Mari Suoranta

Technology-based services: a study on the drivers and inhibitors of mobile banking

The paradigm shift from traditional branch banking to electronic banking, the newly emerged service delivery channels and rapidly increasing penetration rates of mobile phones are the motivators of this study. Technology has become an increasingly vital element in the competitive landscape of the financial services industry. Innovations in telecommunications have led to usage of mobile devices in banking. This paper reviews recent technological advances in banking and forces that will drive or inhibit mobile banking services adoption. Drawing on the relevant literature and empirical implications of the study, the paper proposes a model that conceptualises different affecting factors in electronic banking environment, and particularly in mobile banking. A quantitative survey sheds more light on this researched issue. The data was collected in Finland during May–July 2002 and includes 1,253 survey responses.

Strategic network marketing in technology SMEs

Abstract This study seeks to explore strategic networks from an entrepreneurial marketing and value creation perspective in the business-to-business (B2B) context to ascertain the value generated by strategic groups of network actors. This area has received little research investigation, despite the importance of network marketing in small-to-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The Strategic Network Marketing Model (SNMM) is generated from the study which presents a typology of six network types, together with their associated value creation opportunities. Both the typology and the focus on opportunities generated by the network types are novel. Qualitative interviews were conducted in 12 software SMEs located in two technology clusters in the UK and United States. Thematic analysis of the interview data uncovered use of six strategic networks; firms use intra-firm, social, customer, business, innovation, and marketing and sales networks to leverage additional resources that create value for the firm. Interviewees’ comments provide evidence of the processes and value creation associated with each of the networks. This typology of network types are summarised in the SNMM. Implications for practice, theory, and further research are proposed.

Entrepreneurial marketing: a comparative study

This paper uses a comparative study to explore entrepreneurial marketing orientation in small software technology firms, in relation to firm growth. Entrepreneurial Marketing (EM) acknowledges the interface between entrepreneurship, marketing and innovation and, pursuance of customer value. Researchers acknowledge that firms adopting other strategic orientations combined with a market orientation are more likely to outperform their competitors. Currently, there are few comparative studies of knowledge-intensive technology firms and no comparative cross-country studies, which consider firm growth and orientation from the EM perspective. This paper addresses these issues by using an entrepreneurial marketing orientation qualitative framework that consists of 15 dimensions, which allow investigation of entrepreneur and employee activities, attitudes and behaviors in such firms. Using a UK and US sample of firms, this research enables assessment of how and why entrepreneurial marketing orientation may lead to sustainable growth for firms in challenging markets and provides a comparison in two different country contexts.

Bricolage in the marketing efforts of a social enterprise

Purpose The paper aims to understand how resource constraints are addressed in the development of a marketing strategy by a social enterprise. Design/methodology/approach The authors have used an in-depth case study of collaboration between a Finnish university and an Indian social enterprise as the methodology for the research in which the data were collected over a period of two years. The data involve semi-structured interviews, field notes and student reports. Findings The authors propose bricolage as a method of marketing ingenuity in resource-constrained social enterprises. Network bricolage and entrepreneurship education bricolage were identified as two mechanisms adopted to address resource constraints in the early stage of the development of a social enterprise. Further studies need to be conducted to test the applicability of network bricolage among a variety of small and medium-sized enterprises and start-ups. Bricolage could be explored in more detail as an alternative to resource leveraging to understand the marketing activities of social businesses in their initial stages. Research limitations/implications Network bricolage is a type of bricolage in which an entrepreneur utilizes existing personal and professional networks as a resource at hand. Although networking and resource leveraging imply that the founders of an organization pursue resources from previously unknown people, network bricolage involves already known contacts of the entrepreneur. Practical implications Another type of bricolage that observed by the authors was entrepreneurship education bricolage. A combination of students, business mentors and university resources such as faculty members was utilized as an ingenuity mechanism to develop creative solutions for a shortage of marketing resources. Originality/value The theoretical framework of entrepreneurial bricolage is applied in the context of the marketing of a social enterprise.

The Berkeley Innovation Index: A Quantitative Approach to Measure, Track and Forecast Innovation Capability Within Individuals and Organizations

Innovation and entrepreneurship are essential processes for human development, market growth, and technological breakthroughs, and it is vital for economic growth. Despite its importance, innovation is inherently difficult to measure and hence it is almost impossible for an individual or organization to know how they can improve their innovation output or claim that they are great at innovation. This paper presents a novel approach to measure and quantify innovation, called the Berkeley Innovation Index (BII). The BII characterizes and measures innovation capability of an individual or an organization. It builds on the hypothesis that innovation performance depends on the people, culture, and attitudes in an organization. With the BII, the individual mindset and the culture of a larger organization, can be measured, analyzed, evaluated, and tracked. It also enables organizations and individuals to adopt a forward-looking approach to forecast and predict future innovation capabilities. This paper presents the approach and its fundamentals, and it includes examples of how the BII has been used to track changes in innovative mindsets.