Business Commons^™

From Unemployment To Self-Employment, An Investigation Into The Profile Of ‘This’ Entrepreneur, Nora Mary O'Mahony

Theses

Richard Cantillon, who in 1734 introduced the term ‘entrepreneur’ into economic literature, described entrepreneurship as

‘‘Self-employment of any and every sort" (Long 1983 P 48)

Self-employment is entrepreneurship at its simplest form. According to O’Kane (1997) entrepreneurship is

“The dynamic process of creating wealth, undertaken hy people who assume a risk in terms of money, energy, time and/or career commitment, and creating value through the provision of some product or service. ” (O’Kane 1997 P 6)

Entrepreneurship is nothing new. Men without wealth have always been attracted by the prospect of attaining it and the opportunities, which it affords. (Bruce …

Designing A Framework For The Alignment Of E-Business Strategy And Consultant Engagement Processes For Australian Smes : A Cross-Case Analysis, Shirley A. Bode

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The majority of SMEs have neither the internal expertise nor financial resources to enable in-house development of electronic commerce and therefore turn to the services of website design consultants to assist them. Unfortunately, they often engage consultants without any clear idea of their intended e-business strategy and without due care as to effective engagement processes. This frequently leads to ineffective e-business development and a highly disaffected group of small entrepreneurs. The study suggests that there is a significant gap between the intended strategies of SMEs and the actual e-business strategy implemented. The study aimed to investigate the relationship between Australian …

Daily Importance Of Creativity To Entrepreneurial Team Members: A N Empirical Investigation, Elizabeth Layne Paddock

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.

Small Business Owners' Measures Of Success, Elizabeth A. Walker

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Small business plays a significant part in the economy of all nations because of its revenue contribution and as a generator of employment. In the Australian context, small businesses account for 85% of all businesses, employ 40% of the total workforce and contribute $75 billion annually to Industry Gross Product. All of these numerical indicators highlight the financial importance of small business, which is also how small business success has traditionally been measured. These traditional success measures have been by increases in financial performance criteria, such as return on investment, turnover or profit, or by increases in number of staff.

Business Success In Small And Medium Sized Enterprises Through The Implementation Of The Techniques Of World Class Business And Benchmarking, Dónal Ó Liatháin

Theses

‘ Europe is losing its competitiveness ‘ was the underlying message in the Tanaiste’s, Ms Mary Harney, opening address, at the 3^^ annual Benchmarking Conference held in the O’Reilly Hall, Dublin, on the 28^^ of February 2001. According to the latest figures from the European Commission, the European GDP lags its Japanese and American rivals by 17% and 33% respectively. Small and medium sized enterprises provide over 66% of the European Community employment and 65% of the turnover, which indicate the vital role played by small and medium sized enterprises in Europe’s economy. The objective of this thesis was to …

The Marketing Orientation Of Small And Medium Enterprises: An Australian Study, Venkateswara S. Venkatesan

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The market orientation construct has emerged as a key marketing theme in the 1990's. While the concept of being focussed on the market (customers and competitors) has been known since the early 1950's (e.g. Drucker,1954), putting the concept into practice through a set of specific actions has eluded many organisations and academics. As a result, market orientation (also termed market focus, customer focus and competitor focus) had remained a business philosophy (Bennett & Cooper, 1979: Felton, 1959; Konopa & Calabro,1971) more than a strategic approach. While there have been sporadic attempts at defining or operationalisinga marketing or customer orientation in …

The Effects Of A Combination Of Feedback, Goals, And Consequences On The Performance Of Four Small Businesses, Timothy V. Nolan

Dissertations

Performance measurement approaches such as the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) offer a format for attending to a few performance metrics rather than several different performance indicators. While the BSC approach offers a nice format for tracking performance, it does not provide a conceptual framework for improving performance. That framework can be found in Behavioral Systems Analysis. The Total Performance System emphasizes the importance of internal and external feedback in improving performance. Several studies have investigated feedback interventions in organizational settings. The intervention found to be most effective is a combination of feedback, goals, and consequences. The purpose of the current study …

Privatization-In-Place And The Impact On The Department Of Defense Depots: A Case Study At Newark Afb, Mark Luttschwager

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to document the change in organizational structure when military jobs and production are transferred to civilian corporations under privatization in place (PIP). Privatization-in-place is a new concept that is being implemented, at Newark AFB, as a result of base closure and the desire to maintain as many jobs as possible in the local community. In the course of this research, it is shown how the new civilian management structure compares to the existing military structure and functions. The purpose was to provide insight into what changes would occur under private management as opposed to …

Privatization In Place And The Base Closure Community: Newark Air Force Base, Ohio, 1993-1995, Paul D. Pidgeon

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis studies the experience of the local community during the privatization in place of Newark Air Force Base (NAFB), Ohio. Licking County faced the loss of its largest employer after the 1993 Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission (BRAC), a five-year commission established by President George Bush as a measure to cut national defense spending after the Cold War's end, recommended closing the Air Force repair facility. In its base closure recommendation, the BRAC gave the Air Force flexibility to craft a privatization in place plan. But the Air Force did not know how much the plan would cost …

Study Of Entrepreneur-Customer Communication, Bradley F. Williams

Presidential Scholars Theses (1990 – 2006)

My project consisted of an analysis of the communication process that occurs between an entrepreneur and their customers. The project research was primarily exploratory, since this topic has received very little attention in terms of academic study. Thus, my goal was to provide some insights into an important, yet overlooked, area in the field of marketing and entrepreneurship.

Traditional business communication models depict a predominantly unilateral flow of communication from a business (usually a corporation) to its customers. An example of this kind of one-direction communication would be an advertising promotion. A feedback loop is usually included in the model …

Comparisons Of Current Practices Of Computer Use And Training By Industry Type Of Small Businesses In The Portland Area, Don Gregory Langenhorst

Dissertations and Theses

The problem was to determine what are the current computer uses, and training practices for small businesses in the Portland area. Comparisons were made by industry type.

Female Entrepreneurs In Windsor-Essex County A General Profile With Significant Differences Of Opinion As A Function Of Industry-Type And Age Of Firk Categorizations, Melody A. Miles

Major Papers

Female entrepreneurship is a relatively new phenomenon in North America due to two distinct yet interrelated sociological issues - increased labour force involvement and higher level of education attainment. Historically women did not work outside the home, or if they did, they were in traditionally female-oriented jobs such as nursing or secretarial. Forerunners of entrepreneurial businesses such as in-home private babysitting, private housekeeping services and hobby related activities, although they generated income, were rarely claimed for tax purposes and therefore went unrecognized in proprietorship statistics.

A Teacher Training Program Focusing On Communicative Methodology For Brazilian Teachers Of English As A Foreign Language, Alberto De Paula Santos

MA TESOL Collection

This project is the result of efforts to set up a teacher­ training program for the Centro Cultural Brasil-Estados Unidos de Curitiba in Brazil. It is especially designed for teachers who have been using teacher-centered classroom techniques and the traditionally structured approaches to teaching, and who are willing to change to a student-centered communicative approach to teaching English.

In chapter one, I give a general overview of the program Iset up and a short description of the Centro. I also state the reasons why I decided to set up this teacher-training program for the Centro.

In chapter two, I describe …

Beginning An Esl Program: Underlying Issues And Site-Specific Recommendations, Jonathan D. Reasoner

MA TESOL Collection

This paper examines the issues involved in starting up an English as Second Language program. The range of issues discussed is limited to three major areas: assessment of language needs in a community; curriculum considerations for the target student group; and teacher training. There are two separate parts within the paper: Part I, a consideration of underlying issues involved in beginning an ESL program in general; and Part II, potential plans for program start-up at an actual site--the First Baptist Church of Flushing, New York.

Planning for a new program at the specific site serves to focus the general discussion …

A Proposal For The Establishment Of A Monthly Latin American Fisheries Newspaper, Kenneth Proudfoot

Theses and Major Papers

At the present time there does not exist any publication or other communication medium, directed specifically to a Latin American readership, that reports thoroughly and accurately on the fisheries and other marine-related developments in Latin America. Problems of language, physical size of the area, financing, personnel, bureaucracy and politics, among others, have always proved to be overwhelming. This study describes the informational needs of the people and organizations concerned with Latin America's fisheries sector, and review current fisheries and marine-related publications in this region. a preliminary economic feasibility analysis for the creation and publication of a new monthly Latin American …

An Exploratory Study Of The Effects Of Bankruptcy On The Susceptibility Of Small Businessmen To Right-Wing Ideology, Rayford Kytle

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.

An Inquiry Into The Possible Relationship Between The Success Of A Social Fraternity And Its Adherence To Business Management Practices And Principles, William Van Muse

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research tested the hypothesis that the better managed are social fraternities, the more successful they will be. The stated purpose of the study was to provide information to answer the following questions: 1) To what extent are selected management practices and principles utilized by college social fraternities? 2) Is there any significant relationship between the adherence to these managerial principles and practices and the degree of success achieved by the fraternities studied? Research design. Success was measured in comparative terms—how well the fraternity being studied ranked when compared to the other groups with which it competed. Six criteria were …

Tax Consequences Of Profit-Sharing Plans For Small Businesses, Joseph Coats Mccracken

Anderson School of Management Theses & Dissertations

The number of Treasury-approved profit-sharing and pension plans has increased from less than two thousand in September, 1942, to over twenty-one thousand in September, 1953. Part of the explanation for this increase may be found in high tax rates which prevailed during World War II, and the tax advantages which accrued to business by setting up qualified deferred-benefit plans. Considerable material has been written on the subject in recent years covering not only the income tax advantages involved, but many other equally important business considerations. This material, however, almost without exception, has dealt with the subject from the standpoint of …

Shall I Fill 'Er Up, Sir?: A Study Of The Retail Gasoline Service Station Operator And Methods Of Increasing His Profits, Linford Loesch

Business and Economics Honors Papers

This 33 page thesis examines a proposal to increase sales at a gasoline service station.