Survival of Australia's Family Farms: Capital Raising and Credit Access. Family-run farms are an integral part of rural Australia. Given the evolving global financial crisis and the expanding complexity of managing a family farm in Australia due to increasing competition from large incorporated holdings and overseas producers, a persisting drought, rising climate variability, and constraining carbon markets, one critical issue for the sustainability of family farms is their ability to access an ....Survival of Australia's Family Farms: Capital Raising and Credit Access. Family-run farms are an integral part of rural Australia. Given the evolving global financial crisis and the expanding complexity of managing a family farm in Australia due to increasing competition from large incorporated holdings and overseas producers, a persisting drought, rising climate variability, and constraining carbon markets, one critical issue for the sustainability of family farms is their ability to access and manage successfully competitive sources of credit. This study examines the extent to which family farms are currently at a disadvantage, and what policies could be implemented to ensure their sustainability into the future via access to competitive lines of credit and appropriate financial management practices.Read moreRead less
Promoting Knowledge Economy Organisations and Innovative Work: Regional influences on Knowledge-based Small and Medium-sized Enterprise clusters in Australia and Germany. In both Australia and Germany many regional areas have experienced economic and social decline. Clusters offer a means of fostering local economic development thereby arresting regional social and economic deterioration. The research focuses on those clusters that rely on knowledge transfer between organisations. Through identi ....Promoting Knowledge Economy Organisations and Innovative Work: Regional influences on Knowledge-based Small and Medium-sized Enterprise clusters in Australia and Germany. In both Australia and Germany many regional areas have experienced economic and social decline. Clusters offer a means of fostering local economic development thereby arresting regional social and economic deterioration. The research focuses on those clusters that rely on knowledge transfer between organisations. Through identifying the drivers and impediments to the formation of knowledge based clusters, the research aims to provide practical guidance to regionally-based organizations to assist in the successful formation and maintenance of clusters. In doing so, the research will identify how clusters that rely on the sharing of organizational knowledge may promote greater regional employment possibilities.Read moreRead less
Survival of the fittest: The performance of franchised versus independent small business during economic uncertainty and recovery. The contribution of small business to the Australian economy is substantial. There are almost two million small businesses, representing 96% of all businesses in Australia. As the small business sector is Australia's largest employer, providing jobs for 46 percent of the private sector, it is important that they succeed. This research will analyse survival factors d ....Survival of the fittest: The performance of franchised versus independent small business during economic uncertainty and recovery. The contribution of small business to the Australian economy is substantial. There are almost two million small businesses, representing 96% of all businesses in Australia. As the small business sector is Australia's largest employer, providing jobs for 46 percent of the private sector, it is important that they succeed. This research will analyse survival factors during economic uncertainty in order to identify sustainable and enduring success strategies. The study will compare the performance of independently owned and franchised small businesses in both regional and urban communities. Benefits will include improved knowledge about the key factors that drive superior independent and franchised small business performance.Read moreRead less
Small business job creation: employer and employee perspectives of job quality. Small business is high on the policy agenda as employment growth is trending downwards. Recent recommendations to increase small business employment highlight the importance of both quantity and job quality. This project will investigate what is a quality small business job from employer and employee perspectives. The research will focus on new small business jobs in the Latrobe Valley - a 'less favored' region. The ....Small business job creation: employer and employee perspectives of job quality. Small business is high on the policy agenda as employment growth is trending downwards. Recent recommendations to increase small business employment highlight the importance of both quantity and job quality. This project will investigate what is a quality small business job from employer and employee perspectives. The research will focus on new small business jobs in the Latrobe Valley - a 'less favored' region. The findings will fill a significant gap in knowledge about the process of job generation and lead to a better understanding of the determinants of job quality from different perspectives, which can assist economic policy development.Read moreRead less
Environmental and Social Responsibility in the Small and Medium Sized Enterprise Sector: Challenges and Prospects. The proposed research addressed two of the National Research Priorities, viz., promoting an environmentally sustainable Australia (Goal 2: Transforming existing industries), and promoting and maintaining good health (Goal 4: strengthening Australia's social and economic fabric). The research findings will identify best practices in the areas of environmental and social responsibili ....Environmental and Social Responsibility in the Small and Medium Sized Enterprise Sector: Challenges and Prospects. The proposed research addressed two of the National Research Priorities, viz., promoting an environmentally sustainable Australia (Goal 2: Transforming existing industries), and promoting and maintaining good health (Goal 4: strengthening Australia's social and economic fabric). The research findings will identify best practices in the areas of environmental and social responsibility in the SME sector thus contributing to the creation of environmentally and socially sustainable workplaces. By integrating perspectives from multiple stakeholders the research also addresses community environmental and social concerns.Read moreRead less
Comprehensive Australian Study of Entrepreneurial Emergence (CAUSEE). New business creation is a major source of new jobs and an important component of our nation's innovation system. The project will permanently transform the understanding of business creation in Australia. In contribution to NRP 3, high-technology new ventures will be over-sampled and given particular attention. The research is part of a strategy to create a world class research centre in entrepreneurship (as CI 1 previously h ....Comprehensive Australian Study of Entrepreneurial Emergence (CAUSEE). New business creation is a major source of new jobs and an important component of our nation's innovation system. The project will permanently transform the understanding of business creation in Australia. In contribution to NRP 3, high-technology new ventures will be over-sampled and given particular attention. The research is part of a strategy to create a world class research centre in entrepreneurship (as CI 1 previously had a key role in doing in Sweden). Frontier knowledge in this area contributes to 'promoting an innovation culture and economy' and facilitates 'maximizing Australia's benefits from investments in research, particularly related to commercialisation of 'Breakthrough science' and 'Frontier technologies'.Read moreRead less
Firm Early Development and Performance (FEDP): A Panel Study. Research in several developed economies has shown that small, independent firms - and especially the new entries - contribute disproportionately to innovation, job creation and regional economic well-being. The project will substantially improve our understanding of successful development pathways across a range of contexts facing young Australian firms, and ultimately lead to improved business outcomes and economic and social benefit ....Firm Early Development and Performance (FEDP): A Panel Study. Research in several developed economies has shown that small, independent firms - and especially the new entries - contribute disproportionately to innovation, job creation and regional economic well-being. The project will substantially improve our understanding of successful development pathways across a range of contexts facing young Australian firms, and ultimately lead to improved business outcomes and economic and social benefits. In contribution to NRP 3.5, promoting an innovation culture and economy, high-technology firms will be over-sampled and given particular attention. The research is part of a strategy to create a world class research centre in entrepreneurship.Read moreRead less
What facilitates or hinders the discovery and exploitation of entrepreneurial opportunities? A systematic comparison of the independent and corporate contexts. Every opportunity that is discovered but not exploited represents significant unrealised value for the entrepreneur and society-at-large. By providing clear implications for managers and entrepreneurs as to which factors will facilitate and constrain the successful exploitation of discovered opportunities, this research will contribute to ....What facilitates or hinders the discovery and exploitation of entrepreneurial opportunities? A systematic comparison of the independent and corporate contexts. Every opportunity that is discovered but not exploited represents significant unrealised value for the entrepreneur and society-at-large. By providing clear implications for managers and entrepreneurs as to which factors will facilitate and constrain the successful exploitation of discovered opportunities, this research will contribute to increasing the discovery of technologies as well as their successful commercialisation. It will promote a more vibrant, innovative culture at companies and within Australian society. In particular our focus of the mining sector will benefit the Australian economy, as this sector is of major economic importance.Read moreRead less
Strategic responses of Australian family-owned businesses in the manufacturing sector to the pressures of globalisation. It is critical that Australian family owned manufacturing businesses respond in the most advantageous way to the pressures of globalisation. Possible strategic responses include selling out to larger companies that have a stronger strategic position, competing off-shore, or take a niche position in the value chain. This research will use a series of case studies to determine t ....Strategic responses of Australian family-owned businesses in the manufacturing sector to the pressures of globalisation. It is critical that Australian family owned manufacturing businesses respond in the most advantageous way to the pressures of globalisation. Possible strategic responses include selling out to larger companies that have a stronger strategic position, competing off-shore, or take a niche position in the value chain. This research will use a series of case studies to determine the contingent factors that best explain strategic response within the ownership and management structure of the family business, and track the impact of specific strategic choices. From this may flow some general principles of appropriate strategic responses given a range of circumstances.Read moreRead less
The Impact of Customer-Focused Business Strategies on Organisational Performance in a Professional Service Context. The study poses important new questions about the impact well-established customer marketing approaches, such as value, have, within a professional service environment. It is unclear whether organisations focus on such concepts when developing strategy and, if so, how they use them when formulating strategy and this will be investigated. A second question, which is of academic and ....The Impact of Customer-Focused Business Strategies on Organisational Performance in a Professional Service Context. The study poses important new questions about the impact well-established customer marketing approaches, such as value, have, within a professional service environment. It is unclear whether organisations focus on such concepts when developing strategy and, if so, how they use them when formulating strategy and this will be investigated. A second question, which is of academic and practical importance, is the impact such strategies have on organisational performance, and this will also be examined. Understanding the link between strategy and organisational performance is vital as managers have difficulty assessing the relevance of their marketing activities.Read moreRead less