Business growth is considered a worthy goal for firms and a measure of entrepreneurial success, as well as important for economic development. Why some firms grow and others do not, though, remains a subject of debate. Of the small proportion of firms that do grow, it is often assumed that they...

Purpose: This paper investigates the linking between employees' working life (EWL) and job performance of ethnic minority Bangladeshi restaurants in Greater London. Design/methodology/approach: The authors use in depth face-to-face interviews of 40 participants working in 20 Bangladeshi...

Purpose: This article examines access to finance for SMEs in the Baltic States and the South Caucasus countries following the financial crisis of 2007 and is set within the context of the rule of law for businesses. Design/methodology/approach: The article uses the cross-sectional dataset from...

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to test a conceptual framework explaining the role of relationships and trust in enabling the purchase of business advice by small business owner–managers from their external accountants. Design/methodology/approach: The study uses a semi-structured...

Two British surveys are examined which show skills shortages in smaller companies. The reasons why little training is undertaken in these firms are set out, the main one of which seems to be that they are focused entirely on short‐term survival.

There is a tendency to associate business “closure” with business “failure”, confusing owners that close a business with ‘unsuccessful’ entrepreneurs. This article reports on a study into the experiences of business owners who have left their business. Three stages of research,...

Intellectual, as opposed to physical and financial, capital is increasingly regarded as a source of competitive advantage for individuals, enterprises and nations. Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are often regarded as important innovators in the economy. It is possible to protect some...

Research and dissemination of the results has always been an important activity for those in the academic community. The Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) has brought the whole area of research publication and dissemination into sharp relief, and striving for high research rankings seems, for...

Notions of social inclusion and the need to combat social exclusion have become popular areas of attention in academic and policy circles. The importance of small firms and entrepreneurship as a means to raising inclusion has been emphasized in these new agendas. <italic>A priori</italic>, there are a number of...