Magister Philosophiae - MPhil / This study is about Gender and small-scale enterprises following recent economic reforms in Tanzania. It deals with a case study of women entrepreneurs in Dar-es- Salaam, focusing on their prospects and problems, and the mechanisms they use to survive in a competitive free market. There is concern among policy analysts and gender activists that the economic reforms have negatively affected women entrepreneurs more than their male counterparts (Tibaijuka, 1992). However, these concerns have not yet been substantiated through detailed empirical evidence. The findings of my study reveal that it is a combination of factors which lead women entrepreneurs to establish small-scale enterprises. These motivating reasons are to fulfil the needs of their families such as school fees of their children. Similarly, Tanzanian women entrepreneurs start a small business so as to supplement their insufficient incomes, achieve independence and as a substitute to paid employment. However, they experience a variety of problems, such as the lack of business premises, high rental costs at commercial areas, competition, lack of start-up and working capital from banks and micro-financial institutions, lack of information, and bureaucracy around business licenses. Women entrepreneurs have developed various tactics to handle such difficulties they encounter in their businesses. These are: locating their enterprises in near or around their homes, employing relatives and other people, charging competitive and differentiated prices, diversifying their businesses, working for extra hours, and establishing informal credit associations. The recommendations are: the government should clarify and shorten the procedures of licenses and business premises acquisition, provide more commercial areas with cheaper rentals. Similarly, the government should be sympathetic towards women when it formulates and implements its developmental policies, women should be informed about available training opportunities. Future studies should investigate a larger sample of women entrepreneurs in small-scale enterprises involved in other sectors using the feminist research methods.

In today’s working life both the physical and the psychosocial aspects has to be considered when examining the work environment. The psychosocial working environment is of great relevance because it illuminates the individual's perception and experience of relationships and phenomena at work. This essay aims to investigate, describe and analyze the obligation an employer has to pursue in order to tackle high short- term sickness absence and at the same time manage the psychosocial work environment at the workplace. Furthermore, the purpose of this study is to acknowledge the European legislation on this subject matter in order to broaden the understanding of the comprehensiveness of the term psychosocial work environment and how applicable laws and guidelines apply in working life. The legal methodology has been used in order to answer the questions of this essay. The social perspective worked as a complement to the legal method in order to observe new problems and conduct more information in how to confront this issue at small scale enterprises. In conclusion this study deals with a complex situation where every case is unique. It is not possible to prevent all short-term sickness absence, but with the right preconditions and external assistance, employers can handle it without neglecting the psychosocial work environment. By securing a good psychosocial work environment even the smallest enterprises might be able to handle short- term sickness absence.

Abstract Currently there is a significant change occurring in the area of Finnish agriculture. The amount of farms is decreasing while the average farm size is increasing. Farms have sought for additional income sources outside of agriculture. Already one third of Finnish farms take part in other business activities in addition to agriculture. The main objective of this doctoral thesis is to increase the understanding of the activities of farm related businesses and to find factors by which their development can be promoted. The subject is analysed from a business management point of view. The thesis covers strategies, business models, resource based theory, business development, factors affecting development, problems, and a need for external support. This study follows the hermeneutic approach. The subject under study is complex and diversified, thus, it is approached qualitatively. The farm related case firms (18 in all) represent food processing, tourism, and machine contracting. Farm related enterprises are a heterogeneous group. Some common features were, however, identified in the case firms. The research confirms earlier knowledge indicating that farm related firms have stronger skills in production than in marketing. There are no official strategy processes in use and the strategic planning and strategy implementation are closer to those of the entrepreneurial school. The resource analysis shows that the resources giving competitive advantage to firms with different business ideas vary even within the same business sector. The research confirms the viewpoint that additional business is not simply a transition stage from agriculture to other business activities, but both of them can be active in parallel. The research shows that there are differences between additional business sectors relating to how easy it is to run the business. Machine contracting seems to pose the least problems compared to the other sectors analysed in this study. The research shows that the entrepreneurs do not recognise the reasons behind the problems. The diversified business practises result in a feeling of being insufficient, especially when the farm takes a part of the resources. Farm related businesses should, even to a greater extent than other small firms, focus their business activities. This research lays a foundation for understanding the business models, resources, and development paths of the farm related businesses and gives recommendations for how to promote additional businesses on farms. / Tiivistelmä Suomen maataloudessa on meneillään voimakas rakennemuutos. Maatilojen määrä vähenee ja tilojen keskikoko kasvaa. Tilat etsivät uusia toimeentulolähteitä maatalouden ulkopuolisista toiminnoista. Jo kolmannes Suomen maatiloista harjoittaa myös muuta yritystoimintaa maa- ja metsätalouden lisäksi. Tämän väitöskirjan päätavoitteena on lisätä ymmärrystä maatilakytkentäisten yritysten toiminnasta ja kehittymisestä sekä löytää tekijöitä, joilla niiden kehittymistä voidaan edistää. Asiaa lähestytään liikkeenjohdon näkökulmasta, minkä sisällä tarkastellaan strategiaa, liiketoimintamalleja, resurssiperusteista teoriaa, muun yritystoiminnan kehittymistä, kehittymiseen vaikuttavia tekijöitä, ongelmia sekä ulkopuolisen avun tarvetta. Tässä väitöskirjassa esitettävä tutkimus on lähtökohdiltaan hermeneuttista. Tutkittava aihe on moni-ilmeinen, joten sitä lähestytään kvalitatiivisesti. Tutkimus on pääosin deskriptiivistä, vaikka lopussa esitetään suosittelevia johtopäätöksiä. Aineistossa mukana olevat maatilakytkentäiset yritykset (yhteensä 18) edustavat elintarvikkeiden jatkojalostusta, matkailua ja koneurakointia. Maatilakytkentäisten yritysten joukko on heterogeeninen. Aineiston yrityksistä tunnistettiin kuitenkin joitain tyypillisiä piirteitä. Asiakaskunta on maantieteellisesti suppealla alueella ja strategiavalintana on erikoistuminen. Yritysten strategia ja toiminta ovat rönsyileviä. Tutkimus vahvistaa aikaisempaa tietoa siitä, että maatilakytkentäiset yritykset ovat enemmän tuotanto- kuin markkinointiosaajia. Yrityksissä ei ole käytössä virallisia strategiaprosesseja, vaan strategian suunnittelu ja toteutus ovat lähimpänä yrittäjyyskoulukuntaa. Tutkimus vahvistaa aikaisempaa tietoa siitä, että muun yritystoiminnan pääasiallisena tavoitteena on jatkuva ja vakaa tulovirta viljelijäperheelle. Resurssien tarkastelu osoittaa, että eri liikeidealla toimivilla yrityksillä kilpailuetua tuovat resurssit vaihtelevat myös toimialan sisällä. Tutkimus vahvistaa näkökantaa, että muu yritystoiminta ei ole pelkkä siirtymävaihe maataloudesta yritystoimintaan, vaan niitä voidaan harjoittaa myös yhdessä. Tutkimus osoittaa muun yritystoiminnan toimialan vaikuttavan toiminnan ongelmallisuuteen sekä maatilan kehittymiseen. Urakointi vaikuttaa ongelmattomimmalta muihin aineistossa mukana olleisiin aloihin verrattuna. Yrittäjät kokevat useimmiten ongelmalliseksi markkinoinnin, pääoman sitoutumisen ja ajan puutteen. Tutkimuksen mukaan yrittäjät eivät tunnista ongelmiensa syitä. Aineiston perusteella voidaan todeta, että avuntarpeen taustalla on liikkeenjohdollisten työkalujen käytön puute ja toimintatapa. Toiminnan hajanaisuus johtaa riittämättömyyden tunteeseen, varsinkin kun maatila vie osan resursseista. Maatilakytkentäisten yritysten tulisikin jopa normaalia pienyritystä tarkemmin rajata toimintaansa. Tutkimus luo pohjaa maatilakytkentäisten yritysten toimintatavan, resurssien ja kehityspolkujen tuntemukselle sekä esittää suosituksia, millä tavoin maatilojen harjoittamaa muuta yritystoimintaa tulisi edistää.

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In this research, I report and analyze the experiences of people working with small-scale enterprises in the Colombian textile artisanal sector for understanding how artisanal products are delivered to national and international markets. The data was collected by interviewing design managers and managers currently working with several of these small-scale enterprises. This paper was done considering four important features: firstly, the enormous potential that the Colombian textile industry once held back in the 1960’s; secondly, Colombia’s rich and multiple artisanal creations as expression of culture and idiosyncrasy that show the country’s ample geography and culture; thirdly, the characteristics of the Colombian economy and industry which is mainly composed of micro and small enterprises; and lastly , the lack of research on small-scale value networks. In this research the idea of linear value chains is superseded by the notion of value networks, in which relationships, activities and actors are interconnected to co-create value. In this setting, culture, people and sustainability are the key factors to reach differentiation. By learning from these experiences and analyzing practices in small-scale enterprises I can suggest that, new approaches that benefit and reinforce the characteristics of the small and medium scale enterprises must be built as an opportunity for improving the lives of people in developing countries. Additionally, relationships and the order of the production and marketing flows within the value networks depend on the manager approach. / Program: Textilt management med inriktning styrning av textila värdekedjor

This thesis focused on factors contributing to improved work environment in small-scale enterprises and sustainable health for the entrepreneurs. In Study I, implementation of the provision of Systematic Work Environment Management (SWEM) with and without support was investigated. Two implementation methods were used, supervised and network method. The effect of the project reached the employees faster in the enterprises with the supervised method. In general, the work environment improved in all enterprises. However, extensive support to small-scale enterprises in terms of advice and networking aimed at fulfilling SWEM regulations had limited effect – especially considering the cost of applying these methods. Studies II, III, and IV focused on entrepreneurs’ health, work conditions, strategies for maintaining good health, and utilisation of Occupational Health Service (OHS). A closed cohort of entrepreneurs in ten different trades responded to two self-administered questionnaires on health and work conditions, with five years between the surveys: at baseline, 496 entrepreneurs responded, and 251 entrepreneurs responded at follow-up. Differences were tested by Chi2-test, and associations estimated with logistic regression analyses. Qualitative interviews on entrepreneurs’ strategies for maintaining good health were included. In Study II, the most frequently reported complaints, musculoskeletal pain and mental health problems, were associated with poor job satisfaction and poor physical work environment. In Study III, consistent self-reported good health, i.e. good health both at baseline and at follow up, was associated with self-valued good social life when adjusted for physical work conditions and job satisfaction. Entrepreneurs’ strategies for maintaining good health included good planning and control over work, flexibility at work, good social contact with family, friends and other entrepreneurs, and regular physical exercise. Study IV concerned entrepreneur’s utilisation of OHS. Entrepreneurs affiliated to OHS had either better or more adverse work conditions than non-affiliated entrepreneurs. Medical care and health check-ups were the services most utilised. Affiliation to OHS correlated with use of specific information sources and active work environment management. The entrepreneurs were not consistently affiliated to OHS over the five-year-period.

Small-scale Business Enterprises (SBEs) lack proper mechanisms for supporting the provision and access to business information that can nurture their development in Kenya. This study investigated the role that public libraries could play in supporting the development of SBEs in Meru County with a view to developing a model that would enable public libraries to effectively support the development of SBEs. The study used the pragmatic paradigm to explore the identified phenomena. It applied the mixed methods approach and survey research design; collected data from 355 SBEs, 21 staff from three public libraries and two staff from the enterprise development unit of Meru County. Data was collected using questionnaires, interviews and document analysis. The response rate was 83.4% and 95% for SBEs and public library staff respectively. The descriptive and inferential statistics were used with the help of SPSS and Excel. Thematic analysis was applied on qualitative data. The study found that the factors that influence the development of SBEs are anchored in the environmental, cultural and personality factors of SBEs. SBEs have a myriad of business information needs which are sector-specific and cut across all the stages of business development. To fulfil these needs, most SBEs consult informal information sources and places. Technology-related tools were a popular means of accessing business information. Public libraries were poorly stocked with business information sources while business information services were in a desolate state. The study concludes that public libraries have facilitative and functional roles of providing business information solutions to SBEs by collaborating with like- minded stakeholders. The availability and accessibility of business information sources and services at public libraries is critical in addressing the information needs of SBEs. The study recommends repositioning of public libraries as business community development centres by providing value-based information sources and services. Public libraries need to revise their collection development policy, increase budget allocation, establish business information centres, seek partnerships, improve ICT facilities, ensure adequate staffing, engage business services librarians, open more libraries and widen their business outreach activities for effective support of SBEs. Policy framework and support systems for symmetrical access to business information, and entrepreneurial training for SBEs and for public library staff are needed. The proposed model of public library’s support for the development of SBEs is valuable and contribute to knowledge in business development. / Information Science / D. Litt. et Phil. (Information Science)