scholarly journals Why do small businesses seek support for managing people? Implications for theory and policy from an analysis of UK small business survey data

2020 ◽  
pp. 026624262097458
Author(s):  
Valerie Antcliff ◽  
Ben Lupton ◽  
Carol Atkinson
Keyword(s):  
Small Business ◽  
Survey Data ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Dynamic Capabilities ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Business Survey Data ◽  
Original Analysis ◽  
Business Survey ◽  
Strategic Advice

This article explores the characteristics of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that seek external human resource (HR) support and the circumstances in which they do so, drawing on the resource-based view (RBV) of the firm and recent growth theories. Original analysis of UK Longitudinal Small Business Survey data indicates that few SMEs seek HR support and that they are more likely to seek information than strategic advice. Resource deficiencies were not found to be a driver for seeking HR support, rather this was associated with business changes or challenges. Theoretically, we develop a model that identifies dynamic capabilities for HR support, integrated within an RBV framework. This is novel in integrating the concepts of ‘human process advantage’ and ‘human capital advantage’ from the strategic HR literature with dynamic capabilities theory. We draw out the implications of the findings and the model for future research and policy development.

Quantifying Measurement Errors in Partially Edited Business Survey Data

2017 ◽  
pp. 319-337
Author(s):  
Thomas Laitila ◽  
Karin Lindgren ◽  
Anders Norberg ◽  
Can Tongur
Keyword(s):  
Survey Data ◽  
Measurement Errors ◽  
Business Survey Data ◽  
Business Survey

Market Change, Distribution, and New Firm Formation and Growth: The Case of Real-Ale Breweries in the United Kingdom

1997 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 405-417 ◽  
Author(s):  
C M Mason ◽  
K N McNally
Keyword(s):  
Small Business ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Business Sector ◽  
Brewing Industry ◽  
Firm Formation ◽  
New Firm Formation ◽  
New Firm ◽  
The Uk

Many of the most influential accounts of the growth in the numbers of new businesses being started and the general increase in the economic significance of the small-business sector draw upon flexible specialisation theory, which explains such trends in terms of the breakup of the mass market for standardised goods and services and the consequent emergence of a variety of smaller niche markets capable of exploitation by new or small businesses. In this paper our purpose is to suggest that the opportunities for new firm formation and growth arising from such changes may be more circumscribed than have hitherto been acknowledged. Drawing upon evidence from the UK brewing industry, which has seen the creation of many hundreds of new breweries during the past twenty years, we highlight the role of distribution channels as a significant barrier to the growth of the small-business sector. Changes to the regulatory environment (the Beer Orders) in an attempt by government to improve the competitiveness of the UK brewing industry have, paradoxically, had the opposite effect to that intended, and so have failed to increase market opportunities for microbrewers. Future research must give greater attention to the role of distribution in order to achieve a better understanding of the changing structure and spatial organisation of production.

The Determinants of Sticky Prices and Sticky Plans: Evidence from German Business Survey Data

2014 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 353-373 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heike Schenkelberg
Keyword(s):  
Survey Data ◽  
State Dependence ◽  
Empirical Literature ◽  
Price Setting ◽  
Firm Level ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Price Increases ◽  
Business Survey Data ◽  
State Dependent ◽  
Business Survey

Abstract So far, there is no consensus on the price adjustment determinants in the empirical literature. Analyzing a novel firm-level business survey data set, we provide new insights on the price setting behavior of German retailers during a low inflation period. Relating the probability of both price and pricing plan adjustment to time- and state-dependent variables, we find that state-dependence is important; the macroeconomic environment as well as the firm-specific condition significantly determines the timing of both actual price changes and pricing plan adjustments. Moreover, input cost changes are important determinants of price setting. Finally, price increases respond more strongly to cost shocks compared to price decreases.

scholarly journals Marketing Practices of Rural Micro and Small Businesses in Ghana

2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Blankson ◽  
Kirsten Cowan ◽  
William K. Darley
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
Small Business ◽  
Social Identity Theory ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Poverty Reduction ◽  
Social Capital Theory ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Capital Theory ◽  
Intelligence Gathering ◽  
Commercial Activities

Using social identity theory and social capital theory as a backdrop to understand the context of subsistence marketplaces, this study investigates how rural micro and small businesses engage in marketing practices and how poverty reduction policies affect micro and small business activities and growth. The results show that rural micro and small businesses weave morality and religiosity into their commercial activities and survive in a competitive subsistence marketplace by engaging with social networks, relationships with customers, and relationships with staff. The interdependence among these relationships contributes to the competitive positioning of the business and its intelligence gathering. Despite the existence of government programs to fund micro and small business startups, most owner-managers use social networks to initially fund and grow their businesses. The paper ends with implications and future research directions.

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