scholarly journals Factors that influence the success of small and medium enterprises in ICT: a case study from the Czech Republic

2015 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 304-315 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Krejcí ◽  
Wadim Strielkowski ◽  
Inna Čabelková
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Questionnaire Survey ◽  
Success Factors ◽  
Small And Medium Enterprises ◽  
Local Market ◽  
Financial Indicators ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Technology Sector ◽  
Medium Enterprises

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) occupy a large niche in the information and technology sector (ICT) and play an important role in the functioning on any state’s economy. This paper focuses on a specific local market and uses the Czech Republic as a case study in order to establish the success factors crucial for achieving economic success. It aims at determining those factors with the help of econometric success rate models based on the own data collected via the means of questionnaire survey among ICT enterprise. Our results show that the earnings-employee ratio, average revenues and the investment in own R&D play the most important role in the success of Czech SMEs in question. Both, financial and non-financial indicators perform significantly in the predictions of success.

Public Procurement in the Czech Republic

2012 ◽  
pp. 210-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jirí Novosák ◽  
Oldrich Hájek ◽  
Jirí Machu
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Czech Republic ◽  
Regional Development ◽  
Small And Medium Enterprises ◽  
Public Procurement ◽  
Regional Disparities ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Dominant Position ◽  
Medium Enterprises

Relations between public procurement, regional development, and e-procurement are discussed in this chapter. First, main themes of the debate are reviewed. Subsequently, some relations between public procurement, regional development, and e-procurement are discussed. The Czech Republic is used as a case study in this regard. The authors’ findings confirm the potential of public procurement to stimulate development of Czech regions. Spatially, public procurement may not be regarded as a suitable tool for reduction of regional disparities. However, there seems to be an important impact of public procurement on the development of local small and medium enterprises. In addition, the authors’ findings point at some links between public procurement and the concepts of sustainable development and competitiveness. Nevertheless, the dominant position of price as evaluation criterion indicates that the linkages are rather weak. Finally, the increasing interest of the Czech Republic in e-procurement was documented.

scholarly journals Estimating Local Consumer Market Size for Marketing Decision‑Making

2018 ◽  
Vol 66 (6) ◽  
pp. 1441-1449
Author(s):  
Radim Dušek ◽  
Viktor Vojtko ◽  
Jan Šalamoun
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Small And Medium Enterprises ◽  
Market Size ◽  
Local Market ◽  
Annual Growth Rate ◽  
Marketing Theory ◽  
Consumer Spending ◽  
Growth Trend ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Medium Enterprises

Marketing theory provides a lot of tools and methods for planning and analysis, but their practical use typically requires data that are not easily available, especially for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) operating on smaller local markets. In this study, we present a method that allows SMEs to simply estimate the size and growth trend of a local market in the Czech Republic defined by selected municipalities. The data about total consumer spending in 2011–2016 period were drawn from publicly available sources. We have created maps using the QGIS software with estimates of total consumer spending in all municipalities of the Czech Republic in 2016, total consumer spending in specific local market in 2016 and the average annual growth rate in consumer spending in 2011–2016 as well. It may serve as a guidance for SMEs about where the biggest opportunities and threats in the market size and growth are. The same method has been applied to part of South Bohemia region as a case study whose results could be used for estimation of the same figures about consumer spending.

scholarly journals CSR ACTIVITIES IN THE CZECH SME SEGMENT

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zdenko Metzker ◽  
Justas Streimikis
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Small And Medium Enterprises ◽  
Management Practice ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Z Score ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Medium Enterprises ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
Final Effect

The aim of the study is to find out the perception of the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) by the segment of small and medium-sized enterprises in the Czech Republic. In connection with the objectives of the study, a questionnaire survey was carried out on a sample of 419 respondents – business owners and managers. The data were collected from September 2019 to January 2020. χ2 and Z-score were used to assess the hypotheses. It was found that there were statistical differences in the perception of some aspects of the positive impact of the introduction of the CSR concept in case of monitoring responses based on the geographic scope of the business. The results showed that although the manager should take into account the ethical and moral implications of his decisions, less than half of the respondents are familiar with the concept of CSR and enforce it in their management practice and ultimately managers cannot identify positive benefits from CSR implementation – it declares positive answers whose values oscillate around 30%. The findings show that there are no statistically significant differences in the answers of managers depending on the size of the company - this proves that micro, small and medium enterprises, respectively their managers do not differ in their attitudes to the topic of CSR. The final effect of the paper is to show the perception of the concept of CSR of entrepreneurs - respondents in the Czech Republic.

Lean Six Sigma competitiveness for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME): an action research in the Indian context

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shreeranga Bhat ◽  
E.V. Gijo ◽  
Anil Melwyn Rego ◽  
Vinayambika S. Bhat
Keyword(s):  
Success Factors ◽  
Small And Medium Enterprises ◽  
Lean Six Sigma ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Novice Users ◽  
The Government ◽  
Medium Enterprises ◽  
Tools And Techniques

PurposeThe aim of the article is to ascertain the challenges, lessons learned and managerial implications in the deployment of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) competitiveness to micro, small and medium Enterprises (MSME) in India and to establish doctrines to strengthen the initiatives of the government.Design/methodology/approachThe research adopts the Action Research methodology to develop a case study, which is carried out in the printing industry in a Tier III city using the LSS DMAIC (Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control) approach. It utilizes LSS tools to deploy the strategy and to unearth the challenges and success factors in improving the printing process of a specific batch of a product.FindingsThe root cause for the critical to quality (CTQ) characteristic, turn-around-time (TAT) is determined and the solutions are deployed through the scientifically proven data-based approach. As a result of this study, the TAT reduced from an average of 1541.2–1303.36 min, which in turn, improved the sigma level from 0.55 to 2.96, a noteworthy triumph for this MSME. The company realizes an annual savings of USD 12,000 per year due to the success of this project. Top Management Leadership, Data-Based Validation, Technical Know-how and Industrial Engineering Knowledge Base are identified as critical success factors (CSFs), while profitability and on-time delivery are the key performance indicators (KPIs) for the MSME. Eventually, the lessons learned and implications indicate that LSS competitiveness can be treated as quality management standards (QMS) and quality tools and techniques (QTT) to ensure competitive advantage, sustainable green practices and growth.Research limitations/implicationsEven though the findings and recommendations of this research are based on a single case study, it is worth noting that the case study is executed in a Tier III city along with novice users of LSS tools and techniques. This indicates the applicability of LSS in MSME and thus, the modality adopted can be further refined to suit the socio-cultural aspects of India.Originality/valueThis article illustrates the deployment of LSS from the perspective of novice users, to assist MSME and policymakers to reinforce competitiveness through LSS. Moreover, the government can initiate a scheme in line with LSS competitiveness to complement the existing schemes based on the findings of the case study.

scholarly journals Significance of SMEs in the Czech Economy and Supporting SMEs as an Instrument of the Regional Development

10.14311/422 ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Beran ◽  
J. Frková
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Small Firms ◽  
Small And Medium Enterprises ◽  
Small Enterprises ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Economic Production ◽  
History Of ◽  
Economic Landscape ◽  
Medium Enterprises

SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises) are important segments of the economic landscape of the Czech Republic, since half of economic production is attributable to SMEs (52.85 %). The role of SMEs in the Czech Republic is the outcome of a long history of economic development and industrialization throughout the 20th century. Large enterprises prefer to locate their factories according to range of regional opportunities. Small enterprises are more dependent on business conditions in their region. The transaction costs are relatively high for small firms. These contraints mean that regions without an attractive environment for business need to create acceptable conditions for small businesses, if they are looking for sustainable development.

scholarly journals Employee Development in Small and Medium Enterprises in the Light of Demographic Evolution

2015 ◽  
Vol 63 (3) ◽  
pp. 1043-1050 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hana Urbancová ◽  
Monika Hudáková
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Small And Medium Enterprises ◽  
Employee Development ◽  
Management Support ◽  
Job Market ◽  
Demographic Development ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Older Employees ◽  
Medium Enterprises

Trends in the job market taking worker knowledge, abilities and skills into account show that the demand for qualified, experienced workers has been rising and that the trend will continue into the future. Accordingly, companies must put a life-long learning and development strategy in place so that even older employees (55+), the proportion of whom has been rising in organizations and in the marketplace, may maintain their positions in the job market for as long as possible. This paper aims to assess how small and medium enterprises in the Czech Republic reflect current demographic developments in terms of age management support and employee development. The data was obtained from small and medium enterprises in the Czech Republic (n = 432). The results show that age management is not an official primary focus of small and medium enterprises; but they naturally act in line with age management practices nevertheless. Any efficient solution to demographic development in the enterprises studied here, however, must be based upon an overall change of attitude coming from both entrepreneurs and company leadership focusing on young employees, as well as older employees themselves, where their ability to pass on their experience to younger coworkers is stressed. To maintain economic prosperity, continuous development is important for both categories.

scholarly journals Teleworking in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) before the onset of coronavirus crisis in the Czech Republic

2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 151-164
Author(s):  
Jaroslav Vrchota ◽  
Monika Maříková ◽  
Petr Řehoř
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Small And Medium Enterprises ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Work And Family ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
New Information ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Medium Enterprises ◽  
Short Time

Due to the new information and communication technologies, it is now possible to disconnect work from space and time and to take advantage of new ways of organizing work. One of the options is teleworking (TW), currently being implemented throughout Europe due to the condition created by the coronavirus pandemic. The aim of the paper is twofold: (i) to analyse a range of factors (size of the enterprise; foreign owner; written strategy; project-driven enterprise; disabilities; work-life balance; benefits, lack of workers, illness, lower cost, relax at work and comfort; renting space, IT level) influencing the duration of TW implementation in the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and (ii) to better define the differences between the SMEs where TW was introduced in a short time, and those introducing it over a longer period. Out of the total of 31 factors, six factors have been proved to have a different impact on the duration of TW implementation (TW implementation due to higher efficiency; monitoring is performed only according to the results; the managers see the disadvantage of TW in its possible misuse; the enterprises use internal TW regulations; the managers see the main advantage as higher operational flexibility; the introduction of TW, due to the balance of work and family life). All together, 44,000 SMEs in the Czech Republic were invited into the research. The data were collected from 1,018 enterprises, with 60% of the enterprises using TW actively; on average, these enterprises have been using it for seven years.

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