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Purpose -- Universities provide entrepreneurship-specific education (ESE) to equip students with the skills required to pursue entrepreneurial careers in new firms and innovative private and public sector organizations. Building upon insights from entrepreneurial event theory, cultural values theory and human capital theory, the purpose of this paper is to explore the linkage between perceived local cultural environment, ESE investment and the intensity of entrepreneurial intention with regard to becoming an entrepreneur. Design/methodology/approach -- Survey information from 321 students from three universities in the Ukraine was hand collected. Hierarchical multiple ordinary least squares regression analysis and slope analysis were used to test presented hypotheses. Findings -- Analysis revealed that students who cited a perceived desirability and perceived feasibility for entrepreneurship, initiative taking culture and participation in ESE reported significantly higher intensity of entrepreneurial intention. Conversely, students who cited the capability beliefs culture factor reported significantly lower intensity of intention. ESE interactions with perceived cultural factors as well as perceived desirability and perceived feasibility for entrepreneurship were not significantly associated with higher intensity of entrepreneurial intention. Research limitations/implications -- This study was limited to three universities in the Ukraine and university students who followed business or engineering courses. The generalizability of the findings might be limited to this context. Additional quantitative and qualitative research is warranted to explore the external validity of presented findings with regard to other countries, universities and courses. Practical implications -- Practitioners in transition economies are seeking to increase the rate of new firms formation in order to encourage economic development and to reduce social and regional inequality, but they also want existing organizations to grow utilizing the skills and capabilities of talented graduates with transferable skills. This study has confirmed that it is unrealistic to assume that ESE alone can alleviate cultural barriers to an entrepreneurial intention. The authors detected that participation in ESE was associated with higher entrepreneurial intention, but failed to highlight the specific entrepreneurial skills and capabilities associated with a higher entrepreneurial intention. Originality/value -- The authors extend the conceptual base by exploring novel hypotheses relating to the assumed direct role ESE plays in promoting a higher intensity of entrepreneurial intention in a transition context. Notably, the authors propose that ESE will moderate the relationships between the cultural factors perceived by students and their reported intensity of entrepreneurial intention. The authors suggest that ESE can raise awareness of positive cultural values that stimulate an entrepreneurial intention. In addition, the authors suggest that ESE can foster the accumulation and mobilization of skills, capabilities and knowledge required to circumvent attitudinal and resource barriers to enterprise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – Universities provide entrepreneurship-specific education (ESE) to equip students with the entrepreneurial alertness and risk-taking assets required to pursue entrepreneurial careers. Building upon insights from a dynamic view of human capital, the paper explores the linkage between ESE investment, alertness, and risk-taking asset accumulation, and the outcome relating to the intention "to become an entrepreneur" (henceforth termed an "entrepreneurial mindset"). Design/methodology/approach – Survey information from 189 students from three universities in the Ukraine was hand collected. Hierarchical multiple ordinary least squares regression analysis and slope analysis were used to test presented hypotheses. Findings – ESE students reported higher intensity of entrepreneurial mindset. Further, ESE students who accumulated the connection entrepreneurial alertness asset reported higher intensity of entrepreneurial mindset. ESE students were more oriented to higher entrepreneurial mindset when they had accumulated more connection entrepreneurial alertness asset. ESE students who accumulated the risk-taking propensity asset reported lower intensity of entrepreneurial mindset. ESE students were more oriented to higher entrepreneurial mindset when they perceived less risk. Originality/value – The paper makes a novel contribution by considering whether ESE promotes different elements of entrepreneurial alertness and risk-taking assets. Building upon insights from a broader conceptualization of the entrepreneurial alertness asset (Tang et al., 2012), the paper conceptualized for the first time the linkage between three elements of entrepreneurial alertness and student entrepreneurial mindset. Further, the paper conceptualized linkage between two elements of risk-taking relating to risk-taking perception asset and risk-taking propensity asset, and higher intensity of entrepreneurial mindset. Assets relating to entrepreneurial alertness and risk-taking perception need to be honed in transition economy contexts associated with political structures that did not promote individual risk-taking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – This paper aims to explore whether an integrated conceptual model (ICM) relating to factors drawn from entrepreneurial event theory (EET) (i.e. perceived desirability and perceived feasibility) and the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) (i.e. attitudes toward the behaviour, subjective norm and perceived behavioural control) explains more of the variance relating to the intention to become an entrepreneur than individual EET or TPB models. Design/methodology/approach – Survey information from 192 students from three universities in the Ukraine was hand collected. Structural equation modelling was used to test the hypotheses presented. Findings – Models relating to EET, the TPB and the ICM explained 40 per cent, 55 per cent and 60 per cent of the variance in the entrepreneurial intention dependent variable, respectively. Students reporting higher levels of perceived desirability, perceived feasibility, attitude toward the behaviour (i.e. enterprise) and perceived behavioural control were more likely to report the formation of entrepreneurial intentions. No significant negative interaction effect between perceived desirability and perceived feasibility was detected. Research limitations/implications – The study does not evaluate the benefits of enterprise modules. The results can be generalised to the Ukraine and comparable transition economy contexts. Practical implications – The formation of entrepreneurial intentions in more students could be increased if enterprise teaching seeks to nurture higher levels of attitude toward the behaviour (i.e. enterprise), and higher levels of perceived behavioural control. Originality/value – Structural equation modelling was used to test the predictive accuracy of EET, TPB and ICM perspectives. Direct and indirect effects between factors and the intention to become an entrepreneur were considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this exploratory study is to examine the partner selection criteria reported by maritime firms in Norway. The study aims to analyze how a maritime firm's competitive advantage can be enhanced by the selection of the right partner with reference to a strategic alliance. Design/methodology/approach - A multiple-case study methodology was used. Archival, survey and interview data were explored relating to the partner selection process reported by Norwegian maritime firms. Primary data were gathered from semi-structured personal interviews with managers of Norwegian maritime firms. Findings - Case study evidence suggests that the strategic alliances were successful when partners had been carefully selected. As detected elsewhere, successful alliances were associated with partners that had managed to build trustful and honest relationships, had common strategic goals, and partners that supplied resources and competencies. Notably, it was detected that cyclicality in the maritime industry shaped the partner selection process. Trust between partners was used as mechanism to reduce uncertainty relating to the strategic alliance process. Firms seeking long-term alliances selected partners with substantial capital and financial stability to survive a market's downturn, as well as the resources required for expansion during a recession. Practical implications - Presented findings have implications for practitioners, especially for managers of shipping firms, banks, shipyards, producers of ship equipment, ship design firms, and ship brokers. Practitioners need to be aware that the rationale for inter-firm collaboration change over time, and motives are linked to the phase of the maritime cycle. Inter-firm collaboration provides competitive advantage benefits to firms and collaboration can protect as well as create jobs and can create wealth in maritime communities. Originality/value - A novel conceptual contribution is the exploration of links between maritime industrial cyclicality and the partner selection process relating to strategic alliances. The study also adds to debates relating to the profiles of internationalizing smaller firms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1990/91, survey responses were gathered from 621 independent businesses located in Great Britain. A follow-on telephone survey was conducted with 150 surviving firms in 1997. This survey gathered information surrounding the propensity of firms to export their goods or services abroad as well as other performance and goal outcomes. Organizational and external environmental variables collected in 1990 are used to explain within a multivariate statistical framework the propensity of a firm to be an exporter in 1997, and the intensity of internationalization activity. Data collected in 1990 is also used to explain variations in several performance variables (i.e. whether exporting was regarded as a path to firm growth; profit performance reported in 1997 relative to competition; and the propensity to report employment growth over the 1990 to 1997 period). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assesses the contribution of the 1994 Shell technology enterprise programme (STEP) which subsidised the employment of students in SMEs in the UK. A key issue is whether STEP students participating in the 1994 programme reported significantly superior benefits to those of students that never participated in the programme (i.e. non-STEP students). Outcomes associated with the programme were assessed over a 36-month period between 1994 and 1997. The programme had no statistically significant impact on the ability of students to obtain full-time employment positions. Similarly, the programme was not found to be statistically significantly associated with the ability of graduates to obtain full-time jobs in small firms. However, STEP students expressed a statistically significantly more "positive" attitude than non-STEP students towards self-employment or starting their own business. Conclusions and implications for policy makers and practitioners are detailed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To assess the short-term effectiveness of the Shell Technology Enterprise Programme (STEP), students and "host" employers who participated in the programme in 1994 were interviewed prior to and 12 months after completing the programme. The short-term benefits of the programme for participating undergraduate students and independent "host" businesses are highlighted. The long-term implications for Shell UK Limited and the wider policy community are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to detect the combination of factors associated with the provision of job-related training provided by employers located throughout the United Kingdom. The efficacy of broad brush policy initiative s to encourage the provision of training in all very small firms is questioned. A case for targeting training provision assistance is presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Makes a contribution to the debate surrounding the characteristics of "non-exporting" (n = 203 firms) and "exporting" (n = 64 firms) new manufacturing and "producer services" small firms in Great Britain. It was appreciated that sample differences may overwhelm the exploratory analysis. Consequently, in order to overcome this potentially distorting influence a "matched pairs" methodology was also utilized. Forty-two matched pairs of non-exporting and exporting firms were identified (by age of the business, industry and location type). In total, data were collected on 146 variables covering the firm, the founder and the environment. Dichotomizing between the two types of firms the univariate analysis of the "matched samples" identified statistically significant differences with regard to only 14 variables (10 per cent). Additional multivariate analysis was conducted. Results from a logit regression model of the "matched samples" suggests new firms are "pushed" into "exporting" their sales abroad due to perceived shortages of local resources as well as intense local competition. Discusses the policy implications of the survey findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the bank lending decisions among small firms in the Great Britain. Identification of fundamental actions of banks in dealing with small firms; Effects of centralization of bank decision making on borrowing from clearing banks; Addition of borrowing cost due to high level of control aversion by small firms.