Small business and information systems

We are pleased to present this AJIS featured theme on Small Business and Information Systems, which is the result of a merger between AJIS and the Journal of Information Systems and Small Business. The co-editors of both journals felt that the merger would help raise the profile of small business research in Australia (since AJIS is more highly recognised than JISSB) and that it would increase the number of publications in AJIS. It is also a global featured theme, with papers from Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and Ireland

Assessments of Information Systems at Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in the Agri-food Sector

Integrated information systems under large-scale company conditions have become widespread over the past decades. Information, data management and systematic information produced from these data and arranged according to needs, however, are required by not only large-scale companies but small- and medium-sized enterprises as well in the agri-food sector. The improvement of information and communication technologies continuously influence the development of information systems, the introduction of different solutions in architecture and the application of new business models. Our research goals was to analyse the evolution of ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning), functional analysing of SME’s (Small and Medium-sized Enterprises) information systems and developing decision support tools for selection, comparison of ERPs and economical evaluation of ERP investment. This tools are partly developed and usable for SMEs in the agri-food sector

Issues in Managing Small Business Information Systems

This pa per addresses three issues in managing small business information systems (SBIS): technical issues, organizational issues, and the approach to information systems investments. Practical guidelines are provided for small business executives.

Co-evolution of Information Systems in Fast-Growing Small Firms

The paper examines the co-evolution of different dimensions of information systems for a sample of fast-growing small firms. The investigation uses primary source longitudinal empirical evidence. The data are taken from a large database on the lifecycle experience of one-hundred-and-fifty new business starts over a four-year period. They were collected by face to face interviews with owner-managers of small entrepreneurial firms. Interviews were conducted using an administered questionnaire that covered the agenda of markets, finance, costs, business strategy, the development of a management information system, human capital, organisation and technical change. This work uses primarily the data on management information systems. The basic approach used is to compare the attributes of the fastest and slowest paced firms, as identified by their growth rates. We then examine the evolution of these firms' management information systems. The measures used to identify changes in systems include: capital investment techniques, such as return on investment, residual income, net present value, internal rate of return and payback period; methods for managing costs, like just-in-time management, activity-based costing, quantitative risk analysis, value analysis, strategic pricing and transfer pricing; and using computer applications for storing information, project appraisal, financial modelling, forecasting and sensitivity analysis. 'Time lines' are graphed to show the points at which various features of information systems are introduced (e.g. data storage, forecasting, sensitivity analysis), and derived techniques (e.g. ROI, ABC) implemented. Firms are dichotomised into highgrowth and low-growth groups. Comparisons are made within firms and across firms in terms of the co-evolution of different aspects of their accounting information systems

Small business innovation research. Abstracts of completed 1987 phase 1 projects

Non-proprietary summaries of Phase 1 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) projects supported by NASA in the 1987 program year are given. Work in the areas of aeronautical propulsion, aerodynamics, acoustics, aircraft systems, materials and structures, teleoperators and robotics, computer sciences, information systems, spacecraft systems, spacecraft power supplies, spacecraft propulsion, bioastronautics, satellite communication, and space processing are covered

The role of relationships in small-business lending

In the presence of imperfect information, both large and small banks try to find alternative ways to identify creditworthy borrowers. Lending relationships are one way to go about this. Relationships between banks and small businesses tend to be much closer than those between banks and large businesses. This Commentary explains why lending relationships are valuable to both small businesses and banks, how they reduce information-lending problems, and what other solutions exist to help in the reduction.Small business - Finance ; Loans ; Credit scoring systems

Small business innovation research. Abstracts of 1988 phase 1 awards

Non-proprietary proposal abstracts of Phase 1 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) projects supported by NASA are presented. Projects in the fields of aeronautical propulsion, aerodynamics, acoustics, aircraft systems, materials and structures, teleoperators and robots, computer sciences, information systems, data processing, spacecraft propulsion, bioastronautics, satellite communication, and space processing are covered

Improving Design of Micro-business Systems via VSM and Constituent Orientation Analysis

This paper describes recent design research into prototypical ‘classes’ of designs for operational business systems for micro-businesses of 1-10 employees typical of traditional craft and contemporary information economies. Business process design is an increasingly important and relatively new sub-field of design and design research. Its increasing importance is driven by three factors made more potent by information technology: increasing ability for very small business units to contribute to local and national economies; potential for increased efficiency of micro-businesses via reduction in Coasian transaction costs; increasingly competitive business environments leading to pressure on micro-businesses to deeply cut costs; and increased potential for improved design of micro-business processes to create significant benefits for the micro-businesses themselves and to local and national economies. The analyses used in this paper combine Tellefsen's perspective on constituent orientation with Beerian Viable System analysis and Cashflow Quadrant analysis (Beer, 1972, 1988, 1989, 1995; Kiyosaki & Lechter, 2007; Tellefsen, 1995, 1999, 2001; Tellefsen & Love, 2003). These analyses are used to identify promising foci of design effort particularly with the intention of automating and systematizing business activities. The paper first describes the importance of developing improved guidelines for design of organisational structures and business processes in the micro-business arena. It then outlines the structural, humanistic, financial, business management and computerized automation considerations that need to be addressed. Design issues are illustrated via mini case studies of three characteristic micro-businesses in the areas of publishing, plumbing, and rental investment. The paper shows how improvements to the design of business processes can be viewed through how four constituent orientations: • Self employed • Business managers • Business owners • Investors The paper concludes by integrating the outcomes of the above analyses into a preliminary checklist for the design of effective and efficient automated and systematized business processes for micro-businesses and small business enterprises. Keywords: Business Process Design, Micro-Business, Viable Systems, Constituent Orientation, Cashflow Quadrant Analysis.</p