Given the potential of internationalisation for overcoming constraints in the domestic knowledge and technology of developing economies and thus enabling SME innovation, this study investigates the importance of foreign technology licensing, exporting, and importing for SME innovation in developing economies at different levels of development. Using the lens of institutional theory and the levels of development model, we examine samples of SMEs in the factor-driven economies of Sub-Saharan Africa and the efficiency-driven economies of various European and Central Asian post-socialist countries. Our results suggest that the effects of ‘importing’ and ‘exporting’ on SME innovation strongly depend on the level of the country’s economic development. We also find a positive association between foreign technology licensing and innovation; the effect is stronger in the Sub-Saharan factor-driven economies than in efficiency-driven economies.

In this study, the empirical evidence regarding small- and medium-sized enterprises' (SMEs) growth determinants allows us to conclude that: (1) stimulating factors are cash flow and gross domestic product; (2) restrictive factors are: debt, firm size, age of the firm and the interest rate; and (3) in the period after 2008, the financial crisis and implementation of austerity measures, in the Portuguese context, produced a negative effect on SME growth. In the period 2008-2012, that is, after the beginning of the financial crisis, cash flow had less importance, while debt was found to have a stronger negative effect on SME growth, compared with the pre-crisis period.

Purpose This article examines access to finance for SMEs in the Baltic States and the South Caucasus countries following the financial crisis of 2007 and is set within the context of the rule of law for businesses. Design/methodology/approach The article uses the cross-sectional dataset from the Business Environment and Enterprise Performance Survey (BEEPS) for 2009 to examine access to finance for SMEs and the court system in the Baltic States and the South Caucasus countries. An ordered probit estimation technique is used to model access to finance and the court system in the Baltic States and the South Caucasus countries. The analysis draws upon institutional theory to explain access to finance for SMEs. Findings The results show variations from one Baltic State and South Caucasus country to another in relation to fairness, speed of justice and enforcement of court decisions. The analysis suggests that if access to finance is not an obstacle to business operations and the court system is fair, impartial and uncorrupted, it determines the likelihood of strength in entrepreneurship. Additionally, the results show that, within the Baltic region, businesses experiencing constraints in accessing finance are more likely to have females as their top managers. However, for the South Caucasus region, there was no gender difference. Research limitations/implications This research is based on evidence from the Baltic States and the South Caucasus region. However, the findings are relevant to discussions on the importance of the context of entrepreneurship, and more specifically, the rule of law. The institutional theory provides an explanation for coercive, normative and mimetic institutional isomorphism in the context of access to finance for SMEs. Coercive institutional isomorphism exerts a dependence on access to finance for SMEs. In coercive institutional isomorphism, formal and informal pressures are exerted by external organisations such as governments, legal regulatory authorities, banks and other lending institutions. These formal and informal pressures are imposed to ensure compliance as a dependency for successful access to finance goal. Practical implications This research creates awareness among entrepreneurs, potential entrepreneurs, business practitioners and society that reducing obstacles to access finance and a fair court system improve entrepreneurial venture formation. This has the potential to create employment, advance business development and improve economic development. Originality/value This paper makes an original contribution by emphasising the significance of access to finance and a fair court system in encouraging stronger entrepreneurship. The institutional framework provides a definition for coercive institutional isomorphism to show how external forces exert a dependence pressure towards access to finance for SMEs.

Venture capital (VC) is an alternative means of access to finance for innovative SMEs to sustain their innovation, growth, and survival. Although VC firms are well established in the UK and USA, they are not well-known worldwide and many SMEs are unaware of their potential. This is a review of research literature on VC, its conceptualization, and synthesis over four decades. VC is gaining increased and varied significance worldwide as a way for innovative SMEs to access funds. Globalization has provided entrepreneurs the opportunity to seek VC globally as reputable VC firms are able to fund innovative projects across countries and continents. As the legal and regulatory regime improve, VC finance opportunities increase with impact on the demand and supply of VC. Innovative SMEs are encouraged to take advantage of globalization and competition among VC firms in their search for VC. Recently, VC firms have become more risk averse regardless of their traditional competence in screening and monitoring.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse the relationship between the three components of intellectual capital (IC) (human, structural, and relational), and contextual factors relating to organisational climate (OC) and innovation culture, together with their influence on business performance (BP). Design/methodology/approach This empirical research is based on an online questionnaire, which collected data from a non-probability quota sample consisting of 253 Croatian SMEs. The scales for IC, OC, and innovation culture were constructed to test the relationship between these dimensions and assess the BP of the SMEs. Findings Based on a survey on 253 SMEs in Croatia, the analysis shows that the key dimensions of IC, innovation culture, and OC are vital to a company’s success and are strongly inter-correlated. Higher BP is positively related to higher levels of both IC and innovation culture. Research limitations/implications The main limitation of the research is the subjective aspect of the study. The data used in the study were self-reported where respondents in a survey gave their assessment of firm performance. Although this was necessary because of the absence of other data, it is an issue that must be taken into account when interpreting the findings in the study. Practical implications Understanding the role of IC, OC, and innovation culture in relation to BP, particularly in former transition countries, can have important implications for managers and enterprise owners, as well as policy makers and the academic community. Social implications The findings emphasise the important role of tacit knowledge in the innovation process, of which IC and OC are good examples. Originality/value This empirical study brings evidence from the understudied country of Croatia. Croatia is a post-transitional country and the last accessed member of the EU, on the dividing line between a modest and a moderate innovator. This is the first empirical study conducted in Croatia that explores the association between three concepts that are typically investigated separately (IC, OC, and innovation culture).

This paper investigates the meaning and appropriateness of concepts of necessity and opportunity driven entrepreneurship in early stage transition economies, where market reform has been slow and institutional deficiencies make the environment for productive entrepreneurship difficult. Using a combination of survey and case study evidence, the authors show the limitations of extracting such terms from their social context, with implications for the assessment of the entrepreneurial capacity of these countries. Moreover, it is argued that such concepts pay insufficient attention to dynamic influences, such as the learning capacity of individuals, particularly in contexts where entrepreneurs typically possess considerable human capital.

This chapter assesses appropriateness and effectiveness of the anchor institution model in general, and Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) in particular, as the basis for local economic policy in the UK. It presents the anchor institution model and how it is supposed to address small business support issues. Anchor institutions are the latest example of policy transfer from its origins in US urban policy. In the UK, discussion of anchor institutions is very much restricted to universities and business schools, whereas in the USA, where the concept has a longer history, a wider set of participant organisations are involved. Anchor institutions need to design and facilitate development support. So are anchor institutions the answer to the prayers of small business owners? Clearly, the answer depends on whether the owner prays or not, but let us assume that he or she does.

The paper reviews the current discussion on institutional change and institutional entrepreneurship. Specifically, it focuses on institutional change agents, by which we mean individuals whose actions can be shown to have contributed to formal or informal institutional change, to the benefit of the wider economy or society as well as to themselves. It aims to explore their antecedents and behaviours, and the contingent factors contributing to institutional change, both intentionally and unintentionally. We find that the concept of institutional entrepreneurship does not provide an adequate conceptual underpinning for incorporating human agency into institutionalised theory. We therefore argue that a focus on “institutional change agents may be more productive. Whilst institutional theory recognizes the impact of institutions on entrepreneurs and individuals, this paper draws attention to the role of human agency for institutional change. Institutional change can happen intentionally and as an unintended by-product of entrepreneurial or organisational ‘path-dependent’ behaviour. The implication of this is that it is not only intentional behaviour which contributes to institutional change, but rather any entrepreneurial behaviour which implicitly or explicitly questions existing institutions. Thus, the paper adds to the current debate on institutional entrepreneurship.

Proactiveness is a pervasive phenomenon in entrepreneurial organisations, however, the existing literatures mainly focus on entrepreneurial orientation, proactiveness is only regarded as one dimension of EO, and most studies on EO are at the level of firm, not the individual. Based on effectuation theory, this study utilized data from CPSED and examined the antecedents of nascent entrepreneurs' proactiveness. We find that entrepreneurial experience has a positive effect on nascent entrepreneurs’ proactiveness while management education and systematic search have negative effect. These findings add to the effectuation and entrepreneurial proactiveness literatures.

Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) located in the least developed countries (LDCs), operate in distinctively hostile institutional environments compared to those in developed economies. Better understanding of the determinants of SME innovation in such environments is important for the development of private sector in LDCs, because innovative SMEs are crucial for sustainable economic growth. Yet, determinants of SME innovation in LDCs have hardly been studied. Considering the potential relevance of internationalization for SME innovation in LDCs, as means of overcoming domestic environmental constraints, this paper investigates the influence of foreign technology licensing, exports and imports on SME innovation in LDCs. The study employs data from 1058 manufacturing SMEs from Sub-Saharan LDCs - Djibouti, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The findings suggest that foreign technology licensing is found to be positively and statistically associated with SME product and process innovations in Sub-Saharan LDCs. Findings are compared with those from developed economies in order to identify distinctive features. The implication is that SMEs in Sub-Saharan LDCs need to be supported by different policies compared to developed economies. The results also show that R&D, firm size, sectoral characteristics and access to finance are important determinants of SME innovation.

Research Summary: This article advances our understanding of entrepreneurial resourcefulness in unstable institutional contexts, which are characterized by resource constraints and institutional changes but are rich in intangible resources of a sociocultural nature. Drawing on qualitative data of individuals engaged in informal cross‐border activities in EU borderlands, we theorize resourcefulness along two core dimensions: continuity and change in relation to sociocultural, spatial, and institutional conditions and development and coping as outcomes. We identify six configurations of resourcefulness patterns and outcomes that extend current understandings of the variations in how individuals interact with their contexts, offering a nuanced view of resourcefulness.Managerial Summary: This article aims to understand entrepreneurial resourceful behavior in contexts characterized by difficult economic conditions and institutional changes. We use qualitative data of individuals involved in informal cross‐border activities in EU borderlands that have undergone the collapse of communism and EU enlargement rounds. The data shows that resourcefulness relies on continuity, reflected in previous skills and networks, family and friends, or common cultural understandings and change, as resourcefulness where individuals implicitly or explicitly challenge the new border regulations. Individuals' resourcefulness translates into “coping” outcomes, as in achieving a minimal income to maintain the current way of life and/or to sustain social relationships and “development” outcomes, whereby individuals earn more income and improve their business activities.

Contemporary literature has paid considerable attention to the relationships between formal and informal institutions and early stage firms’ behaviours in different institutional settings in recent years. Given a constantly changing business environment in which companies are operating, there is a need to continuously study how they deal with new challenges and how they achieve new goals. It is essential for not only nascent but also experienced entrepreneurs to discover new dynamics in order to stay at a competitive level. This special issue of Journal of Evolutionary Studies in Business aims to explore the role of dynamics that interact with institutional changes in surviving and growing ventures. We present the nine articles with a variety of studied contexts, which shed some light on how companies or organisations keep up with institutional changes at both macro and micro level, by actively transforming business practices and entrepreneurial processes.

There has never been a more appropriate time for a Special Issue on migration than currently. The regressive policies of the new U.S. President, strengthening physical barriers for movement across ...

This chapter is concerned with entrepreneurship and small business development in Devon & Cornwall, focusing particularly on policy related issues. It assesses the nature and extent of entrepreneurship in rural areas in the sub-region and considers how entrepreneurship is contributing to its rural development needs. The chapter aims to identify the needs of entrepreneurs, and potential entrepreneurs, which policy might help to address and also assesses the adequacy of existing policy approaches. There is a suggestion of some change in the profile of entrepreneurs over time, with more educationally qualified people increasing their propensity towards business ownership. Businesses owned by portfolio entrepreneurs were more likely to have products/services judged to be innovative by national and global market standards than firms owned by entrepreneurs with single business interests, and also more likely to have developed new markets during the two years prior to the interviews.

This chapter review the evidence from the various case study areas (CSAs) relating to policies which, directly or indirectly, are concerned with the encouragement and support of rural enterprise and forms of entrepreneurship. It identifies some lessons which can be learned from the experience of enterprise policies in these various peripheral rural areas and considers the extent to which existing policies are addressing the needs of those areas, as well as the needs of the enterprises within them. The chapter involves identifying various deficiencies in existing approaches, as well as identifying some 'good practice' examples which may be transferable to other rural contexts. The identification and assessment of 'good practice' policies in the various CSAs have tried to address a number of issues relating to each policy, including its rationale, its appropriateness to local needs, various delivery issues, evidence of impact and effectiveness, and the relationship with other policies.