The adoption of social media (web 2.0) in the e-marketing strategy of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) is not yet researched much. Research findings in bigger companies in the USA, Europe and the Netherlands suggest that the issue is high on the think list of marketers and entrepreneurs. But what are the drivers and barriers for small and medium enterprises to make, execute, and further develop their strategy on social media? This paper places the perceptions and actions of 10 SMEs in the Netherlands in the Stages of Growth for e-Business model (SOG-e model) which focuses on e-business maturity. Findings are that general expectations and customer wishes are important drivers and that, besides time and money, the fear of negative comments on the Internet are important barriers.
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Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) comprise 99% of the European-economy, though, most research and implementation methods concerning Business Process Management Systems (BPMS) focus on large enterprises. We create a BPMS implementation method that is suitable for SMEs. Based on three existing BPMS implementation methods and by incorporating differentiators of SMEs and large enterprises a BPMS implementation method is constructed. The constructed method is validated through a series of interviews with BPMS implementation experts. Experts agree with the constructed method though discussion arise on a more detailed level of activities in the method.
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In cross-border e-commerce, electronic retailers (e-retailers) aim to extend their sales activities via the Internet beyond national borders. Unlike large companies, small and medium-sized enterprises are struggling with their international online expansion. This phenomenon is not limited to countries with a developed e-commerce market; e-retailers from emerging e-commerce markets, too, face the problem. This study investigates what the drivers are of business performance of SMEs in cross-border e-retailing, and how drivers differ between developed and emerging e-commerce markets in Europe. Structural equation modelling analyses with the lavaan package in R on a sample of 453 owners and directors of SMEs from 20 countries, show that foreign market orientation not only directly influences business performance in cross-border e-commerce, but also indirectly through communication efforts in foreign markets. These results hold for both developed and emerging markets, however, there are two interesting differences. First in the influence of foreign market orientation and communication efforts on business performance, and second in the impact of the number of years the electronic e-retailer is active in cross-border e-commerce.
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In December of 2004 the Directorate General for Research and Technological Development (DG RTD) of the European Commission (EC) set up a High-Level Expert Group to propose a series of measures to stimulate the reporting of Intellectual Capital in research intensive Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs). The Expert Group has focused on enterprises that either perform Research and Development (R&D), or use the results of R&D to innovate and has also considered the implications for the specialist R&D units of larger enterprises, dedicated Research & Technology Organizations and Universities. In this report the Expert Group presents its findings, leading to six recommendations to stimulate the reporting of Intellectual Capital in SMEs by raising awareness, improving reporting competencies, promoting the use of IC Reporting and facilitating standardization.
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The complexity of Information Technology (IT) is increasing; so are customer expectations. Consequently it is not easy for especially small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to keep track of all IT-developments, let alone leverage them in business operations with the aim to satisfy increasingly demanding customers. This also holds for the health care sector. This research is focussed on first line health care, and deals with the following research question; ‘which IT capabilities do SMEs within the first line health care sector need to have at their disposal in order to reach Business/IT-Alignment (BITA) maturity?’ Using the best practices ITIL, ASL and BiSL (cf. Bon, et al. 2007), IT capabilities are formulated. Based on the theory of Luftman (2000) business/IT-alignment and maturity is measured. Quantitative research of 123 first line health care SMEs in the Netherlands, confirms a moderate to strong correlation between the IT capability constructs ‘Organisation’, ‘Processes’, ‘Knowledge’ and ‘People’ on the one hand, and BITA maturity on the other. The results indicate that SMEs within the first line health care sector should invest in IT capabilities related to the enterprise's ‘Organisation’ and ‘Processes’ to strive for increased business and IT maturity.
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Finding purchase activity patterns in Small & Medium Enterprises in a research program to enable SMEs to improve their purchase and company performance. Posterpresentatie KCO conferentie, 16 november 2015.
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This study focuses on SME networks of design and high-tech companies in Southeast Netherland. By highlighting the personal networks of members across design and high-tech industries, the study attempts to identify the main brokers in this dynamic environment. In addition, we investigate whether specific characteristics are associated with these brokers. The main contribution of the paper lies in the fact that, in contrast to most other work, it is quantitative and that it focuses on brokers identified in an actual network (based on both suppliers and users of the knowledge infrastructure). Studying the phenomenon of brokerage provides us with clear insights into the concept of brokerage regarding SME networks in different fields. In particular we highlight how third parties contribute to the transfer and development of knowledge. Empirical results show, among others that the most influential brokers are found in the nonprofit and science sector and have a long track record in their branch.
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The purpose of this article is to examine how brands are built in small-to-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and to develop a conceptual model of SME brand-building. The research design is based on an a priori conceptual framework that helped direct the fieldwork, data analysis and findings. A series of semi-structured interviews was conducted among 35 owner/managers from 30 firms. The results indicate that SME brands are built in a non-traditional manner and contrary to large firm brand building, with minimum brand planning and limited resources. SME brand-owner/managers and employees engage in brand exploration phases where they experiment in a spirit of trial and error based on risk-taking, commitment, creativity and willingness to learn. Based on these results, the article develops a model of the five phases of SME brand-building. The five-phase model represents an actionable framework for managers in an SME context. The model also presents scholars with a theoretical foundation upon which to construct further theory development.
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This paper analyzes connectivity and efficiency of a SME network across two industries. These characteristics are likely to be different for networks of various industries. The concept of 'small worlds' is used to judge overall network efficiency. The actual network can be classified as one in which a small world is present. Visualization of the results shows a single core group in the network. It was found that non-profit as well as science actors were overrepresented in the core of the field.
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Paper for the WION - Werkgemeenschap Inkoop Onderzoek Nederland - 2015, 3rd version.Purchasing within Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) is important for the overall SME firm performance. However, purchasing within SMEs is not the same as purchasing within larger organisations and there is limited conclusive research on how to improve the purchasing performance of SMEs. This article describes research done by four bachelor students on the purchasing function within four Dutch manufacturing SMEs.
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