Industrial innovation, particularly that which involves technological change, has been a significant factor in the growth of advanced economics as well as being a major objective for market success for many individual companies. In the first chapter these effects of innovation are assessed and existing knowledge about the process of innovation is reviewed. The purpose of this research is explained in Chapter 2. as seeking to identify the salient characteristics of firms which are highly innovative, as opposed to later- innovating companies. Differences which might be expected are hypothesised, on the basis of previous, related studies in a variety of academic disciplines, in the Third Chapter. A methodology for testing these hypotheses is developed in Chapter 4. and the basis and conduct of the empirical research is outlined. Innovation in the two industries from which a selective sample of early and late innovating firms was drawn is examined in the following Chapter before presenting an extensive comparison and analysis of the results of the Case Studies (which are included in the Appendices) in Chapter 6. Finally, the implications of this new data for both the theory and practice off innovation are discussed in Chapter 7.

The researcher's argument that the use of outside services - namely, consultants, advisory organisations, finance organisations, and agencies and bureaux - can be a factor influencing the growth of small business firms has been proved in respect of the smaller independent printing firm, and to a lesser extent with firms of this size which belong to a group of companies and also with the motor traders. The overall pattern that has emerged from the research is that a number of management problems may occur at a particular stage in the growth of the small firm; there may be limited management capacity or resources available to tackle these problems, hence the need to use outside services to fill-in the deficiencies of the proprietors or managers; the extent of this use will depend upon the status of the small business firm - more will be used by independents - and the qualifications and management experience of the individual or persons running the business; the use of outside services may increase managerial capacity and/or strengthen management; and the use of outside services can prove to be a factor influencing growth.

This study focuses on corporate governance in Japan during the period from 1989 to 2007 when Japan had come under global pressure to change its culturally specific corporate governance system and converge with the Anglo-American corporate governance system. From a critical theoretical perspective the study explores how the U.S. administration, pursuing a neo-liberal agenda, put pressure on the Japanese government to change the laws relating to corporate governance. The study shows how the Japanese government, in recognition of trade dependencies and in pursuance of its on neoliberal agenda, reacted to the demands of the U.S. administration. The study also provides insights into how the Japan Corporate Governance Forum in an attempt at self-regulation aimed to establish a set of Corporate Governance Principles that would constitute good practice for Japanese companies. The empirical analysis indicates that despite the pressure from the U.S. and the economic crisis that Japan experienced during the period from 1989 to 2007 capture was not complete. Japanese companies are now allowed by law to follow either the Japanese or Anglo-American corporate governance model, but as they have a choice, the majority of Japanese companies still follow the Japanese model of corporate governance. Similarly, the Japan Corporate Governance Forum had to revise its Corporate Governance Principles, which had advocated the Anglo-American model and to include the Japanese model into their set of principles to reflect contextual developments.The analysis also indicates that in the context of pressure to converge with the Anglo-American corporate governance model the Japanese way of life came under threat because of the different values underpinning the Anglo-American corporate governance model. As a consequence of changing employment practices, emanating from a change in the governance system, more uncertainty was introduced that negatively impacted upon the people living in Japan. The study concludes that any attempt to change the Japanese corporate governance system should adopt a holistic perspective and be concerned to enhance well-being. In this context it is important to also consider the impact that possible changes to the Japanese corporate governance system might have on well-being globally.

This study focuses upon the distinctiveness of small business and utilizes an innovative action research methodology to enhance understanding of the nature and form of e-business evolution within micro and small firms. The investigation facilitates, through the creative Participatory Action Research approach, the actual process of e-business implementation. It uses this approach as a form of “research laboratory” to identify and analyse constraints to effective e-business uptake, and factors which enable utilisation of e-business and to assess the actual and potential advantages and benefits derived from successful e-business utilisation. The use of Participatory Action Research sees the researcher ‘partnership working’ with the owner managers of five case study small businesses to identify and implement appropriate e-business tools. Integral to and within the context of the Participatory Action Research based approach this work uses an E-Business Development Platform which is unique to this study. This circumvents initial cost, ICT security and skills deficiencies which are commonly found to constrain small business uptake of ICT. Thereby providing a live action based ICT implementation context to facilitate an in depth investigation of key issues and factors associated with small firm e-business uptake and impact on working practices and strategic development. These are considered in the context of the firms’ relationships and relationship strategies as they migrate to more complex e-business provision. The processes and outputs from each action research investigation are then considered, assessed and presented in case study form. The findings are discussed with regard to practical insight findings capable of informing small business management and development practice, e-business evolution and security, the firms’ relationship strategies and the relationship strategies that could be utilized by an ICT provider facilitating a small firm. The work concludes with consideration of its contribution to and enhancement of current academic insight.

Maintenance organisations are rarely seen to add value to the business because they are often working in ways not obviously beneficial, or failing to utilise appropriate tools and approaches. It is therefore vital to focus and co-ordinate the work of Maintenance through properly considered and documented strategies. To ensure strategic cohesion, it is also important for the maintenance strategy to be linked to manufacturing and business goals. The primary aim of this thesis was to investigate the impact on manufacturing performance of linking maintenance and manufacturing strategy to ensure one enhances the other. The research began with a literature review which established the `state of the art'. This search failed to locate a suitable model or framework which linked maintenance and manufacturing strategies in a coherent way. Theory building was used to develop a new conceptual model and fill this gap. To maintain rigour the work was supported by existing literature as well as expert knowledge in maintenance and manufacturing strategy and operations. The result was a new model -a concise but comprehensive framework which describes the functional and cross-functional relationships between maintenance and manufacturing strategy and their internal and external links. From the matrix structure of the model a diagnostic tool evolved and, coupled with a specially designed questionnaire, a fully operational test instrument was produced. This tool proved highly suitable for measuring the situation in a manufacturing plant with respect to manufacturing and maintenance strategy, operations, performance, and the links between these. Although other contributions are made in this research, the development of the new conceptual model and diagnostic tool represents the main contribution. The model and diagnostic tool were tested in four manufacturing companies, as real-life case studies. The process involved a programme of semi-structured interviews held at the four case study sites. The questionnaire and diagnostic tool provided a framework for these interviews and furnished the `rich' data needed for the cross-case analysis. The research findings underlined the importance of coherently linking manufacturing and maintenance strategies together. As part of this work a number of inhibitors and enablers were identified. These were further themed to provide five generic recommendations for manufacturing practitioners to follow. The four case studies produced individual diagnostic footprints, each providing a snapshot of the situation in the company at the time of measurement. It was particularly evident that many manufacturing companies are not producing documented strategies and plans and there tends to be a lack of basic systems and procedures. More focus is needed on Human Resource management so that systems and cultural issues are addressed. Further longitudinal and action research would be beneficial to the case study companies involved in this research. The diagnostic footprints produced could serve as a benchmark, from which the organisations could measure improvements in performance which result from recommendations made as a result of the initial diagnostic and measurement. Other organisations could then utilise the tool as a means of identifying opportunities for performance improvement

In recent decades, board independence has become high on the agenda of corporate governance reform, resulting in a dramatic change of composition and structure of boards of publicly traded companies. Debate nevertheless continues: the inefficiency of independent directors has been regularly explored by commentators, and the current financial crisis appears to reinforce the doubts about the contribution of board independence. In this thesis, the author stands with independence proponents, firmly backing the movement of encouraging more independent directors to join the boards of listed companies. However, this thesis intends to bring a more systematic analysis, which many previous academic studies have ignored, to a number of questions, e.g. what specific functions are expected of independent directors; how these functions can fit with the unitary board structure; why independent directors are seen as an inherent demand of corporate governance; whether they can be compatible with other governance mechanisms; how their value can be better appreciated; and how mainstream company law is applied to independent directors. On the other hand, the author accepts some critical findings about the difficulties which independent directors face in practice. In response, the author offers a series of solutions, which critics have rarely mentioned, for the purpose of eliminating those obstacles. In general, this dissertation seeks to fuse together two sides of academy, i.e. the advocates and critics of independent directors, and chart a course through which independent directors can better serve the goal of improving the system of corporate governance.

This study focused on exploring students entrepreneurial experiences pursuing business start-up intentions at university. The main aim of the study was to explore students' entrepreneurial intentions and transitions starting a business at university, to inform educationalists and those that support entrepreneurial students in designing future support and interventions. A qualitative approach was taken in this study, with particular reference to Constructivism (Denzin and Lincoln, 1994). A pre and post exploration of students' intentions was designed in the research to explore the context of entrepreneurial students across four universities. A more in-depth look into students' experiences starting a business was conducted with small groups of 3-6 at each university using focus group discussions. Lastly an in-depth unstructured interview was conducted using the Critical Incident Technique (CIT) (Flanagan, 1954; Chell, 1998) to explore `critical incidents' in the students' entrepreneurial experiences starting a business at university; case studies were built from 5 students that had started a business and 5 that hadn't. The results found that students' prior entrepreneurial interests, aspirations and family in business were key motivators towards their desirability to start a business at university. However, upon exploring and generating their ideas and intentions decided against business start-up because of a lack of experience, funding and time. The enterprise funding programme provided the feasibility for students to develop their intentions further and engage in the development of their businesses whilst at university. The enterprise funding programme was an attractive opportunity for those students that initially decided against business start-up and it was found that the practical hands-on learning experience was invaluable. The `critical incidents' that influenced students' decision to start a business were; business idea viable, support from family and friends, practical business training, experience gained, mentor and like-minded students. Those that decided not to start a business indicated that particular non-effective `critical incidents' influencing their decision were; their idea being unviable, personal circumstances, a change of career interests and lack of family support. A model of the transitions of the entrepreneurial students exploring start-up as a career option was presented in the analysis, incorporating the implications to educationalists and those that support entrepreneurial students in designing future support and interventions in the conclusion. The study's contribution to knowledge surrounds an improved understanding of the transitions of students pursuing business start-up and their subsequent career destination through the entrepreneurial transitions model. The use of the CIT method has identified the complexities of students' business start-up experiences and the case studies provide significant contribution. Furthermore, the CIT method highlighted in-depth understanding of the impact of the `learning-by-doing' approach on the enterprise funding programme which was found provided students with the experience and propensity to start a business

Adopting new technologies, such as electronic patient records (EPR) systems, is essential for improving inefficient practices and increasing productivity while reducing costs. However, studies show that many organizations fail to adopt technologies with demonstrable advantages. The relationship between technology and work transformation in complex organizations is poorly understood and further .. theoretical development is needed to advance our knowledge. This research draws on Orlikowski's (2000) model of technology-in-practice, which suggests that the use of technology depends on how people interact with the technology and with each other over time and enact structures in social contexts. This study looks at how routines change when an EPR is implemented in a private hospital in Greece and how the technology is changed by the routines surrounding its use, aiming to explore the role of agents in implementing and using technologies in health organizations. It is conducted in two stages and is based on interpretive epistemology. Twenty-two semi-structured interviews and over twenty hours of onsite observation were conducted and analysed using a thematic approach. The findings show that the uptake of the EPR improved the performance of particular routines, the communication within the hospital, the productivity and service quality. However, in some departments different individuals introduced variations in the use of the technology and the surrounding routines. This study highlights the role of agents in implementing, usmg and changing a technology and refers to the technological, organizational and interpretive conditions influencing their actions. It helps researchers to understand that when a technology is integrated in complex networks, its use is less malleable than in contexts where individual actions are independent and users can shape it to fit their needs. It also emphasizes the need for designing technologies that fit the needs of end users, adequate training, strong leadership and clinician engagement in the change process

This thesis aims to: (a) examine the rationale and role for industrial development policy within, and in response to, a global economy increasingly dominated by transnational firms; (b) contribute to debate on the design of such policy; (c) to reflect on the effectiveness of past policies and the potential for future possibilities. Section I provides an overview of the thesis and explanation of methods used, findings, contribution to the literature and so on. The thesis then takes the form of four sections: Section 11ta kes a historical perspectivei n tracing and analysing the evolution of policy towards transnationals in Japan, France, Germany, the US and Britain. It then uses a content-analysis type approach to identify a matrix of critical issues arising in policy design and debate from transnationals' presence. Section III illustrates and analyses through the use of various case studies how a top-down concentration of strategic decision-making within elites of decisionmakers leads to Hymerian patterns of development. Inherent within such an approach to economic development is the risk of strategic failure, where the objectives of elites making strategic decisions conflict with wider interests in society, with the result that the economic system fails to deliver the most appropriate outcomes for the community. This section links the strategic failure literature with radical institutionalist perspectives on participatory decision-making and freedom (both 'negative' and 'positive'). Section IV develops a specific policy response in the form of monitoring transnational firms. An Economic and Social Accounting approach is developed, and a case study is analysed to illustrate how such an approach might be used. The likely impact and possible role of a monitoring policy at different tiers of government is discussed, and advantages and disadvantages are analysed. Section V explores further possibilities in terms of 'bottom-up' approaches, in particular at the regional tier of government. This recognises how globalisation is prompting a refocusing on localised geographical agglomeration and spatial clustering, with the regional scale seen as increasingly important. Regional-level policies such as cluster policies and the role of regional development banks are explored. EU Regional Policy is given particular attention, given that it has attempted to stimulate 'bottom-up' approaches and multi-level governance (MLG). However, EU policy has not reduced regional GDP disparities; the latter have actually widened since 1988. This reflects the inability of the weakest regions to be active partners in policy-making and implementation under a bottom-up approach, as 'entitlement' did not immediately translate into empowerment: this was only possible after a period of institutional adjustment and learning. This is seen as particularly relevant with regard to EU enlargement to Central and Eastern Europe, where the building of regional institutional capabilities will require post-enlargement support. The role of Pre-Accession Funding in preparing Candidate Countries (CCs) is analysed and deficiencies identified. A final contribution to theoretical development is offered by considering to what extent CCs have moved towards MLG in relation to EU regional / structural policy.

The research was undertaken with the primary aim of answering the following five main research questions. Can PAR provide a cohesive way to give those who want it an authoritative voice in shaping their own future and that of their whole organization? Can a 'creative' strategy-making process be used as the vehicle for capturing that voice and institutionalizing it as a blueprint for the future? Can Participatory Action Research (PAR) be used to research these operational processes in detail and in real time? Can an insider researcher who is also a top manager facilitate the intervention without having one role overpower the other? Can the strategizing role boundary be shifted without disenfranchising those previously responsible for strategizing, and without the process being derailed by them? PAR was selected as the organization development (OD) methodology for this intervention because, consistent with these questions, it aims to precipitate transformational change intended to correct perceived systemic disadvantage. At the same time it recognizes the need for accommodations regarding the extant disposition of power and related role enactment. And PAR is especially well suited as a methodology for researching a social change process dependent on power transfer, because it empowers the people in the system as co-researchers in an ethical framework. Consistent with the PAR methodology, the participants were the main research instrument, utilizing self reports as the main tool. This `human instrument' was augmented by the objective input of a team of non-participant observers. The research was significant because it indicates that PAR can be an effective OD methodology for giving those people who want it an authoritative voice in shaping their future and that of their whole organization - and that a creative strategizing model built on components advocated in the literature can be used as the vehicle for capturing that voice. In the process, it demonstrates that the strategizing role boundary can be shifted without resistance from the elites who are required to relinquish it. Furthermore, it shows that PAR is an appropriate methodology for researching all these processes in real time. Finally, it demonstrates that an insider researcher who is also a member of the elite can facilitate the OD and research processes without the inherent role conflict becoming unmanageable.