...W. Calvin Fields Outside consultants can improve the standing of small businesses but there are some problems associated with their use. Small business owners may perceive consultants as difficult to find and use, ineffective, or unsatisfactory. The present research is an effort to gain greater...

... business managers show small firms also can profit from using a cooperative network. Highly‐allied small businesses entered alliances to gain resources and based their alliances on a distinctive competence. The highly allied businesses grew more rapidly than the less allied firms. Mutual goals and joint...

...Phyllis G. Holland; Arthur R. DeThomas; Howard N. Ray Microcomputer technology and spreadsheet software are widely available to small businesses and offer the small firm owner a means of planning more effectively and efficiently. A survey of the planning practices of electronic spreadsheet owners...

...Jack H. Rubens; Sally C. Barton This article presents the results of an April 1986 mail survey of small business firms in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, concerning the relationship with their commercial bank lending officer. The survey examined loan types and rates, types of collateral,and bank and officer...

...Kenneth M. Hiltebeitel Commercial loans are a major source of financing for small businesses. To enhance the likelihood of obtaining a commercial loan with the most favorable terms, sufficient information must be made available to the bank loan officer (BLO). Based on a review of the banking...

...Donald F. Kuratko; William R. LaFollette The growth of “incubators” as an economic development strategy for small businesses has exploded into a myriad of choices and options. This has confused community leaders and business people alike as to the appropriate approach for an incubator project...

...Jatinder N.D. Gupta; David F. Dianich Many practical decision problems in small business involve situations where complexities of the situation and uncertainty of future outcomes require rational analysis. This paper discusses the role of probability in risk analysis for small business situations...