Purpose – The aim of this study is to understand why some New Zealand firms in the professional services industries have been slow to embrace e‐business technologies. Design/methodology/approach – The authors employ a postal survey approach and involve a sample of 500 professional service...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to use a blended learning environment to introduce principals in small businesses to the benefits of electronic commerce, while avoiding many of the barriers identified in recent research. Design/ methodology/approach – The paper reports results from...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a study of knowledge management understanding and usage in small and medium knowledge‐intensive enterprises. Design/methodology/approach – The study has taken an interpretitivist approach, using two knowledge‐intensive South Yorkshire...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine certain venture capital (VC) practices that conventional company managers might adopt to improve effectiveness when faced with increasing competition. Design/methodology/approach – Based on current VC research, the paper isolates certain...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify the main impact factors on the export capacity of small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) in Fujian Province, China. Design/methodology/approach – A model containing internal and external impact factors on the export capacity of SMEs was...

One of the major functions of marketing strategy is the proper positioning of the company in the sectorial value‐added chain, in order to create the best possible competitive advantage. This process is extremely important, especially for small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs), since any...

Purpose – This study aims to examine the association between a number of variables pertaining to marketing strategy and business performance of small construction firms in Tianjin, China. Design/methodology/approach – The paper consists of a qualitative pilot study and a quantitative main...

Purpose – The idea of business clusters is used more and more in public policy as businesses and governments are noticing their advantages. The purpose of this study was to determine if a business cluster would be possible in an energy sector of Albany, New York, since energy is so diverse....

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the development and application of a theoretical framework to examine the connections between different types of suppliers, their capabilities and opportunities in customer relationships, and the illustration of these connections through the...

Purpose – This paper aims to examine the multiplicity of norms in inter‐company cooperation in the context of an SME export group. It will show that the strategic interests of the parties call for more diversity in norms than that identified in existing studies on relational exchange....