Determinants of innovativeness in SMEs. disentangling core innovation and technology adoption capabilities

This paper studies innovativeness in SMEs from a set of innovation indicators at the firm level, capturing various types of innovation (product, process, organisational, and marketing innovations) and the level of innovativeness in these firm’s developments. The article identifies two separate dimensions in the innovativeness of Spanish SMEs, using factor analysis techniques. One dimension is associated with the capabilities for core/internal innovation and the other with the capabilities for the adoption of technology. The paper shows that significant differences exist in the personal and organisational factors that favour these two dimensions. The entrepreneur’s motivation, business planning, and cooperation in R&D activities constitute significant factors when considering the core dimension of a firm’s innovativeness, but have no effect on the firm’s capabilities for technology adoption. However, the use of external consultancy services seems to have no significant effect on the core dimension of the innovativeness of anSME, whereas it is a relevant factor for its technology adoption. Furthermore, it is shown that the entrepreneur’s education plays a more significant role in the core dimension of a firm’s innovativeness than in its capabilities for technology adoption. Depending on the policy objectives, these differences should lead to the application of specific policy approaches when an attempt to stimulate innovation in SMEs is made

Structured approach to measure performance in construction research and development: performance measurement system development

Purpose of this paper: This study explore Performance Measurement applications within construction research and development (R\&D) to develop a structured approach to measure the performance of collaborative construction R\&D projects during its lifecycle from initiation, conceptualising, development and launch stages and at the project management. Design/methodology/approach: During the exploratory phase of the study, semi-structured interviews and a questionnaire survey were carried out to develop the performance measurement system (PMS). During the explanatory phase, the developed PMS was refined with a series of semi-structured interviews. The data was gathered from principal investigators, researchers and industrial partners involved in collaborative construction R\&D work. Findings: Main finding is the developed PMS to measure the performance of construction R\&D that consists of critical success factors, performance indicators and performance measures during the lifecycle of a R\&D project. Practical implications: The PMS developed through the study provides critical success factors, performance indicators and measures that need to be considered during the construction R\&D projects to measure the performance. Thus, through the implementation of the PMS, this study contributes to practice by assisting the performance improvement within construction R\&D projects. What is original / value of paper?: The developed PMS to measure the performance of construction R\&D project will provide value for those who are engaged in R\&D work (Principle investigators, researcher and industrial partners) to ensure the success of their projects

Using the Inquiry-based Learning Approach to Enhance Student Innovativeness: A Conceptual Model

Individual innovativeness has become one of the most important employability skills for university graduates. In this paper, we focus on how students could be better prepared to be innovative in the workplace, and we argue that inquiry-based learning (IBL) – a pedagogical approach in which students follow the inquiry-based processes used by scientists to construct knowledge – can be effective for this purpose. Drawing on research which examines the social and cognitive micro-foundations of innovative behaviour, we develop a conceptual model that links IBL and student innovativeness, and introduce three teacher-controlled design elements that can influence the strength of this relationship, namely whether an inquiry is open or closed, discovery-focused or information focused and individual or teambased. We argue that an open, discovery-focused and team-based inquiry offers the greatest potential for enhancing students’ skills in innovation. This paper has several implications for higher education research and practice

Оцінка впливу інновацій на збереження ресурсів підприємства

The article is devoted to a topical issue of the influence of innovations on the process of resource saving and increase of efficiency of functioning of enterprises. Resource saving is a necessary condition for effective functioning of an enterprise that contributes to the solution of the problem of the growing demand of manufacturing in resources mainly due to savings and provides for decrease in the resource intensity of the products, and as a result, increases production efficiency through their most efficient use. Steady growth of production in the long term depends not so much on resource opportunities, but on the innovation activity of enterprises. The purpose of writing this article is the assessment of innovation activity of industrial enterprises on the process of resource saving, identification of the patterns and quality parameters of their interconnection by the methods of correlation-regression analysis. For the study and evaluation of the impact of innovation on the consumption of resources in the production process, we proposed scientific methodological approach, based on economic-mathematical simulation of the interaction between innovation and production processes and determining of the results of this relationship in resource saving. The application of this approach to the analysis and evaluation of innovation activities allowed supplementing the classification of factors of resource saving, which unlike the existing classification includes such features as the costs in the direction of innovation activity, namely: the level of general costs for innovation activity; the level of innovation spending on the introduction of new machinery, equipment, installations, other types of main production funds; the level of innovation spending on the introduction of new technologies; the level of spending on research and development. Based on this, we developed a scorecard, which consists of the indicators of resource intensity and efficiency of production, as well as the level of spending on innovation for identification and explanation of the patterns of interaction between the target economic indicators and the studied factors by economic-mathematical modeling and creation of management tool for innovation activity at resource saving at a machine-building enterprise. The proposed algorithm of activities provides the most efficient and economical use of resources and includes the simulation of interaction between innovation and production activity, assessment of the impact of implemented innovations on the production process, forecasting indicators of these processes. Its application allows planning the volume of investments by specific directions of innovation activity and the proper level of resource saving. The key factors of innovation activity were established that influence the efficiency of resource saving, the pattern of their influence on the process of production was defined, the estimation and prediction of economic indicators of functioning businesses were carried out, by which one can plan their value and, consequently, the results of an entity's performance. In addition, categorical apparatus of the theory of management of innovations regarding determining such concepts as "innovation development" and "resource saving" acquired further development

Toward a process theory of entrepreneurship: revisiting opportunity identification and entrepreneurial actions

This dissertation studies the early development of new ventures and small business and the entrepreneurship process from initial ideas to viable ventures. I unpack the micro-foundations of entrepreneurial actions and new ventures’ investor communications through quality signals to finance their growth path. This dissertation includes two qualitative papers and one quantitative study. The qualitative papers employ an inductive multiple-case approach and include seven medical equipment manufacturers (new ventures) in a nascent market context (the mobile health industry) across six U.S. states and a secondary data analysis to understand the emergence of opportunities and the early development of new ventures. The quantitative research chapter includes 770 IPOs in the manufacturing industries in the U.S. and investigates the legitimation strategies of young ventures to gain resources from targeted resource-holders.Open Acces

Organizational Climate as Performance Driver: Health Care Workers’ Perception in a Large Hospital

Recently health care (HC) organizations have increasingly embarked on organizational climate (OC) assessment with the intent to improve their efficiency and the quality of the delivered services. This is important; however, it is even if more crucial to ensure that workers engaged in the evaluation process are aware of the importance of their fruitful engagement in this investigation as well as of its potential benefits. From the management viewpoint, this is crucial to plan and implement management initiatives able to create a great place to work. The purpose of this paper is to shed empirical light on how, in effect, HC workers perceive OC for itself and as a performance driver to assess and manage. The study was carried out through an action research (AR) project, which included the use of both qualitative and quantitative approaches. Key phases of the AR project were some focus groups and a survey. During the focus groups, several methods and approaches were adopted for getting opinions from people and animating discussion. About the survey, a total sample of 560 HC workers was investigated. The AR project has shown that even if HC workers intuitively conceive OC as an important performance driver, the meaning of the construct is not completely clear. Moreover, a good level of awareness among HC workers about how and why OC can improve individual and organizational performance represents a key issue to address in evaluating and managing OC