A Fuzzy Inference System for Management Control Tools

Despite the importance of the role of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in developing and growing economies, little is known regarding the use of management control tools in them. In management control in SMEs, a holistic system needs to be modeled to enable a careful study of how each lever (belief systems, boundary systems, interactive control systems, and diagnostic control systems) affects the organizational performance of SMEs. In this article, a fuzzy logic approach is proposed for the decision-making system in management control in small and medium enterprises. C. Mamdani fuzzy inference system (MFIS) was applied as a decision-making technique to explore the influence of the use of management control tools on the organizational performance of SMEs. Perceptions data analysis is obtained through empirical research

A fuzzy methodology for innovation management measurement

Innovation has been recognized as one of the main sources of competitive advantage for organizations and nations. The purpose of this study is to present an innovation management measurement approach applying fuzzy techniques to small and medium manufacturing enterprises. ..

Absorptive capacity and internationalization of New Zealand high-tech SMEs in the agro-technology sector

This study investigates the relationships between firm's technology, absorptive capacity and the internationalization process in the high-tech SMEs. The research identifies the most influential factors that affect the international activities and expansion decisions of New Zealand high-tech SMEs with core capabilities in agro-technology. Mixed methods, qualitative and quantitative elements in the data collection and analysis, were employed in this research for a reason that a deeper understanding of the research subject and the analysis of complex issues such as the internationalization process and absorptive capacity required methodological variety. The use of qualitative and quantitative methods took place in parallel. Both methods were used to study the same subject but they had specific objective related purposes and they offered the possibility of developing rich empirical data as well as a more comprehensive understanding of the subject under the study. The findings show that it is absorptive capacity that explains internationalization process, not internationalization process that explains absorptive capacity. The practice of internationalizing is as much a reflection of a firm's absorptive capacity as it is its determinant. The research identifies that high-tech SMEs possess technological and non-core absorptive capacity which in a different way influence firms' strategies. The research suggests that firm's technological capabilities and the advantage of specialized knowledge along with their limited non-core absorptive capacity act as constraints to the development of the future international strategy in high-tech SMEs. The study expands the existing literature on internationalization by developing variables for evaluating absorptive capacity in firms. This helped develop an absorptive capacity model which can be used as a valuable tool for self-assessment by firms to facilitate gaining insight towards further growth and development. The research suggested that if firms were able to measure its absorptive capacity this may result in improved business activities and enhanced presence in the world market. The results of this study should encourage firms to identify, capture and articulate knowledge achieved by their ventures. Managers must develop and nurture skills that ensure effective integration of learning as their firms expand, particularly internationally. These findings and absorptive capacity model offered as a tool should encourage managers to explore when, where, and how to best use firm's resources in the business operations. This is particularly important in regards to the research context (high-tech SMEs) where scientists are managers as well

Underlying structures of risk response measures among small and medium contractors in South Africa

Although attention has been given to the measures used to respond to risk in the construction industry (CI), there is limited literature that scrutinizes underlying structures of risk response measures (RRMs) especially among small and medium enterprises (SMEs). This study, therefore, presents findings from an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) of RRMs. A positivist paradigm was adopted to collect empirical raw data from 181 conveniently sampled respondents in Gauteng, South Africa (SA), using a structured questionnaire. The results support the extant literature and empirically established the structural composition of risk response by two constructs. The construct with emerged measures was termed trailing measures while the one with popular measures was termed leading measures of risk response. However, the study yielded a two-factor model with all the six items supposed to measure risk response. Based on the results obtained, it seems that risk avoidance and risk mitigation are reliable measures for measuring risk response. This study could thus serve as a reference for the accurate measurement of risk response and for the development of agreed responses for each risk, including an appropriate strategy and specific responses to implement the chosen strategy. The study was limited to the CI and to a lesser extent, construction SMEs in Gauteng; hence the findings cannot be generalized to all SMEs in SA

Farm SMEs sustainability assessment based on Bellagio Principles. The case of Messinian Region, Greece

Purpose: Sufficient support of the sustainability of farm products embedded in a region (such as Products of Designated Origin / PDOs) to overcome significant obstacles to access domestic and remote markets. Main research question is how to overcome such inherent difficulties and transform them into challenges and opportunities to the new market environment. Design/methodology /approach: Combination of simplicity with the complicated issue of sustainability for awareness of small farmers SMEs and their collective representatives. Improve the understanding of the Sustainable Supply Chain Management (SSCM), to facilitate sustainability through use of the ‘Bellagio Principles’ for assessing sustainability of local farm products and facilitating further enhancement. Use of certain PDOs farm products of the Messinian region of Greece, such as local Sfela Feta cheese, olive oil, olives and raisins, to assess sustainability and improvement. Formation of a conceptual constructive action R&D framework of broader use in building-up and performing implementation of holistic supply chain strategy. Expected Findings: Providing better understanding of the SSCM. Insights on how SMEs co-operatives can collectively apply holistic strategies concerning local farm PDOs to fulfil competitiveness and sustainability requirements, under variant product and market conditions. Originality / Value : Improving the know-how, focusing on the sustainability of regional, traditional products and its effects upon supply chain performance and market access. Practical implications for regional-based farm SMEs in the design of holistic value creation strategies to produce sustainable competitive advantage. Interactive cause and effect dynamic implications of sustainable development on social, economic and physical environment

ERP implementation methodologies and frameworks: a literature review

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) implementation is a complex and vibrant process, one that involves a combination of technological and organizational interactions. Often an ERP implementation project is the single largest IT project that an organization has ever launched and requires a mutual fit of system and organization. Also the concept of an ERP implementation supporting business processes across many different departments is not a generic, rigid and uniform concept and depends on variety of factors. As a result, the issues addressing the ERP implementation process have been one of the major concerns in industry. Therefore ERP implementation receives attention from practitioners and scholars and both, business as well as academic literature is abundant and not always very conclusive or coherent. However, research on ERP systems so far has been mainly focused on diffusion, use and impact issues. Less attention has been given to the methods used during the configuration and the implementation of ERP systems, even though they are commonly used in practice, they still remain largely unexplored and undocumented in Information Systems research. So, the academic relevance of this research is the contribution to the existing body of scientific knowledge. An annotated brief literature review is done in order to evaluate the current state of the existing academic literature. The purpose is to present a systematic overview of relevant ERP implementation methodologies and frameworks as a desire for achieving a better taxonomy of ERP implementation methodologies. This paper is useful to researchers who are interested in ERP implementation methodologies and frameworks. Results will serve as an input for a classification of the existing ERP implementation methodologies and frameworks. Also, this paper aims also at the professional ERP community involved in the process of ERP implementation by promoting a better understanding of ERP implementation methodologies and frameworks, its variety and history

Corporate Social Responsibility: from Construct to Praxis.

Aquesta tesi és organitzada en un compendi de tres articles, cada uns dels quals avança en el nostre coneixement sobre la responsabilitat social corporativa (RSC), des del constructe fins a la pràctica professional. Primerament, l'article 1, titulat "Construint La Torre de Babel: Una Aproximació Mitjançant Lògica Difusa" (escrit conjuntament amb el Dr. Josep Mª Lozano i F. Di Lorenzo), proposa i prova una aproximació epistemològica difusa per contestar a la pregunta: " Pot i hauria d'existir una definició de responsabilitat social? ". Emprant la teoria sobre conjunts difusos per a l'anàlisi sistemàtica de definicions en el camp de l'empresa i societat, demostra com aquestes definicions estan vinculades a les 3 metàfores més citades en el camp de l'empresa i societat (responsabilitat social de l'empresa (RSC), sostenibilitat corporativa (SC) i ciutadania corporativa (CC)). A continuació, l'article 2, titulat "Tipologia En Quatre Cel.les De Les Barreres i Oportunitats Clau Per a La Acció Social en les PYMEs" (escrit conjuntament amb el Dr. Josep Mª Lozano), és una revisió de literatura sobre " Quines són les barreres i oportunitats per a les PYMEs en el seu compromís amb l'acció socialment responsable (ASR)?". Aquest article proposa, partint de l'heteronimia de la notabilitat dels seus stakeholders, una tipologia de 4 classes de PYMEs en base el seu ASR. Finalment, l'article 3, titulat "Safari de Casos de Millors Pràctiques en ASR: utilitzant els prismàtics de l'orientació social de l'empresa (OSR) per identificar la RSC", és un estudi de casos multimètode, sobre la qüestió de " Com es veu la RSC a nivell empresarial? ". Les conclusions d'aquest estudi suggereixen que els dominis de la RSC són jeràrquics en la seva relació, amb l'econòmic com a base. A més, l'àmbit dels principis empresarials en matèria de RSC varia segons la seva àrea d'influència i el sentit del deure moral. En particular, l'estudi crida l'atenció sobre el domini discrecional com a factor diferencial entre les millors pràctiques en ASR i els casos de pràctiques habituals. Per acabar, aquest article construeix en la teoria sobre ASR mitjançant la integració de l'OSR i la seva reorientació per incloure el context de les PYMEs. D'aquesta forma, aquesta tesi doctoral obre diverses oportunitats per a noves línies d'investigació amb la teoria de lògica de conjunts difusos, la de RSC, CC. CS i PYMEs, i la teoria de OSR i ASR.Esta tesis está organizada en un compendio de tres artículos, cada uno de los cuales avanza en nuestro conocimiento sobre la responsabilidad social corporativa (RSC), desde el constructo hasta la práctica profesional. Primeramente, el artículo 1, titulado "Construyendo La Torre de Babel: Una Aproximación Mediante Lógica Difusa" (escrito conjuntamente con el Dr. Josep Mª Lozano y F. Di Lorenzo), propone y prueba una aproximación epistemológica difusa para contestar a la pregunta: "¿Puede y debería existir una definición de responsabilidad social?". Mediante la utilización de la teoría sobre conjuntos difusos para el análisis sistemático de definiciones en el campo de la empresa y sociedad, demuestra como estas definiciones están vinculadas a las 3 metáforas más citadas en el campo de la empresa y sociedad (responsabilidad social de la empresa (RSC), sostenibilidad corporativa (SC) y ciudadanía corporativa (CC)). A continuación, el artículo 2, titulado "Tipología En Cuatro Celdas De Las Barreras y Oportunidades Clave Para La Acción Social en las PYMEs" (escrito conjuntamente con el Dr. Josep Mª Lozano), es una revisión de literatura sobre "¿Cuales son las barreras y oportunidades para las PYMEs en su compromiso con la acción socialmente responsable (ASR)?". Este artículo propone, en base a la heteronimía de la notabilidad de sus stakeholders, una tipología de 4 clases de PYMEs en base su ASR. Finalmente, el artículo 3, titulado "Safari de Casos de Mejores Prácticas en ASR: utilizando los prismáticos de la orientación social de la empresa (OSE) para identificar la RSC", es un estudio de casos multi-método, sobre la cuestión de "¿Cómo se ve la RSC a nivel empresarial?". Las conclusiones de este estudio sugieren que los dominios de la RSC son jerárquicos en su relación, con el económico como base. Además, el ámbito de los principios empresariales en materia de RSC varía según su área de influencia y el sentido del deber moral. En particular, el estudio llama la atención sobre el dominio discrecional como factor diferencial entre las mejores prácticas en ASR y los casos de prácticas habituales. Para terminar, este artículo construye en la teoría sobre ASR mediante la integración de la OSR y su reorientación para incluir el contexto de las PYMEs. De esta forma, esta tesis doctoral abre varias oportunidades para nuevas líneas de investigación con la teoría de lógica de conjuntos difusos, la de RSC, CC. CS y PYMEs, y la teoría de OSE y ASR.This thesis is organized in a compendium of three articles, each of which furthers our knowledge of the corporate social responsibility (CSR) from construct to practice. Firstly, article 1, entitled Constructing The Tower Of Babel: Towards A Fuzzy Logic Approach (co-authored with Dr. J.M. Lozano and F. Di Lorenzo) proposes and tests a fuzzy epistemological approach to answering the question "Does and can a definition for social accountability exist?". By employing fuzzy set theory for a systematic analysis of definitions within the business and society field demonstrates how they are linked to the 3 most cited metaphors (CSR, corporate sustainability (CS) and corporate citizenship (CC)) in the business and society field. Secondly, article 2, A Four-Cell Typology of Key Social Issue Drivers and Barriers of SME Social Performance (co-authored with Dr. J.M. Lozano) is a literature review of "What are the drivers and barriers to enterprise engagement in socially responsible action?". This article develops a small and medium sized enterprises (SME) four-cell ideal type of social issues management (SIM) response typology based on a proposed heteronomy of stakeholder salience. Thirdly, article 3, called A CSP Best Practice Case Safari: Using CSO Binoculars To Identify CSR, is an explanatory multi-method embedded multiple-case study design addressing the question of "What does corporate social responsibility at enterprise level look like?". The findings of this study suggest that the CSR domains are hierarchical in their relationship with the economic domain as a basis. Moreover that the scope of enterprise principles varies depending on their particular CSR domain influence and moral duty affiliation. In particular, the study calls attention to the discretionary domain as the differentiating factor between corporate social performance (CSP) best-practice and normal practice cases. Finally, this article builds CSP theory by integrating corporate social orientation (CSO) and reorienting it for the SME context. Therefore this thesis opens up several new lines of research opportunities for fuzzy set theory, CSR, CC, CS and SME theory, CSO and CSP theory

Performance measurement in SMEs: systematic literature review and research directions

[EN] The purpose of this paper is double. First, the research about performance measurement (PM) in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) will be analysed in order to know its evolution. Next, the research gaps in the business context of these companies will be identi¿ed. This paper presents a systematic literature review of 131 articles of PM in SMEs between 2006 and 2019. A conceptual framework is proposed to characterize the studies according to three factors: (1) purpose of the approach; (2) scope of PM; and (3) business context in which the studies are articulated. The reviewed papers were selected from Scopus and Web of Science databases. For this study, we considered the works conducted in the manufacturing sector, and excluded those that focused on the services sector. The results show that most of the studies are concentrated in the context of individual company, on the other hand networks, clusters, and supply chains have received less attention. The information collected herein identi¿es research gaps that have not been dealt with in detail and are transformed into guidelines to be dealt with by new future speci¿c works in the domain of PM in SMEs.Rojas-Lema, X.; Alfaro Saiz, JJ.; Rodríguez Rodríguez, R.; Verdecho Sáez, MJ. (2021). Performance measurement in SMEs: systematic literature review and research directions. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence. 32(15-16):1803-1828. https://doi.org/10.1080/14783363.2020.1774357S180318283215-1

An Intelligent Incentive Model Based on Environmental Ergonomics for Food SMEs

In this study, an intelligent incentive model based on environmental ergonomics in food small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) was developed. Environmental ergonomics was defined as the impact of temperature and relative humidity within a certain range on a worker's heart rate during work. Optimum environmental ergonomics are highly required as a basic standard for food SMEs to provide fair incentives. Recommendable parameters from a genetic algorithm and fuzzy inference modeling were used to model customized incentives based on optimum heart rate, workplace temperature and relative humidity before and after working. The research hypothesis stated that industries should optimize their workload and workstation environment prior to customizing incentives. The research objectives were: 1) to recommend optimum environmental ergonomics parameters for customized incentives; 2) to determine the incentives at workstations of SMEs based on optimum environmental ergonomics parameters and fuzzy inference modeling. The optimum values for heart rate, workstation temperature and relative humidity used were based on recommendable values from the genetic algorithm. An inference model was developed to generate decisions whether a worker should receive an incentive based on a calculated index. The results indicated that 84.4% of workers should receive an incentive. The results of this research could be used to promote the concept of ergonomics-based customized incentives

Perceived export performance: A contingent measurement approach

Despite considerable research on export performance, relatively little scholarly attention has been devoted to incorporating managers’ perspectives into operationalizing this concept. This study proposes a new approach for measuring SMEs’ export performance in the presence of multiple goals that are potentially conflicting, while accounting for different approaches to assessing export performance. Adopting a contingency approach, we develop two customized measures of perceived export performance: the individualized perceived export performance (IPEP) framework and the simplified model. We demonstrate the application of both measures based on a sample of 78 exporting SMEs in New Zealand, and compare the outcomes. The proposed frameworks are intended to measure export performance considering the specific priorities of managers, through explicit incorporation of manager- and firm-specific differences in the types and importance of goals, indicators, and benchmarks. This paper extends our understanding of export performance by proposing a more nuanced and holistic measurement approach that is tailored to individual firms and reflects firm-specific idiosyncrasies