A Fuzzy AHP-TOPSIS Approach to Supply Partner Selection in Continuous Aid Humanitarian Supply Chains

The selection of suitable supply partners is a strategic issue for managers working in humanitarian operations and has received little attention in the literature. In humanitarian operations, complexity characterizes the continuous-aid procurement operations, and the selection criteria can differ from those used in commercial supply chain settings. This paper advances knowledge by introducing a supply partner selection framework for continuous-aid procurement. A proposed multi-criteria decision-making model uses selection criteria attributes verified by the extant literature and by field experts. A fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process is then used to compute criterion weights, and a fuzzy Technique for Order Performance by Similarity to Ideal Solution is used to rank supply partner alternatives. Even with elevated levels of subjectivity, these techniques enable humanitarian operation stakeholders to select the best supply partner effectively. An actual case illustrates how the proposed framework efficiently identifies the most suitable continuous-aid supply partner for the prevailing situation

Early-stage Fundraising of University Spin-offs: A Study through Demand-site Perspectives

University spin-offs have increasingly received attention from academia, governments and policy-makers. However, there are only a limited number of studies which fully understand the contribution made by the founding team to fundraising, specifically how they use their social networks and capabilities, especially within the university spin-off context. Employing a resource-based view theory and social networks approach, this paper examines whether a founding team exploits its social networks and capabilities to signal the value of a university spin-off. Capabilities are analysed through a set of constructs - technology, strategy, human capital, organizational viability and commercial resource - that have been derived from previous literature. The contribution made by social networks is evaluated using three dimensions - structure, governance and content - which form the construct of relationships within a network. Based on data from 181 university spin-offs in Spain, this paper empirically demonstrates that by exploiting social networks a founding team can improve its capabilities which, in turn, enhance its fundraising ability

Banks' risk assessment of Swedish SMEs

Building on the literatures on asymmetric information and risk taking, this paper applies conjoint experiments to investigate lending officers' probabilities of supporting credit to established or existing SMEs. Using a sample of 114 Swedish lending officers, we test hypotheses concerning how information on the borrower's ability to repay the loan; alignment of risk preferences; and risk sharing affect their willingness to grant credit. Results suggest that features that reduce the risk to the bank and shift the risk to the borrower have the largest impact. The paper highlights the interaction between factors that influence the credit decision. Implications for SMEs, banks and research are discussed

The role of behavioural competences in predicting entrepreneurial funding resource orchestration

This study examines how a psychometric testing tool can be used to explain, predict and measure behavioural competences and how entrepreneurs fund the firm. Reference is made to studies of personality traits (McClelland, 1961; Sandberg & Hoffer, 1987; Brockhaus, 1980; Baum & Locke, 2004; Ciaveralla, 2004; Rauch & Frese, 2007). More recent studies have called for research into behaviour and competences (Zhao, 2010; Bird at al, 2012; Mueller, 2012) and specifically in the finance context of orchestration of resources (Wright and Sigliani 2013). The authors take a pragmatic realism perspective using a mixed method study to explore the “reality” of the entrepreneur (Watson, 2013). Cluster analysis is used to identify the relationship between behavioural competences and funding outcomes. Applying Big 5 Theory of Personality and the Great 8 Competences indicates how behaviour impacts outcomes as entrepreneurs seek to access finance. The identification of three distinct groups in this longitudinal study means belonging to one of these groups predicts likely behaviour when searching for finance. A strong behavioural characteristic which emerged, validated through interviews and psychometric testing, was an orientation towards engagement and working with other organisations. In a funding context, this manifested itself in using networks, seeking advice and sharing equity. These co-operative, collaborative characteristics are different to the classic image of the entrepreneur as a risk-taker or extrovert. The study identifies entrepreneurs who are both successful and unsuccessful in finance applications and compares behavioural competency profiles, thus overcoming the limitations of many studies (Rauch 2007) that are biased towards successful enterprises

The British Home Stores pension scheme: privatised looting?

On entering administration, British Home Stores owed its pension scheme £571 million—a significant employment relations issue of historical wage theft by investor–owner managers. The article locates ‘lawful’ looting of business assets in a framework that builds on Ackerlof and Romer's theory of bankruptcy for profit and connects this to an empirical narrative on business re‐structuring at British Home Stores towards administration

The same but different: Understanding entrepreneurial behaviour in disadvantaged communities

While entrepreneurship is widely viewed as being equally accessible in all contexts, it could be questioned if potential or nascent entrepreneurs from minority and disadvantaged communities experience entrepreneurship in a similar manner to the mainstream population. This chapter examines immigrant, people with disability, youth, gay and unemployed communities to explore how their entrepreneurial behaviour might differ from the practices of mainstream entrepreneurs. What emerges is that marginalised communities can frequently find it difficult to divorce business from social living. This can have both positive and negative connotations for an entrepreneur, plus they face additional and distinctive challenges that mainstream entrepreneurs do not experience. The chapter concludes by proposing a novel ‘funnel approach’ that policymakers might adopt when seeking to introduce initiatives targeted at these disadvantaged communities

Entrepreneurial growth and ownership under market socialism in China: a longitudinal case study of small business growth

How firms grow is still a mystery and a definitive explanation remains elusive. This is especially the case for emerging economies, where the development of research into business growth has been notably slow whilst emerging business ventures are developing at hyper speed. Since most empirical studies have focused on the quantitative differences in growth across firms, this paper adopts a longitudinal case study approach to explore the qualitative differences in terms of how various types of firm achieve their growth outcomes in the organisational development process over a prolonged period of time. Through a theoretical lens which focuses on growth process approaches, this study not only demonstrates that entrepreneurial processes take different forms and dimensions in different contexts, but it also provides insights into the interactions of various organisational factors underpinning the strategies and changes that lead to contrasting growth outcomes. Case study findings assert that the ownership factor is a key contingent factor that shapes management structure and resources which, in turn, affect particular entrepreneurial outcomes. Furthermore, a combination of leadership style and the approach to knowledge management also play critical roles in the learning process which, tends to determine the strategy choice of either high or low value added product strategy. The findings of this research are that small firms with a low value product strategy can improve their survival chances and growth through the vertical broadening of a product portfolio in synchrony with increasing production and technology advancement. The case study companies show a tendency to reinforce their industry position by adopting contrasting choices for growth. The paper addresses the challenges and managerial implications for Western company managers in different growth contexts

An assessment of the business impacts of the UK's Enterprise Capital Funds

Recent European studies present persistently critical views of the under performance of government backed venture capital (GVC) schemes when compared to their private sector counterparts. However, they assess the performance of outmoded funding models and fail to contextualise the economic development role of these schemes. This paper provides a contemporary assessment of the business impacts of the UK government’s flagship Enterprise Capital Funds (ECFs) VC scheme in addressing the sub-£2m equity finance gap facing young potential high growth businesses requiring investments. Supply and demand-side evidence is presented from interviews with ECF fund managers, alternative private VCs, industry experts and surveys of successful and unsuccessful scheme applicants. We find that, despite the limitations of mid-scheme evaluation, ECFs are addressing the UK equity gap and delivering business employment, revenue and innovation impacts. However, further progress is required in order to achieve optimal business exits and sustainable early stage private VC system impacts