Aggregation and the Role of Trusted Third Parties in SME E-Business Engagement: A Regional Policy Issue

YesIt is against the background of low engagement by SMEs in e-business that this paper seeks to highlight the potential importance of aggregation and of the role of trusted third parties in facilitating higher levels of involvement. The paper is based on an ongoing SME e-business research programme and reports on some recent research on SMEs that were using high complexity e-business applications and explores the extent to which the research findings could address the core concern of low engagement. This qualitative case study based research includes analysis of data collected from 13 community intermediaries, acting as trusted third parties. It concludes that the role of community intermediaries appears to be central to the adoption of critical e-aggregation applications provided by service providers. For policymakers, this important role of critical e-aggregation applications in facilitating e-business engagement by SMEs has emerged as part of this research but there is limited evidence of policy initiatives that reflect this

From Corporatism to Governance: Dimensions of a Theory of Intermediary Institutions

Intermediary institutions are a multi-facetted phenomenon which has taken many different forms in the course of social evolution. This is also being testified by the evolutionary trajectories from corporatism through neo-corporatism to governance in the European settings from the mid-nineteenth century onwards. Against this background, this chapter seeks to outline the key parameters of a theoretical framework suitable for approaching and analysing intermediary institutions. The chapter pins down five central dimensions of intermediary institutions. This is done under the headings: Context, Function, Evolution, Order, and Compatibility

How should a small company interact in its business network to sustain its exchange effectiveness?

This paper investigates the dynamic alignment of network and business\ud development of two small firms in the printing industry. Developments are\ud followed over more than 8 years. The aim of the paper is to understand how\ud small firms can manage their network relations by maintaining both their\ud efficiency in existing business and flexibility to develop new business. The case comparison suggests that different networking approaches drive business\ud development. For successful business development both strong and varied ties\ud as well as the existence of different intermediary functions of partners are\ud necessary

Beyond knowledge brokerage: an exploratory study of innovation intermediaries in an evolving smallholder agricultural system in Kenya

The recognition that innovation occurs in networks of heterogeneous actors and requires broad systemic support beyond knowledge brokering has resulted in a changing landscape of the intermediary domain in an increasingly market-driven agricultural sector in developing countries. This paper presents findings of an explorative case study that looked at 22 organisations identified as fulfilling an intermediary role in the Kenyan agricultural sector. The results show that these organisations fulfill functions that are not limited to distribution of knowledge and putting it into use. The functions also include fostering integration and interaction among the diverse actors engaged in innovation networks and working on technological, organisational and institutional innovation. Further, the study identified various organisational arrangements of innovation intermediaries with some organisations fulfilling a specialised innovation brokering role, even as other intermediaries take on brokering as a side activity, while still substantively contributing to the innovation process. Based on these findings we identify a typology of 4 innovation intermediation arrangements, including technology brokers, systemic brokers, enterprise development support and input access support. The results indicate that innovation brokering is a pervasive task in supporting innovation and will require policy support to embed it in innovation support arrangements. The paper is not normative about these arrangements

The SLIM (Social learning for the integrated management and sustainable use of water at catchment scale) Final Report

Background: SLIM stands for 'Socuak Learning for the Integrated Management and Sustainable Use of Water at Catchment Scale'. It is a multi-country research project funded by the European Commission (DG RESEARCH - 5th Framework Programme for research and technological development, 1998-2002). Its main theme is the investigation of the socio-economic aspects of the sustainable use of water. Within this theme, its main focus of interest lies in understanding the application of social learning as a conceptual framework, an operational principle, a policy instrument and a process of systemic change

Anchored in Place: How Funders Are Helping Anchor Institutions Strengthen Local Economies

This report issued by the Funders' Network as part of their Anchors Institution Funders' Group, examines the potential these deeply rooted local enterprises hold to create lasting and sustainable change—and illustrates how funders are working with anchor institutions to create healthier, more equitable, and economically vibrant places to live and work

Fine-grained management of CoAP interactions with constrained IoT devices

As open standards for the Internet of Things gain traction, the current Intranet of Things will evolve to a truly open Internet of Things, where constrained devices are first class citizens of the public Internet. However, the large amount of control over constrained networks offered by today's vertically integrated platforms, becomes even more important in an open IoT considering its promise of direct end-to-end interactions with constrained devices. In this paper a set of challenges is identified for controlling interactions with constrained networks that arise due to their constrained nature and their integration with the public Internet. Furthermore, a number of solutions are presented for overcoming these challenges by means of an intercepting intermediary at the edge of the constrained network

The future of banking in Europe

At least in the past, banking in continental Europe has been characterised by a number of features that are quite specific to the region. They include the following: (1) banks play a strong role in their respective financial systems; (2) universal banking is prevalent; (3) not strictly profit-oriented banks play a significant role; and (4) there are considerable differences between national banking systems. It can be safely assumed that the future of banking in Europe will be shaped by three major external developments: deregulation and liberalisation; advances in information technology; and economic, financial and monetary integration. The overall consequences of these developments would be much too vast a topic to be addressed in one short paper. Therefore the present paper concentrates on the following question: Are the traditional peculiarities of the banking and financial systems of continental Europe likely to disappear as a consequence of the aforementioned external developments or are they more likely to remain in spite of these developments? The external developments affect the features specific to banking in continental Europe only indirectly and only via the strategies selected and pursued by the various players in the financial systems, notably the banks themselves, and in ways which strongly depend on the structure of the banking industry and the level of competition between banks and other providers of financial services. The paper develops an informal model of the relationships between (1) external developments, (2) bank strategies and the structure of the banking industry, and (3) the peculiarities of banking in Europe, and derives a hypothesis predicting which of the traditional peculiarities are likely to disappear and which are likely to remain. It argues that, overall, the peculiarities are not likely to disappear in the short or the medium term. First version June 2000. This version March 2001.Der vorliegende Beitrag stellt einen Versuch dar, die Zukunft des Bankwesens in Europa unter der spezifischen Fragestellung zu analysieren, ob sich trotz der offensichtlichen und gravierenden Änderungen informations-technologischer, regulatorischer und politischer Art im Umfeld der Banken die traditionellen Besonderheiten der kontinentaleuropäischen Banksysteme in der Zukunft erhalten oder ob sie in der Folge dieser Änderungen eher verschwinden werden. Zu diesen Besonderheiten gehören unter anderem enge Beziehungen zwischen Banken und ihren Kreditnehmern, eine starke Rolle von nicht oder nicht primär gewinnorientierten Banken und beträchtliche Unterschiede zwischen den Bank- und Finanzsystemen verschiedener Länder. Methodisch geht der Beitrag so vor, dass untersucht wird, wie Banken bei der Festlegung ihrer Strategien auf die Änderungen Art reagieren und wie sich dies auf den Wettbewerb im Bankwesen auswirkt, um daraus Schlüsse hinsichtlich des Fortbestehens bzw. des Verschwindens der angesprochenen traditionellen Besonderheiten von "Banking in Europe" zu ziehen. Es lässt sich zeigen, dass mindestens einige der traditionellen Besonderheiten – entgegen weit verbreiteten Erwartungen – zumindest mittelfristig nicht verschwinden werden

Managing factoring in banking groups

On the market for factoring services independent suppliers coexhist with companies affiliated with banking groups. The last ones can be oriented in their decision processes by the policies of their parent company, usually a bank. They could also benefit from synergies among the different units of the group. The main benefits are linked to cost reduction, better skill-based resources allocation and a higher amount of financial coverage. If such interdependencies are found and developed, factors belonging to banking groups could attain a competitive advantage towards independent intermediaries. To assess the impact of the group structure we have to evaluate the degree of substitutability between factoring and other financial services supplied by the group, the synergy effects that could arise in each step of the production and delivery processes and eventually organizational challenges faced by the group. In our analysis we find evidence of complementarity among factoring and other financial products, we consider the possibile sinergies in some steps of the production process and we propose a methodology to assess the level of group cohesion and the kind of control exercised by the parent company.factoring; group organizations; institutional models

Investigating the impact of networking capability on firm innovation performance:using the resource-action-performance framework

The author's final peer reviewed version can be found by following the URI link. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.Purpose The experience of successful firms has proven that one of the most important ways to promote co-learning and create successful networked innovations is the proper application of inter-organizational knowledge mechanisms. This study aims to use a resource-action-performance framework to open the black box on the relationship between networking capability and innovation performance. The research population embraces companies in the Iranian automotive industry. Design/methodology/approach Due to the latent nature of the variables studied, the required data are collected through a web-based cross-sectional survey. First, the content validity of the measurement tool is evaluated by experts. Then, a pre-test is conducted to assess the reliability of the measurement tool. All data are gathered by the Iranian Vehicle Manufacturers Association (IVMA) and Iranian Auto Parts Manufacturers Association (IAPMA) samples. The power analysis method and G*Power software are used to determine the sample size. Moreover, SmartPLS 3 and IBM SPSS 25 software are used for data analysis of the conceptual model and relating hypotheses. Findings The results of this study indicated that the relationships between networking capability, inter-organizational knowledge mechanisms and inter-organizational learning result in a self-reinforcing loop, with a marked impact on firm innovation performance. Originality/value Since there is little understanding of the interdependencies of networking capability, inter-organizational knowledge mechanisms, co-learning and their effect on firm innovation performance, most previous research studies have focused on only one or two of the above-mentioned variables. Thus, their cumulative effect has not examined yet. Looking at inter-organizational relationships from a network perspective and knowledge-based view (KBV), and to consider the simultaneous effect of knowledge mechanisms and learning as intermediary actions alongside, to consider the performance effect of the capability-building process, are the main advantages of this research