Small businesses are meeting the challenges of a changing economy and leading the way in production and job creation. Small businesses especially will continue to benefit from demographic and societal shifts, in particular the emergence of the two-career family that fuels the service industry. Women and minority persons are the newest…

A case study analyzed a young organization to determine how the communicative acts of the general manager are primary in the creation of the company culture and how well interpretive methods contribute to research on organizational culture. The company investigated manufactures custom products, employs approximately 175 skilled craftsmen and…

Responding to surveys by the State Council on Vocational Technical Education, Minnesota's technical institutes identified 1,169 of their students who graduated during the 10-year period prior to 1984 and who subsequently established or purchased business enterprises. The collection and analysis of these data represented key steps by the Council,…

An increasingly popular economic development tool to improve the success rate of new firms is the small business incubator. These are buildings in which a number of new or growing businesses can locate and operate at a much lower overhead cost than in conventional space where market rates prevail. Incubator facilities are characterized by access…

Graduates of the Minority Business Development Program were surveyed in order to determine the extent to which the program gave them the experience and tools they needed to prosper in business. The results of the survey were presented at a hearing before the Congressional Committee on Small Business. Most of the responses from the graduates were…

Examines the child care for-profit business in terms of recent history, current status, and future prospects. (BB)

Immigrant entrepreneurship is analyzed and evaluated using Koreans as an example. By participating in capitalism, immigrants are perpetuating the system that oppresses them. They should use their experiences of oppression to rise above this system and create a new social order based on the value and dignity of all. (VM)

Proposed taxes and bans on college business activities grow out of criticism from the owners of small businesses that colleges and other non-profit organizations abuse their tax-exempt status to compete with tax-paying companies by selling certain items. (MLW)

Steps in a small business analysis are discussed: understand how company activities interact internally and with markets and suppliers; know the relative importance of controllable management variables; understand the social atmosphere within the company; analyze the operations of the company; define main problem areas; identify possible actions…

States that formal management development is absent from the majority of Chinese family businesses, but an alternative set of processes produces a high level of managerial talent geared to this particular kind of organization. Describes this alternative system and comments on strengths and weaknesses. (Author/CH)

Describes Ball State University's "dual progression" curriculum for the small business management program. The program seeks to combine the best elements of entrepreneurial theory with the difficult facets of practical experience. The five major component courses (small business ventures, entrepreneurship, management information systems,…

Case studies demonstrate four capital packaging approaches: a comprehensive statewide enterprise program for Pennsylvania; a county-based industrial development fund in Chautauqua County, New York; an employee buyout in Saratoga Springs, New York; and establishment of a small venture capital company in the Kentucky Highlands with Office of…

Since 1996, the Small and Medium Enterprise Administration (SMEA) in Taiwan has supported various institutions to establish incubation centers (ICs) for facilitating start-ups and innovation. At present, there are 79 ICs in total and 65 (or 83%) of them are established in universities/colleges. Most ICs in the universities/colleges offering…

This report is about employers and how they value and use qualifications in their business decisions. The research indicates clear differences in the value placed on and use made of qualifications by employers for different groups of workers and occupations. Qualifications are considered more important for higher-level occupations and employers…

This idea book offers practical strategies for assessing and responding to the effects of HIV on each of the Peace Corps' project areas, including agriculture and environment, small enterprise development, health, youth, and education. It also offers examples of creative and effective strategies used by Peace Corps volunteers to integrate the…