nep-sbm New Economics Papers
on Small Business Management
Issue of 2016‒01‒18
ten papers chosen by
João Carlos Correia Leitão
Universidade da Beira Interior

  1. The impact of firm financing constraints on R&D over the business cycle By Kadri Männasoo; Jaanika Meriküll
  2. Persistence and Change of Regional New Business Formation in the National League Table By Michael Fritsch; Sandra Kublina
  3. The effects of innovation policies on firm level patenting By Marit E. Klemetsen
  4. Financing Constraints, Radical versus Incremental Innovation, and Aggregate Productivity By Andrea Caggese
  5. Essay on the State of Research and Innovation in France and the European Union By Antoine Kornprobst
  6. Various approaches to measuring business innovation: their relevance for capturing social innovation By Attila Havas
  7. Innovation in Eastern Europe : a case study of Czech Republic By Kashcheeva, Mila; Nabeshima, Kaoru
  8. Rural Non-Farm Micro-Entrepreneurship or Not: Gender Issue in Decision Making By Hazarika, Bhabesh; Goswami, Kishor
  9. Recognition and legal Forms of Social Enterprises in Europe: A Critical Analysis from a Comparative Law Perspective By Antonio Fici
  10. The Interaction between Household and Firm Dynamics and the Amplification of Financial Shocks By Andrea Caggese; Ander Pérez Orive

  1. By: Kadri Männasoo; Jaanika Meriküll
    Abstract: This paper studies financing constraints on R&D over the most recent boom and bust episode in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Given that financial and venture capital markets in CEE are thin in comparison to those in high-income economies and that many of CEE countries experienced a credit crunch during the last recession, it is proposed that financing constraints have a significant adverse effect on R&D activity in these countries. The paper uses two complementary firm-level data-sources from ten CEE countries. We find that financing constraints have a substantial effect on R&D expenditures, as the probability of credit constrained firms undertaking R&D activities is around 70% lower than for other firms and firms’ R&D expenditure sensitivity to cash flow is very high. Despite the severity of the crisis, the adverse effect of financing constraints for R&D did not increase during the financial crisis. We also find that, conditional on credit constraints, firms’ R&D activity is higher during a recession
    Keywords: R&D financing constraints, credit constraints, business cycle, Central and Eastern Europe
    JEL: O16 O32 O52 E32 P23
    Date: 2015–12–30
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eea:boewps:wp2015-3&r=sbm
  2. By: Michael Fritsch (School of Economics and Business Administration, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena); Sandra Kublina (School of Economics and Business Administration, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena)
    Abstract: We investigate persistence and change of the levels of regional new business formation in West Germany over a period of thirty years. Our indicator is the position of a region in the national ranking. As indicated by previous studies, we generally find a rather high level of persistence and confirm the role of several sources of this persistence, namely, persistence in regional determinants of new business formation, distinct regional cultures of entrepreneurship, and path dependence in new business formation activity. There are, however, also a number of regions that have moved up or down in the national ranking by a considerable number of positions. We find that main factors that are related to such rank changes are R&D activities, industry diversity, and regional wage levels.
    Keywords: Entrepreneurship, new business formation, economic development, regional growth regimes
    JEL: L26 R11 O11
    Date: 2016–01–04
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:jrp:jrpwrp:2016-001&r=sbm
  3. By: Marit E. Klemetsen (Statistics Norway)
    Abstract: This paper examines the impacts of R&D tax credits and direct R&D subsidies on Norwegian firms' patenting, with a particular focus on environmental patenting. Whereas direct subsidies are aimed at projects with low private and high social return, tax credits do not discriminate between projects or technologies. We find that both direct subsidies and tax credits have significant positive effects on patenting in general. Although direct subsidies have triggered more patents, tax credits are more efficient in the sense that they have triggered more patents relative to the typical subsidy amount received. With regard to environmental patenting, we find no significant effects of tax credits, whereas the effects of direct subsidies are large and significant. A possible explanation is that environmental innovations face the environmental externality, greater knowledge externalities and require funding that is willing to take more risks and allow more patience. Tax credits currently favor small and medium sized firms and firms with relatively low R&D investments. For large firms, we find large and significant effects of direct subsidies, but no significant effects of tax credits.
    Keywords: R&D tax credits; SkatteFUNN; direct R&D subsidies; environmental innovation; SMEs; Poission count model; fixed effects
    JEL: C54 D22 O31 O38 Q55
    Date: 2015–12
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ssb:dispap:830&r=sbm
  4. By: Andrea Caggese
    Abstract: I provide new empirical evidence on a negative relation between financial frictions and productivity growth over firms’ life cycle. I show that a model of firm dynamics with incremental innovation cannot explain such evidence. However also including radical innovation, which is very risky but potentially very productive, allows for joint replication of several stylized facts about the dynamics of young and old firms and of the differences in productivity growth in industries with different degrees of financing frictions. These frictions matter because they act as a barrier to entry that reduces competition and the risk taking of young firms.
    Date: 2015–11
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bge:wpaper:865&r=sbm
  5. By: Antoine Kornprobst
    Abstract: Innovation in the economy is an important engine of growth and no economy, whatever its complexity and degree of advancement, whether it is based on industry, agriculture, high tech or the providing of services, can be truly healthy without innovating actors within it. The aim of this work, done by an applied mathematician working in finance, not by an economist or a lawyer, isn't to provide an exhaustive view of the all the mechanisms in France and in Europe that aim at fostering innovation in the economy and to offer solutions for removing all the roadblocks that still hinder innovation; indeed such a study would go far beyond the scope of this study. What I modestly attempted to achieve in this study was firstly to draw a panorama of what is working and what needs to perfected as far as innovation is concerned in France and Europe, then secondly to offer some solutions and personal thoughts to boost innovation.
    Date: 2016–01
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:1601.00679&r=sbm
  6. By: Attila Havas (Institute of Economics - Centre for Economic and Regional Studies - Hungarian Academy of Sciences)
    Abstract: This paper reviews various approaches to measuring business innovation from the angle of capturing social innovations and offers several methodological and policy conclusions. First, the Innovation Union Scoreboard (IUS) indicators in principle could be useful in settings where the dominant mode of innovation is based on R&D activities. In practice, however, both R&D and non-R&D-based modes of innovation are fairly important. IUS, therefore, only provides a partial picture. Social innovations can certainly rely on R&D-based technological innovations. Their essence, however, tends to be organisational, managerial and behavioural changes. The IUS indicators do not capture these types of changes. Second, an assessment of the 81 indicators used to compile the Global Innovation Index reveals that it would neither be a fruitful effort to rely on those indicators to capture social innovations. Third, given the diversity among innovation systems, a poor performance signalled by a composite indicator does'nt automatically identify the area(s) necessitating the most urgent policy actions. Only tailored, thorough comparative analyses can do so. Fourth, analysts and policy-makers need to be aware of the differences between measuring (i) social innovation activities (efforts) themselves, (ii) the framework conditions (pre-requisites, available inputs, skills, norms, values, behavioural patterns, etc.) of being socially innovative, and (iii) the economic, societal or environmental impacts of social innovations.
    Keywords: Evolutionary economics of innovation; Business innovation; Social innovation; Measurement of innovation; Composite indicators; Scoreboards, league tables; Unit of analysis
    JEL: B52 C80 O31 O38 Y10
    Date: 2015–11
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:has:discpr:1554&r=sbm
  7. By: Kashcheeva, Mila; Nabeshima, Kaoru
    Abstract: In this study we evaluate innovative performance of the economies of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) based on the available statistics of innovation processes. We compare such country-level indicators as educational levels, investments in R&D, FDI, trade and licensing flows, patents and scientific articles, and find that the most developed CEE economies are also the most innovative. At the same time, as supported by the results of the interviews in Czech Republic, one of the top performers in the CEE region, its economy is facing a number of challenges that are similar to other middle-income countries around the world. We suggest addressing these challenges from the prospective of the Middle Income Trap, when a middle-income economy to sustain growth must learn to compete with advanced economies in high-skill innovation. Development of effective innovation policy should be a priority for the CEE countries to escape from the middle income trap.
    Keywords: Czech Republic, East Europe, Economic growth, Technological innovations, Innovation policy, Middle income trap, Central and Eastern Europe
    JEL: O31 O10 O20
    Date: 2015–03
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:jet:dpaper:dpaper506&r=sbm
  8. By: Hazarika, Bhabesh; Goswami, Kishor
    Abstract: The expansion of female intensive sectors due to globalization and trade liberalization engenders ample employment and income opportunities for female and thus female entrepreneurship. Despite an increase in the female entrepreneurship in recent decade, females are still outnumbered in entrepreneurial activities by the male. The determinants that influence the decision to become an entrepreneur substantially differ across gender. Present study provides empirical evidences towards individuals’ entry into rural non-farm micro-entrepreneurship focusing on gender issue. Based on primary data collected in Assam, the study found that the probability of becoming a micro-entrepreneur is more for being a female in the female intensive industry. The results reveal the existence gender differences with respect to magnitude and direction in the determinants of micro-entrepreneurship development. The influence of educational attainment is not found significant for female’s probability to become a handloom micro-entrepreneur. Financial inclusion of rural people coupled with proper utilization of credit accessed is crucial in handloom micro-enterprise development.
    Keywords: Rural,Non-farm,Micro-entrepreneurship,Gender,Handloom,Assam
    Date: 2014–08–28
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:esconf:125611&r=sbm
  9. By: Antonio Fici
    Abstract: Social enterprise lawmaking is a growth industry. In the United States alone, over the last few years, there has been a proliferation of state laws establishing specific legal forms for social enterprises. The situation is not different in Europe, where the process began much earlier than in the United States and today at least fifteen European Union member states have specific laws for social enterprise. This article will describe the current state of the legislation on social enterprise in Europe, inquiring into its fundamental role in the development of the social economy and its particular logics as distinct from those of the for-profit capitalistic economy. It will explore the models of social enterprise regulation that seem more consistent with the economic growth inspired by the paradigms of the social economy. It will finally explain why, in regulating and shaping social enterprise, the model of the social enterprise in the cooperative form is to be preferred to that of the social enterprise in the company form.
    Keywords: Social enterprise; Social economy; Cooperatives; Comparative law; Non-profit corporate governance
    JEL: K22 L31
    Date: 2015
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:trn:utwpeu:1582&r=sbm
  10. By: Andrea Caggese; Ander Pérez Orive
    Abstract: Empirical studies examining the 2007-2009 Great Recession suggest that financial shocks to households and firms are both important to explain output and employment fluctuations. Motivated by this evidence, we develop a model with financial and labor market frictions in which heterogeneous households face unemployment risk, and heterogeneous firms face costly bankruptcy and finance themselves partly with nominally fixed long-term debt. We show that shocks that cause household deleveraging and credit shocks to firms interact to greatly amplify the effects of financial shocks on output and employment, even when these same shocks separately have moderate effects.
    Keywords: financial shocks, amplification, precautionary savings, unemployment risk, Borrowing constraints, firm bankruptcy risk
    JEL: E21 E24 G33
    Date: 2015–07
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bge:wpaper:866&r=sbm

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