Business sustainability is becoming increasingly difficult amongst the demands of today’s markets. By implementing new and dynamic practices, organizations can optimize their day-to-day operations and improve competitive advantage. Optimal Management Strategies in Small and Medium Enterprises is a key source on the latest innovations in enhancing all main management functions, such as working capital and marketing, and examines how to implement sustainable business management practices. Featuring extensive coverage across a range of relevant perspectives and topics, such as human resources development, market orientation, and knowledge management, this book is ideally designed for business managers, professionals, graduate students, and researchers working in the field of smaller-scale business development initiatives.
In most countries, statistics show that 99% of businesses are classified as 'small businesses'. In the UK alone, 99.8% of businesses employ less than 250 staff and these companies contribute more than a half of the UK's turnover. This new textbook goes where other strategic management texts have not and focuses on these small and medium size enterprises (SMEs), rather than focussing on large corporations and the actions of their CEOs. The authors consider how managers of small firms perceive the processes associated with strategic management, what decisions and actions they adopt to ensure competitive advantage, how business strategies are formulated and implemented in SMEs, and what the strategic role of entrepreneurship within small businesses is. They also discuss how SMEs should act for maximum competitive advantage, and consider the 'gap' between ideal theory and practice. This unique textbook will be essential for students on Small Business, Entrepreneurship and Enterprise modules at undergraduate and Masters level, and will also be useful on core modules in Strategy, Business Policy and Strategic Management at all levels.
The world is witnessing an increase in innovation both in start-ups and in SMEs, and the implementation of innovation is having a substantial impact on the knowledge of the economy. The ability of human beings to create new knowledge can be defined as a basic skill in a global economy, which involves learning as an essential dynamism of the competition. Following this and considering the need for developing standards and guidelines for innovation, organizations have been working on developing and updating a set of documents to help the innovators and the innovative companies work better. Knowledge-Driven Innovation in Start-Ups and SMEs: Emerging Research and Opportunities is a collection of innovative research on the methods and applications of standardization and guideline creation in business innovation, such as those implemented by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). While highlighting topics including business analysis, market research, and intellectual property, this book is ideally designed for market researchers, business professionals, academicians, and students seeking current research on innovative processes and approaches for organizations.
To maintain a competitive edge against other businesses, companies must ensure the most effective strategies and procedures are in place. This is particularly critical in smaller business environments with fewer resources. Strategic Optimization of Medium-Sized Enterprises in the Global Market is a critical scholarly resource that highlights the optimization of management functions, such as working capital and marketing, and how to implement sustainable business management practices in the global world market. Featuring coverage on a broad range of topics such as social entrepreneurship, marketing optimization, and globalization, this book is geared towards business managers, medium-sized enterprises, policy makers, business professionals, and upper-level students seeking current research on the performances of medium-sized enterprises across the world and their broader supply chain.
Despite the ill effects of COVID-19 and the temporary closure of business operations worldwide, some organizations, such as the food and pharmaceutical industries, are still functioning, and their need to resume operations is dire. Managing the workforce and performing other functions of human resource management, such as recruitment and hiring, is a continuous process, and today’s organizations must be adaptive and careful in employing the practices of human resource management for any unforeseen events that trigger uncertainty and threats to the company’s workforce performance and hinder organizational effectiveness. Navigating the New Normal of Business With Enhanced Human Resource Management Strategies shares effective strategies in human resource management from organizations worldwide to shed light and ideas on how existing organizations have managed to continue their operations in a post-COVID-19 world, as well as how they have enhanced their strategies and prospects for the future. Covering a range of topics such as employee rights, labor markets, and talent management, it is an ideal resource for instructors, administrators, managers, industry professionals, academicians, practitioners, researchers, and students.
The global shift of the business world and the way the workforce navigates jobs is a powerful consequence of the global pandemic. Moreover, occupational health and safety initiatives are at the forefront of managerial discussions. Workplace trends show that the flexibility and adaptability demonstrated during the COVID-19 pandemic may prove to offer organizations new insights into employee recruitment, retention, and production. Leadership Strategies for the Hybrid Workforce: Best Practices for Fostering Employee Safety and Significance shares the strategies and best practices in making employees feel valued and significanta key factor in both employee recruitment and retention and one that goes far beyond mere pay increases. It uses lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic to discuss these new organizational strategies. Covering topics such as digital change, employee significance, and organizational DNA, this book is an essential resource for business leaders, students and educators of higher education, human resource managers, CEOs, managers, researchers, and academicians.
Organizations of all types are consistently working on new initiatives, product lines, or implementation of new workflows as a way to remain competitive in the modern business environment. No matter the type of project, employing the best methods for effective execution and timely completion of the task at hand is essential to project success. The implementation of computer technology has provided further opportunities for innovation and progress in the daily operations and initiatives of corporations. Knowledge Management and Innovation in Network Organizations: Emerging Research and Opportunities is an essential scholarly resource that explores the use of information communication technologies in management models and the development of network organizations operating in various sectors of the economy. Highlighting coverage on a wide range of topics such as cloud computing, organizational development, and business management, this book is ideal for business professionals, organizational researchers, and academicians interested in the latest research on network organizations.
Current modern companies, which are also the key factors of a global economy, are subject to increasing pressures to conduct their business in an environmentally responsible manner, due to social and environmental problems. Improving long-term environmental performance can bring economic benefits to those companies that are innovative and environmentally sensitive, especially by integrating environmental information into their business strategies. Considering all the changes, sustainability reporting, management, and financial accounting becomes a powerful information tool for executives, managers, and employee teams to gain insights and make better decisions. Along with concepts such as ethical, controlling, auditing, management, and financial accounting, reporting provides value with the decision-making process. All these debates underline the major responsibility of users when configuring accounting and finance models and thereby in modelling business information. Sustainability Reporting, Ethics, and Strategic Management Strategies for Modern Organizations proposes an interdisciplinary perspective and explores various theoretical and practical approaches of ethical standards, management accounting, and their impact in the 21st century on different areas of activity. It contrasts external financial accounting for government regulators and the investment community with internal management accounting for managers to leverage for decision making. In addition, the book examines the role of management accounting and sustainability reporting from other points of view such as ethical standards, corporate social responsibility, creative accounting, green accounting, environmental indicators, e-accounting, KPI, lean accounting, controlling, auditing, reporting, etc., offering a number of new insights into management accounting. It is intended for chief financial officers, financial controllers, business analysts, financial planners, financial analysts, budgeting managers, executives, managers, academicians, researchers, and students.
Organizational culture has been a topic of interest to researchers, and there has been specific interest in the link between culture and organizational performance. However, the relationship between organizational culture and business excellence and how to achieve outstanding performance is still ambiguous. Organizational Culture and Achieving Business Excellence: Emerging Research and Opportunities is an essential research reference that examines the association between organizational culture type and business excellence and the moderating effect of ICT use. Highlighting topics such as data analysis, culture types, and productivity, this book is ideal for business professionals, managers, private organizations, government agencies, researchers, and academicians.
Since the turn of the century, technology transfer and innovation has played an increasingly important role in government policy for reinvigorating and supporting a country's industry. This has been fueled by technology transfer from third parties such as universities, but due to the rapid evolution of the external environment of technology, companies require regular upgrades to information systems and technical infrastructure and adjustments. University-Industry Technology Transfer in the UK: Emerging Research and Opportunities provides innovative insights into how technology transfer has operated in university-company projects undertaken in small- to medium-sized enterprises. Highlighting 19 different cases drawn from companies in the regions adjoining the University of Gloucestershire, UK, from a qualitative case study approach, the content within this publication analyzes contract packers, the manufacturing industry, and research organizations. It is a vital reference source for managers, business owners, education administrators, researchers, academicians, professionals, policymakers, and graduate-level students seeking coverage on topics centered on case examples of technology transfer projects in different industry sectors.
