Big data educational portal for Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs)

Big Data refers to the massive amount of data generated from IT systems, sensors, and mobile devices. The values of big data are achieved by descriptive, predictive and prescriptive analytics. Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs) play a significant role in contributing to economic development. Big data is seen as a strategic and innovative tool for SMEs to stay competitive in the marketplace. However, there is lack of research in studying the value of big data to SMEs. Moreover, due to the shortage of quality learning platforms, SMEs have limited understanding of the potential benefits big data offers their businesses. This research aims to propose an educational portal of big data for SMEs by incorporating the pedagogy aspects. The research is underpinned by design science research. The portal contributes theoretically and methodologically by deriving the design knowledge of such portal and practically by increasing big data knowledge among SMEs

Virtual R&D Teams: A potential growth of education-industry collaboration

Introduction: With the advent of the global economy and high-speed Internet, online collaboration is fast becoming the norm in education and industry 1. Information technology (IT) creates many new inter-relationships among businesses, expands the scope of industries in which a company must compete to achieve the competitive advantage. Information systems and technology allow companies to coordinate their activities in distant geographic locations 2. IT is providing the infrastructure necessary to support the development of new collaboration forms among industry and education. Virtual research and development (R&D) teams represent one such relational form, one that could revolutionize the workplace and provide organizations with unprecedented levels of flexibility and responsiveness 3-4

Virtual R&D Teams: A potential growth of education-industry collaboration

In this paper, we present our more than two years research experiences on virtual R&D teams in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and draws conclusions, giving special attention to the structure of virtual teams required to support education-industry collaboration. We report the relevant results of an online survey study. The online questionnaire was emailed by using a simple random sampling method to 947 manufacturing SMEs. The findings of this study show that SMEs in Malaysia and Iran are willing to use virtual teams for collaboration and the platform for industry-education collaboration is ready and distance between team members or differences in time zones, are not barriers to industry-education collaborations.Collaboration, virtual teams, SMEs, Education

Internal and External Obstacles to the Development of SMEs in Bosnia and Herzegovina

This article describes the small and medium enterprise (SME) sectors in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) and other Western Balkan countries, and compares their development. The authors identify the levels of development achieved, remedial measures and activities for stimulating this sector. There is special emphasis on external and internal obstacles to small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises in BiH. The authors conclude that in respect to SMEs BiH lags behind other countries in the region, where this sector has achieved dynamic development and a majority share in the employment market, exports and GDP. That said, there remains a need across the whole region to resolve obstacles in the domestic market, alongside initiating intensive activities aimed at introducing the SMEs to the Single European Market. For BiH, primary research has been carried out to determine the external and internal obstacles to SMEs in the country’s manufacturing sector. The key obstacles are identified, their intensity and grade determined, and they are classified into three groups. Factor analysis was used in determining six factors explaining external obstacles and two factors for internal obstacles. It has also been confirmed that other companies apart from manufacturing SMEs face broadly similar external obstacles, and that these obstacles are more in evidence when compared to the situation in other Western Balkan countries. Recommendations are offered to the Government of BiH and SME managements for removing the obstacles which have been identified.SMEs, manufacturing, obstacles, factor analysis, Western Balkans, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH)

How to Improve the Self-employment System: Some European Experiences

The paper is based on the research results of an European project which is aimed to describe the conditions of self-employment system in four European countries: Finland, Austria, Poland and Romania. The authors opinion consider that the transfer of the entrepreneurship experience from the more advanced countries to the central and eastern European ones could be a chance to improve the competitiveness of the system.self-employment, guidance and counseling, entrepreneurship

The Role of Information Technology in Mediating External Information to the Rural Micro Enterprises : Regional Literature Reviews of Northern Ostrobothnia and Central Finland : Rural Business Information Exchange System (RuBIES) Project

Regional literature reviews present an overview of the use of ICT in rural small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in Nothern Ostrobothnia and Central Finland. These two regions provide excellent examples of regions consisting mainly of rural areas, but having also well-developed urban areas. The region of Central Finland is situated according to it’s name in central part of Finland. The main city of the Central Finland region is Jyväskylä, which is influencing strongly also to the surrounding municipalities (Jyväskylä region). The population of Central Finland is very strongly concentrated to the Jyväskylä region. In 2003 over a half of the inhabitants of the Central Finland lived in this sub-region. Even though the population has been increasing in Jyväskylä region, it has decreased in every other sub-region. Northern Ostrobothnia, on the other hand, is the second northernmost province in Finland, extending across the country from the Gulf of Bothnia coast to the border with Russia. It can be regarded mostly as core or peripheral countryside. However, the principal city, Oulu, is the second most important population centre in the country after Helsinki area. The population is strongly concentrated to the Oulu region. In 2004 approx. 54 % of the total population of Northern Ostrobothnia was living in Oulu region. Both of the most important cities of these two regions have created some of their growth by concentrating on information technology and high technology relating to that. Even though there can be estimated to be some kind of lack of small business tradition in both of the regions due to their historical development, especially in rural areas the most of the companies in both regions can be defined as small or even micro enterprises. Also in both regions the there were a lot of regional variations in occupational as well as entrepreneurial structure. When reviewing the regions of Northern Ostrobothnia and Central Finland more in details concerning the utilisation of ICT in rural enterprises, they seemed to follow quite well the national trends. In Northern Ostrobothnia approx 85–90 % of the enterprices used Internet in their businesses and the figure can be estimated to be at least the same in Central Finland (national percentages being over 90). The most used Internet services seem to be e-mail (communication), online banking and information search services. The most significant benefits for SMEs of the use of Internet are: saving time (possibility to manage operations easier and faster, flexibility, on-line possibilities, accessibility to updated information), saving money (related to saving the time, savings in labour and logistic operations etc.) and relating to benefits mentioned above, indifference to business location. Improving utilisation of ICT in rural areas and SMEs is in big a role in the regional development plans in both regions. Also in both regions the expertise on ICT development is at high level. In Northern Ostrobothnia, it was estimated that already by the year 2005 almost 100 % of the inhabitants are going to have a possibility to broadband connections. In Central Finland, this process is a bit slower. As well, when studying the penetration of Internet connections or amount of computers, Northern Ostrobothnia seemed to be a bit above the national average, when in Central Finland as a region the figures were a bit below the national average. However, the variations within the regions were also significant. Despite the fact, that in both regions there are a lot of business and sector specific advisory services available for SMEs provided by national actors as well as regional development organisations, according to regional surveys, it seems that entrepreneurs do not really know of them and some of them never use these services. This effects also to the use of e-services. The majority of regional expert/advisory services are not yet, however, in e-form. According to the surveys, in both regions there seems to be a need for improving ICT skills especially among small rural SMEs. Though in both regions there are various short term courses and trainings available, somehow the supply does not seem to meet the demand and e.g. the courses have been cancelled due to the lack of participants. As anticipated the entrepreneurs in remote rural areas seem to be a bit slower integrate ICT to their business actions in general. However, the preconditions to extend the utilisation of ICT in the future also in rural areas are good. The Internet connections are getting gradually better as well as there are constantly a lot of on-going development activities in improving services and education, even though there has been some critic towards them in both regions. However, it can be stated that at the moment in both regions (as in other parts of Finland), the rural SMEs have not yet realised all the potential benefits offered by Internet services and the use of Internet is not yet seen as a part of business culture. At the moment SMEs use mainly more or less obligatory public external expert services (e.g. tax authorities). However, utilising widely external expert services might benefit especially the small rural SMEs, since they do not have possibilities to hire new skilled full-time staff for different business operations. Offering expert services in e-form may promote the use of external experts in remote rural SMEs (easy access to the external information), though the SMEs see that the accessibility of the services is not sufficient at the moment, products are not customer orientated enough and a support system is needed. However, before e-expert services can be fully utilised, there are more than just technical problems to be solved. The main problems seem to be in utilisation of the external knowledge in business actions and knowledge management. This necessitates new way of thinking also from the entrepreneurs and highlights the importance of entrepreneurs capability to apply the information to his/hers own business actions. The development of new ICT tools has been very rapid and sometimes the business culture has not been able to keep track of technological development

Innovation Strategies of Small and Medium-Sized Central North Carolina Discount Retailers

In central North Carolina, small and medium-sized discount retailers have had a high failure rate, which is troubling considering that small businesses create jobs and drive successful innovation that is critical for economic development. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore experiences regarding successful innovation strategies of 20 discount retail industry owners and general managers located in central North Carolina. This study was grounded in Rogers`s diffusion of innovations conceptual framework and Christensen`s disruptive innovation theory. Data collection occurred through semistructured face-to-face interviews with owners and general managers of discount retail industry. Data analysis strategies included a modified Van Kaam method to identify essential ideas and coded data into categories of relevant themes. Three prominent themes emerged during data analysis: (a) Discount retailers supported innovation, (b) innovation was the source of economic growth for these retailers, and (c) discount retailers said they need innovation for competitive positioning. The results may help strengthen innovation strategies of local discount retail businesses, which could produce greater profitability and growth. Further, social change implications include the potential to provide business owners with new ideas, leading to increases in tax revenues, which could help local governments provide better services in their communities