This article is concerned with investment decision-making processes in small manufacturing enterprises.The study, on which the article is based, used `insider accounts' as an innovative, qualitative methodology, involving in-depth, semi-structured interviews and direct observation, conducted longitudinally in eight case study companies. It is a research method which includes detailed accounts from the actors themselves, incorporating their actual motives and behaviour. Data from two case study firms is presented in the article to demonstrate different types of learning behaviour.The findings suggest that conceptualizing investment decision-making processes in small firms within the context of organizational learning holds promise as an explanatory framework for investment behaviour in small firms.
Allen, R. (1957) Mathematical Economics. London : St Martin's Press .
2.
Anderson, V. , Boocock, G. and Graham, S. (2001) ` An Investigation into the Learning Needs of Managers in Internationalising Small and Medium-sized Enterprises ', Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development8(3): 215—32 .
3.
Argyris, C. and Schon, D.A. (1978) Organisational Learning: A Theory of Action Perspective . Reading: Addison-Wesley .
4.
Austin, S. , Berry, A. , Hughes, M. and Johnson, J. (1994)`The Appraisal of New Manufacturing Technologies by Small and Medium Sized Enterprises and their External Financiers', A Report by Sarah Austin, Occasional Paper Series No. 24, University of Brighton Business School, Department of Finance and Accounting .
5.
Boussouara, M. and Deakins, D. (2000) ` Trust and the Acquisition of Knowledge from Non Executive Directors by High technology Entrepreneurs' , International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research6(4): 204—26 .
6.
Brien, M.O. (1997) ` Payback: A Gulf between Managerial Accounting and Financial Theory in Practice: A View from Accountants and Finance Officers in Ireland', International Journal ofAccounting32(2): 173—86 .
7.
Chaston, I. , Badger, B. , Mangles, T. and Sadler-Smith, E. (2001) ` Organisational Learning Style, Competencies and Learning Systems in Small, UK Manufacturing Firms ', International Journal of Operations & Production Management21(11): 1417-32 .
8.
Cope, J. (2003) ` Entrepreneurial Learning and Critical Reflection: Discontinuous Events as Triggers for Higher-level Learning ', Management Learning34(4): 429—50 .
9.
Cope, J. (2005) ` Toward a Dynamic Learning Perspective of Entrepreneurship ', Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice29(4): 372—97 .
10.
Cope, J. and Watts, G. (2000) ` Learning by Doing: An Exploration of Experience, Critical Incidents and Reflection in Entrepreneurial Learning ', International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour and Research6(3): 104—24 .
11.
Cyert, R.M. and March, J.G. (1963) A Behavioral Theory of the Firm. Malden, MA: Prentice-Hall .
12.
Deakins, D. (1998)` Learning and the Entrepreneur ', International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour and Research4(2).
13.
Deakins, D. and Freel, M. (2006) Entrepreneurship and Small Firms. Maidenhead: McGraw Hill .
14.
Deakins, D. , Logan, D. , Morrison, A. and Steele, L. (2000) ` Financial Management in the Small Firm ', paper presented at the 23rd ISBA National Small Firms Policy and Research Conference, The Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, 15—17 November.
15.
Drury, C. , Braund, S. , Osborne, P. and Tayles, M. (1993) `A Survey of Management Accounting Practices in UK Manufacturing Companies', Certified Research Report No. 32, The Chartered Association of Certified Accountants .
16.
Easterby-Smith, M. , Thorpe, R. and Lowe, A. (1991) Management Research: An Introduction. London: Sage .
17.
Eisenhardt, K.M. (1989) ` Building Theories from Case Study Research ', Academy of Management Review14(4): 532—50 .
18.
Ekanem, I. (2002) `The Investment Decision-Making Process in Small Manufacturing Enterprises: With Particular Reference to Printing and Clothing Industries', PhD thesis, Middlesex University Business School, London .
19.
Ekanem, I. (2005)`“ Bootstrapping”: The Investment Decision-making Process in Small Firms ', The British Accounting Review37(3): 299—318 .
20.
Fisher, C. (2004) Researching and Writing a Dissertation. Harlow : FT Prentice Hall .
21.
Fuller, T. and Lewis, J. (2002) `“ Relationship Means Everything”: A Typology of Small-Business Relationship Strategies in a Reflexive Context ', British Journal of Management13: 329—48 .
22.
Gibb, A.A. (1997) ` Small Firms' Training and Competitiveness: Building Upon the Small Business as a Learning Organisation ', International Small Business Journal15(3): 13-29 .
23.
Hammersley, M. and Atkinson, P. (1995) Ethnography: Principles in Practice. London: Routledge .
24.
Hargreaves Heap, S. (1989) Rationality in Economics. Oxford : Blackwell .
25.
Harrison, R.T. and Leitch, C. (2005) ` Entrepreneurship Learning: Researching the Interface Between Learning and the Entrepreneurial Context ', Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice29(4): 351—71 .
26.
Hendry, C. , Arthur, M. and Jones, A. (1995) Strategy Through People: Adaptation and Learning in the Small-MediumEnterprise . London: Routledge .
27.
Jarvis, R. , Kitching, J. , Curran, J. and Lightfoot, G. (1996)`The Financial Management of Small Firms: An Alternative Perspective', Research Report No. 49. London: ACCA .
28.
Keasey, K. and Watson, R. (1993) Small Firm Management: Ownership, Finance and Performance . Oxford: Blackwell .
29.
Kelly, G.A. (1955) The Psychology of Personal Constructs. New York: Norton .
30.
Levinthal, D. (1996)` Learning and Schumpeterian Dynamics', in G. Dosi and F. Malerba (eds) Organisation and Strategy in the Evolution of Enterprise, pp. 27—41. London: Macmillan .
31.
Lumby, S. (1994) Investment Appraisal and Financial Decisions. London: Chapman and Hall.
32.
Lumpkin G.T. and Lichtenstein, B. (2005) ` The Role of Organisational Learning in the Opportunity-Recognition Process ', Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice29(4): 451—72 .
33.
Mason, C. and Rogers, A. (1997)`The Business Angel's Investment Decision: An Exploratory Analysis', in D. Deakins , P. Jennings and C. Mason (eds) Small Firms Entrepreneurship in the Nineties, pp. 29—46. London: Paul Chapman Publishing .
34.
Matlay, H. (2000) ` Organisational Learning in Small Learning Organisations: An Empirical Overview' , Education + Training42(4—5): 202—10 .
35.
Morrissey, W.J. and Pittaway, L. (2006) ` Buyer-Supplier Relationships in Small Firms: The Use of Social Factors to Manage Relationships ', International Small Business Journal24(3): 272—98 .
36.
Nelson, R.R. and Winter, S.G. (1982) An Evolutionary Theory of Economic Change. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press .
37.
North, D. , Smallbone, D. and Baldock, R. (1997) `Innovation and New Technology in Small Rural Firms '. London : The Rural Development Commission, CEEDR, Middlesex University .
38.
Peel, M.J. and Wilson, N. (1996) ` Working Capital and Financial Management Practices in the Small Firm Sector ', International Small Business Journal14(2): 52—68 .
39.
Pike, R. and Neale, B. (1993) Corporate Finance and Investment: Decisions and Strategies, London: Prentice Hall .
40.
Pittaway, L. and Rose, M. (2006)` Learning and Relationships in Small Firms: Introduction to the Special Issue ', International Small Business Journal24(3): 227—31 .
41.
Polanyi, M. (1967) The Tacit Dimension. Garden City, NY: Anchor Books .
42.
Rae, D. ( 2005) `Entrepreneurial Learning: A Narrative-based Conceptual Model' , Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development12(3): 323—35 .
43.
Shaw, E. (1997)`The Real Networks of Small Firms', in D. Deakins , P. Jennings and C. Mason (eds) Small Firms: Entrepreneurship in the Nineties, pp. 7—17. London: Paul Chapman Publishing .
44.
Shaw, E. (1999) ` A Guide to the Qualitative Research Process: Evidence from a Small Firm Study', QualitativeMarket Research2(2): 59—70 .
45.
Silverman, D. (1993) Interpreting Qualitative Data: Methods for Analysing Talk, Text and Interaction. London: Sage .
46.
Simon, H. (1960) Administrative Behaviour. London : Macmillan .
47.
Spence, L. and Rutherfoord, R. (2001) ` Social Responsibility, Profit Maximisation and the Small Firm Owner-manager ', Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development8(2): 126-39 .
48.
Spender, J.C. (1994)` Knowing, Managing and Learning: A Dynamic Managerial Epistemology ', Management Learning25(3): 387—413 .
49.
Spender, J.C. (1996a) `Competitive Advantage from Tacit Knowledge?: Unpacking the Concept and its Strategic Implications', in B. Monsingeon and A. Edmondson (eds) Organisational Learning and Competitive Advantage , pp. 56—73. London: Sage .
50.
Spender, J.C. (1996b) ` Making Knowledge the Basis of A Dynamic Theory of the Firm' , Strategic Management Journal17(Special Issue): 45—62 .
Thomas, R. (2001) ` Business Value Analysis: Coping with Unruly Uncertainty', Strategy &Leadership29(2): 16—23 .
53.
Thorpe, R. , Gold, J. , Holt, R. and Clarke, J. (2006) ` Immaturity: The Constraining of Entrepreneurship ', International Small Business Journal24(3): 232—71 .
54.
Williams, A.P. (2001) ` A Belief-Focused Process Model of Organisational Learning ', Journal of Management Studies38(1): 67—85 .
55.
Wyer, P. and Mason, J. (1998) ` The Case for an Organisational Learning Perspective to Understanding the Strategic Development of Small Business ', paper presented at Enterprise and Learning Conference, Aberdeen,10-11 September.
56.
Wyer, P. , Mason, J. and Theodorakopoulos, N. (2000) ` Small Business Development and the “Learning Organisation” ', International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research6(4): 239—59 .
57.
Yin, R. ( 1994) Case Study Research: Design and Methods, 2nd edn. Newbury Park, CA: Sage .
58.
Zhang, M. , Macpherson, A. and Jones, O. (2006) ` Conceptualizing the Learning Process in SMEs: Improving Innovation through External Orientation ', International Small Business Journal24(3): 299—323 .
