Business Commons^™

Assessing Sme Innovation Within Different Cluster Models: Lessons From The Australian Wine Industry, David Aylward, John Glynn

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This paper assesses core innovation activity among SMEs within different levels of cluster development. The aim of the paper, using empirical data from the Australian wine industry, is to demonstrate that innovation levels and activity intensify as an industry cluster develops. By dividing wine clusters into ‘innovative’ (highly developed) and ‘organised’ (less developed) models, the paper uses selected core indicators of innovation activity to explore levels of integration within each model. This integration is examined in the context of Porter’s theory of ‘competitive advantage’, with implications for SMEs in particular, and lessons for industry clusters in general.

The Australian Dollar's Long Term Fluctuations And Trend: The Commodity Prices Cum Economic Cycles Hypothesis, Elias Sanidas

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

The Australian dollars exchange rate (mainly in relation to the American dollar) has received a considerable attention in research and several models have been proposed to explain its trend and fluctuations.

Managing Spoiled Identity Through Entrepreneurship: An Exploratory Study Of Australian Aboriginal Entrepreneurs, James Reveley, Simon Down

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This paper argues that spoiled identity, which results from stigmatization, is an important spur to engaging in entrepreneurial activity. The idea that some people become entrepreneurs in response to fragmentation or damage done to the self is not new. To date, however, this idea been addressed from the standpoint of depth psychology. This paper uses Goffman’s spoiled identity concept to shift the focus from psychological dysfunction to social and contextual dimensions of self-identity, understood sociologically. These issues are explored through the abbreviated life histories of two people, who regard themselves as Australian Aboriginal entrepreneurs. Each person dealt with the effects …

Ranking Australian Economics Departments By Research Productivity, Frank V. Neri, Joan R. Rodgers

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This study ranks Australian economics departments according to the average research productivity of their academic staff during 1996-2002. It also ranks departments according to the variability of research productivity among their members, the assumption being that, ceteris paribus, the less variable is productivity within a department, the better. Research productivity is found to be highly skewed within all departments. A few departments have high average research productivity because of just one or two highly productive members. However, in general, research productivity is more evenly distributed within those departments that have relatively high average research productivity than within departments with relatively …

Rationalism's Irrationality - An Example From Australian Mental Health Policy, Ciorstan J. Smark

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This article reflects on the way in which accounting-related thinking influenced one particular historical event: the process of deinstitutionalisation from mental hospitals in New South Wales. The article suggests that accounting (via economic rationalism and other allied philosophical lenses ) led to the under funding of the deinstitutionalisation process to the detriment of society as a whole. Some of the societal difficulties inherent in using such rationalist calculus (biased towards quantified, monetary, accounting entity assumptions) as a means of evaluating social policies are then considered.

Internet Purchase Behaviour Of Australian Internet Shoppers, Julie E. Francis

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

Just as Internet retailing is a relatively new and rapidly changing marketing activity, Internet shoppers form a relatively new consumer group that is evolving as the early adopters are increasingly joined by members of the broader market. In addition to the composition of this group changing, tracking the fundamental behaviours of Internet shoppers may be hampered by differences in research reporting methods and the costs associated with identifying genuine Internet shoppers for research purposes. Accordingly, this paper describes an Internet survey in which the behaviour of 1283 Australian Internet shoppers was examined. The frequency with which participants purchased products online …

Are The Standard Drivers For E-Commerce Adoption In Regional Smes Really Standard: A Comparison Of Australian, Swedish And Us Regional Smes, Robert C. Macgregor, Lejla Vrazalic, Deborah Bunker

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

The sluggish pace of E-commerce diffusion in the SME sector is well documented. In response to this, one area that has given rise to continued research is the development of criteria (drivers) for Ecommerce adoption in the SME sector. This research has given rise to a 'standard' set of drivers that has become the basis upon which research into E-commerce adoption in SMEs is carried out. While a number of studies have attempted to develop models of E-commerce adoption, little has been done to discover whether, indeed, these criteria are universal to the sector. This paper presents the findings of …

Website Quality In The Australian Electronic Marketspace: Application Of The Webqual Tm Instrument, Sukunesan Sinnappan, Jamie Carlson, Banu P. Sukunesan

Sydney Business School - Papers

The issue of assessing the quality of a Website has received growing attention from academics and practitioners. This study applies the newly developed WebQual™ framework developed by Loiacono et al. (2002), to empirically assess if the quality of Australian Website’s impact the purchase intentions and site revisit intentions in electronic markets across three industry groups. The study further highlights relevant managerial implications for managing Website quality, and directions for future research are discussed.

An Exploratory Study Into The Giving Behaviour Of Small To Medium Enterprises (Smes): An Australian Experience, Gary I. Noble

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

A constant growth in the number of non-profit organisations (NPOs) over the past decade has also meant an increase in competition between NPOs for ongoing support. In this environment and without the marketing resources of their national and international counterparts many smaller NPOs do not attract the same level of individual or corporate support as their larger NPO rivals. Evidence suggests an alternative source of support for these smaller NPOs is often small to medium enterprises (SMEs).

This paper argues that although there is a considerable body of literature on the giving behaviour of individuals, and to a lesser extent …

Australian School Funding And Accountability: History Imploding Into The Present, Kathleen M. Rudkin

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This paper examines historical origins of accountability for public funding in the Australian school education system. Understandings of accountability have developed unique to the Australian context, embedding institutions and ideas from a colonial past. It is shown that the funding arrangements used to distribute and account for public education funds are political devices to mediate enduring historic relationships between government and non-government schools, while at the same time masking these relationships in the veiled rhetoric of a broader Australian cultural imperative of egalitarianism. It concludes the current funding and accountability of school education in Australia is a simulacrum of accountability. …