Absorptive Capacity in SMEs: A Comparative Study of the Financial and the Tourism Sectors in Malta

Many modern economies are largely characterised by knowledge intensive service industries, constantly battling the ferociously competitive business environment. As a result, the management of a firm’s knowledge has become crucial in determining the sustainable competitive success of an organization. This research compares the knowledge management practices of service sector firms, particularly those service sector firms that are knowledge intensive, such as the financial services sector, and those that are less knowledge intensive, such as firms in the tourism sector. The study was conducted using a mixed methodology comprising in-depth face-to-face interviews and a qualitative survey. Structural Equation Modelling has been used to interpret the data collected from the survey. This study proposes a framework designed specifically to explain the absorptive capacity in service sector SMEs. The framework being presented (figure 9.2, p.404) shows how in small service sector firms, power relationships act as driving factors the internal and external processes and routines of the firm, which, in turn, shape ACAP, This analysis exposes seventeen points of interest, which identifies the Knowledge Management (KM) behaviour of firms in the tourism and in the financial services sectors and reveals eleven convergent practices across both sectors. The study proceeds to identify six divergent KM practices across the industries and a further three points wherein the firms in the financial services sector gave evidence of differing practices amongst themselves. The overarching conclusion from this study, however, is that the behaviour of SMEs is greatly influenced by their size, which, in turn dictates the extent of the influence and control which the owner exercises on the operatio

Liveability analysis of gated and non-gated low middle income communities in kuala lumpur, Malaysia

The aim of this paper is to examine the liveability conditions in gated and non-gated low middle income communities in Kuala Lumpur where rapid urban growth has led to many disruptions in the urban living environment. Hence, a livability framework was developed with dimensions from housing condition, economic condition, functional environment, social relations and community safety towards achieving the research objectives of – a) to study the liveability level in gated and non-gated communities, b) to compare the level of liveability between gated and non-gated communities, and c) to determine the dimensions and indicators which influence the level of liveability in both communities. Residents’ views were collected through a questionnaire survey which consisted of twenty-four indicators of liveability belonging to five dimensions from three communities in Kuala Lumpur. Two communities belong to non-gated and one community had gated living status. The findings of the research revealed that gated community has a better living conditions compared to the non-gated community. Thus, this research can be used as a turning point to improve the living environment of both gated and non-gated communit

Residents’ perceptual analysis on liveability in the planned housing estates of nigeria: empirical evidence from niger state

The government of Nigeria and the state government of Niger in particular, are committed to the development of housing, especially for the low-income group in the state. The housing estates as popularly called have housed many families of the low-income group in the state, however, till to date no effort have been made to understand the perception of the beneficiaries about the liveability of their housing estate. This paper intends to focus on the state of liveability of three public low-income housing estates in Minna, Niger State, Nigeria and the investigation used data derived from a pool of household surveys with 366 respondents. This paper used survey research design to unveil the challenges confronting the residents of the selected housing estates. The residents’ perception of liveability was assessed through five dimensions - housing unit characteristics, economic vitality, security, neighbourhood facilities and social interaction. Data elicited from the structured questionnaire administered were subjected to descriptive statistics, factor analysis and structural modelling. The results show that the respondents were dissatisfied with most of the neighbourhood facilities in the housing estates. Hence, to improve the liveability of these housing estates, this paper recommends rehabilitation of the neighbourhood facilities in these housing estates. Also, the neighbourhood facilities management strategy should be put in place by the appropriate authority in collaboration with the residents of these housing estates