Secondary centres of economic activity in the East Midlands: Summary Report

This summary report outlines the findings of a study of secondary centres of economic activity in the East Midlands. Secondary centres are defined here as urban settlements that are smaller than a principal urban area, but still significant as a centre of economic activity. In this study, secondary centres include a range of settlements, from large industrial towns to small market towns. This research has been undertaken by the Enterprise Research and Development Unit at the University of Lincoln for the East Midlands Development Agency (emda)

Governance and information governance: some ethical considerations within an expanding information society

Governance and information governance ought to be an integral part of any government or organisations information and business strategy. More than ever before information and knowledge can be produced, exchanged, shared and communicated through many different mediums. Whilst sharing information and knowledge provides many benefits it also provides many challenges and risks to governments, global organisations and the individual citizen. Information governance is one element of a governance and compliance programme, but an increasingly important one, because many regulations apply to how information is managed and protected from theft and abuse, much of which resides with external agencies usually outside the control of the individual citizen. This paper explores some of the compliance and quality issues within governance and information governance including those ethical concerns as related to individual citizens and multiple stakeholders engaged directly or indirectly in the governance process

Lincolnshire economic strategy 2008-2012

An economic strategy for Lincolnshire, developed on behalf of Lincolnshire Enterprise and Lincolnshire Assembl

Mapping GDP growth in the East Midlands and Yorkshire & Humber

This report outlines the findings of a study examining the economic structure and dynamics of the East Midlands and Yorkshire and Humber regions of the UK, using the logic of firm and labour agglomerations and their contribution to GDP as the basis for the analysis. 1.2 The project was undertaken by the Enterprise Research and Development Unit (ERDU) at the University of Lincoln. The main aim of the project was to examine GDP growth in the two regions in order to understand the dynamics and structure of regional economic activity and explore the implications for regional development. 1.3 Because GDP provides a value for an economy’s output, changes in GDP can highlight the changing state of a region’s economy. Thus, GDP provides a benchmark for the performance of an economy which will be comparable across nations and regions. 1.4 While it is a useful indicator, GDP can be viewed as a set of figures which are the result of an accounting procedure. This reporting of figures covers the dynamics of an economy in that we know the end result, i.e. the total value of the economy but lack an understanding of how that figure is generated. What is also required is an understanding of the structure of an economy and how this may affect changes in GDP. 1.5 The approach adopted in this study has been to ‘decompose’ GDP in order to understand its component parts and link this to the structure of a regional economy. In doing this we depart from a traditional ‘macroeconomic’ analysis in that the report also examines policy interventions and the geographic structure of the two region’s economies. 1.6 As there are many actors and policy initiatives within a region, it made sense to consider a sample of these organisations to acquire a sense and ‘flavour’ of the different and distinctive approaches undertaken. GDP Growth in the East Midlands and Yorkshire & Humber Page 9 of 104 1.7 While the size of regional economies dwarfs the budgets of regional, and sub- regional, agencies involved in policy development and intervention, organisations can play important stimulus, leverage and demonstration roles in regional economic development. For example, a programme that involves expenditure of £1m will not make a large contribution to a region with GDP of £60bn. However, if the results of the programme improve the productivity of the workforce then there will be ‘knock-on’ impacts. Keynes termed these ‘multiplier effects’ and can be an important source of regional economic growth. 1.8 Good and effective practice is also likely to stimulate improvements in practice, and hence impact and knock-on effects, throughout a region (and vice-versa), indicating the importance of development organisations and the premium that can be placed on ensuring their effectiveness and impact. 1.9 The five main goals of the project are to: • Develop an outline framework of a regional economy in order to understand the relevant actors and processes within regions; • Summarise and evaluate existing data on both regional economies; • Identify the sub-regional ‘building blocks’ of the regions, i.e. the location of economic activity and the reasons underpinning this; • Map and assess strategic interventions in the regions in order to evaluate the effects of policy interventions on the regional economies; • Develop a framework for measuring the impact of interventions on GD

Does Confucian management exist in Chinese companies?:An examination of the intersection between cultural influence and business practice in China

There is a view that China is a Confucian country and that its businesses adopt these values to underpin their business models and practices. In this article, a case is made that China is not a Confucian country, even though there are strands of Confucianism evident in society. Although some enterprises in China adopt Confucian approaches to management, this cannot be generalized to all businesses. We cannot, therefore, conclude that Confucian management has emerged as the prevailing feature of Chinese businesses.</p

An evaluation of the economic impact of broadband in Lincolnshire: updated final report

The Lincolnshire Broadband Initiative, ‘onlincolnshire’, was launched in 2003 to bring a range of broadband supply and demand stimulation activities to businesses across the county. The initiative has used £15 million of European funding, together with matched funding from Lincolnshire County Council, to support a series of significant Information and Communication Technology (ICT) interventions to provide support and financial assistance to eligible Lincolnshire businesses. The ‘onlincolnshire’ initiative has four long term strategic objectives. By 2010: • Lincolnshire will be the foremost rural County in the UK, with regards to ICT usage and skills and will have a commercial environment that embraces ICT; • The main employment sites and premises will have attracted increased and more diverse investment; • ICT will have made a major contribution to business competitiveness, expansion and diversification of the economy – measured through an increase in ICT related employment and a range of ICT based activities; • To have engaged individuals and employers in improving ICT skills to increase local competitiveness, raise the standards, participation and achievement in ICT throughout the County

The relationship between rurality, skills and productivity in the East Midlands: summary

This summary report sets out the findings of research into the relationship between rurality, skills and productivity in the East Midlands. The report has been prepared by the Enterprise Research and Development Unit (ERDU) at the University of Lincoln on behalf of the East Midlands Development Agency (emda). The full report, which includes the detailed data analysis that underpins the findings set out in this report, is available separately

Understanding take-up of broadband by small and micro-enterprises: a case study

The paper examines patterns of broadband take-up, implementation and effects within small and micro-sized enterprises. The research focuses on the ‘onlincolnshire’ initiative, a local government-led programme which aims to encourage broadband take-up through provision of connection subsidies to SMEs in rural areas of Lincolnshire

The relationship between rurality, skills and productivity in the East Midlands: final report

This report sets out the findings of research into the relationship between rurality, skills and productivity in the East Midlands. The report has been prepared by the Enterprise Research and Development Unit (ERDU) at the University of Lincoln on behalf of the East Midlands Development Agency (emda)