Simon O. Raby

The contours of employee voice in SMEs: the importance of context

This article develops a context-sensitive approach to analyse how and why voice operates in small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), an area that remains under-theorised and under-researched. By building on a priori frameworks with proven ability to unpack complexity and take account of the wider context of SMEs, this article explores how resources (human and social capital) and constraints (product market, labour market and strategic orientation) interact to shape voice practices. The article finds significant differences between ‘reported’ compared with ‘actual’ practices in situ, and identifies different types of firms (‘strategic market regulation’, ‘strategic market-led’ and ‘non-strategic market-led’) along with the factors that influence the form and practice of voice. Overall, the article argues that researchers should further pursue research that appreciates the layered nature of ontology and the role played by firm context to explain complex organisational phenomena, if we are to advance our understanding of voice practices in SMEs and beyond.

The Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (Canada)

This chapter presents a case study on the Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship and Innovation operating in North America. The case study was formed through a formal interview with the Director of the Centre, a range of informal conversations with academic and support staff of the Centre and those within the entrepreneurial ecosystem, over a period of six months, with archival documentation studied to corroborate and substantiate the findings. As their annual report states, the Centre has focused on developing ‘support’ across the entrepreneurial and student communities. Next is to ‘establish’ and then ‘sustain’ over the next ten years (HCEI, Engaging a new generation of entrepreneurial thinkers, Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, 2014–2015 Annual Report, 2015). To achieve this, one particular aspect is the location of the Centre, which is currently being debated. No decision has yet been made; however, as the activities of the Centre cascade further across faculty, it was commented that it might make sense for the Centre to report to central faculty. How to measure success is another area that, to date, has not been fully crystallised.