Small business pedagogic practices

Understanding how learning for small businesses should best proceed constitutes a worthwhile, yet challenging, pedagogic project. In order to maintain their viability, small businesses need to be able to respond to new practices and tasks. Yet small businesses seem neither attracted to nor to value the kinds of taught courses that are the standard pedagogic practice of vocational education systems.

Small Business and entrepreneurship policy

There are two key approaches to entrepreneurship, each of which has different implications for small business policy (Danson 2002). The first conceives of entrepreneurship as an economic process and can be traced to the work of Joseph Schumpeter who developed the concept of creative destruction to describe the entrepreneurial process that led to the simultaneous elimination of old industries and activities and the creation of new activities through the commercial application of new ideas. While entrepreneurship as a process of creative destruction might include start up activity amongst small firms, it does not exclusively involve small firms as large firms may contribute to the entrepreneurial process through the generation of new knowledge and by assisting in financing the development of new ideas amongst small firms. Although innovation occurs in large as well as small firms, the literature on small enterprise innovation draws heavily on Schumpeter’s depiction of the central role of the entrepreneur in the process of creative destruction, whereby the economic system is transformed from within and new cycles in economic life emerge in which new industries and markets replace old industries and markets. Schumpeter argued that entrepreneurs drove the process of innovation and that innovation was a stimulus to economic development and involved the development of new products, processes, methods of production or new forms of commercial or financial organisation (Schumpeter 1911). At a time when technological development and structuraleconomic change are occurring at a rapid pace, small firm innovation is seen to be critically important because empirical evidence, although not undisputed, indicates that SMEs make an important contribution to radical innovations in new industries (Nooteboom 1994). The second view of entrepreneurship focuses on the individual entrepreneur more than the entrepreneurial process. The entrepreneur is depicted as an owner of small businesses, and is regarded as having particular personal characteristics such as self-reliance, individual initiative and self-motivation. Entrepreneurs are also considered to have a behavioural orientation towards the exploitation of new ideas and opportunities. They are the risk takers who are able to see an opportunity and pursue it commercially despite the uncertainty of rewards. The capacity to plan, manage and lead is also seen to be identifying characteristics of entrepreneurs. Different small business policy approaches arise from these different perspectives on entrepreneurship. Small business policy approaches that emphasise the process by which new ideas are generated and applied commercially arise from the first and broader view of entrepreneurship. Policies designed to generate a population of risk taking and self-motivated individuals with highly developed management and commercial skills are more in keeping with the second approach, which is focused on the individual entrepreneur rather than the entrepreneurial process.

Effect of optical aberrations on the colour appearance of small lights

Purpose: Small red lights (one minute of arc or less) change colour appearance with positive defocus. We investigated the influence of longitudinal chromatic aberration and monochromatic aberrations on the colour appearance of small narrow band lights. Methods: Seven cyclopleged, trichromatic observers viewed a small light (one minute of arc, λmax = 510, 532, 550, 589, 620, 628 nm, approximately 19 per cent Weber contrast) centred within a black annulus (4.5 minutes of arc) and surrounded by a uniform white field (2,170 cd/m2). Pupil size was four millimetres. An optical trombone varied focus. Longitudinal chromatic aberration was controlled with a two component Powell achromatising lens that neutralises the eye’s chromatic aberration; a doublet that doubles and a triplet that reverses the eye’s chromatic aberration. Astigmatism and higher order monochromatic aberrations were corrected using adaptive optics. Results: Observers reported a change in appearance of the small red light (628 nm) without the Powell lens at +0.49 ± 0.21 D defocus and with the doublet at +0.62 ± 0.16 D. Appearance did not alter with the Powell lens, and five of seven observers reported the phenomenon with the triplet for negative defocus (-0.80 ± 0.47 D). Correction of aberrations did not significantly affect the magnitude at which the appearance of the red light changed (+0.44 ± 0.18 D without correction; +0.46 ± 0.16 D with correction). The change in colour appearance with defocus extended to other wavelengths (λmax = 510 to 620 nm), with directions of effects being reversed for short wavelengths relative to long wavelengths. Conclusions: Longitudinal chromatic aberrations but not monochromatic aberrations are involved in changing the appearance of small lights with defocus.

Demographic category membership and leadership in small groups : a social identity analysis

Developing the social identity theory of leadership (e.g., [Hogg, M. A. (2001). A social identity theory of leadership. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 5, 184–200]), an experiment (N=257) tested the hypothesis that as group members identify more strongly with their group (salience) their evaluations of leadership effectiveness become more strongly influenced by the extent to which their demographic stereotype-based impressions of their leader match the norm of the group (prototypicality). Participants, with more or less traditional gender attitudes (orientation), were members, under high or low group salience conditions (salience), of non-interactive laboratory groups that had “instrumental” or “expressive” group norms (norm), and a male or female leader (leader gender). As predicted, these four variables interacted significantly to affect perceptions of leadership effectiveness. Reconfiguration of the eight conditions formed by orientation, norm and leader gender produced a single prototypicality variable. Irrespective of participant gender, prototypical leaders were considered more effective in high then low salience groups, and in high salience groups prototypical leaders were more effective than less prototypical leaders. Alternative explanations based on status characteristics and role incongruity theory do not account well for the findings. Implications of these results for the glass ceiling effect and for a wider social identity analysis of the impact of demographic group membership on leadership in small groups are discussed.

Why adopt now? Multiple case studies and survey studies comparing small, medium and large firms

While a number of factors have been highlighted in the innovation adoption literature, little is known about the key triggers of innovation adoption across differently-sized firms. This study compares case studies of small, medium and large manufacturing firms who recently decided to adopt a process innovation. We also employ organizational surveys from 134 firms investigating the factors which influence innovation adoption. The quantitative results support the qualitative findings that the external pressures are a trigger among small to medium firms, while the larger firm’s adoption was associated with internal causes.

Ties that blind? How strong ties affect small business owner-managers’ perceived trustworthiness of their advisors

This research investigates how a strong personal relationship (strong tie) between a small business owner-manager and his professional or informal advisor affects the relationship between the advisor's recent performance and the owner-manager's perceptions of the advisor's trustworthiness in terms of ability, benevolence and integrity. A negative moderating effect could point to a 'tie that blinds': the owner-manager may be less critical in evaluating the advisor's perceived trustworthiness in light of their recent performance, because of the existing personal relationship. A conceptual model is constructed and examined with survey data comprising 153 young Finnish businesses. The results show that strong ties increase the owner-manager's perception of the advisor's integrity, disregarding their recent performance. For professional advisors, strong ties reduce the impact of recent performance in the owner-manager's evaluation of their ability. For informal advisors, a strong tie makes it more likely that their benevolence will be evaluated highly in light of their recent performance. While the results show that 'ties can blind' under certain circumstances, the limitations of the study raise the need for further research to specify these contextual factors and examine the causal link between the choice of advisor and business performance.

The mobile Internet and small business : an exploratory study of needs, uses and adoption with full-adopters of technology

The technological environment in which contemporary small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operate can only be described as dynamic. The exponential rate of technological change, characterised by perceived increases in the benefits associated with various technologies, shortening product life cycles and changing standards, provides for the SME a complex and challenging operational context. The primary aim of this research was to concentrate on those SMEs that had already adopted technology in order to identify their needs for the new mobile data technologies (MDT), the mobile Internet. The research design utilised a mixed approach whereby both qualitative and quantitative data was collected to address the question. Overall, the needs of these SMEs for MDT can be conceptualised into three areas where the technology will assist business practices; communication, eCommerce and security.

Mobile data technology for small business : needs, uses, and adoption

The technological environment in which contemporary small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operate can only be described as dynamic. The exponential rate of technological change, characterised by perceived increases in the benefits associated with various technologies, shortening product life cycles and changing standards, provides the SME a complex and challenging operational context. The primary aim of this research was to identify the needs of SMEs in regional areas for mobile data technologies (MDT). In this study a distinction was drawn between those respondents who were full-adopters of technology, those who were partial-adopters and those who were non-adopters and these three segments articulated different needs and requirements for MDT. Overall the needs of regional SMEs for MDT can be conceptualised into three areas where the technology will assist business practices, communication, e-commerce and security.

Factors affecting entry-level Internet technology adoption by small business in Australia : evidence from three cases

The adoption of Internet technologies by the small business sector (SMEs)The adoption of Internet technologies by the small business sector is important to their on-going survival. Yet, given the opportunities and benefits that Internet technologies can provide it has been shown that Australian small businesses are relatively slow in adopting them. This paper develops a model from recent literature on the facilitators and inhibitors to the adoption of Internet technologies by small business. Cross-case analysis of findings from three case studies are presented. Findings indicate that perceived lack of business benefit, mistrust of the IT industry and lack of understanding of Internet technologies are major inhibitors to Internet adoption by small business.

Mobile data technologies and small business adoption and diffusion : an empirical study of barriers and facilitators

The technological environment in which contemporary small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operate can only be described as dynamic. The exponential rate of technological change, characterised by perceived increases in the benefits associated with various technologies, shortening product life cycles and changing standards, provides for the SME a complex and challenging operational context. The primary aim of this research was to identify the needs of SMEs in regional areas for mobile data technologies (MDT). In this study a distinction was drawn between those respondents who were full-adopters of technology, those who were partial-adopters, and those who were non-adopters and these three segments articulated different needs and requirements for MDT. Overall, the needs of regional SMEs for MDT can be conceptualised into three areas where the technology will assist business practices; communication, e-commerce and security

Who needs it? An exploratory investigation into the reaction of small and medium enterprises to mobile data technologies

The technological environment in which contemporary small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operate can only be described as dynamic. The seemingly exponential nature of technological change, characterised by perceived increases in the benefits associated with various technologies, shortening product life cycles and changing standards, provides for the small and medium-sized enterprise a complex and challenging operational context. The development of infrastructures capable of supporting the Wireless Application Protocol (WAP)and associated 'wireless' applications represents the latest generation of technological innovation with potential appeal to SMEs and end-users alike. The primary aim of this research was to understand the mobile data technology needs of SMEs in a regional setting. The research was especially concerned with perceived needs across three market segments; non-adopters of new technology, partial-adopters of new technology and full-adopters of new technology. Working with an industry partner, focus groups were conducted with each of these segments with the discussions focused on the use of the latest WP products and services. Some of the results are presented in this paper.

Identifying aggregate demand and supply shocks in a small open economy

The standard Blanchard-Quah (BQ) decomposition forces aggregate demand and supply shocks to be orthogonal. However, this assumption is problematic for a nation with an inflation target. The very notion of inflation targeting means that monetary policy reacts to changes in aggregate supply. This paper employs a modification of the BQ procedure that allows for correlated shifts in aggregate supply and demand. It is found that shocks to Australian aggregate demand and supply are highly correlated. The estimated shifts in the aggregate demand and supply curves are then used to measure the effects of inflation targeting on the Australian inflation rate and level of GDP.

Adaptive depth estimation in image based visual servo control of dynamic systems

This paper considers the question of designing a fully image based visual servo control for a dynamic system. The work is motivated by the ongoing development of image based visual servo control of small aerial robotic vehicles. The observed targets considered are coloured blobs on a flat surface to which the normal direction is known. The theoretical framework is directly applicable to the case of markings on a horizontal floor or landing field. The image features used are a first order spherical moment for position and an image flow measurement for velocity. A fully non-linear adaptive control design is provided that ensures global stability of the closed-loop system. © 2005 IEEE.

Conditional coskewness and asset pricing

We explore the empirical usefulness of conditional coskewness to explain the cross-section of equity returns. We find that coskewness is an important determinant of the returns to equity, and that the pricing relationship varies through time. In particular we find that when the conditional market skewness is positive investors are willing to sacrifice 7.87% annually per unit of gamma (a standardized measure of coskewness risk) while they only demand a premium of 1.80% when the market is negatively skewed. A similar picture emerges from the coskewness factor of Harvey and Siddique (Harvey, C., Siddique, A., 2000a. Conditional skewness in asset pricing models tests. Journal of Finance 65, 1263–1295.) (a portfolio that is long stocks with small coskewness with the market and short high coskewness stocks) which earns 5.00% annually when the market is positively skewed but only 2.81% when the market is negatively skewed. The conditional two-moment CAPM and a conditional Fama and French (Fama, E., French, K., 1992. The cross-section of expected returns. Journal of Finance 47,427465.) three-factor model are rejected, but a model which includes coskewness is not rejected by the data. The model also passes a structural break test which many existing asset pricing models fail.

Vulnerability of axially loaded columns subjected to transverse impact loads

Increased industrialisation has brought to the forefront the susceptibility of concrete columns in both buildings and bridges to vehicle impacts. Accurate vulnerability assessments are crucial in the design process due to possible catastrophic nature of the failures that can cause. This paper reports on research undertaken to investigate the impact capacity of the columns of low to medium raised building designed according to Australian Standards. Numerical simulation techniques were used in the process and validation was done by using experimental results published in the literature. The investigation thus far has confirmed that vulnerability of typical columns in five story buildings located in urban areas to medium velocity car impacts and hence these columns need to be re-designed (if possible) or retrofitted. In addition, accuracy of the simplified method presented in EN 1991 to quantify the impact damage was scrutinised. A simplified concept to assess the damage due to all collisions modes was introduced. The research information will be extended to generate a common data base to assess the vulnerability of columns in urban areas against new generation of vehicles.