Uses a large sample survey of businesses to demonstrate that a critical mass threshold exists for their use of business support organization services. This critical mass threshold is very marked for the two organizations examined: British case studies of chambers of commerce and...

This paper is aimed at association managers and market advisors. It explores how associations balance their provision of different services, the potential for associations to provide new services, and the relevance of service “bundling”. A new survey of small firm use of associations in...

Purpose – The primary objective of this article is to explore what senior managers think they should be doing to improve communication in their organization, what they actually do in communication terms, and the high work load which senior managers undertake. Design/methodology/approach –...

Examines the impact of the 1989 Finance Act, imposing VAT on the construction sector. Concludes that there will be major discouragement to many development projects. Concludes that the worst‐hit elements are: financial sector tenants, weaker local property markets, large complex projects and...

This paper uses a large‐scale survey of SMEs (1,531 respondents) in the UK to assess the factors associated with their competitive conditions and their competitive advantage. Results appear to confirm that, as SME businesses grow, they develop their strategy to seek specialisation and...

Addresses the question of how TECs′ outputs can be accurately estimated and analysed so that a balanced evaluation of the effectiveness and cost‐efficiency of their programmes can be made. Proposes an approach involving comparisons between “model TECs”, “unreformed TECs” and...