The Marche region is one of the most industrialised regions in Italy and is considered a region of excellence, not only for its economic performance, but also for its cultural, natural and social richness. Marche belongs to what has come to be called the “Third Italy”: a model of development...

This section introduces the first of the three 'learning tools' (i.e. policy audits, transferability papers, regional case studies) envisaged by the 'OECD-WAG Review of Local Economic and Employment Development Approaches in OECD Countries' and covers four areas: the nature of the policy audits;...

This report collects five case studies of regional economic development models that have been considered of interest to Wales and similar regions. For each of the five strategies the aim has been to analyse rationale and conceptual framework, policy pillars, delivery mechanisms and potential...

Stimulating innovative and growth-oriented entrepreneurship is a key economic and societal challenge to which universities and colleges have much to contribute. This book examines the role that higher education institutions are currently playing through teaching entrepreneurship and transferring...

Ombudsmen in OECD countries have a tradition which dates back to the 1960s. However, the establishment of SME-dedicated ombudsmen is a more recent trend which has developed along three main models: redress model; clearing house model; and advocacy model. Countries interested in introducing an...

This paper examines the relationship between workplace organisation and innovation in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). It uses data for 30 countries, drawn from the European Company Survey, the OECD Programme for International Assessment of Adult Competencies and the Community...

This book aims to support the design and delivery of more effective local and regional economic development strategies. A crucial part of this process is the collection and use of evidence, on local needs and options and on what works and what does not. Each important step in the process of...

<Emphasis Type="Bold">Background: Standards, benchmarking, and audits are integral to quality monitoring in health and social service provision. Recent policy in the UK National Health Service dictating the need for increased consumer involvement necessitates that service users have significant input into the...</emphasis>

This report summarises the findings of a case study project on growing clean-tech cluster activity in the Negev region of Israel as part of a series of reviews on Entrepreneurship, SMEs and Local Development carried out by the Local Economic and Employment Development (LEED) Committee of the...