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on Small Business Management |
| By: | Yoshino, Naoyuki (Asian Development Bank Institute); Taghizadeh-Hesary, Farhad (Asian Development Bank Institute) |
| Abstract: | Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are the backbone of the Asian economy. They make up more than 98% of all Asian businesses that provide two out of three private sector jobs in the region. Therefore, it is vitally important for Asia’s economic success to have fully functioning support measures for SMEs. However, SMEs face challenges from limited access to finance, lack of databases, low R&D expenditures, undeveloped sales channels, and low levels of financial inclusion, which are some of the reasons behind the slow growth of SMEs. This paper focuses on four major reasons that slowed the SME growth in Asia including i) lack of finance, ii) lack of comprehensive databases, iii) low level of R&D expenditures, and iv) insufficient use of information technology and provides remedies for mitigating them. |
| Keywords: | SME databases; financial inclusion; SME investment; R&D expenditure |
| JEL: | G21 G24 G32 |
| Date: | 2016–04–18 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:adbiwp:0564&r=sbm |
| By: | Lorena M. D’Agostino (AQR-IREA Research Group. Department of Econometrics, Statistics and Spanish Economy. University of Barcelona.); Rosina Moreno (AQR-IREA Research Group. Department of Econometrics, Statistics and Spanish Economy. University of Barcelona.) |
| Abstract: | During the recent economic recession, firms have been less willing to invest in innovation, which often is an uncertain and long-term process. This reduction did not occur equally for all firms, and recent literature has analysed the characteristics of those firms which maintain or even raise their innovative efforts during the crisis. Technological collaboration has been recognised as one of the most important external sources that affects innovation performance. However, how economic recession has changed the impact of R&D collaboration on innovation performance has received few attention. This paper investigates the effect of different external cooperation patterns of firms before and during the last economic recession. We highlight the role of geographical and organizational diversity of knowledge sources, as well as the effect of past experience. We find that R&D cooperation has a stronger effect on radical innovation performance during the economic recession than before, this being true irrespectively of the geographical location of the partners. This benefit from cooperation during the economic turmoil is higher in the case of firms having a diverse portfolio of partners. In addition, we also find that past experience in R&D cooperation positively affects innovation performance during the crisis. |
| Keywords: | R&D cooperation; Innovation Performance; Spanish firms JEL classification: L25; O31; O31; O33 |
| Date: | 2016–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:aqr:wpaper:201605&r=sbm |
| By: | Lorena M. D'Agostino (AQR Research Group-IREA. University of Barcelona); Rosina Moreno (AQR Research Group-IREA. University of Barcelona) |
| Abstract: | During the recent economic recession, firms have been less willing to invest in innovation, which often is an uncertain and long-term process. This reduction did not occur equally for all firms, and recent literature has analysed the characteristics of those firms which maintain or even raise their innovative efforts during the crisis. Technological collaboration has been recognised as one of the most important external sources that affects innovation performance. However, how economic recession has changed the impact of R&D collaboration on innovation performance has received few attention. This paper investigates the effect of different external cooperation patterns of firms before and during the last economic recession. We highlight the role of geographical and organizational diversity of knowledge sources, as well as the effect of past experience. We find that R&D cooperation has a stronger effect on radical innovation performance during the economic recession than before, this being true irrespectively of the geographical location of the partners. This benefit from cooperation during the economic turmoil is higher in the case of firms having a diverse portfolio of partners. In addition, we also find that past experience in R&D cooperation positively affects innovation performance during the crisis. |
| Keywords: | R&D cooperation; innovation Performance; Spanish firms. JEL classification: L25; O31; O31; O33 |
| Date: | 2016–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ira:wpaper:201605&r=sbm |
| By: | Curdin Pfister (Department of Business Administration, University of Zurich); Miriam Rinawi (Department of Business Administration, University of Zurich); Dietmar Harhoff (Max Planck Institute for Innovation and Competition, Munich); Uschi Backes-Gellner (Department of Business Administration, University of Zurich) |
| Abstract: | Previous research analyzing the importance of knowledge for firms’ innovation activities has focused on knowledge taught at universities, i.e., tertiary level academic education. So far, research has largely neglected a new type of knowledge taught at Universities of Applied Sciences (UAS), i.e., tertiary level vocational education, which is based on more applied research. In this paper, we exploit a unique institutional setting, the foundation of UAS in Switzerland, to estimate the causal effect of this new type of knowledge on firms’ innovation activity. We apply difference-in-differences estimation, comparing the innovation activity of firms in regions where UAS were founded with the innovation activity of firms in regions where no UAS were founded. In line with previous literature, we measure the innovation activity by the number of filed patents. Our results show that firms in regions with newly founded UAS increase their innovation activities by about 10 percent. |
| Keywords: | Innovation, Universities of Applied Science, Tertiary Vocational Education, Difference-in-Differences |
| JEL: | I26 O31 J24 |
| Date: | 2016–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iso:educat:0117&r=sbm |
| By: | Vincenza Odorici (Department of Management, University of Bologna, Italy); Manuela Presutti (Department of Management, University of Bologna, Italy); Marco Savioli (Department of Economics, University of Bologna, Italy; The Rimini Centre for Economic Analysis, Italy) |
| Abstract: | Hotels have to act in a competitive business environment that calls for a continuous emphasis on both customers' needs and innovativeness strategies. Analysing a sample of 120 small hotels operating in April 2014 in Rimini, Italy, probit regression models allow us to ascertain that two dimensions of strategic orientation, entrepreneurial orientation and market orientation, significantly and positively impact the likelihood of achieving superior performance. In contrast, learning orientation, measured by external networks, is not an important driver of lodging firm performance. In opposition to mainstream theory suggesting the importance of growth in size, hotel size has a significant negative influence on hotel performance achievement. Finally, the results show that the relationship between strategic orientation and performance is contingent on internal firm-related moderators (size and quality). Both the number of rooms and star classification reinforce the performance achievement of hotels able to introduce innovations and follow a customer-oriented approach. |
| Date: | 2016–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rim:rimwps:16-06&r=sbm |
| By: | Daniel Fixari (CGS i3 - Centre de Gestion Scientifique i3 - MINES ParisTech - École nationale supérieure des mines de Paris - PSL - PSL Research University - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique); Frédérique Pallez (CGS i3 - Centre de Gestion Scientifique i3 - MINES ParisTech - École nationale supérieure des mines de Paris - PSL - PSL Research University - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique) |
| Abstract: | Depuis plusieurs années, se mettent en place en France des politiques publiques territorialisées d'innovation et de développement économique (politiques de clusters notamment), menées par des acteurs variés, qu'il s'agisse de l'Etat ou des diverses collectivités territoriales. Il en est résulté sur les territoires des systèmes complexes d'acteurs appelés " écosystèmes d'innovation ", dont on peut interroger la coordination et les performances. Comment en outre, dans ces conditions, la convergence de stratégies publiques est-elle assurée ? Ce questionnement, qui renvoie notamment aux problématiques de la gouvernance multi-niveaux, s'appuie sur une étude empirique menée dans trois régions françaises, qui visait à caractériser le fonctionnement de ces écosystèmes et à en proposer des modalités d'amélioration. Sur la base de ce cas, nous caractérisons les sources de la complexité apparente du système, et montrons que, contrairement aux discours qui appellent à la réduction du nombre de " structures ", la mise en place de nouveaux dispositifs de coordination, au-delà de l'harmonisation des fonctionnements, a pour effet complémentaire de constituer des espaces et des procédures permettant la formulation progressive d'une stratégie collective des acteurs publics sur le territoire. |
| Keywords: | complexity,innovation ecosystems,public action,collective strategy,complexité,écosystèmes d'innovation,action publique,coordination,stratégie collective |
| Date: | 2016–09–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:hal-01062760&r=sbm |
| By: | Uwe Cantner (School of Economics and Business Administration, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena); Tina Wolf (University of Southern Denmark, Odense) |
| Abstract: | At least since Schumpeter published his work 'The Theory of Economic Development' (1912), a wide body of literature has focused on the evolutionary process behind firm growth and survival. Recently a growing interest is devoted to the variable 'location' as a critical factor, shaping firm performance. However, less attention has been paid to the region-specific characteristics that may play a relevant role in determining the growth and survival of a firm. Some works see university-based knowledge spillovers as one such factor (Audretsch and Lehmann 2005, Cassia et al. 2009). This paper extends this approach to the regional innovator network, promoting region-specific knowledge spillovers. Two data bases are applied. First, patent data delivers the innovator network for Thuringia. The second data base contains firm specific information on innovative ventures founded in Thuringia in the period between 1990 and 2006. The results show that the firm's individual probability to be innovative and connected to the innovator network positively influences the chances of this firm to survive. |
| Keywords: | Innovation, Entrepreneurship, Networks, Inventor, Patents, Survival |
| JEL: | L26 D85 P25 O31 |
| Date: | 2016–04–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:jrp:jrpwrp:2016-006&r=sbm |
| By: | FUKUGAWA Nobuya; GOTO Akira |
| Abstract: | Local public technology centers (LPTCs) are technology transfer organizations administrated by local governments in Japan. LPTCs arrange various technology transfer channels mainly for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the region. Although it has been recognized that technical consultation is the most important channel for technology transfer, there are virtually no reliable statistics that define and measure this. This study is the first to investigate such technical consultation, gathering information from surveys conducted at the branch level. The key findings can be summarized as follows. First, LPTCs solve various (technological and non-technological) problems through technical consultation. What is notable is that a non-negligible proportion of the problems have to do with design. Second, these problems are diverse in terms of complexity as well, with design problems requiring a longer time to solve. Third, technical consultation acts as a gateway to further technology transfer activities. Additional technical assistance triggered by technical consultation varies across technological fields. Fourth, LPTCs act as innovation intermediaries that connect SMEs to other sources of knowledge, such as universities, when the problems are too hard to solve internally. Fifth, LPTCs believe that technical consultation contributes to their researchers' better understanding of local firms' technological needs, which is salient for LPTCs that frequently deal with design problems. |
| Date: | 2016–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eti:dpaper:16062&r=sbm |
| By: | Fafchamps,Marcel; Woodruff,Christopher M. |
| Abstract: | A business plan competition is conducted to test whether survey instruments or panel judges are able to identify the fastest growing firms. Participants submitted six- to eight-page business plans and defended them before a three- or four-judge panel. Applicants are surveyed shortly after they applied and one and two years after the competition. Follow-up surveys are used to construct measures of enterprise growth and baseline surveys and panel scores to construct measures of enterprise growth potential. A survey measure of ability correlates strongly with future growth, but the panel scores add to predictive power even after controlling for ability and other survey variables. The survey questions have more power to explain the variance in growth. Participants presenting before the panel were given a chance to win customized management training. Fourteen months after the training, there is no positive effect of the training on growth of the business. |
| Keywords: | Business in Development,E-Business,Financial Literacy,Business Environment,Competitiveness and Competition Policy |
| Date: | 2016–04–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:7647&r=sbm |