Entrepreneurship, as an important aspect of modern economic thought, is often described as facilitating innovation, job creation and national prosperity. Given the current economic conditions in Europe, entrepreneurship growth and small business development are seen as synonymous with economic recovery and growth. Consequently, in recent years…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the entrepreneurship education and training (EET) needs of small family businesses operating in the agricultural sector of the Indian economy. Design/methodology/approach: Quantitative and qualitative data were collected through a survey of 122 agricultural family firms in the Indian state of…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact that entrepreneurship education can have on succession in ethnic minority family firms that operate in the highly competitive UK economy. Design/methodology/approach: The paper employs a complex conceptual model of ethnic minority graduates' economic activities and outlines the possible…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to set out to evaluate the financial education needs of ethnic minority SMEs in the West Midlands region of the United Kingdom. Design/methodology/approach: A postal survey was used to investigate the financial needs of owner/managers in 64 ethnic minority SMEs and a control sample of 23 non-ethnic SMEs.…

Surveys (n=6,000), interviews (n=600), and case studies (n=60) of organizational learning in British small businesses indicated that nearly all claimed to be learning organizations, but learning was largely incidental and sporadic and only a fraction of it was communicated to others. Few were using knowledge management strategically. (SK)

Purpose: This paper seeks to investigate the provision of Vocational Education and Training (VET) in Small Ethnic Minority Businesses (SEMBs) operating in the West Midlands region of the UK. Design/methodology/approach: A qualitative approach is employed, involving in-depth, face-to-face interviews with 66 owner/managers of small ethnic minority…

Interviews with 2,000 owners of small and medium-sized enterprises in England found low awareness of and low value accorded to National Vocational Qualifications. Owners identified the crucial importance of the quality of incubator training to the formation of training policy. (SK)

A telephone survey of nearly 2,000 small businesses in Britain showed employers had positive attitudes about training but 85% had not provided any for at least a year. Interviews with 200 cited market position, economic conditions, and lack of training availability as causes. They felt national training policies lacked focus, coherence, and…

A survey of over 2,000 small and midsized enterprises in the West Midlands, England, found employers had relatively high awareness of and interest in National Vocational Qualifications but low actual implementation. Causes included negative experiences, high cost, inflexibility, and mismatch with needs. (SK)

Provides an overview of innovation in United Kingdom firms based on a survey of 6,000 small and medium-sized enterprises. Includes case studies of the industrial clustering process, identifying factors connecting firms in the high-technology circuit. Discusses policy considerations for firms and government. (Contains 61 references/notes.) (JOW)

A longitudinal study focused on the training needs of 6,000 small and medium-sized businesses in 6 formerly communist countries. Results showed owner/managers had positive attitudes to training, but the vast majority had provided no training in the past year. Difficulties included economic conditions and availability of relevant training.…

Analyzes instances of business-higher education collaboration within small business clusters in Britain, detailing the extent, contents, and intensity of that collaboration. Suggests that the leaders must committed to and believe in the benefits of collaborative relationships for them to be successful. (JOW)

A survey of 6,000 British small businesses, 600 interviews, and 120 case studies found that 70-80% were family owned; most favored informal management styles. In family-owned businesses, training of nonfamily employees was considered less crucial; investments in the latter were related to long-term business strategies and potential succession.…

Over 2,000 interviews and 74 case studies with small business owners, employees, and policymakers in Britain indicated that owners' attitudes to vocational education were positive, but actual provision significantly failed to meet their needs. They suggested that national training policy lacks coherence and continuity. (SK)

The social, economic and political systems of former communist countries have faced considerable changes since the late 1980s. Most countries in Eastern and Central Europe have undergone their own individual brand of transition from a centrally planned, command system to a more or less liberalized, Western-style market economy. Many observers…