Innovation Speed in Small and Medium‐Sized Enterprises

In this era of fast‐paced technological change companies are frequently forced to quickly bring innovative products to a competitive marketplace. Small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) play a key role in innovative contribution and growth of the global economy, yet face unique challenges with regard to new product development. To date scholars disagree on the effect of firm size on the antecedents and outcomes for innovation speed. We review the relevant literature, develop a conceptual model of innovation speed for SMEs and test it with 158 projects across several technology‐related industries. Results revealed that SMEs had different speed antecedents from large firms, had their antecedents vary by radicalness and found speed to be synergistic with efficiency, quality and project success. Implications for managers and scholars are discussed.     

Crisis Management and Strategic Orientation in Small and Medium‐Sized Enterprises (SMEs) in Peru,Mexico and the United States

This study addresses the link between management concern for organizational crises and competitive strategy in small and medium‐sized enterprises in Peru, Mexico and the United States. Surveys were completed by 270 Peruvian, 218 Mexican and 256 American managers. Strategic orientation in Peru did not mirror the broad pattern found in Mexico and in the United States. Levels of concern for crises were significantly higher in both Mexico and Peru than in the United States for 12 of 21 crises. The level of concern for crises tended to increase with management level more in Mexico and Peru than in the United States. Correlations between competitive strategy and crisis concern were significant in 26 of 126 instances.     

Ideas and Implementation: The Effective Implementation of Novel Marketing Programmes in Small‐ to Medium‐Sized Greek Firms

The purpose of the present study is to identify the potential contribution that a firm's climate supporting creativity can make towards understanding the effective implementation of novel marketing programmes. Specifically, a conceptual model is developed and empirically tested with Bayesian path analysis, using data obtained from managers of 87 Greek firms. Results suggest that a firm's climate that supports creativity has an indirect effect on marketing programme implementation effectiveness through marketing programme novelty. Additionally, climate for creativity moderates the relationship between marketing programme novelty and marketing programme implementation effectiveness such that the indirect effect of climate for creativity on marketing programme implementation effectiveness was found significant for levels of climate moderate to low, but not when the level of climate for creativity was high. Recommendations for further research are discussed.     

Analysis of the Competitive Intelligence Activities of Small and Medium‐Sized Enterprises from the Industrial Sector

The aim of this research is to analyze competitive intelligence (CI) activities in small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) from the industrial sector in Spain. Specifically, an attempt is made to identify why these companies carry out CI activities, the types of activity they carry out, and the influence that a company's features and the environment in which it operates have on developing CI activities. An ad hoc questionnaire was put together comprising 124 items distributed among a sample of 425 SMEs from the industrial sector. The results show that a company's features and environment have a significant influence on the CI activities developed by them.     

Innovation Activities by Small and Medium‐sized Manufacturing Enterprises in Tanzania

The primary aim of this research is to explore innovation activities and ascertain the relationships between these activities and growth performance of SMEs in the Tanzanian manufacturing sector. The applied model has been derived from international studies of innovation. A survey of SMEs combined with in‐depth case studies was made to study innovation practices of SMEs in the Tanzanian manufacturing sector. The results of this survey are used to compare the situation with findings of previous research. An increased level of applied change is associated with innovating SMEs, and a positive relationship between innovativeness in the SMEs with growth performance could be established. Based on the comparison of the results, recommendations are made for stimulating innovation.     

Towards a Guideline for Design of a Corporate Entrepreneurship Function for Business Development in Medium‐Sized Technology‐Based Companies

The speed with which global high‐technology markets evolve makes companies recognize that an effective innovation process is the best way to guarantee competitiveness. However, when (medium‐sized) companies then wish to set up a corporate entrepreneurship function to enhance business development processes, they can find little material available in literature to assist in such processes. In this article we have described a guideline and some backgrounds for creating a corporate entrepreneurship function to realize business development in a high‐tech context.     

Revisiting the IISS Small‐Gain Theorem through Transient Plus ISS Small‐Gain Regulation

Recently, the small‐gain theorem for input‐to‐state stable (ISS) systems has been extended to the class of integral input‐to‐state stable (iISS) systems. Feedback connections of two iISS systems are robustly stable with respect to disturbance if an extended small‐gain condition is satisfied. It has been proved that at least one of the two iISS subsystems needs to be ISS for guaranteeing globally asymptotic stability and iISS of the overall system. Making use of this necessary condition for the stability, this paper gives a new interpretation to the iISS small gain theorem as transient plus ISS small‐gain regulation. The observation provides useful information for designing and analyzing nonlinear control systems based on the iISS small‐gain theorem.     

Integrating ICTs and Supply Chain Management: The Case of Micro‐Sized Firms

Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have changed the relationship between suppliers and buyers, and the nature of supply chain management. Previous research has studied this topic, but not from the point of view of micro‐sized companies. Micro‐sized companies are of critical importance for economies worldwide. Thus, in Europe 90% of companies are micro‐enterprises and account for 53% of employment. This article presents a new perspective by studying the impact of the introduction of e‐supply chain management on such firms. Through a literature review, we identified four key supplier‐related factors, that is, the use of ICTs, process efficiency, workforce capabilities, and the introduction of e‐supply chain management. However, these factors could differ in the case of micro‐sized companies. The data used for the empirical analysis came from a survey of 405 micro‐sized companies in Spain. Using a structural equation modeling, the results indicate that ICTs have a positive direct effect on e‐supply chain performance. It is also found that this effect is accompanied by the improved development of human resource skills and enhanced process efficiency. In addition, a number of recommendations for improving managerial practices are also proposed.     

大数据在传统中小型企业库存管理改进中的作用

库存管理作为企业生产、计划和控制的基础,为企业的生产管理和成本控制提供重要依据。随着物联网和大数据的发展,可以为企业搜集、分析、处理前端数据,以及企业科学、高效的库存管理提供支持。笔者阐述了库存管理的概念、必要性及其所面临的问题,提出中小型生产企业开发库存管理数据化平台的措施,重点分析了企业安全库存的建立、上下游供应商的融合两个方面,指出大数据时代基于云会计的库存管理框架构建,必然会导致企业库存管理方式的改变,加速上下游企业的数据融合,降低过量库存,提高企业经济效益。     

How Barriers to Collaboration Prevent Progress in Demand for Knowledge: A Dyadic Study of Small and Medium‐Sized Firms,Research and Technology Organizations and Universities

This article analyses the challenging collaboration between small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) and knowledge institutions. The aim of the article is to shed light on the barriers, which hinder collaboration, and to investigate the particular role of research and technology organizations (RTOs) as potential mediators of collaboration between SMEs and universities. On the basis of a unique sample consisting of 151 SMEs, RTOs and universities from seven countries, the differences across dyads of potential collaborations are identified. In particular, the article finds that both firms and universities with collaboration experience with the other partner in general perceive higher barriers than inexperienced firms or universities. In terms of the mediating role of RTOs, the article illustrates that universities perceive lower barriers when collaborating with RTOs than with SMEs. A similar tendency to a mediating role of RTOs can be found among the SMEs' perception of university collaboration. Finally, the analysis shows that the knowledge institutions perceive the SMEs as very important collaboration partners, but the same sense of importance is not shared by the SMEs regarding collaboration with the knowledge institutions. Hence, there seems to be a quite unbalanced view on the potential of the collaborative ties, which is further discussed in the conclusion.     

中小规模研究性企业知识管理体系建设探索

研究型企业深刻意识到知识管理体系对企业的重要性．建立知识管理体系过程中出现的各类问题导致知识管理体系推动研究型企业进步的效率较低．笔者所在单位在长期管理信息系统建设过程中,从知识收集、整理归纳、知识共享、知识创新等环节进行方法研究和实践探索,取得了一定效果,企业内部知识体系逐步进入有序建设,有效推动了企业知识创新．     

Small‐signal and noise modeling of class of HEMTs using knowledge‐based artificial neural networks

In this article, the neural network approach is exploited for development of bias‐dependent small‐signal and noise models of a class of microwave field effect transistor (FETs) made in the same technology but differing in the gate width. The prior knowledge neural approach is applied. Introducing gate width at the input of proposed neural networks, as well as the S/noise parameters of a device that belongs to the same class as the modeled device representing the prior knowledge, leads to very accurate scattering and noise parameters' modeling, as exemplified by modeling of class of pseudomorphic high electron mobility transistor (pHEMT) devices. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J RF and Microwave CAE, 2013.     

数据挖掘技术在中小型制造企业CRM中的应用

客户关系管理(CRM)是一种全新的管理理念,是提高企业竞争力的一种手段,而数据挖掘技术为CRM的实施提供了良好的支持。简单介绍了CRM系统的基本理论知识,分析了数据挖掘技术在中小型制造企业CRM系统中的主要应用,详细论述中小型制造企业运用数据挖掘技术,提高企业信息管理水平和企业竞争力,使企业建立以客户为中心的经营模式。结合中小型制造企业的特点,详细分析当前制造企业管理的困境,提出了中小型制造业具体在CRM中实施的步骤和方法。     

Planning Makes (Closer to) Perfect: Exploring United States’ Local Government Officials’ Evaluations of Crisis Management

How a government responds to, manages, and communicates about crisis has direct implications for public well‐being and ultimately shapes public opinion about local governments and government officials. Yet, little is known about crisis preparation, especially that of local governments. Local governments are involved in managing any crisis situation that affects their communities, regardless of the responsible organization or nature of the crisis. This study surveys local government officials (N = 307) in 44 states across the United States who manage crisis communication to reveal unique considerations of planning, magnitude and citizen satisfaction on crisis management. Novel findings are revealed with respect to each variable to direct future crisis research, particularly that informing the precrisis stage.     

数据挖掘技术在中小型制造企业CRM中的应用

客户关系管理（CRM）是一种全新的管理理念，是提高企业竞争力的一种手段，而数据挖掘技术为CRM的实施提供了良好的支持。简单介绍了CRM系统的基本理论知识，分析了数据挖掘技术在中小型制造企业CRM系统中的主要应用，详细论述中小型制造企业运用数据挖掘技术，提高企业信息管理水平和企业竞争力，使企业建立以客户为中心的经营模式。结合中小型制造企业的特点，详细分析当前制造企业管理的困境，提出了中小型制造业具体在CRM中实施的步骤和方法。     

Re‐orienting the Corporate Entrepreneurial Journey: Exploring the Role of Middle Management

In this article we report research on the implementation of an increased exploitative market orientation in explorative technology‐driven firms, and how the interaction between middle management and the internal context shapes this process. It appears that middle managers play an important role in balancing planned and emergent activities, reconciling market and technological understandings, and negotiating and sanctioning ideas. These roles do not happen automatically. Dominant logics, mindsets and meanings, developed and successful in the past, ‘talk back’. Managerial systems and processes supporting the transition to more and more successful market exploitation are not automatically accepted. Rather, all these and similar changes need to be socially negotiated. In that process, the opportunities and incentives for middle managers to reach beyond their formal job and to engage in the organizational sense‐making process play a key role.