Since 1980s, Mainland China had attracted enormous investment from the worldwide. Through three decades developments, the economy of China has dramatic change. However, under the strong attempt of government interference, the conditions of the business environment are worsen and unfavorable for certain industries. The resource based theory view argues that the firm with core resource and competence can have substantial competitive ability and enduring advantages to succeed in the market. From this perspective, we would like to know how the case company is accumulating and cultivating the core resource and competence for it to succeed in the market. Based on our finding of the core resource, this research uses the five force framework for industrial analysis and attempt to have suggestions for future development. This research conducted a case analysis of a Taiwanese SME in Lead-acid battery industry with interviewing with the president and managers of the company. The finding show that the SME has built up the core competence with its competitive strategy management. However, in coping with changing environment and business conditions, this research has suggested the SME Company need to upgrade its product level and customer types. It also suggests building up alliance within the same and different industries in order to form its core competence for the future.

<p>Today, security strategy has a crucial role in society, which does not imply only to large companies, but also and especially to Small Medium Enterprises (SME’s).</p><p>The intention of this thesis is to provide instructions and help enterprises that need assistance in applying proper security strategy. This thesis comprises the most crucial areas of security within an enterprise. Its aim is to study more deeply the situation of the current security strategy, of a telecom and a software development enterprise, by which the enterprise can extract enough information to provide a proper system. The purpose is to study, analyze, explore and bring some conclusions with new ideas on how to improve and propose a new security strategy that can fit and that can be appropriate for this enterprise.</p><p>Regarding the exploration and research for the enterprise, “fragile assets” are the target to be taken in consideration such as “software”, “databases” and “important data”.</p><p>The method which is used in this thesis, is the case study method, which has best suited the purpose of this thesis by covering the logic of design, data collection techniques and data analysis. As a theory the OCTAVE-sm approach was applied. This approach has three phases which each contains its own processes. These processes were followed and used for the evaluation of the current state in one Small Medium Enterprise (SME) called InterAdria. The use of OCTAVE-sm approach in this thesis can be a guide to all other Small Medium Enterprises (SME’s) that struggle with their security strategy same as the enterprise mentioned above. The conclusion was based on the entire data gathering that was done by following the steps of the Octave-sm approach.</p>

On the last day of May 2008, new chemicals legislation, REACH came into force in Norway following its implementation within the EU in 2007. The regulation streamlines and improves an earlier legislative framework for chemicals of the European Union. To be able to comply with the new regulation, enterprises will have to put in place considerable measures and undertake possibly restructuring part of or the entire enterprise. Such measures could include the need for training, external consultancy and need for new practical software. Other measures include strategic changes in the enterprises such as the centralization of operations, change of short/long term plans, venturing into areas, change in procurement procedures etc. These may vary from enterprise to enterprise depending on their position on the supply chain as defined by the new legislation. Importers and producers of chemicals have more duties under REACH than downstream users and distributors. This study investigates how small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) within the chemical industry in Norway have been affected by the implementation of the legislation; the main focus of the study is on the economic and strategic effects of REACH on SMEs. Most SMEs in Norwegian chemical industry fall under REACH’s definitions of downstream users and distributors meaning they have fewer duties compared to producer and importers. Despite fewer duties, the effect of REACH on SMEs is quite comprehensive and far-reaching. / Address: Austadvn 99 3034 Drammen Tel: +47-90949602

The present thesis examines the implications of ownership and institutions for corporate financing in Central and Eastern Europe. There are three empirical chapters (chapters 2, 3 and 4). Chapter two examines the role of business networks for firm external financing. Our central hypothesis here is that firms’ affiliation to business association is likely to be beneficial in securing external finance (especially bank finance) in countries with weak legal and judicial institutions, as it helps banks and financial institutions to minimize the underlying agency costs of lending. Using recent EBRD-World Bank BEEPS data, we find some support to this central hypothesis in our sample. Importance of foreign banks for economic development of CEE countries has been emphasized in the literature though there is wide dispersion in foreign investment in the region. In this context, chapter three (i.e., the second empirical chapter) focuses on the implications of corruption for foreign bank entry and ownership structure in Central and Eastern European countries. The chapter argues that the presence and persistence of corruption (both absolute and relative) may adversely affect costs of setting up as well as running day-to-day operations of foreign banks in host emerging economies. Using primarily Bankscope bank-level data we find that greater absolute and relative corruption may lower foreign bank entry, greater relative corruption may encourage foreign greenfield entry in our sample; while relative corruption is not significant for foreign takeover. The latter highlights the importance of encouraging foreign investors from countries with similar institutions. Finally, considering the implications of ownership for bank capital and performance in chapter four (the final empirical chapter) in light of the focus on bank capital and capital regulation in discussions after the recent banking crisis, we argue that the relationship between bank capital and bank performance crucially depends on bank ownership structure. Using Osiris data we examine foreign greenfield and other joint venture (JV) differential effect of high bank capital on bank performance. A significant positive effect of foreign Greenfield (as opposed to JV) bank capital on bank performance, after controlling for all other factors is found. We attribute this to better governance compared to varied ownership arrangement in other joint venture banks. Thus wide dispersion in the quality of institutions and ownership explains a great deal of variation in the economic performance of countries in the region. We hope findings of this thesis would inform policies and will also influence future research.

Date June 04, 2008 Level Master Thesis EFO705, 10 points (15 credits) Authors Pornratchanee Sethakaset Tanawan Santimataneedol Bangkok, Thailand Bangkok Thailand Date of Birth: 28 October 1982 Date of Birth: 5 March 1984 Title The Application of Human Resource Management in Thai SMEs – A Case Study of Albatross Company Limited Supervisor Mona Andersson Problems : How can the entrepreneur of SMEs manage their human resources? Can previous research and studies about HRM in SMEs be applied in the Thai entrepreneurial SME? Does the HRM in the company change and transform over time? Purposes : The purposes of this study are to review the relevant studies and research about HRM in SMEs in order to investigate how human resources are managed in SMEs and to determine if the previous studies are applicable to Thai entrepreneurial SMEs. Methodology : This master’s thesis is based on a qualitative approach in order to investigate HRM in SMEs and easier to understand the behavior in a certain case. The main secondary data is also collected from website which is the utilizing material for this thesis. Conclusion : In this study, it was concluded that this Thai SME manages its human resource in a mixture between informal and formal way. HRM is used and practiced more as the company grows which the entrepreneur plays a central role in the Human Resource Management in SMEs.

Purpose - The purpose of this research is to investigate market entry modes selection of Swedish SMEs concerning their entry in Chinese market. The information we extracted from various Swedish SMEs may to some extent functional to other Swedish SMEs as well while seeking to enter in the foreign market. Design/methodology/approach -The authors employ multiple case studies. The data was collected with telephone interviews with managers and directors. Findings - The study indicates that numerous internal and external factors are driving the SMEs to choose a specific entry mode while internationalizing their business in a foreign market. Research limitations/implications - The study and the findings are based on four cases. Therefore the results can only be considered tentative. Additionally, the retrospective nature of the research design is challenging, as it puts weight on the respondents’ memory and ability to identify change. Practical implications –The information can be utilized for managers in SMEs to understand the factors that influence them while they are choosing an appropriate entry mode. Original/value – In contrast with previous research we focused on how the internal and external factors drive the firms to choose a specific entry mode in a foreign market. This information will may have some functional for other SMEs while entering in foreign markets.

This thesis examines the adoption process of Information Technology (IT)-based solutions within small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Indonesia, in the furniture and handicraft industries. As the Indonesian SMEs grew in size, they faced new problems in managing their businesses. They have tried to use IT to support their business and resolve some of these problems. Yet in their efforts to adopt IT, they often faced new problems by introducing new technology into the organisation. The thesis examines the experiences of 35 Indonesian SMEs when they adopted IT. We investigated what factors were influencing IT adoption; the process of IT adoption which covers decision making, implementation or deployment and evaluation; and how SMEs cope with and recover from failure. The participants’ experiences were compared to what has been reported in the existing literature. Analysis of the relevant research literature revealed some unexplored issues concerning IT adoption within SMEs. Most of the published research has been conducted in developed countries, with little in developing or less developed countries. From those few, only one was conducted in Indonesia and it was about IT diffusion. The focus of previous studies was mainly to explore factors influencing IT adoption and they mostly utilised survey techniques to elicit the factors. The scant literature suggests that exploring IT adoption can be approached from three different perspectives: individualist, structuralist, and interactive process. This thesis uses the interactive process approach to explore how well those factors that have been well documented in the literature actually work in Indonesian SMEs’ IT adoption. As a result of our exploration, we formulated a model of an interactive process view of IT adoption within Indonesian SMEs. A qualitative approach was used to answer research questions and explore the participants’ experiences in depth. In this thesis, we used in-depth interviews to explore participants’ experiences. These interviews enabled us to draw out not only IT adoption processes but also successes and failures in IT adoption. Semi-structured interviews were used as the data collection tool. They provided guidance so the interviews stayed well within the focus of the thesis, yet provided room to explore new and relevant issues that emerged during the interview process. Content analysis of the interview transcripts was used to extract answers given during the semi-structured interviews and to identify new themes that emerged from the data. The analysis resulted in important findings. First, it confirms some factors found in the literature as actually influencing IT adoption in Indonesian SMEs. Despite some similarities, we found some differences such as government role and competitors’ influence on IT adoption. The other findings are concerned with the failures faced by some of the participants. We then explore the differences between failed and successful participants, and how Indonesian SMEs cope with and recover from failed IT deployment. Finally, we revised the initial model of the interactive process of IT adoption. The extended model captures new insights into success and failure of IT adoption, and could provide a better understanding of IT adoption within Indonesian SMEs. The interaction between different factors in the IT adoption shows how those factors influence each other and how different stakeholders could manage their own interests related to IT adoption. The improved model could be used to guide Indonesian SME managers to manage their adoption of IT more effectively.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the information and communication technology (ICT) industries play a crucial role in the new economy. Most SMEs operate in a fiercely competitive environment; as such, it is important to optimize business practices. It is believed that performance measurement (PM) tools can help to identify weaknesses, clarify objectives and strategies, and improve management processes. While many theories on performance measurement and performance management have been developed mainly for large organizations over the past two decades, few have been tailored for SMEs. In addition, research highlights that these tools are difficult to adapt for SMEs. This research aims to identify and investigate the critical factors influencing the performance of SMEs in the ICT industries and, in doing so, develop a new PM framework that is able to effectively measure SME performance. To improve the accuracy of the judgments in this research, methodological triangulation strategy, which mixes both qualitative and quantitative approaches, was employed. At the same time, data-source triangulation was applied to reduce the impact of potential biases. In qualitative research, twenty interviews were conducted, sixteen cases were analysed through cross-case analysis. In quantitative research, sixty-six valid responses to questionnaire surveys were collected. This thesis has completed three major tasks: 1) Investigated critical success factors that affect the performance of SMEs. 2) Analysed existing SME performance measurement techniques in order to identify the best framework for SMEs in ICT industries. 3) Constructed a practical PM framework and implementation strategy for best-practice PM in ICT-related SMEs. Research results show that an effective PM system for ICT SMEs should help the companies to formulate right strategies that can especially manage the uncertainty of the external environment in their development. Importantly, a PM process should be constructed which aligns with the SMEs' daily processes such as ordinary planning, budgeting and reporting processes. Such a PM system should involve a flexible PM framework that can be adapted dynamically to suit the changes in the PM process. It is also required that the PM framework help SMEs identify customer needs, manage and measure customer satisfaction. A PM framework meets the above requirements can be built based on the structure of business excellence models and the theory of system management. At the same time, the KPIs should be incorporated in the PM system to help design the PM framework. The constructed PM framework involves measuring both performance determinants and performance results. The performance determinants, including both internal determinants and external determinants, are represented in following dimensions: capability building; resource developing and utilizing; environment adapting; strategies formulating; internal process managing and PM on innovation and learning. The performance results' dimension should include the financial results to satisfy the investors, the customer satisfaction indicators to meet customers' needs, the competitive indicators to reflect the competitive advantages, and the collaborative measures to measure the partnership.

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) play a significant role in Europe's economy. Since SMEs have distinct organisational practices and structures (e.g. owner-run, continuity over several generations, regional engagement), their intellectual capital (IC) differs from large enterprises. However, there is little research on IC in SMEs. Placing special attention on the craft industry, this research aims at closing this gap. It will present a cross-disciplinary review of research on craft to explore the role of knowledge and human capital in the craft industry. The findings point to overall characteristics which can guide future research and inform policy-making in the craft industry.

Le financement des PME dans un contexte d’asymétries d’information et de rationnement / Financing Small and medium enterprises in a context of information asymmetries and rationing