Examines trends in the flows of direct investment to the West Midlands region of the UK during the 1980s. An analysis of Invest in Britain Bureau data reveals two trends of particular interest: the marked increase in the WMR′s share of FDI flows to the UK during the 1980s, and the unusually...

This paper examines SMEs'; experiences of labour markets and their adoption of technology, including ICTs, in two rural areas: South Warwickshire and North Devon. Findings are assessed within the context of existing theories of rural industrial growth, which have tended to stereotype firms on...

This paper examines SMEs' experiences of labour markets and their adoption of technology, including ICTs, in two rural areas: South Warwickshire and North Devon. Findings are assessed within the context of existing theories of rural industrial growth, which have tended to stereotype firms on the...

Recent research attributes rural industrialisation to the enhanced competitive performance of rural small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Central to much of this work has been a desire to acknowledge empirical diversity in business behaviour and performance between different rural spaces....

This paper seeks to present a new approach to the implementation of local economic development policies. It takes evidence from such areas as physics, biology, and management theory and proposes that a new 'model' may be the way forward for economic development activities. The new paradigm is...