A theory-grounded framework of Open Source Software adoption in SMEs

This is a post-peer-review, pre-copyedit version of an article published in European Journal of Information Systems. The definitive publisher-authenticated version Macredie, RD and Mijinyawa, K (2011), "A theory-grounded framework of Open Source Software adoption in SMEs", European Journal of Informations Systems, 20(2), 237-250 is available online at: http://www.palgrave-journals.com/ejis/journal/v20/n2/abs/ejis201060a.html.The increasing popularity and use of Open Source Software (OSS) has led to significant interest from research communities and enterprise practitioners, notably in the small business sector where this type of software offers particular benefits given the financial and human capital constraints faced. However, there has been little focus on developing valid frameworks that enable critical evaluation and common understanding of factors influencing OSS adoption. This paper seeks to address this shortcoming by presenting a theory-grounded framework for exploring these factors and explaining their influence on OSS adoption, with the context of study being small- to medium-sized Information Technology (IT) businesses in the U.K. The framework has implications for this type of business – and, we will suggest, more widely – as a frame of reference for understanding, and as tool for evaluating benefits and challenges in, OSS adoption. It also offers researchers a structured way of investigating adoption issues and a base from which to develop models of OSS adoption. The study reported in this paper used the Decomposed Theory of Planned Behaviour (DTPB) as a basis for the research propositions, with the aim of: (i) developing a framework of empirical factors that influence OSS adoption; and (ii) appraising it through case study evaluation with 10 U.K. Small- to medium-sized enterprises in the IT sector. The demonstration of the capabilities of the framework suggests that it is able to provide a reliable explanation of the complex and subjective factors that influence attitudes, subjective norms and control over the use of OSS. The paper further argues that the DTPB proved useful in this research area and that it can provide a variety of situation-specific insights related to factors that influence the adoption of OSS

Sectoral innovation performance in the knowledge intensive services

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Determinants of Innovation Capability in Small UK Firms: An Empirical Analysis

The paper is an empirical investigation of key internal and external sources of innovation capability in small and medium firms (SME) in the UK. An experimental measure of innovation capability is designed, which captures not merely the occurrence of innovations but also their scientific complexity and originality. The results obtained with this measure compare favourably to those obtained with more conventional statistics. A range of factors internal to firms are found to be relevant, including owners' technical education and prior working experience in large firms and R&D institutions, technical skills of the workforce, and investments in R&D and training. Significant external factors are: public financial support for R&D, and interaction with nearby R&D and training institutions. Although interaction with customers, suppliers and similar-oriented firms are more frequent than the former, there is no evidence that intensive linkages of this kind would be important for innovative capability. These findings do not support the thrust of current UK policy, which seeks to promote SME innovative performance through the formation of geographical clusters of firms in similar lines of business

State of Play and Sectoral Differentiation of Clusters in Visegrad Group Countries and in Germany in the Context of Increasing Competitiveness

In accordance with the definition by the European Commission regional competitiveness means the ability of companies, sectors and transnational groupings in the region exposed to international competition to generate sustainable and relatively high income and employment levels. Following this line of thinking, strengthening the potential of local economic operators and their environment should become the priority of economic policies of the governments. One among recognised mechanisms that back up enterprise potential is the organisation and fostering of the competitiveness of clusters. They are a specific case of economic networks based on cooperation and competitiveness which usually need targeted investment in order to be efficient in their operations. Cluster policy implemented by Western European countries is most often systemic, integrated between the central and the regional levels with the material scope of investment focusing on assisting innovation in clusters. From this perspective it is interesting to see the shape the policy takes in Central European countries after their economic transformation. We selected Visegrad Group countries as the subject of our analysis knowing that clusters have been known there since at least the end of 1990s. Although more than 10 years have passed the conclusions indicate that the policy is at its initial development stage and, differently from Western economies (Germany in our case), it hardly effects the innovation of national economies and regional systems of innovation.Zgodnie z definicją Komisji Europejskiej pod pojęciem konkurencyjności regionów należy rozumieć zdolność przedsiębiorstw, przemysłu, a także ponadnarodowych ugrupowań, zlokalizowanych w regionie, wystawionych na międzynarodową konkurencję, do osiągania trwałego i relatywnie wysokiego poziomu dochodu i zatrudnienia. Zgodnie z tym rozumieniem wzmacnianie potencjału rodzimych podmiotów gospodarczych i ich otoczenia, powinno być priorytetem polityk gospodarczych rządów. Jednym z uznanych mechanizmów wspierających potencjał środowisk przedsiębiorczości jest organizacja i wzmacnianie konkurencyjności klastrów. Stanowią one specyficzny rodzaj sieci gospodarczych opartych na logice współpracy i konkurencji, których sprawne funkcjonowanie najczęściej wymaga ukierunkowanych inwestycji. Polityka klastrowa realizowana przez kraje Europy Zachodniej ma dziś najczęściej charakter systemowy, zintegrowany między poziomem centralnym i regionalnym, natomiast rzeczowy zakres interwencji dotyczy przede wszystkim wspierania innowacyjności klastrów. Z tej perspektywy interesujące jest jaki kształt polityka ta przybiera w krajach Europy Środkowej po zmianach związanych z transformacją gospodarek. Jako przedmiot analizy wybrano kraje Grupy Wyszehradzkiej, wiedząc, że zjawiska klastrowe były tutaj znane już przynajmniej od końca lat 90-tych. Mimo, iż upłynęło już ponad 10 lat wnioski z analizy wskazują, że polityka ta jest dopiero w początkowym stadium rozwoju i w przeciwieństwie do gospodarek zachodnich (w analizowanym przypadku Niemiec) w znikomym zakresie oddziałuje na innowacyjność gospodarek krajowych i regionalnych systemów innowacyjnych

Innovativeness of Poland's Economy - Conditions and Prospects for Development

The structure of the article is as follows: the introduction is followed by an assessment of the level of innovativeness of Poland's economy, explanation of the reasons of poor innovativeness, and then the conditions for innovation in Poland are outlined with particular emphasis on strategic aspects and the final part presents synthetic conclusions derived from the analysis.Struktura artykułu przedstawia się następująco: po wprowadzeniu dokonano oceny poziomu innowacyjności polskiej gospodarki, następnie zarysowano warunki rozwoju innowacyjności w Polsce ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem aspektów strategicznych, a w zakończeniu zawarto syntetyczne wnioski płynące przeprowadzonej analizy

Use of Social Media for Internal and External Collaboration: Evidence from US Local Governments

abstract: This dissertation examines the use of social media technologies by US local governments for internal and external collaboration. Collaboration is defined as the process of working together, pooling resources, sharing information and jointly making decisions to address common issues. The need for greater collaboration is evident from numerous examples in which public agencies have failed to effectively collaborate and address complex challenges. Meanwhile, the rise of social computing promises the development of ‘cultures of participation’ that enhance collaborative learning and knowledge production as part of everyday work. But beyond these gaps and expectations, there has been little systematic empirical research investigating the use of these powerful and flexible technologies for collaboration purposes. In line with prior research, my dissertation draws on sociotechnical and resource dependence theoretical approaches to examine how the interaction between technological and social context of an organization determine the adoption and use of a technology for a task. However, in a break with prior work that often aggregates social media technologies as one class of technology, this dissertation theorizes different classes of social media based on their functionality and purpose. As a result, it develops more explicit means by which organization, technical, and environmental context matter for effective collaboration. Based on the aforementioned theoretical approaches, the dissertation develops a theoretical model and several hypotheses, which it tests using a unique 2012 national survey of local governments in the US conducted by the Center for Science, Technology and Environmental Policy Studies at ASU. Overall, the findings of this dissertation highlight that the adoption and use of social media technologies for collaboration purposes can be understood as an outcome of stakeholder participation, innovativeness, and social media type. Insights from this dissertation contribute both to our theoretical understanding about social media technology adoption and use in government and provide useful information for agencies.Dissertation/ThesisDoctoral Dissertation Public Administration 201

Measuring agricultural innovation system properties and performance: Illustrations from Ethiopia and Vietnam

"The rapidly changing nature of the global food and agriculture system suggests the need to rethink how innovation can contribute to developing-country agriculture. While scientific and technological changes in agriculture can help foster productivity growth and poverty reduction, their contributions are incomplete without commensurate changes in the wider system of which they are a part. A more systems-oriented understanding of how innovation occurs in a society and economy is critical to promoting dynamism, responsiveness, and competitiveness in developing-country agriculture and, ultimately, to enhancing productivity and reducing poverty. However, without adequate measures of the properties and performance of an agricultural innovation system, it is difficult for policymakers, investors, donors, and practitioners to promote policies and investments that foster greater innovativeness in agriculture. This suggests the need for a measure of agricultural innovativeness that preferably extends beyond the “black box” approach of measuring only inputs and outputs, focusing on the underlying processes that contribute to building the capabilities needed to create an innovative agricultural sector. To this end, this paper attempts to provide a “proof of concept” that innovativeness in developing-country agriculture can be measured. It first identifies a set of indicators from secondary data sources that measure the key elements of an agricultural innovation system. Several hundred indicators are reviewed, validated, and aggregated into a unique Agriculture, Development, and Innovation Index (ADII). The paper then provides a toolkit for collecting and analyzing “systems-oriented” indicators that add more process-related nuances to the ADII with both attributional and relational data. This is illustrated with data collected in Ethiopia and Vietnam in 2007–08." from authors' abstractAgriculture, Developing countries, Innovation, Science and technology,