The aim of the study is to investigate how owner-managers of Chinese SMEs explore and exploit knowledge while growing SMEs in the spirit of Wu Wei. SME growth has been an increasingly important topic, where there is an important link between SME leadership, knowledge and growth. However, a large body of existing research treats knowledge as a static or reified asset or resource such that these studies are mainly concerned with how to create, acquire, transfer or manage knowledge. Following that, the research methods tend to be dominated by quantitative analysis, and weighs towards large organizations in developed economies. Drawing on the data collected in China, this study employs a mixed-methods approach by administering 103 surveys, wherefrom nine owner-managers are isolated for in-depth interviews at three business stages of SMEs (micro, small and medium). By attending to three dimensions (genuine Wu Wei, You Wei and Wu Bu Wei) of a Chinese Daoist Wu Wei perspective, it re-examines the link between SME leadership, knowledge and firm growth. This empirically-derived work shows evidence of subtle changes embedded in the growing process: While owner-managers stress keeping inherent openness to explore knowledge (genuine Wu Wei) and strategically exploit knowledge deployed in their everyday leadership practice (You Wei), growth evolves as a spontaneous and continuous accomplishment (Wu Bu Wei). By adopting a Wu Wei perspective, this study makes distinctive contributions to the understanding of leadership, knowledge and growth, where leadership and knowledge co-evolve and disseminate in the dynamic processes of growing as ‘leadership becoming’ rather than ‘knowledge leadership’. Whilst fostering the co-flow and co-evolution of leading, knowing and growing, the owner-managers undertake the role of knowledge generalist, knowledge supervisor and knowledge mentor within micro, small and medium firms.

The growth of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME) accounts for a disproportionate share of employment, economic growth and prosperity (Adelino et al., 2017). However, it has been argued that SMEs suffer from severe information asymmetry and other types of market frictions and, thus, are more likely subject to credit constraints (Berger and Udell, 1998). This PhD thesis addresses this issue from three different, yet interrelated, perspectives: the relationship between SME growth and credit constraints; the impacts of firm characteristics on the full scope of the SME debt acquisition process; and the effectiveness of a credit guarantee scheme (CGS). The latter is a widely-used form of policy initiative that seeks to address SME credit constraints. Accordingly, this thesis comprises three chapters and draws on empirical analyses of unique datasets from Statistics Canada surveys, conducted from 2011 to 2017. The first chapter of this dissertation investigates the impacts of demand- and supply-side credit constraints on SME growth. It finds that evidence consistent with the premise that growth-oriented firms that apply and obtain either term loans or trade credit experience higher short-term growth than demand-constrained and supply-constrained firms. In the longer term, growth-oriented firms that apply and obtain term loans experience higher growth in revenues than supply-constrained firms. The second chapter estimates the three stages of the SME debt acquisition process (i.e., recognizing a need for capital, applying for a loan, and being approved for a loan) using a trivariate probit model that accounts for the correlation among the three stages of the SME debt acquisition process. It finds that while innovators and exporters are relatively more likely to need external financing, they do not face demand- or supply-side constraints. Conversely, firms majority-owned by women and members of visible minority groups are more likely to need credit, are more likely to be demand-constrained and are subject to statistical discrimination when seeking credit. When changing the definition of demand-constrained borrowers to a more narrow definition, innovators are relatively more likely to apply for needed financing, exporters are relatively less likely to do so, and visible minorities are relatively just as likely to apply for needed financing. The third chapter proposes a new means of assessing the economic impact of the Canadian CGS, the Canada Small Business Financing (CSBF) program. The Canadian CGS is a mechanism by which the Government of Canada guarantees a specific portion of a loan in the event of default. The new measure improves on an existing measure that seeks to evaluate the performance of CGSs: the incrementality rate (a measure that evaluates the extent to which loans advanced under the CGS program would not otherwise have been approved by lenders—the counterfactual). The new measure developed in this chapter gauges lenders’ moral hazard; that is, the extent to which lenders take excessive risks by betting on overly risky loans because they know that the losses would be covered by the program. This cannot be captured by the incrementality rate. The chapter reports on the evaluation of the CSBF performance based on both measures, the traditional incrementality rate and the new measure of lenders’ excess risk taking. It finds that the CSBF is not incremental, with a low incrementality rate of 5.3 per cent. The findings also suggest that lenders do not engage in excessive risk-taking behavior, as evidenced by an almost zero risk-taking rate. While Canadian banks do not particularly exhibit a willingness to allocate guaranteed loans to women and visible minorities (the groups of firms that are subject to statistical discrimination per Chapter II), they tend to allocate more guaranteed loans to growth-oriented borrowers, consistent with the CSBF’s objective to support the growth of small businesses (ISED Canada, 2016). Finally, the CSBF incrementality rate does not vary significantly between recession (following the 2007-2008 crisis) and post-recession time periods.

While research on alternatives to growth at the level of the economy as a whole is accumulating, few studies have related the criticism of growth to the business level. This paper starts to address this gap by investigating mechanisms of growth for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), presenting a case study that applies Q methodology and interviews with owner-managers of both growing and non-growing SMEs in Austria. Some mechanisms stimulating growth are identified across SMEs including contributing to innovativeness and motivation of employees. Others are only of relevance for some SMEs: competition, financial stability and a desire for market power. The owner-managers of non-growing SMEs hold values and pursue goals that free them from mechanisms of growth or prevent them from being triggered. Moreover, they exhibit a strong identification with their SME, operate in niche markets and strive for financial independence. This illustrates that a growth imperative is neither inevitable nor are growth mechanisms always operative, but depend upon structures and institutions. / Series: SRE - Discussion Papers

Background: The current trend of a decrease in globalization has created a new scenario for SMEs, with increased protectionist measures and delivery issues, acting as an enabler or a disabler for growth. Therefore, understanding how SMEs are affected is vital, as 99.9% of all Swedish companies are SMEs, meaning that they are crucial for regional well-being. Researching the effect on the growth of SMEs could provide important insight into how SMEs could adapt and mitigate the effects of a decrease in globalization. This study investigates how a decrease in globalization affects the growth of SMEs, utilizing the literature on SME growth and the framework of external enablers. Purpose: This study aims to explore how a decrease in globalization affects the growth of SMEs. Method: The study follows an interpretivist approach through multiple case studies, by conducting semi-structured interviews. Further, the research uses an inductive approach. The empirical data was analyzed following the model by Gioia et al. (2013), where aggregated dimensions were identified. Conclusion: The empirical findings suggest that a decrease in globalization affected SMEs' growth directly through extrinsic events, value chain disruptions, and changes in internal strategies, and internal strategies were further affected by external events. The findings further suggest that the effects are dependent on the industry and the owners´ perception. Therefore, whether a decrease in globalization enables SME growth depends on the interactions between external events and the internal strategies of SMEs. This study contributes to the literature on SME growth and extends the external enabler framework to existing organizations.

Bakgrund och problem: Det som står klart tidigt i problematiseringen och bakgrunden är vikten av att utveckla adekvat ekonomistyrning när organisationer växer. Med utgångspunkt i att ekonomistyrning utvecklas i takt med att företag växer problematiseras kring ämnet och hur det påverkar SMEs i stark tillväxt. Syfte: Syftet med uppsatsen är att öka och fördjupa förståelsen för hur ekonomistyrningen utvecklas i snabbt växande företag. Syftet är därtill att identifierade kritiska händelser och faktorer som skett under tillväxtresan som gett upphov till förändringar i ekonomistyrningen. Metod: Studien är av en kvalitativ karaktär i form av en flerfallsstudie. Den primära datainsamlingen har skett med hjälp av semistrukturerade intervjuer. Intervjuer har genomförts med såväl ledande befattningshavare som medarbetare för att skapa en uppfattning kring hur styrningen har utvecklats över tid i de båda fallföretagen. Slutsats: Det som karaktäriserar ekonomistyrningen i fallföretagen är dels en rad kritiska händelser som påverkat beslut och framtida utveckling av företagen. Därtill har både externa och interna effekter varit bidragande till de kritiska händelserna och utvecklingen av företagen. Avslutningsvis har företagen agerat för att anpassa ekonomistyrningen i takt med att de har haft en snabb tillväxt, ett arbete som genomgående präglats av en successiv utveckling för att möta de behov som uppstått. / Background: What is clear early in the problem discussion and background is the importance of developing adequate management accounting when organizations grow. Based on the assumption that management accounting develops as companies grow we problematize on the subject and how it affects SMEs in strong growth. Purpose: The purpose of the thesis is to increase and deepen the understanding of how management accounting develops in rapidly growing SMEs. The purpose is also to identify the critical events and factors that have taken place during the growth which have caused changes in their respecitive management accounting. Method: The study is of a qualitative nature in the form of a multiple-case study. The primary data collection has been made using semi-structured interviews. Interviews have been conducted with both leading people and employees to create an idea of how the management has developed over time in the two companies. Conclusion: What characterizes management accounting in the case companies is partly a series of critical events that has affected decisions and future development of the companies. In addition, both external and internal effects have contributed to the critical events and development of the companies. Finally, the companies have acted to adapt their management accounting as they have had rapid growth, a work that is consistently characterized by a gradual development to meet the needs that have arisen.

Networking has shown to benefit SMEs in terms of increasing resource acquisition and knowledge transfer, two vital components in SME growth and survival. However, previous research has indicated that SME network management is largely determined by the strategic orientation of the firm, which in turn, is influenced by the owner/manager. Third party involvement has moreover been suggested to positively influence networking participation by facilitating the overall networking process for SMEs. In the present study, the moderating effect of non-profit, municipal third party involvement, on the relationship between firm growth orientation and network intensity and range, is thus examined.