Computer Security in Small Businesses - An Example from Slovenia

2011 ◽  
pp. 156-176 ◽  
Author(s):  
Borut Werber
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Small Business ◽  
Computer Security ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Computer Hardware ◽  
Small Business Owners ◽  
Security Measures ◽  
Data Collection And Analysis

This chapter presents the results of an investigation conducted in Slovenia from November 1999 until January 2000, focusing on some basic computer security problems and use of information technology (IT) and information systems (IS) in 122 small Slovenian businesses. The average number of total employees was 5.7, including the owner of the small business. In some countries, businesses of this size are also called ‘very small businesses.’ According to that, this chapter is dedicated to small business owners/managers or those dealing with small businesses. In the first section I present the main reason for this research and discuss some previous research dealing with small business use of IT and computer security practice. In the following section I define small business and the methodology that I used for data collection and analysis. The results were based on interviews given by the owners or managers of these companies. In the results section the overall purpose of this study is presented. The aim of the research was to assess why some Slovene small businesses do not use IT, how IT and IS are used in small businesses, what kind of security measures are used, how many and what kind of problems they had with computer hardware and software, and how they managed to solve those problems. I compare the results with some similar research in other countries.

Issues and Challenges for IT in Small Business

2005 ◽  
pp. 1692-1696
Author(s):  
Stephen Burgess
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Small Business ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Small Business Owners ◽  
Internet Technologies

This article examines the main issues and challenges facing small business owners and managers in the manner in which they use information technology and Internet technologies within their businesses. The first part of the article concentrates upon the issues. The “Challenges” section examines some of the areas that small business researchers are targeting in their recommendations for how the use of IT in small businesses can be improved. These are areas that small businesses often neglect or, even worse, know nothing about.

The Use of IT in Small Business

2008 ◽  
pp. 3007-3020
Author(s):  
Sam Lubbe
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Small Business ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Business Plan ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Small Business Owners ◽  
It Planning ◽  
Computing Grid ◽  
Effective Use

This chapter addresses the effective use of information technology (IT) in small businesses. Worldwide it is regarded as a problem as was illustrated in the literature review. Small business owners need to calculate and plan proper use of IT in their businesses by aligning their strategic IT planning to the business plan. A computing grid is proposed with a proper structure and guideline to help the owners

Gender and E-Commerce Adoption Barriers

2008 ◽  
pp. 268-285 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert MacGregor ◽  
Lejla Vrazalic
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Small Business ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Small Business Owners ◽  
Male And Female

Previous research has shown that gender plays a role in the use of information technology by small businesses and that differences exist between the ways in which male and female small business owners/managers perceive information technology, including e-commerce. However, our understanding of whether gender is important in relation to e-commerce adoption barriers is limited. This chapter examines whether differences exist in how male and female owners/managers of small businesses in regional areas in Sweden and Australia perceive e-commerce adoption barriers. The results of a survey of more than 450 small businesses are presented and indicate that, although both male and female owners/managers agree on the key reasons for not adopting e-commerce, they assign different priorities these reasons. In Sweden, male owner/managers are more concerned about the technical complexities of implementing e-commerce, while females assign a higher importance to the unsuitability of e-commerce. In Australia the situation is reverse. The results have implications for e-commerce adoption programs and initiatives.

The Use of IT in Small Business

2011 ◽  
pp. 107-125
Author(s):  
Sam Lubbe
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Small Business ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Business Plan ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Small Business Owners ◽  
It Planning ◽  
Computing Grid ◽  
Effective Use

This chapter addresses the effective use of information technology (IT) in small businesses. Worldwide it is regarded as a problem as was illustrated in the literature review. Small business owners need to calculate and plan proper use of IT in their businesses by aligning their strategic IT planning to the business plan. A computing grid is proposed with a proper structure and guideline to help the owners

Measuring Success in Family Businesses: The Concept of Configurational Fit

2006 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 115-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christoph Hienerth ◽  
Alexander Kessler
Keyword(s):  
Small Business ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Border Region ◽  
Small Business Owners ◽  
Comparable Data ◽  
Measurement Instruments ◽  
Success Measurement ◽  
Success Evaluation ◽  
As Effects

The problems associated with measuring success in small businesses are primarily caused by a lack of comparable data due to the ambiguity of “success” and by subjective biases. Success evaluation is dominated by the estimates of business owners, who tend to overestimate overall success and internal strengths. However, reliable success measurement instruments would be useful for small business owners/managers as well as small business policymakers. The main purposes of this article are to compare various measures of success, to explore the differences in their outcomes, and to analyze whether a model of success measurement using configurational fit can be used to overcome subjective biases. The study is based on a recent survey of 103 small family-owned businesses in the eastern Austrian border region. Our analysis of the data confirmed the existence of the measurement problems mentioned above. Although some individual indicators show significant biases as well as effects due to company age, size, and industry, the aggregated indicator based on the concept of configurational fit seems to be an appropriate means of overcoming most of these drawbacks.

scholarly journals The perception of sponsorship usefulness among South African small business owners

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 475-488
Author(s):  
Catherine Mpolokeng Sephapo ◽  
Johannes Arnoldus Wiid ◽  
Michael Colin Cant
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Small Business ◽  
South African ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Brand Image ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Small Business Owners ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Marketing Tool ◽  
Marketing Budgets

Sponsorship is a powerful marketing tool that organisations in South Africa are embracing. From the evaluation of the sponsorship growth over the years, the industry in South Africa has developed from a R63 million industry in 1985 to the value of just under R7 billion in 2011 (City Press, 2012). Small businesses in South Africa are faced with the challenge of effectively reaching target segments. These small businesses are restricted in terms of limited marketing budgets and therefore need alternative ways of improving their brands in the eyes of the consumer. Theoretically, sponsorship is considered to improve the brand image of an organisation and ultimately improve sales. However, the question that this study aims to answer is whether small business owners perceive sponsorship to be a useful tool that even they can utilise. The study made use of a quantitative approach whereby a web-based questionnaire was distributed to small business owners. The findings indicated that the general attitude towards sponsorship as a marketing tool is positive. The correlation between sponsor sincerity and sponsorship usefulness was found positive; however, average in strength. Although sponsorship is seen as a useful tool, 15.4% of the respondents indicated that they would not consider using this marketing tool. This response may provide an opportunity for further research to be conducted which may shed some light on the strategies small business owners perceive to be most effective for their unique circumstances

Growth and Development of Small Business Through Microfinance Activities in Nepal

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-34
Author(s):  
Chandra Prasad Dhakal
Keyword(s):  
Small Business ◽  
Financial Services ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Growth And Development ◽  
Linear Regression Analysis ◽  
Multiple Linear Regression Analysis ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Small Business Owners ◽  
Microfinance Institutions ◽  
Economic Activities

Small businesses play important role for economic development and stability. It develops access in financial services through enhancing economic activities. The study analyzes the growth and development of small businesses that enhance through the support of micro finance in Nepal. Descriptive and inferential were used to collected data and collected data were analyzed through using multiple linear regression analysis. Only 124 small business owners were selected for this study. The study helps to find out the growth of microfinance institutions (MFIs) and small businesses in emerging economy in Nepal. It also assists MFIs to assess the effectiveness of their services and help to efficient utilization of available resources in the economy of Nepal.

Introduction

2019 ◽  
pp. 1-20
Author(s):  
Courtney Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Small Business ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Structural Adjustment ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Small Business Owners ◽  
Economic Stability ◽  
The Great Recession ◽  
Justice Movements ◽  
The Impact

This introduction describes how encouraging a diversity of small businesses can help support a Native Nation’s long-term economic stability, but goes further to demonstrate this uniquely through the eyes of the small-business owners themselves along with an in-depth examination of their local, national, and international contexts. In doing so, it describes how this book also addresses the ways in which Native Nations, by supporting small business resilience, are responding in politically and socioeconomically meaningful ways to settler-colonial economic subjugations. This introduction further describes how the book unpacks the layers of small-business complications specific to Native Nations and American Indian business owners while speaking to larger theoretical questions regarding the impact of small businesses in a global indigenous context. Debates regarding economic sovereignty versus economic power, measures of autonomy, land status, economic identity, fluctuating relationships with settler-colonial society, and the growth of neoliberalism (along with its accompanying “structural adjustment” policies) meet with specific practices, such as the implementation of guaranteed annual incomes, cultural revitalization actions, environmental justice movements, and the potentially precarious choices of economic development—issues that are exacerbated during times of economic precarity, such as the Great Recession.

The Most Critical Problem for the Fledgling Small Business: Getting Sales

1984 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harriet Buckman Stephenson
Keyword(s):  
Small Business ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Government Regulation ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Small Business Owners ◽  
Critical Problem ◽  
Paper Work ◽  
Stage 1 ◽  
Selling Process ◽  
Regulation Costs

The most pressing problem of small business owners is how to get sales now and in the future. Items such as inflation, taxes, government regulation, costs of paper work, etc. become more important as a small business moves beyond stage 1 and possibly 2. Yet even then, how to get customers should still be the significant focus. Many entrepreneurs, especially providers of services, rely almost exclusively on word-of-mouth, which is often ineffectively utilized and, as the major source of business, should not be relied on. The entire selling process must be focused on in the first stage to change the survival rate of small businesses.

scholarly journals Are international small business owners really that different?

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 92-117
Author(s):  
Sarah Gundlach ◽  
Andre Sammartino
Keyword(s):  
Small Business ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Small Business Owners ◽  
Female Entrepreneurs ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Individual Traits ◽  
Tolerance For Ambiguity ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Do So

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of individual traits and attributes on the entrepreneurial and internationalization actions of Australian businesswomen, many of whom run small businesses. Design/methodology/approach This study is exploratory and quantitative, based on a questionnaire survey of 323 Australian businesswomen. Drawing upon the extant literature on internationalization, gender and entrepreneurship, the study explores two micro-foundational relationships of interest – personality and capability assessment differences between female business owners and their employed counterparts, and the impact of such traits and assessments on their internationalization. A further question is explored in terms of any differentials in perceptions of barriers in internationalization. Findings The findings show key personality dimensions do not differ dramatically between Australian businesswomen working in their own businesses (i.e. entrepreneurs) or as employees in organizations, while there are surprisingly few differences between women who are engaged internationally and those yet to do so. When comparing the female entrepreneurs and employees, in particular, the findings around tolerance for ambiguity and management efficacy are notably counterintuitive. This leads to the development of testable propositions to refine the causal claims in this domain. Practical implications The study calls into question the distinctiveness of entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial endeavors, at least for female businesswomen. Originality/value By including entrepreneurs and employees, women who have engaged internationally and those that are yet to do so, the study avoids some of the potential self-selection and confirmation biases inherent in studies of only entrepreneurs or small business owners. The investigation of individual traits, attributes and experiences as micro-foundations for internationalization motivations challenges existing theories of small business expansion.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document