing timelines through the Gantt chart and measuring milestones. Finance and other resources should be allocated economically with and ongoing budget-cost analysis for monitoring expenditure. It was also deemed advisable that project managers send their teams for wellness training to avoid negative team dynamics, and as for labour unrest, senior managers should engage proactively with unions and delegates.
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Кузьменко, Аліна Олегівна, and Л. В. Роєнко. "The development of small and medium enterprises in Ukraine." Thesis, Київський національний університет технологій та дизайну, 2021. https://er.knutd.edu.ua/handle/123456789/18250.
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