Sheilla R Ardhani - 1953031 - Jurnal 1 Uts

International Journal of Small and Medium Enterprises and Business Sustainability,Vol.1, No.1 (July 2015), pp.
24-50
© 2015 by Center for Industry, SME and Business Competition Studies, USAKTI
ISSN:2442-9368 electronic
1
Editorial Team
Chief Editor: Tulus Tahi Hamonangan Tambunan
Assistant Chief Editor: Ida Busnetty
Editorial Assistant: Willy Arafah
Editorial Board Members
Ganeshan Wignaraja (Asian Development Bank Institute, Philippines)

Jack Qingjie Xia (Peking University, China)
Mark Goh (National University of Singapore, Singapore)
Greg Barton (Monash University, Australia)
Kyosuke Kurita (Kwansei Gakuin University, Japan)
Toshiro Nishizawa (University of Tokyo, Japan)
Larry Strange (Cambodian Development Research Institute, Cambodia)
Lee Saw Hoon (Malaysia Productivity Corporation, Malaysia)
Muhammad Ikmal Mohd Said (Centre for Poverty and Development Studies, Malaysia)
Remy Herrera (University of Paris, France)
Savita Shankar (Keio university, Japan)
Siew Mee Barton (Deakin University, Australia)
Yau Jr (Economic Development Bureau, Taiwan)
Kriengkrai Techakanont (Thammasat University, Thailand)
Anna Bakiewicz (University of Social Sciences, Poland)
Colin C Williams (University of Sheffield, UK)
Tomoko Oikawa (University of Limeric, Ireland)
Michael Schaper (Curtin University, Australia)
Sunil Dutt (WASME, India)
Associate Editors
Bogdan Piasecki (University of Social Sciences, Poland)

Anna Rogut (the National Centre for Research and Development, Poland)
Nataliya Chukhray (Lviv Polytechnic, Ukraine)
Marcela Rebeca Contreras (Universidad de Occidente, México)
John Chetro-Shivos (Clark University, USA)
Suriyani BT. Dato' HJ. Muhamad (UMT, Malaysia)
Fachru Nofrian (University of Indonesia, Indonesia)
Advisory Members
Thoby Mutis (University of Trisakti, Indonesia)

Roman Patora (University of Social Sciences, Poland)
Kar-yiu (University of Washington, USA)
Lukasz Sulkowski(University of Social Sciences, Poland)
Asep Hermawan (University of Trisakti, Indonesia)
Andrzej Marjanski (University of Social Science, Poland)
Yuswar Z. Basri (University of Trisakti, Indonesia)
Farida Jasfar (University of Trisakti, Indonesia)
International Journal of Small and Medium Enterprises and Business Sustainability,Vol.1, No.1 (July 2015)
i
Guidelines for Contributors
1. All manuscripts should be typed on one side of A4 (8.27" x 11.69") and be
double-spaced, 2 centimeter margin with Times New Roman font type and size
12.
2. The length of the manuscript is approximately 6000-7.000 words or
approximately 15-25 pages (A4 paper).
3. All manuscripts should be sent by email to: ttambunan56@yahoo.com
4. To assure anonymous review, authors should not identify themselves directly or
indirectly in their papers.
5. In sending a manuscript, it should have a cover page which includes the title of
the paper, the author's full name, title and affiliation, mailing address, phone and
fax number, email address, and any acknowledge.
6. Together with the manuscript, the author (s) should attach his/her (their)
biography of 50 words.
7. All pages, including tables, figures, diagrams, appendices and references should
be serially numbered
8. Spell out numbers from one to ten, except when used in tables, figures and lists,
and when used with mathematical, statistical, scientific or technical units and
quantities, such as distances, weights and measures. For example: two days, one
week, 20 years, 4 meters. All other numbers are expressed numerically.
The systematically writing should cover the followings:
1. Title: it should be specific and effective with maximum 150 characteristics
2. Abstract: maximum 200 words and should concisely inform the readers of the
manuscript's topic, its objectives, its methods and its main findings.
3. Keywords: at least four keywords in alphabetical way.
4. JEL classifications: at least two codes
5. Introduction: it should cover systematically the paper's background, motivation,
purposes, and method.
6. Theoretical Framework/Literature Review: the author (s) should explain
theoretical framework used or previous key similar studies/literature
7. Methods: the author (s) should explain analysis method used, including sources
of data, data collection approach, measurements, and operational variable
definition (if any).
8. Results and Discussion: the author (s) should elaborate clearly main research
finding(s). If the author (s) used an econometric or a statistical approach in
his/her (their) research, in this part (section) of the paper, he/she (they) should
prevented from "too mechanic" in explaining/discussing the results. Instead, the
author (s) should answer the question that most likely to be asked by the
readers: "what the findings mean in reality?"
9. Conclusion: it should contain key research findings, meaning of the findings and
suggestion for the future research (if any).
ii
10. Appendices: if any, it should contain further information (which can be in the
form of a table or a figure or a list, or others) directly related to information or
data given in the paper in which the author (s) considered it also important for
the readers.
11. References: only references cited in the paper, and they should be stated with
the following order: author surname, publication year, title of the paper, journal
name and its volume and page number. Or if it is a chapter of a book, it should be
added with surname of the book's editor, title of the book, page number, name of
publisher, and city of the publisher.
Some examples:
-Research/working paper:
Abeberese, A.B (2012), "Electricity Cost and Firm Performance: Evidence from India",
research paper, August, Department of Economics, Columbia University, New
York, NY (https://www.dartmouth. edu/~neudc2012/docs/paper_292.pdf).
-Report:
Anh, L.H, Nguyen T. and Nguyen T.T.P. (2013), "The Inflationary Impacts of Fossil Fuel
and Electricity Price Reform in Viet Nam", report of the UNDP project Fossil Fuel
Fiscal Policies and Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Viet Nam – Phase II-Developing
a Roadmap for Fossil Fuel Fiscal Policy Reform, Hanoi.
-Journal:
Jamal, M. and A. Ayarkwa (2014), "Fuel Price Adjustments and Growth of SMEs in the
New Juaben Municipality, Ghana", International Journal of Small Business and
Entrepreneurship Research, 2(3): 13-22.
-Book:
Tambunan, T.T.H. (2009b), Development of SMEs in ASEAN Countries, Readworthy
Publications, Ltd, New Delhi
-Seminar paper:
Tambunan, T.T.H. (2014b), "Government efforts to improve community access to health
care and education: a story from Indonesia", paper presented at the Second
International Conferece on Social Security", 3-5 December 2014, Social Security
Research Centre (SSRC) and the Department of Development Studies and
Institutions and Economies, Faculty of Economics and Administrations,
University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur.
-Book chapter:
Tambunan, T.T.H. (2014), "Ongoing trade facilitation improvement: Its impact on
export-oriented small and medium-sized enterprises in Indonesia", in Ravi
Ratnayake, et al. (eds), Impacts of trade facilitation measures on poverty and
inclusive growth: Case studies from Asia, UN-ESCAP and ARNeT, Bangkok.
iii
Submission
Please send your abstract not more than 200 words or full
papers not more than 5000 words including references. With
title of the paper, name(s), e-mail address of the authors(s) and
organization name to
Tulus Tambunan
Editor International Journal of Small and Medium Enterprises

and Business Sustainability
Email: ttambunan56@yahoo.com
iv
Content
i Editorial Team
ii Author’s Guidelines
iii Submission
1 - 23 The Likely Impact of the Implementation of ASEAN Economic Community

2015 on Local Small And Medium Enterprises
Tulus T.H. Tambunan
24 - 50 The SMEs during Economic Slowdown in Poland. The Experiences from the
Latest Global Financial Crisis.
Anna Bąkiewicz
51 - 82 Entrepreneurship in the Shadow Economy: A Review of the Alternative Policy

Approaches
Colin C Williams
83 - 101 ‘Collectivism’ and Innovation: Small and medium-sized enterprises as

local/rural industry in some East Asian countries
Tomoko Oikawa
102 - 130 Relationship Management in Tourism Microenterprises as an Element in

Building a Competitive Advantage
Maciej Debski & Michał Szaniawski
131 - 155 Exploring characteristics of FTA use among SMEs in Malaysia

Menaka Arudchelvan
156 - 176 Social entrepreneurship in Asia: a literature review

Savita Shankar
177 About The Authors
v
The Likely Impact of the Implementation of ASEAN
Economic Community 2015 on Local Small And
Medium Enterprises
Tulus T.H. Tambunan
Center for Industry, SME and Business Competition Studies

University of Trisakti
Grogol, West-Jakarta, Indonesia
E-mail: sjahrir@rad.net.id
Abstract
This paper, as part of ongoing research activities by the Center for Industry, SME
and Business Competition Studies, University of Trisakti (Indonesia), aims to assess the
likely impact of the implementation of ASEAN Economic Community by the end of 2015
on small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in ASEAN member states (AMSs). The key
question that this paper tries to answer is the following: through what channels the AEC
2015 will affect local SMEs? Although the economic integration of ASEAN in the context
AEC 2015 is not only on trade but also on foreign direct investment (FDI), capital,
production and human resource/skilled workers, the analysis in this paper focuses only on
regional trade liberalization.
Keywords: SMEs, AEC 2015, trade liberalization, export performance, ASEAN-trade

JEL: F14, F15, H3, L25
Introduction
In 2003, ASEAN leaders agreed to establish, by 2020, an ASEAN Community,
comprised of three pillars: the ASEAN Political-Security Community (APSC), ASEAN
Economic Community (AEC) and ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC). In 2007,
the leaders affirmed this commitment with a decision to bring forward the creation
of an ASEAN Community to 2015. In particular, they agreed to hasten the process of
regional economic integration with the adoption of the so-called 2007 AEC Blueprint
for the establishment of the AEC by 2015. The first initiative of AEC 2015 is a vision
for a single market and production base for ASEAN member states (AMSs), to
International Journal of Small and Medium Enterprises and Business Sustainability,Vol.1, No.1 (July 2015), pp. 1 - 23
1
promote the free movement of goods, services, investment and skilled labor across
the ASEAN region. The main aim of AEC 2015 is to foster equitable economic
development across the region and create a highly competitive economic region that
will be fully integrated into the global economy (ASEAN, 2011).
The theoretical expectation is that the implementation of AEC 2015 will
transform ASEAN into a single market and production base, like the European Union
(EU), to enhance ASEAN’s competitiveness. All existing tariffs on exports and imports
will be eliminated and non-tariff barriers (NTBs) will be gradually phased out.
ASEAN investors will be free to invest in all economic sectors throughout the region.
Simple, harmonized and standardized trade and customs requirements are expected
to reduce transaction costs. The AEC 2015 will then boost the development of
production networks, foster the regional integration of priority sectors and allow for
the free movement of business persons, professionals, skilled labor and talents.
An ASEAN single market and production base comprises five core elements:
the free flow of goods, services, investment, capital and skilled labor. A single market
for goods and services will enhance ASEAN’s capacity to serve as a global production
centre to better meet the demands of the global supply chain. According to the
ASEAN Secretariat, sectors targeted to benefit from the single market and production
base include the following priority integration sectors: agro-based products, air
travel (air transport), automotive, e-ASEAN, electronics, fisheries, healthcare, rubber-
based products, textiles and apparel, tourism, wood-based products, and logistic
services. Many of these sectors are also the most important sectors for MSMEs in all
member states (ASEAN, 2011, 2013).
2
This paper, as part of ongoing research activities by the Center of Industry,
SME and Business Competition Studies, University of Trisakti (Indonesia), aims to
assess the likely impact of regional trade liberalization in the context of AEC 2015 on
local small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The main question of this paper is:
through what channels it will affect local SME?
ASEAN Trade
The main objective of forming an economic union, a regional economic
cooperation, an economic integration, or a regional free trade area (FTA) in a region
(like ASEAN for countries in Southeast Asia or the EU for countries in Europe) is,
among others, to increase trade among them; known in international trade literature
as intra-trade. In other words, a successful FTA, or an economic integration, should
be reflected by more intra-trade volumes among member states than extra-trade
volume between them and the rest of the world.
The facts show, however, that since the birth of ASEAN many decades ago
intra-ASEAN trade has never been larger than extra-ASEAN trade. As of November
2011, total value of intra-ASEAN trade was US $598.24 billion or only about 25% of
ASEAN total trade, whereas ASEAN trade with non-ASEAN was US$1,790.35 billion
(75%). The value of intra-and extra trades, as well as shares in regional total trade,
vary between individual member states (Table 1). For all individual member states,
countries such as China, Japan, the European Union (EU-27) and the USA remain the
most important trading partners for both exports and imports (Table 2).
3
Table 1
Intra-and Extra-ASEAN Trade, November 2012 (US$ million)
Member states Intra-ASEAN trade Extra-ASEAN trade Total Trade

Share to total Share to total
Value Value
trade (%) trade (%)
Brunei
2,912.1 19.6 11,910.2 80.4 14,822.3
Darussalam
Cambodia 3,003.8 23.4 9,840.3 76.6 12,844.1
Indonesia 99,353.2 26.1 281,579.1 73.9 380,932.3
Lao PDR 2,530.3 64.0 1,425.5 36.0 3,955.9
Malaysia 108,139.7 26.0 307,582.2 74.0 415,721.9
Myanmar 7,207.7 48.3 7,717.4 51.7 14,925.1
Philippines 23,675.6 21.2 88,076.0 78.8 111,751.6
Singapore 205,670.9 26.5 569,481.7 73.5 775,152.6
Thailand 111,450.8 24.3 347,453.5 75.7 458,904.4
Viet Nam 34,298.1 17.2 165,284.0 82.8 199,582.1
ASEAN 598,242.2 25.0 1,790,350.0 75.0 2,388,592.3
Source: database from ASEAN Secretariat (www.asean.org).
Table 2
ASEAN Trade by Most Important Partner Country/Region, November 2012
(US$ million)
Partner Value Share to total ASEAN trade

country/region Import Total
Exports Imports Total trade Exports
s trade
ASEAN 327,531.8 270,710.4 598,242.2 26.4 23.6 25.0
China 127,908.5 152,497.1 280,405.5 10.3 13.3 11.7
Japan 145,197.7 128,149.4 273,347.1 11.7 11.2 11.4
EU-27 126,593.5 108,182.6 234,776.2 10.2 9.4 9.8
USA 106,305.6 92,480.3 198,785.9 8.6 8.1 8.3
Republic of Korea 54,468.0 70,002.9 124,470.9 4.4 6.1 5.2
India 42,754.7 25,674.1 68,428.8 3.4 2.2 2.9
Australia 37,253.9 22,220.5 59,474.4 3.0 1.9 2.5
Russia 2,689.4 11,278.5 13,967.9 0.2 1.0 0.6
Canada 5,292.7 5,478.4 10,771.1 0.4 0.5 0.5
New Zealand 4,569.3 3,667.5 8,236.7 0.4 0.3 0.3
Pakistan 6,001.8 765.7 6,767.4 0.5 0.1 0.3
Total most
important partner
countries/regions 986,566.9
891,107.3 1,877,674.2 79.4 77.7 78.6
Others 255,719.5
255,198.6 510,918.0 20.6 22.3 21.4
1,146,305. 2,388,592.
Total ASEAN 1,242,286.4 9 3 100.0 100.0 100.0
4
With respect to exports, as shown in Table 3, the total value of intra-ASEAN
exports, as of November 2012, was around US $27.53 billion or only approximately
26.4% of ASEAN total export value. Whereas, in that same year, extra-ASEAN export
value was near to US $914.76 billion or almost 74% share. By member state on the
intra-export side, besides Singapore, Thailand has the largest value in intra-ASEAN
export with US $72.23 billion, followed by Malaysia with US $56.05, and Indonesia in
third place with almost US $42.1 billion. On the extra-export side, again besides
Singapore, Malaysia has the largest amount with US $172.13 billion, followed by
Indonesia with almost US $161.40 billion.
Table 3
Intra-and Extra-ASEAN Export, November 2012 (US$ million)
Member states Intra-ASEAN export Extra-ASEAN export Total

Share to total Share to total Export
Value Value
export (%) export (%)
Brunei Darussalam 1,721.1 13.9 10,641.2 86.1 12,362.3
Cambodia 833.7 12.4 5,876.8 87.6 6,710.6
Indonesia 42,098.9 20.7 161,397.8 79.3 203,496.7
Lao PDR 959.8 55.0 786.7 45.0 1,746.5
Malaysia 56,049.7 24.6 172,129.5 75.4 228,179.1
Myanmar 3,957.4 48.7 4,161.8 51.3 8,119.2
Philippines 8,635.3 18.0 39,406.9 82.0 48,042.2
Singapore 127,544.5 31.2 281,899.0 68.8 409,443.5
Thailand 72,226.6 31.6 156,594.1 68.4 228,820.7
Viet Nam 13,504.8 14.2 81,860.7 85.8 95,365.6
ASEAN 327,531.8 26.4 914,754.6 73.6 1,242,286.4
If the above intra-ASEAN trade results are caused by man-made trade barriers
in individual member states (e.g. high import duties, high export tax, complex custom
procedures) rather than by other reasons (e.g. more preferences for trading with
countries beyond ASEAN), it is generally expected that the implementation of a single
ASEAN market in 2015 will encourage member states to trade more with each other,
and thus intra-ASEAN trade will, ceteris paribus, automatically increase. But, now the
5
question is: what commodities are likely to increase in intra-ASEAN trade? This
question is especially important for ASEAN SMEs, because if exports of commodities,
in which many SMEs are engaged as producers/suppliers/exporters either directly
or indirectly (having production or trade links with large enterprises (LEs) or foreign
direct investment (FDI)-based firms) are likely to increase, then it can be expected
that the implementation of AEC 2015 will give benefits to ASEAN SMEs producing
those commodities, ceteris paribus. In this regard, Table 4 shows the main important
goods in intra- and extra- ASEAN trade, based on latest data from the ASEAN
Secretariat. Further, of those commodities, the top 10 ASEAN trade commodity
groups are given in Table 5.
It is most likely that key ASEAN exported goods will benefit more from the
implementation of AEC 2015. Among them are the following top 5 exported goods:
(1) electronic machinery, equipment and parts, sound equipment, television
equipment; (2) mineral fuels, mineral oils and their products; (3) machinery and
mechanical appliances; (4) rubber and its products; and (5) animal/vegetable fats
and oils and their cleavage products. In addition to these goods, it is also expected
that ASEAN’s most important intra-traded goods will also increase with the
implementation of AEC 2015. The top 7 ASEAN intra-traded goods are: (1)
animal/vegetable fats and oils and their products; (2) mineral fuels, mineral oils and
their products; (3) organic chemicals; (4) plastics and their products; (5) rubber and
its products; (6) machinery; and (7) vehicles: parts and accessories.
Further, the WTO database (www.wto.org) shows leading exporters within
ASEAN for the following goods: (a) chemicals: Singapore and Thailand; (b)
pharmaceuticals: Singapore; (c) office and telecom equipment and EDP: Singapore,
6
Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia, and Vietnam; (d) telecommunication
equipment: Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Indonesia; (e) integrated circuits and
electronic equipments: Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand; (f)
automation products: Thailand; and (g) textile and garments: Indonesia, Thailand,
Vietnam, and Malaysia. Those member states are expected to continue as the leading
exporters of those goods in ASEAN intra-trade with the implementation of AEC 2015.
With respect to SMEs, it is stated in the Roadmap for ASEAN Community
2009-2015 (ASEAN, 2011b), “The AEC will establish ASEAN as a single market and
production base making ASEAN more dynamic and competitive with new
mechanisms and measures to strengthen the implementation of its existing economic
initiative; accelerating regional integration in the priority sectors; facilitating
movement of business persons, skilled labor and talents; and strengthening the
institutional mechanisms of ASEAN” (page 133). In short, as generally expected, the
AEC 2015 will transform ASEAN into a region with free movement of goods, services,
investment, skilled labor, and freer flow of capital. Or ASEAN will become a single
market region like the EU. For the owners or managers of SMEs in all member states,
it is important then to be fully aware that free movement of goods presents market
and production opportunities but also threats for them. Some SMEs will face
opportunities as well as threats directly, while others indirectly. Direct opportunity,
for instance, a local SME has a greater opportunity to sell its goods or services to
other member states. Or, as a direct threat, it will face direct competition for its
goods/services in local market from similar goods/services produced by SMEs from
other member states. Indirect opportunity, for instance, a local SME making certain
components or half-finished products for a local assembling company gets more
7
order because the company is expanding its market to other state members.
Whereas, indirect threats can be that a local SME receives less order from its
assembler as the latter company reduce its production due to heavy competition
from other member states in local market. In other words, because the assembler lost
its domestic market share, its subcontractors also lost their orders.
Whether the implementation of AEC 2015 will provide more opportunities or
more threats to local SMEs, it depends on at least two main factors, namely the
readiness of local SMEs and the seriousness of governments in individual member
states in supporting/promoting capacity building in them. Unfortunately, there are
no studies so far explicitly on the readiness of local SMEs in facing the AEC 2015.
8
Table 4
Intra-and Extra-ASEAN Trade by Commodity Group, November 2012 (US$ million)
Two Commodity Intra-ASEAN Trade Extra-ASEAN Trade Total ASEAN

digit Export Import Total trade
Export Import Total trade Export Import Total trade
HS
01 Live animals 375.1 279.4 654.5 38.2 461.5 499.7 413.3 740.8 1,154.1
02 Meat and edible meat offal 212.1 39.0 251.1 177.1 2,410.9 2,588.0 389.2 2,449.9 2,839.1
03 Fish, crustaceans & aquatic invertebrates 1,324.9 1,294.5 2,619.4 9,679.7 3,616.2 13,295.9 11,004.5 4,910.7 15,915.3
Dairy produce; birds eggs; honey and other
04 873.2 827.6 1,700.8 741.5 4,545.9 5,287.3 1,614.6 5,373.5 6,988.1
edible animal products
05 Other products of animal origin 23.4 22.4 45.8 96.6 219.7 316.2 120.0 242.1 362.0
Live trees, plants; bulbs, roots; cut flowers
06
& ornamental foliage 65.9 90.1 156.0 301.4 88.9 390.3 367.3 178.9 546.3
07 Edible vegetables & certain roots & Tubers 751.9 629.0 1,381.0 2,447.2 1,717.8 4,165.0 3,199.2 2,346.8 5,545.9
Edible fruit & nuts; citrus fruit or melon
08 578.7 718.7 1,297.4 3,467.4 2,007.3 5,474.7 4,046.1 2,726.1 6,772.2
peel
09 Coffee, tea, mate & spices 1,000.4 612.8 1,613.1 3,929.6 1,090.8 5,020.4 4,930.0 1,703.6 6,633.6
10 Cereals 4,953.7 2,964.7 7,918.5 4,626.2 6,456.2 11,082.4 9,579.9 9,420.9 19,000.9
Milling products; malt; starch; inulin;
11 594.2 573.6 1,167.7 1,306.2 1,413.4 2,719.5 1,900.3 1,986.9 3,887.2
wheat gluten
Oil seeds & oleaginous fruits;
miscellaneous grains, seeds & fruit;
12
industrial or medicinal plants; straw & 222.1 317.1 539.2 596.6 3,626.2 4,222.8 818.6 3,943.4 4,762.0
fodder
Lac; gums, resins & other vegetable sap &
13 39.1 33.4 72.5 234.1 257.8 491.9 273.1 291.3 564.4
extracts
Vegetable plaiting materials & other
14
vegetable products 43.7 59.8 103.5 120.5 38.6 159.2 164.3 98.4 262.7
Animal or vegetable fats and oils and their
15 clevage products; prepared edible fats;
7,040.8 6,207.6 13,248.4 40,215.5 1,004.2 41,219.7 47,256.3 7,211.8 54,468.1
animal or vegetable waxes
Edible preparations of meat, fish,
16 crustaceans, mollusks or other aquatic
698.6 351.3 1,049.9 8,830.5 407.3 9,237.8 9,529.1 758.6 10,287.7
invertebrates
17 Sugars and sugar confectionary 2,281.5 1,744.7 4,026.2 3,096.8 2,502.1 5,598.9 5,378.3 4,246.8 9,625.1
1
18 Cocoa and cocoa preparations 1,188.3 1,099.8 2,288.2 2,388.6 1,306.5 3,695.0 3,576.9 2,406.3 5,983.2
Preparations of cereals, flour, starch or
19
milk; bakers wares 1,834.0 1,387.3 3,221.3 2,221.3 1,050.0 3,271.2 4,055.3 2,437.2 6,492.5
Preparations of vegetables, fruit, nuts or
20
other plant parts 364.0 216.5 580.5 2,813.0 837.8 3,650.8 3,177.0 1,054.3 4,231.3
21 Miscellaneous edible preparations 1,946.7 1,537.7 3,484.4 2,244.3 2,005.0 4,249.4 4,191.1 3,542.7 7,733.8
22 Beverages, spirits and vinegar 2,554.2 669.6 3,223.9 1,769.9 3,118.2 4,888.1 4,324.2 3,787.8 8,112.0
Food industry residues & waste; prepared
23 807.9 778.6 1,586.6 1,735.3 6,024.4 7,759.7 2,543.2 6,803.0 9,346.2
animal feed
Tobacco and manufactured tobacco
24 1,510.8 879.0 2,389.8 847.0 1,418.6 2,265.5 2,357.8 2,297.6 4,655.3
substitutes
Salt; sulfur; earth & stone; lime & cement
25 1,084.6 1,428.0 2,512.5 779.8 1,983.8 2,763.6 1,864.4 3,411.7 5,276.1
plaster
26 Ores, slag and ash 405.4 225.5 630.9 9,105.6 2,951.7 12,057.3 9,511.0 3,177.2 12,688.2
Mineral fuels, mineral oils & products of
27 their distillation; bitumin substances;
82,107.8 79,561.6 161,669.5 145,978.5 171,773.6 317,752.1 228,086.3 251,335.2 479,421.6
mineral wax
Inorganic chemicals; organic or inorganic
compounds of precious metals, of rare-
28
earth metals, of radioactive elements or of 1,015.8 874.7 1,890.5 2,137.1 8,915.0 11,052.1 3,152.9 9,789.6 12,942.5
isotopes
29 Organic chemicals 7,628.7 6,321.9 13,950.5 29,118.7 19,428.0 48,546.6 36,747.3 25,749.9 62,497.2
30 Pharmaceutical products 893.4 660.4 1,553.8 6,264.1 7,655.6 13,919.8 7,157.5 8,316.0 15,473.5
31 Fertilizers 1,189.5 975.3 2,164.8 508.7 8,129.4 8,638.1 1,698.2 9,104.7 10,802.9
Tanning or dyeing extracts; tannins &
derivatives; dyes, pigments & coloring
32
matter; paint & varnish; putty & other 1,256.0 914.8 2,170.7 1,636.0 4,519.1 6,155.1 2,891.9 5,433.9 8,325.8
mastics; inks
Essential oils and resinoids; perfumery,
33
cosmetic or toilet preparations 2,692.6 1,709.0 4,401.6 4,579.0 4,019.3 8,598.3 7,271.6 5,728.3 12,999.9
Soap; waxes; polish; candles; modeling
34 pastes; dental preparations with basis of
1,287.5 979.0 2,266.5 2,348.4 1,990.8 4,339.2 3,635.8 2,969.9 6,605.7
plaster
Albuminoidal substances; modified starch;
35
glues; enzymes 415.7 333.3 749.0 808.0 1,215.2 2,023.3 1,223.7 1,548.5 2,772.2
Explosives; pyrotechnic products;
36 matches; pyrophoric alloys; certain
42.0 60.4 102.4 40.5 223.1 263.7 82.6 283.5 366.1
combustible preparations
37 Photographic or cinematographic goods 277.0 76.7
2
353.8 221.7 950.5 1,172.2 498.7 1,027.3 1,525.9
38 Miscellaneous chemical products 2,997.0 2,345.3 5,342.4 10,114.1 10,386.2 20,500.3 13,111.2 12,731.5 25,842.6
39 Plastics and articles thereof 12,113.6 10,132.6 22,246.2 25,209.5 25,004.2 50,213.8 37,323.1 35,136.8 72,460.0
40 Rubber and articles thereof 12,381.0 5,031.0 17,412.0 40,182.5 7,704.3 47,886.9 52,563.5 12,735.3 65,298.8
Raw hides and skins (other than furskins)
41 250.8 333.1 583.8 770.8 1,636.3 2,407.1 1,021.6 1,969.3 2,990.9
and leather
Leather articles; saddlery and harness;
42 travel goods, handbags & similar; articles
375.5 170.8 546.3 2,037.8 1,798.2 3,836.0 2,413.3 1,969.0 4,382.2
of animal gut [not silkworm gut]
Furskins and artificial fur; manufactures
43 7.5 1.1 8.6 19.5 92.1 111.6 27.1 93.2 120.3
thereof
44 Wood and articles of wood; wood charcoal 1,294.8 1,831.3 3,126.1 12,372.9 1,616.8 13,989.7 13,667.7 3,448.1 17,115.8
45 Cork and articles of cork 0.7 6.1 6.8 1.1 8.6 9.6 1.8 14.6 16.4
Manufactures of straw, esparto or other
46 plaiting materials; basketware & 4.5
11.5 16.0 233.5 19.0 252.5 245.0 23.5 268.5
wickerwork
Wood pulp and waste of paper or
47 293.6 343.2 636.8 1,778.7 2,878.5 4,657.2 2,072.3 3,221.7 5,294.0
paperboard
Paper and paperboard, articles of paper
48 3,315.4 3,506.1 6,821.5 6,769.0 5,627.5 12,396.5 10,084.5 9,133.6 19,218.1
pulp
Printed books, newspapers, manuscripts,
49 883.2 377.2 1,260.4 7,095.1 2,004.8 9,100.0 7,978.3 2,382.1 10,360.4
etc.
Silk, including yarns and woven fabric
50 15.2 5.8 21.0 56.6 112.7 169.3 71.9 118.4 190.3
thereof
Wool & animal hair, including yarn &
51 9.1 15.7 24.7 128.7 351.9 480.6 137.8 367.6 505.3
woven fabric
Cotton, including yarn and woven fabric
52 549.2 455.8 1,005.0 2,278.2 7,310.2 9,588.4 2,827.4 7,766.1 10,593.5
thereof
Other vegetable textile fibers; paper yarn
53 5.0 4.5 95.7
and woven fabrics of paper yarn 9.4 100.9 91.3 192.2 105.9 201.7
Manmade filaments, including yarns &
54 746.2 599.8 1,346.0 2,905.0 2,821.6 5,726.5 3,651.1 3,421.3 7,072.5
woven fabrics
Manmade staple fibres, including yarns &
55
woven fabrics 943.8 732.5 1,676.3 4,175.2 4,107.1 8,282.3 5,119.0 4,839.5 9,958.6
Wadding, felt and nonwovens; special
56 yarns; twine, cordage, ropes and cables
330.2 204.2 534.5 599.0 965.4 1,564.4 929.3 1,169.6 2,098.9
and articles thereof
57 Carpets and other textile floor coverings 79.7 43.6 123.3 216.4 188.3 404.7 296.1 231.9 528.0
58 Special woven fabrics; tufted textile
3
fabrics; lace; tapestries; trimmings; 132.8 126.0 258.8 311.1 1,102.3 1,413.4 443.9 1,228.3 1,672.2
embroidery
Impregnated, coated, covered or laminated
59 textile fabrics; textile articles for industrial 867.9 1,941.9 2,809.8
193.0 156.2 349.2 674.9 1,785.7 2,460.6
use
60 Knitted or crocheted fabrics 518.8 367.2 886.0 294.9 4,333.0 4,627.9 813.7 4,700.2 5,513.9
Apparel articles and accessories, knitted or
61 495.1 647.9 1,143.0 17,005.0 1,390.7 18,395.7 17,500.1 2,038.6 19,538.7
crocheted
Apparel articles and accessories, not
62
knitted or crocheted 526.1 326.3 852.5 13,664.0 1,845.2 15,509.2 14,190.2 2,171.5 16,361.7
Other textile articles; needlecraft sets;
63 worn clothing and worn textile articles;
294.8 171.4 466.2 1,350.0 754.9 2,104.9 1,644.8 926.3 2,571.1
rags
Footwear, gaiters and the like and parts
64 571.0 442.8 1,013.8 9,887.2 1,522.6 11,409.8 10,458.3 1,965.3 12,423.6
thereof
65 Headgear and parts thereof 21.3 13.1 34.5 279.6 74.9 354.4 300.9 88.0 388.9
Umbrellas, walking-sticks, seat-sticks,
66 2.6 2.5
riding-crops, whips, and parts thereof 5.1 22.6 61.7 84.3 25.2 64.3 89.5
Prepared feathers, down and articles
67 thereof; artificial flowers; articles of 4.2 4.1
8.3 354.5 55.5 410.0 358.7 59.6 418.3
human hair
Articles of stone, plaster, cement, asbestos,
68
mica or similar materials 554.7 475.1 1,029.7 649.8 1,113.1 1,762.9 1,204.5 1,588.1 2,792.7
69 Ceramic products 424.1 402.4 826.5 1,269.1 1,558.2 2,827.3 1,693.2 1,960.6 3,653.8
70 Glass and glassware 1,381.8 1,215.7 2,597.5 2,152.9 2,572.6 4,725.5 3,534.7 3,788.3 7,323.0
Natural or cultured pearls, precious or
semiprecious stones, precious metals and
71
metals clad therewith and articles thereof; 3,294.4 4,129.8 7,424.2 22,441.9 29,598.6 52,040.5 25,736.3 33,728.3 59,464.7
imitation jewelry; coin
72 Iron and steel 5,166.5 4,097.0 9,263.5 4,215.5 36,127.7 40,343.2 9,382.0 40,224.7 49,606.8
73 Articles of iron or steel 4,998.2 4,081.4 9,079.6 7,479.0 16,483.5 23,962.5 12,477.2 20,564.8 33,042.1
74 Copper and articles thereof 4,300.2 4,087.0 8,387.1 6,293.2 8,274.9 14,568.1 10,593.4 12,361.9 22,955.3
75 Nickel and articles thereof 83.5 31.3 114.8 1,667.7 752.9 2,420.6 1,751.1 784.2 2,535.4
76 Aluminum and articles thereof 1,727.3 1,667.0 3,394.2 3,386.7 8,934.0 12,320.7 5,113.9 10,601.0 15,714.9
78 Lead and articles thereof 139.8 123.3 263.1 216.2 1,039.5 1,255.7 356.0 1,162.8 1,518.8
79 Zinc and articles thereof 122.5 91.4 213.9 269.6 961.7 1,231.2 392.1 1,053.1 1,445.2
80 Tin and articles thereof 2,371.0 2,332.1 4,703.1 3,091.3 360.1 3,451.4 5,462.3 2,692.2 8,154.5
Other base metals; cermets; articles
81 29.7 27.5 57.2 281.0 634.9 915.8 310.6 662.4 973.0
thereof
4
Tools, implements, cutlery, spoons & forks
82
of base metal & parts thereof 786.9 381.7 1,168.6 1,650.7 3,609.7 5,260.4 2,437.6 3,991.4 6,428.9
83 Miscellaneous articles of base metal 854.8 637.4 1,492.2 1,172.8 1,983.6 3,156.5 2,027.6 2,621.0 4,648.7
Nuclear reactors, boilers, machinery and
84
mechanical appliances; parts thereof 42,606.5 27,099.6 69,706.1 91,852.4 118,686.8 210,539.2 134,458.9 145,786.4 280,245.3
Electric machinery, equipment and parts;
85
sound equipment; television equipment 58,800.9 53,058.5 111,859.4 190,789.8 168,882.5 359,672.3 249,590.6 221,941.0 471,531.7
Railway or tramway. Locomotives, rolling
stock, track fixtures and parts thereof;
86
mechanical & electro-mechanical traffic 56.4 33.0 89.3 177.0 687.8 864.7 233.3 720.8 954.1
signal equipment
Vehicles, (not railway, tramway, rolling
87
stock); parts and accessories 12,435.5 9,277.8 21,713.3 18,901.4 25,061.5 43,963.0 31,336.9 34,339.3 65,676.2
88 Aircraft, spacecraft, and parts thereof 1,784.2 714.5 2,498.7 6,548.9 15,430.1 21,979.0 8,333.1 16,144.6 24,477.7
89 Ships, boats and floating structures 3,602.9 3,985.3 7,588.2 6,433.6 4,263.0 10,696.7 10,036.5 8,248.4 18,284.9
Optical, photographic, cinematographic,
measuring, checking, precision, medical or
90
surgical instruments/apparatus; parts & 5,587.7 3,613.7 9,201.4 18,463.7 19,691.2 38,154.9 24,051.4 23,305.0 47,356.3
accessories
91 Clocks and watches and parts thereof 1,013.1 674.4 1,687.6 1,553.4 3,049.7 4,603.1 2,566.5 3,724.1 6,290.6
Musical instruments; parts and accessories
92 88.3 76.5 164.7 577.8 360.1 937.9 666.0 436.5 1,102.6
thereof
Arms and ammunition; parts and
93 12.5 25.7 38.2 35.5 474.5 510.0 48.1 500.2 548.2
accessories thereof
Furniture; bedding, mattresses, cushions
etc; other lamps & light fitting, illuminated
94
signs and nameplates, prefabricated 1,037.4 891.5 1,928.9 8,282.9 2,759.5 11,042.4 9,320.2 3,651.0 12,971.3
buildings
Toys, games & sports equipment; parts &
95 491.4 233.7 725.1 2,243.2 1,628.9 3,872.0 2,734.5 1,862.6
accessories 4,597.1
96 Miscellaneous manufactured articles 415.4 319.8 735.2 903.9 1,496.9 2,400.8 1,319.3 1,816.6 3,136.0
Works of art, collectors' pieces and
97 55.6 75.5 131.1 189.0 272.9 461.8 244.5 348.4 592.9
antiques
98-
Others 2,364.9 994.7 3,359.6 53,225.8 29,813.6 83,039.4 55,590.8 30,808.2 86,399.0
99
Total 327,531.8 270,710.4 598,242.2 914,754.6 875,595.5 1,790,350.0 1,242,286.4 1,146,305.9 2,388,592.3
5
Table 5
Top Ten ASEAN Trade Commodity Group, November 2012 (US$ million)
Two Commodity Value Share to total ASEAN trade
digit Total
Exports Imports Total trade Exports Imports
HS trade
Mineral fuels, mineral oils &
products of their distillation;
27 228,086.3 251,335.2 18.4 21.9
bitumin substances; mineral 401,530.4 16.8
wax
Electric machinery, equipment
85 and parts; sound equipment; 249,590.6 221,941.0 20.1 19.4
273,577.5 11.5
television equipment
Nuclear reactors, boilers,
84 machinery and mechanical 134,458.9 145,786.4 10.8 12.7
261,453.4 10.9
appliances; parts thereof
39 Plastics and articles thereof 37,323.1 35,136.8 65,626.1 3.0 3.1
2.7
Vehicles, (not railway,
87 tramway, rolling stock); parts 31,336.9 34,339.3 2.5 3.0
57,561.8 2.4
and accessories
40 Rubber and articles thereof 52,563.5 12,735.3 53,638.2 4.2 1.1
2.2
29 Organic chemicals 36,747.3 25,749.9 45,748.1 3.0 2.2
1.9
Natural or cultured pearls,
precious or semiprecious
stones, precious metals and
71 25,736.3 33,728.3 2.1 2.9
metals clad therewith and 41,802.3 1.8
articles thereof; imitation
jewelry; coin
Animal or vegetable fats and
oils and their clevage
15 products; prepared edible 47,256.3 7,211.8 3.8 0.6
40,376.7 1.7
fats; animal or vegetable
waxes
72 Iron and Steel 9,382.0 40,224.7 38,817.1 0.8 3.5
1.6
1,280,131.
Top Ten Commodities 852,481.4 808,188.8 68.6 70.5
6 53.6
1,108,460.
Others 389,805.0 338,117.1 31.4 29.5
7 46.4
Total 1,242,286.4 1,146,305.9 2,388,592.3 100.0 100.0 100.0
Does Liberalization in Trade Matter for Local SMEs? A Theoretical
Discussion
The past quarter of a century has witnessed, among many countries and
across the development spectrum, an unprecedented level of activity in the process
of trade and investment liberalization. Today, the conduct of international trade in
goods and services, either among countries, within regions, or between regions, is
much easier than two or three decades ago. More countries today have undertaken
1
significant trade reforms, and engaged in the process of integrating their economies
with the global economy, than ever before. AMSs (as with many other countries in
the world) are committed to fully adopting a free trade regime. Also, today as
compared to three decade ago, flows of investment (both short-term or portfolio
investments, as well as long-term or fixed investments between
countries/economies) are freer and with minimum obstacles. As portfolio
investment is different than fixed investment in nature, including the impact on the
host economy, liberalization in FDI rather than free-flow portfolio investment, will
certainly have effects on local SMEs.
With respect to trade among AMSs, there is little doubt that international
trade liberalization, in the context of AEC 2015, will generate immense competitive
challenges for individual member states (Dhar, 2008). However, the real impacts of
trade liberalization on the economy of individual member states remain a much
debated and controversial subject. Theoretically, at an aggregate level, the broad
benefits that are generated from an international trade reform include: improved
resource allocation; access to new and better technologies; inputs and intermediate
goods; economies of scale and scope; greater domestic competition; and the
availability of favorable growth externalities, such as the transfer of know-how
(Falvey and Kim, 1992). Raihan (2008) contends that international trade policy
reform works by inducing substitution effects in the production and consumption of
goods and services through changes in price. These factors, in turn, influence the
level and composition of exports and imports. The change of relative price induced
by international trade liberalization causes a more efficient reallocation of resources.
Moreover, international trade liberalization also enables the expansion of economic
2
opportunities by enlarging the market size and the enhancement of the impact of
knowledge spillover.
However, empirical evidence to support the above propositions is far from
conclusive. Feridhanusetyawan and Pangestu (2002) conclude that among the
existing liberalization commitments in the Asia-Pacific region, the implementation of
the two biggest commitments, namely the Uruguay Round and the Asia-Pacific
Economic Cooperation (APEC), would greatly benefit Indonesia. The ASEAN Free
Trade Area (AFTA), including the planned implementation of AEC 2015, on the other
hand, is expected to contribute little to welfare gain for many and especially
developing countries in the region. One explanation is that AFTA creates a
discriminatory trading block in ASEAN, where trade diversion is offsetting the
potential for trade creation. Though, the fear of trade diversion from AFTA is no
longer relevant since most member states of ASEAN have undertaken unilateral
liberalization following the Asian financial crisis in 1997/98.
Pambudi and Chandra (2006) and Hutabarat, et al. (2007), meanwhile,
contribute to the assessments of the implementation of the ASEAN-China Free Trade
Agreement (ACFTA) on the Indonesian economy. The first study highlights a number
of important findings. Firstly, based on the initial implementation of the so-called
Early Harvest Program (EHP), imports of the commodities included in the agreement
(e.g. vegetables, fruits and fish) were increased much faster than the country’s
exports for similar products to China. Secondly, various production costs in the
domestic market were expected to increase significantly. Thirdly, the study also
foresaw the decline of the real gross domestic product (GDP) in both short- and long-
term, primarily because Indonesia was expected to experience trade deficit with
3
respect to these commodities. Some provincial regions of the country were expected
to experience larger losses than others. The study also suggests that, should the
simulation be done on both sides, or where tariffs on imported commodities from
China to Indonesia are eliminated, it is more likely that Indonesia’s losses would be
greater than the current simulation setting would suggest. Furthermore, the second
study concludes with the following points. Firstly, ACFTA benefits Indonesia only on
certain commodities, such as rubber and palm oils, particularly when the study
suggests that Indonesian exports for these commodities increase. At the same time,
however, Indonesia would also expect some losses in other trade commodities vis-à-
vis China, especially rice, vegetables and oilseeds. Secondly, with respect to the AFTA,
the same study argues that Indonesian imports from other ASEAN countries would
increase, while ASEAN market diversification of Indonesian exports declines.
Following the 1997/98 Asian financial crisis and most recently the 2008/09
global economic crisis, the Indonesian government has revitalized the role of SMEs
by positioning them as the engine for export growth. This is especially the case for
manufactured goods, either directly or indirectly through subcontracting linkages
with LEs, including foreign companies operated in the country or by involvement in
regional/global production linkages/supply chains. Now, the key question is, can this
group of enterprises with all their problems play this new role? Or, can Indonesian
SMEs survive amid growing pressure from trade liberalization?
Recent debates among policy-makers and researchers on the subject of SMEs
in developing countries have focused on the ability of such businesses to survive or
sustain their existence amid growing pressure from economic globalization and
global trade liberalization. Some contributors to the debate are skeptical, given the
4
fact that most such enterprises in developing countries are lacking the necessary
resources, particularly technological advancement and skills, to remain competitive
in the global marketplace. There is little doubt that, in the era of trade liberalization,
SMEs in developing countries, including those in Indonesia, can only survive if they
possess the capability for internationalization. This is, indeed, a critical factor that
helps measure their competitiveness in the global market (Long, 2006). The weak
competitiveness of SMEs is a serious obstacle for such enterprises to access both the
international and domestic markets, particularly due to the low capacity of their
products to compete with imported goods.
Theoretically, trade liberalization affects individual local firms, including
SMEs, positively or negatively, in four major ways (Tambunan, 2008). Firstly by
increasing foreign competition: lower or elimination of existing import tariffs, quotas
and other NTBs have the effect of increasing foreign competition in the domestic
market as more and more imported goods and services enter the domestic market.
This is expected to push inefficient, unproductive or uncompetitive local firms to
improve their efficiency, productivity and competitiveness by eliminating
unnecessary cost components, exploiting external economies of scale and scope, and
adopting more innovative technologies and better management practices, or to shut
down. Therefore, the openness of an economy to international trade is also seen in
the increasing plant size (e.g. scale of efficiency), particularly as local firms adopt
more efficient technologies, management, organization and methods of production.
This argument is in line with general theory that suggests size is capable of affecting
export performance of firms positively. The new international trade theory posits a
positive impact of market size in view of economies of scale. It argues that the scale
5
economy provides costs advantages in production, research and development (R&D)
activities and marketing efforts. Export marketing literature, on the other hand,
suggests that LEs have greater resources to gather information on markets in foreign
countries and to face up to the uncertainties that prevail in a foreign market. As a
general hypothesis, therefore, it is more likely for LEs, instead of SMEs, to become
export-oriented firms.
The second way in which trade liberalization affects the development of SMEs
is by lowering production costs due to cheaper imported inputs. Local firms benefit
from lower input costs, thereby increasing their price competitiveness, so they can
compete more effectively in domestic markets against imports and in export
markets. Having said this, the validity of this hypothesis is only relevant under two
assumptions: (1) other competitiveness determinant factors, such as wage (labor
costs) and transportation costs are constant; and (2) many local firms are dependent
on imported inputs because of the absence of domestic production for these inputs,
or trade liberalization pushes prices for imported inputs lower than those made
domestically.
Thirdly, by increasing export opportunities, opening up to international
competition will not only induce increased efficiency in domestic firms but it will also
encourage them to export or it will stimulate more exports from the existing
domestic export-oriented firms. This view is generally supported by results from
many econometric analyses. However, this theoretical view is acceptable with the
assumption that other factors determining the ability of a firm to export, such as
production capacity, labor and energy costs, and governmental regulations, do not
change unfavorably against the SMEs.
6
The fourth way is by reducing the availability of local inputs. Eliminating
export restrictions on unprocessed raw materials will increase exports, at the cost of
local firms. Theoretically, if domestic products achieve better prices abroad than in
the domestic market, it would encourage domestic suppliers to sell more to abroad
than domestically.
As illustrated in Figure 1, the combination of lines (a) (imported goods) and
(b) (local made substitution goods) is the competitive effect of international trade
liberalization. If goods and services produced by domestic firms are less competitive
in comparison to those imported from other countries, domestic firms are likely to be
pushed out of the domestic market. Recklies (2001) stated free or
internationalization of domestic markets for sales and purchasing at least indirectly
influences businesses in the domestic economy. The example is given where the
entry of new competitors (i.e. imported goods and services) into formerly protected
domestic markets, or changes in domestic customers' behaviors or preferences
toward foreign made goods and services, will affect domestic producers of similar
goods and services. Even domestic SMEs only serving local markets with typical local
products, e.g. small restaurants providing traditional foods, will be affected directly
or indirectly by the opening of domestic markets.
Meanwhile, the combination of lines (c) (imported inputs) and (d) (local made
substitution inputs) is the production cost reduction effect of international trade
liberalization. As import tariffs and other NTBs are removed, resulting in cheaper
imported inputs than those produced domestically, domestic production costs are
likely to decline. Line (e), furthermore, is the export opportunity effect of firms. In
this context, domestic firms accrue greater export opportunities from the imposition
7
of an open economic system. Finally, the combination of lines (d) and (f) (local made
inputs sold abroad) is the domestic input scarcity effect of international trade
liberalization. The production cost reduction effect and the domestic inputs scarcity
effect can be put together as the overall supply-side effect, whereas the combination
of the competition effect and the export-opportunities effect can be referred to as the
overall demand-side effect of international trade liberalization. The overall supply-
side effects can be negative if the second effect is greater than the first one;
alternatively, it could be positive if it occurs the other way, or if one effect is fully
compensated by the other.
Figure 1
Four main ways that international trade liberalization affects SMEs
Domestic
(a)
output market(b)
Import (c) Local SMEs (e) Export
(d) market
(f)
Domestic
input market
The impact of international trade liberalization or trade policy reforms on
many countries, including Indonesia, has been examined extensively at the macro
level. However, academic and policy analyses on the impact of trade liberalization on
the continuing existence, or growth, of SMEs in countries joining, or affected, by trade
liberalization remain scant. Only very few field studies or academic papers on the
effect of trade liberalization on SMEs can be identified so far. Many of them were
published in the 1990s. Among them is Lisk (1997) who argued that trade
8
liberalization could have some adverse effects on SMEs development and
competitiveness, at least in the short run. Rapid trade liberalization could lead to a
loss of market share of local SMEs because the products cannot compete in the
domestic market with cheaper imported products that are produced more efficiently.
On the export side, export opportunities of local SMEs could disappear due to lack of
global competitiveness of the enterprises and the economy as a whole.
Malhotra (1997) states that, while, trade liberalization proceeds at the same
time as severe global environmental problems, and the growing awareness of the
threat to the ecosystem, recently there have been more conflicts between
environmental protection and free trade policies. Various international agreements
on the protection of the environment allow a range of trade restraints to be enforced
for environmental protection purposes. Due to the intensive use of eco-labels for
tradable products, more trade barriers emerge for SMEs. Those enterprises have a
limited marketing budget to cover the costs of an eco-label, and do not have the
resources to inform themselves on the often complicated field of different label types.
As compared to LEs, most SMEs in developing countries, especially micro and small
enterprises (MSEs), have no promoter and/or initiator for the application for an eco-
label. May be less for LEs, but for many SMEs, especially MSEs, the technical
requirements of an eco-label are too stringent, the application procedure takes too
much time and managerial resources, and it is too expensive, therefore, nearly
impossible for these enterprises to fulfill.
Hine and Kelly (1997) have sought to identify factors that support and hinder
SMEs in their efforts to globalize through trade, or by involvement in regional/global
production networks. The study divided the factors into three different
9
environments: the internal environment; the external environment; and the strategic
environment. It was found that attitudes, values, perceptions of risk, continuous
learning, managerial and marketing skills, availability of resources (including
financial resources), adjustment of organizational structure, and the availability and
effective use of information, are all significant internal factors affecting the export
success of SMEs.
With respect to the external environment, according to Hine and Kelly,
expanding trade and commercial movements, differences in national values,
language, culture, economic structures, institutions, and histories, the distribution of
wealth between countries, the level of protection (i.e. tariff as well as NTBs policies),
exchange rate policies, red tape and other unnecessary administration procedures,
and multilateral, regional, and bilateral trade policies are all key macro issues
indirectly or directly affecting the ability of SMEs to enter global markets.
With respect to the strategic environment, there are different theories about
what steps SMEs should take to enter global markets. Generally, a firm enters
international markets and develops a competitive position through an incremental
process. For SMEs, it is probably better if they export for the first time via agents
such as trading or exporting companies, or through subcontracting arrangements
with export-oriented LEs, and then when they are good enough to export themselves
it can be done directly. Ramaseshan (1994), cited by Tambunan (2008, 2010, 2014)
also thought the same, that is, in the earlier phase of export activities, SMEs should
use an indirect means of exporting to overcome internal and external limitations.
Other researchers such as Perry and Pyatt (1995), Koch (1995), and Styles (1995),
cited by Tambunan (2010, 2014) suggest that networking, strategic alliances, and the
10
development of a long-term, stable relationship with local LEs, as well as with foreign
firms, are key components to successful SME competitiveness in both domestic and
global markets. Haar (1995), cited by Tambunan (2014), suggests that to compete in
export markets SMEs must have a long-term strategic focus. In similar terms,
Badrinath (1997), cited by Tambunan (2010, 2014) states that SMEs wanting to
increase their global competitiveness, and global market shares, should move from
short-term to long-term business plans. They must have a strong outward
orientation. While Axinn et al (1994), cited by Tambunan (2010, 2014) emphasize
that for SMEs to succeed in international markets they must believe in, and act on,
continuous learning.
In China, Wang and Yao (2002) found that gradual changes in China’s trade
regime toward liberalization in the late 1970s, precisely after the end of the culture
revolution and the death of the communist leader Mao Zedong, led to much
dynamism among Chinese SMEs. Not only have they grown rapidly, but SMEs have
also made a significant contribution to the overall Chinese economy. However,
findings from a much earlier investigation, carried out by Steel and Webster (1991),
cited by Tambunan (2014) who used firm-level data in Ghana, suggests that trade
liberalization squeezes the profit of SMEs as a result of rising input costs, weak
domestic demand and increased competition with foreign firms. Similarly, by using
firm-level data for the 1993-1996 period in Chad and Gabon, Navaretti et al. (2002)
found that the trade reform process, along with devaluation of the currencies in each
country, failed to generate growth for local SMEs. On the contrary, many of these
enterprises were found to have suffered from high input costs.
11
Valodia and Velia (2004) investigated the relationship between international
trade liberalization at the macro level, and its micro or firm-level adjustment effects,
in the South African manufacturing industry. Their findings suggest that there is a
strong relationship between the average firm size and the volume of cross-border
trade. More specifically, they found that more than half of firms that are not engaged
in international trade are SMEs. At the opposite extreme, almost half of the firms that
are involved in both importing and exporting are LEs employing more than 200
workers. It appears that LEs have been more successful than their smaller
counterparts at integrating their manufacturing activities into the global chain of
production (Tambunan, 2008).
In Tamil Nadu, Southern India, Tewari and Goebel (2002) carried out research
on the competitiveness of local firms, and found two interesting facts. Firstly, there is
a considerable variance among SMEs with respect to their competitiveness. Secondly,
those enterprises that are tied to the low-end of the market segments in large urban
or metro areas appear to be the most vulnerable to cheap import competition from
overseas, suggesting that those enterprises are likely finding trade liberalization
burdensome. Ironically, other SMEs that serve similar market niches in rural areas or
in small towns face the same pressures as those experienced by their counterparts
that serve the lower-end of the market segments. Access to intricate, socially-
embedded, distribution networks that link them to rural markets appears to be a
source of strength that non-local competitors find too costly to replicate. In other
words, such socially-embedded distribution networks are the main comparative
advantage that SMEs can count on in competing with cheap imported goods and
services.
12
Latin American countries’ experiences, on the other hand, suggest that
international trade liberalization has an ambiguous effect on SMEs in the informal
sector. A study carried out by Goldberg and Pavenik (2003), argues that while in
Brazil there is not much evidence between trade policies and the development of
these enterprises, a case-study done in Columbia indicates that liberal trade policies
help expand the capacity of SMEs to compete with imported goods and services.
Recklies (2001) found that many typical characteristics of SMEs, which are
independently owned or owned by one person or family, are small in size, have close
relationships to customers and business partners, and simple structures, may lead to
disadvantages and advantages in relation to trade liberalization or globalization.
Disadvantages to firms run by only one person, or a limited number of persons
(mostly family members), are: limited knowledge about all aspects related to running
a business (limited by the experiences and knowledge of the owner/s), difficulties
adapting corporate culture to new situations and challenges, and potential conflicts
between firm objectives and personal objectives. Advantages of this particular
characteristic of SMEs are long-term thinking, stability, no pressure for short-term
success, high identification with the business, a stable culture, and high commitment.
The main advantage of the small size is specialization that is often successful with
niche strategies. Whereas, the disadvantages of this particular characteristic are
limited resources – especially the financial means to finance market expansion or
export activities – and capacity for research and development or innovation that is
crucial for winning global market competitions and manpower, along with a lack of
internationally experienced employees. With respect to close relationships with
customers and business partners, the main advantages are a stable base for further
13
business, an ability to cooperate successfully for mutual advantage and an ability and
willingness to enter partnerships. While the risk of focusing too much on an existing
base of business is also the main disadvantage of this particular characteristic.
Regarding a simple structure, the three main advantages are high flexibility and
adaptability, short reaction times, and cross-functional communication and
cooperation within the organization. But, as Recklies explained, this characteristic
also has some disadvantages, including that a simple structure not being suitable in
some cases, especially for international business activities, which are often complex
in planning and implementation processes, and because of a low willingness to
introduce more sophisticated structures required for business expansion (e.g.
export).
In Vietnam, Kokko and Sjöholm (2004) tried to discover the expectations of
SMEs' owners regarding trade liberalization. The main research questions were the
followings. First, what do SMEs' owners expect from increased trade liberalization or
internationalization? Second, to what extent are Vietnam’s SMEs aware of the
opportunities available in the global marketplace? Third, or is it more appropriate to
talk about risk and challenges from further liberalization of the Vietnamese market?
These questions were raised with a large number of SMEs in various provinces in the
country, and it was found that a relatively low frequency of respondents expected
any benefits from the further liberalization of Vietnamese trade policies. Although
this varied between urban and rural SMEs and by form of ownership (i.e. household,
private, collective, and limited and shareholding). Only about 12% of the sampled
SMEs' owners reported positive expectations, with the limited liability and
shareholding enterprises (the most modern enterprise forms) being the most
14
optimistic. The number of questioned SMEs' owners expecting losses was also
relatively small. Instead, the most common replies were that the sampled enterprises
claimed not to know what further liberalization might mean, or that they did not
expect any notable changes. In particular, rural household enterprises did not have
any clear expectations about the effects of continuing internationalization: over 70%
replied that they did not know what further liberalization might mean. It is therefore
not a surprise that most of the respondents said that they do not take steps to face
increased trade liberalization or internationalization; although, again, the ratio
between those that did and did not take steps, varies between urban and rural and by
ownership form.
According to Kokko and Sjöholm (2004), one reason is likely to be very limited
experience of internationalization: SMEs have typically not been in formal contact
with foreign firms in Vietnam, they do not compete with imports, nor have they been
engaged in exporting activities. Those who do take steps, the most important one
being to reduce production costs, followed by introducing new technologies, training
the labor force, identifying new market outlets, and others. Kokko and Sjöholm also
state that one reason for the lack of clear expectations about continuing trade
liberalization and globalization is that most (if not all) SMEs in Vietnam are not
exposed to foreign competition or exporting activities. Without prior experience of
these dimensions of globalization, it is understandable that many SMEs find it hard to
respond to relatively abstract questions about further internationalization. From the
questioned SMEs, imported goods are not considered to pose much of a threat to
them. Not even Vietnamese state-owned enterprises (SOEs) are considered direct
15
competitors. This suggests that many of the surveyed SMEs believe they are
operating in market niches that are unattractive for larger and more advanced firms.
Overall, the literature discussed above strongly suggests that globalization
and world trade liberalization do matter for SMEs; although there are no definitive
conclusions as to whether the removal of all protective measures and the elimination
of NTBs generate a positive or negative effect, indirectly or directly, on the
development of SMEs. The impact on SMEs may, however, vary by location and
sector or group of industry. It may be true that SMEs in isolated locations, remote
rural areas or those operating in market niches may not feel the impact like those
located in urban areas or cities or those producing tradable goods. But, one thing is
clear that the opening up of the market is increasingly becoming inevitable as
countries in the world are integrating their economies with the global economy.
Consequently, SMEs are faced with challenges because of likely competition in a
more crowded domestic market that is open to both domestic- and foreign-made
goods and services.
Export Performance of ASEAN SMEs
One way to assess the readiness of local SMEs in individual AMSs to face the
AEC 2015 or their capability to compete not only in regional but also in domestic
markets against imported goods supplied by SMEs and LEs from other AMSs, is by
examining the export performance of the enterprises by member states.
Unfortunately, data on SMEs’ exports in some AMSs are either not available or
difficult to verify. All AMSs have databases on their SMEs, but mainly on total number
of units, total employment created and total output generated; not on total volume or
value of exports. So, it is not easy to examine how important these enterprises are for
16
national exports. However, some limited information sources, mainly research
papers and official estimates/assessments, may give some idea about the role of
SMEs in international trade or national export. For instance, based on
Wattanapruttipaisan’s (2005) study, direct contribution made by these enterprises
to total export earnings in Southeast Asian countries was not more than 20%. This
view is also supported by some earlier published literature/reports, such as APEC in
2003, which shows that SMEs in the region contributed less than 30% of direct
exports on average. According to Harvie (2009 SMEs in many Southeast Asian
countries are under-represented in the international trade relative to their role in the
domestic economy.
But, as some of these reports also argue, if indirect exports are also taken into
account, SMEs export contributions could be much larger than these percentages.
This is because SMEs in the manufacturing industry often make up a significant part
of the value or supply chain, and may not be included in the direct export data. It is
also suggested by a report on SMEs in Indonesia from the Asian Development Bank
(ADB, 2002) that the relatively low representation of SMEs in exports, compared to
their larger counterparts, is mainly due to a significant part of SMEs’ exports going
unrecorded because they occur indirectly through international trade networks or
subcontracting arrangements with intermediaries. In Harvie (2004) it is stated that
$SMEs generate about 30% of direct exports, compared to indirect exports, through
supply chain relationships with other firms (mainly LEs), which could rise to 50% of
total trade. Indirect exports take place through merchant exporters, trading houses
and export houses. Sometimes, these indirect exports are also in the form of export
17
orders from LEs, including multinational companies, where SMEs play the role of the
supporting manufacturer, or the supplier of parts, components and sub-components.
Based on various sources of information from some reports as well as some
literature, Table 6 shows current estimates of SMEs contributions to total national
exports in some AMSs. As can be seen, the contributions varied by member states
with Thailand reveals as the member state with the most export-oriented SMEs.
Many factors may explain this variety, such as government supports to exporting
SMEs, infrastructure and logistic which have significant effects on transaction costs
and hence regional price competitiveness of exporting SMEs, access to capital,
technology, skilled manpower, raw materials and information, and, of course, not less
important, level of 'internationalization' of entrepreneurs or owners of local SMEs.
Table 6
Percentage Share of SME in Total Exports in Selected ASEAN, 2000-2013
Country Average Share (%)

Thailand 30-40
Philippines 20-25
Vietnam 20-29
Indonesia 20*/16**
Singapore 16
Malaysia 15-19
Note: * only in manufacturing industry. ** total export
Source: data/information collected from Tambunan (2010, 2014), UN-ESCAP (2010), OSMEP
(2010), and Yuhua (2013),
Long (2006) states that the ability of SMEs to compete with imported
products and to export to some extent relates to their capability for
internationalization. It is also a critical factor measuring regional or global
competitiveness. SMEs’ low global competitiveness can be a serious obstacle for the
18
enterprises to access, not only the regional or international market, but also the
domestic market since their products cannot compete with imported goods.
Unfortunately, little effort has been made, until now, to assess the regional or global
competitiveness of SMEs in ASEAN. Therefore, not much can be said about ASEAN
SMEs; although the above table may give some clues as to the relative
competitiveness of the enterprises in at least some AMSs. The only initiative, so far,
has been from the APEC SME Innovation Center, which conducted a study on SME
global competitiveness in thirteen member economies of APEC in 2006 (APEC,
2006a,b), also covering some AMSs (Figure 2). In this study, competitiveness is
measured through a score index between one (the least competitive) and ten (the
most competitive). It was developed based on a number of factors, including types of
technology used, adopted methods of production and types of products made with
respect to the degree of technology embodied (i.e. low/traditional, medium,
high/advanced). The study revealed that Indonesia has the least competitive SMEs,
with a score below four. Moreover, according to this study, Indonesia also recorded
the least amount of funding for technological development, which was below 3.5 in
the ten scale index; while, technological upgrading is an important determinant
factor for competitiveness.
19
Figure 2
SME Competitiveness in Selected APEC Economies
Indonesia
China
Korea
Philippines
Thailand
Japan
Malaysia
Singapore
Canada
Australia
Chinese Taipei
USA
Hongkong-China
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Source: data collected from APEC (2006a).
Conclusions
No doubt that liberalization of trade and investment such as in the case of AEC
2015 on one hand will create greater market and production opportunities and, on
the other hand, big challenges for any local SMEs in all AMSs. This paper is not an
empirical study but merely a theoretical paper which suggests that there are two key
channels or markets through which the implementation of the AEC 2015 will affect
local SMEs, namely output and inputs markets. The effects can be in the form of
opportunities but can also become threats for their long-term growth or exist. The
key challenge for local SMEs with respect to the implementation of the AEC 2015 is
how they can make the effects to become their opportunities, and that will depend to
a larger extent on themselves, i.e. their readiness, and to a lesser extent, appropriate
government supports.
20
Thus, every individual SMEs in all AMSs certainly will face a great challenge,
namely can they successfully compete not only in their own domestic markets
against imports but also in ASEAN market. For Indonesia, for instance, can local SMEs
in Jepara (the Central Java province) producing wood- or rattan-based furniture
compete with imported furniture made by SMEs in Viet Nam or can they export their
furniture to markets in Myanmar? If not, then it means the implementation of the
AEC 2015 will turn out to be a serious threat in the form of losing domestic market
shares.
References
ADB (2002), “Report and Recommendation of the President to the Boards of Directors on
a Proposed Loan and Technical Assistance Grant to the Republic of Indonesia for the
Small and Medium Enterprise Export Development Project”, ADB RRP: INO 34331,
November, Jakarta: Asian Development Bank.
APEC (2006a), “A Research on the Innovation Promoting Policy for SMEs in APEC”
Survey and Case Studies”, December, APEC SME Innovation Center, Korea
Technology and Information Promotion Agency for SMEs, Seoul.
APEC (2006b), “Economic Impacts of Innovative SMEs and Effective Promotion
Strategies”, October, Seoul: APEC SME Innovation Center.
ASEAN (2011), ASEAN Economic Community. Handbook for Business, November,
Jakarta: ASEAN Secretariat.
ASEAN (2013), On Track to ASEAN Community 2015. ASEAN annual report 2012-2013,
Jakarta: ASEAN Secretariat.
Dhar, B (2008). “Domestic dimensions of the trade liberalization agenda: an exploration”,
in UNESCAP (ed.) Emerging Trade Issues for Policy Makers in Developing Countries
in Asia and the Pacific. Bangkok: UNESCAP.
Falvey, A. and C. D. Kim (1992), “Timing and sequencing issues in trade liberalization”,
The Economic Journal 102: 908-24.
Feridhanusetyawan and Pangestu (2002) Hall, Chris (1995) “APEC and SME Policy:
Suggestions for an Action Plan,” Singapore: APEC Secretariat
(http://www.arts.monash.edu.au/ausapec/smepolic.html)
21
Goldberg, P. K., and N. Pavenik (2003), “The response of the informal sector to trade
liberalization”, NBER Working Paper No. 9443, Washington, DC: Brooking Institute.
Harvie, Charles (2004), “East Asian SME capacity building, competitiveness and market
opportunities in a global economy”, Economics Working Paper Series, Working Paper
no 04-15, August, University of Wollongong.
Harvie, Charles (2009), "SMEs and Regional Production Networks", in Vo Tri Thanh,
Dionisius Narjoko, and Sothea Oum (eds), "Integrating Small and Medium Enterprises
(SMEs) into the More Integrated East Asia", ERIA Research Project Report 2009, No.
8: 19-45, March, Jakarta: Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East-Asia
Hine, D., and S. Kelly (1997), “Tickets to Asia: foreign market entry and sustained
competitiveness by SMEs”, paper presented at the ‘10th International Conference on
SMEs,’ Miami, Florida, 6-7 April.
Hutabarat, B., M. H. Sawit, K. D. Sektyanu, H. J. Purba, Wahida and S. Nuryanti (2007),
“Analisis kesepakatan perdagangan bebas Indonesia-China dan kerjasama AFTA serta
dampaknya terhadap perdagangan komoditas pertanian Indonesia” (analysis of the
impact of the Indonesia-China Free Trade Agreement and AFTA cooperation on
Indonesian agricultural commodities trade), Research Final Report TA 2007, Bogor:
Center for Social-Economy and Agricultural Policy Analysis, Agricultural
Development and Research Institute, Department of Agriculture.
Kokko, A. and F. Sjöholm (2004), “The Internationalization of Vietnamese SMEs,”
Working Paper No. 193, Stockholm School of Economics, Stockholm
Lisk, Franklyn (1997), “Enterprise Development, Trade Liberalization and Job Creation:
Responding to New Economic Opportunities”, paper presented at the Xth ICSME, 6-7
April, Miami.
Long, Nguyen Viet (2006), “Performance and obstacles of SMEs in Viet Nam Policy
implications in near future”, reseach paper, International IT Policy Program (ITPP)
Seoul National University, Seoul.
Malhotra, Neena (1997), “Enhancing Trade and Environment Linkages in Selected
Environmentally Vulnerable Export-Oriented SMEs”, paper presented at the Xth
ICSME, 6-7 April, Miami.
Navaretti, G. B., R. Faini, and B. Gauthier (2002), “The impact of trade liberalisation on
enterprises in small backward economies: The Case of Chad and Gabon”, Cahier de
Recherche No. IEA-02-05, May, Montreal: Ėcole des Hautes Ėtudes Commerciales
(HEC).
OSMEP (2010), The White Paper on Small and Medium Enterprises Of Thailand in 2010
and Trends 2011, Bangkok: The Office of SME Promotion.
Pambudi, D., and A. C. Chandra (2006), Dampak kesepakatan perdagangan bebas bilateral
ASEAN-China terhadap perekonomian Indonesia (the impacts of the ASEAN-China
22
bilateral free trade agreement on the Indonesian economy). Jakarta: Institute for Global
Justice (IGJ).
Raihan, S (2008), “Trade liberalization and poverty in Bangladesh”, in UNESCAP (ed),
Emerging Trade Issues for Policy Makers in Developing Countries in Asia and the
Pacific. Bangkok: UNESCAP.
Recklies, Dagmar (2001), "Small Business-Size as a Chance or Handicap", The Manager
Magazine, October, Recklies Management Project GmbH (www.themanager.org)
Tambunan, Tulus T.H. (2008), “Trade Liberalization Effects on the Development of Small
and Medium-Sized Enterprises in Indonesia: A Case Study”, Asia-Pacific
Development Journal, 15(2): 35-59
Tambunan, Tulus (2010), Trade Liberalization and SMEs in ASEAN, 2010, New York:
Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
Tambunan, Tulus (2014), The Readiness of MSMEs in Facing ASEAN Economic
Community 2015, New York: Nova Science Publixher, Inc.
Tewari, Meenu and Jeffery Goebel (2002), “Small Firm Competitiveness in a Trade
Liberalized World Lessons for Tamil Nadu”, April, Research Paper
(http://www.cid.harvard.edu/archive/india/pdfs/ tewari_small firms_ 042102. pdf).
UN-ESCAP (2009), Globalization of Production and the Competitiveness of Small and
Medium-sized Enterprises in Asia and the Pacific:Trends and Prospects, Studies in
Trade and Investment 65, Bangkok: United Nations.
Valodia, Imraan and Myriam Velia (2004), “Macro-Micro Linkages in Trade: How are
Firms Adjusting to Trade Liberalisation, and does Trade Liberalisation lead to
improved Productivity in South African Manufacturing Firms?”, research paper, the
African Development and Poverty Reduction: The Macro-Micro Linkage Conference,
Development Policy Research Unit (DPRU) and Trade and Industrial Policy
Secretariat (TIPS), 13-15 October.
Wang, Y., and Y. Yao (2002), “Market reforms, technological capabilities and the
performance of small enterprises in China”, Small Business Economics 19: 197-211.
Wattanapruttipaisan, Thitapha (2005), “SME Development and Internationalization in the
Knowledge-Based and Innovation-Driven Global Economy: Mapping the Agenda
Ahead”, paper presented at the International Expert Seminar on “Mapping Policy
Experience for SMEs” Phuket, 19-20 May.
Yuhua, Bernadine Zhang (2013), "SMEs in the APEC Region", Policy Brief No.8, 3 Dec,
APEC Policy Support Unit, Singapore: APEC Secretariat.
23
The SMEs during Economic Slowdown in Poland.
The Experiences from the Latest Global Financial
Crisis.
Anna Bąkiewicz
University of Social Sciences,

Warsaw, Poland
Email: abakiewicz@san.edu.pl
Abstract
The paper explores the reaction of small and medium enterprises in Poland to the
latest economic slowdown. In order to show some regularities that occurred in the way
the small businesses responded to the crisis numerous studies that represented different
perspectives and methodologies are summarized in the paper. The experiences of Poland
provide some convincing evidence that the resistance to the negative external factors of
particular subsectors of the SMEs depends on the specific futures of small businesses.
Moreover, it becomes evident that conservative business strategies adapted by the
majority of the SMEs make the later more resistant to the crisis. Generally, the results of
the study stand in opposition to the popular view in which small businesses are identified
with dynamic entrepreneurship and development.
Keywords: small and medium enterprises, global financial crisis

JEL codes: G01, L21, L26, O12
Introduction
The latest financial crisis initiated by the collapse of Lehman Brothers Bank
in September 2008 changed the external conditions of business operations. It is a
universal truth that the effects of macroeconomic turbulences for the companies
could be different and some of the businesses would just stay in a market, some of
them might even get stronger and some might fail to survive. The final effect
would be an outcome of many determinants, both external e.g. the strength and
scope of the macroeconomic changes, and internal ones, such as the features of
24
individual businesses and their resistance to macroeconomic shocks. In particular,
the reaction to the change of the exterior conditions could depend on the size of a
company and special futures related to this. And, it is generally accepted that
smaller businesses are more vulnerable to the influence of external factors than
larger companies as the later have more power to influence the environment they
operate in (Bąkiewicz, 2010).
The activities of small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) have been
intensively studied for many years. The examinations have been made both within
the framework of development studies (from the perspective of economic growth,
income and employment generation), as well as the management studies (with the
focus on the specific character of small organizations) (Bąkiewicz, 2010). The
SMEs have been usually analyzed during "normal" settings, which is the time of a
relatively stable economy. Some studies only refer to the periods of economic
instability, crisis or slowdown. The later are certainly inspiring, if only because the
research of companies during economic crisis can be an opportunity to capture
the specificity of these businesses and their particular role in the economy
(Steinerowska-Streb, 2011).
The aim of the following study is to enrich our knowledge on the factors
that determine the reaction of SMEs to economic crisis. Picking up the issue is also
an attempt to find out if the crisis could be an opportunity for “creative
destruction” and what mechanisms that occur during the crisis, stimulate the
development of companies. And, the advancing of our knowledge on the specifics
of SMEs is the very basic objective of our investigation. The case of Poland as a
"green island" - the only economy in Europe which throughout the period of
25
economic downturn had a positive rate of growth is used here as an interesting
and informative case. Previous studies have already provided a glimpse of the
changes that took place in the non-financial enterprise sector in Poland during the
latest global financial crisis (Bąkiewicz, 2015). We know that the sector of SMEs in
Poland as a whole coped pretty well with the economic slowdown and after rather
deep but short-term decline, they quickly and strongly returned to the path of
dynamic growth.
There are many questions related to the issues mentioned above:
1. What specific features of SMEs are important for their reaction to the external
shocks?
2. Which of the characteristics make the SMEs resistant to the economic crisis?
3. Which of the typical attributes of the SMEs make them especially susceptible to
the slowdown?
4. What changes that occur during the crisis are especially harmful for the SMEs?
5. What strategies are adopted by the SMEs in the face of the crisis?
6. What are to results of the adaptation measures taken by the SMEs?
And, the present study aims at answering at least some of the questions.
There are some premises to say that the resilience of SMEs to the crisis is
determined by the specific characteristics of these companies, including first and
foremost the priority to survive and the conservatism associated to this. With such
a conservative approach to the economic activity the SMEs might be more flexible
and adapt quickly to fluctuating market conditions, which could then result in
their special role in balancing economic and social development during economic
turbulences. In other words, as we might be rather more inclined to argue that the
26
sector is full of enterprises oriented towards tradition and conventional practices
the above thesis goes against the popular wisdom stressing entrepreneurship and
innovativeness of the SMEs.
The subsequent research is based on the latest statistics and reports of
financial institutions, case studies, interviews and observations made by the
author. The analysis is conducted at the sectoral level of particular size classes of
the companies. Performance of individual businesses does not have to be
consistent with the results of the entire sector.
The paper is organized as following. Section 1 outlines basic theoretical
issues related to the determinants of the development of small and medium
enterprises and the specificity of the SMEs. Then we present the picture of the
SMEs in Poland with special focus on the changes that occurred during the latest
global financial crisis. Next, in the empirical part of the paper we review the
results of our investigations of the sources of the SMEs competitiveness during the
economic slowdown. In conclusions, both the outcomes of our study and possible
further steps are discussed.
The Determinants of the SMEs Development – Internal and External Factors.
Following the very basic ideas of marketing approach (Kotler, 2012) to the
issue we can offer the following set of determinants of the operation of any
company:
1. internal potential - microeconomic factors: the tangible assets, level of
technology, product quality and trademark return on sales, cooperative
27
relations, scientific and technical progress, staff and management skills,
entrepreneurship, and so on.
2. external conditions - macroeconomic settings: supply, demand, inflation,
regulation, economic growth, socio-cultural features, technological
development, tax system, etc .;
Internal factors - material and intangible assets are those for which the
company has the ability to modify. With the heterogeneity of the internal
characteristics of any company this is an entrepreneur who can be regarded as a
synthesizing factor because he/she is responsible for the entire operations of the
company. In other words, an entrepreneur is the most important element of a
business venture that shapes the effective and efficient management of available
resources. Within this approach we can define business as a set strategic
resources owned by a company and the ability to use it in order to take effective
action in response and reaction to the changes and transformations taking place in
the external environment.
Every company operates within certain environment that determines its
activity. From the company’s perspective the environment is mostly defined by
factors independent of the company. In other words, a company has a limited
impact on external conditions it operates in. Companies always operate in the
environment shaped by global economy and within national economy. They
operate in a specific region, at the local market and in a branch. All those platforms
generate both opportunities and threats. Moreover, the complexity of the external
settings is magnified by the increasing significance of technical, cultural and
political factors. The growing volatility of the environment poses additional

28
difficulties for businesses that are forced to adapt to external conditions. Due to
the complexity and variability of the external environment, companies are
increasingly less able to influence it (Borowiecki, 2010). As we want to find out the
regularities that occur during the latest global financial crisis the issue of the
external turbulences becomes especially important. The crisis and the dramatic
deterioration of the operation is a particular challenge.
The activities of the enterprises can be evaluated from the following
perspectives:
1. microeconomic/short-term perspective: the ability to operate effectively and
to maximize profit and market share;
2. macroeconomic/long-term perspective: the ability to generate employment,
value added and income.
Both perspectives are interrelated as the results of short-term operations
determine long-term development and the later enables the growth of short term
efficiency. As far as the specificity of the SMEs is concerned it is has been stated
that both from micro- and macroeconomic perspective small and medium
enterprises have many important features (Bąkiewicz, 2010; Michalczuk, 2009).
And, the majority of the literature on the SMEs is quite enthusiastic as far as the
efficiency and the role in the economy of the sector are concerned (Gibb, 2000).
The identification of the discriminative impact of the external environment on the
SMEs is the base for numerous recommendation for institutional support
(European Commission, 2012; OECD, 2009). The promotion of the SMEs is to
compensate weaker position of small organizations in a market and to mobilize
their positive impact on the economy.

29
On the other hand, there are quite a few studies that point at the
weaknesses of the small business both from the point of view of their
development potential and their impact on the economy. They mostly point at
poor employment conditions in the SMEs, lower wages, poor innovativeness of the
majority of micro and small enterprises, low exports potential and high sensitivity
to the negative impact of external factors (see eg. Bąkiewicz, 2010, 2012a;
Matejun, 2007; Piasecki, 1998). Poor human capital and managerial qualifications
together with high barriers to the access to information are identified as one of the
most important weaknesses of small organizations (Dominiak, 2005). As those
factors have direct impact on the possibility of acquiring customers and making a
commercial success, so they determine the survival and development of a
company. They might also put into question the positive impact of the SMEs on the
overall economic system.
As we deal with the reaction of the SMEs to the financial crisis, one thing
seems to be particularly important here - the availability of external financing.
Many studies stress the importance of the financial barrier for the development of
the SMEs. Among the most stimulating is the research made by Klein (2014) that
is based on the premises that the SMEs have especially limited access the external
financing. In particular, during the financial crisis the credit supply is being
strongly restricted by the banking sector so the small businesses have poor
settings to cope with the crisis and to restore their dynamics. And, the conclusion
made by Klein is that the financial crisis is especially harmful for small businesses
and the later hinder the economy to get out of the crisis.
30
The above issue is related to the overall problem of SMEs’ external
financing. The theory of agency offers here quite promising framework for the
examination of the issue (Barney and Ouchi, 1986). The agency costs in this case
relate to the relations with potential borrowers. In particular, Petersen (2004)
found a long-term tendency of banks to concentrate on the relations with the
borrowers based on „hard” information, mostly numerical, that can be easily
standardized and recorded. During “normal” times this tendency induces banks to
prefer as their borrowers the bigger firms as the later have better organized
bookkeeping than smaller firms. This tendency would discriminate smaller
establishments and make their access to credit more difficult (Garcia-Appendini
2011). But, other studies found that during economic slowdown when the
economic conditions change over the above tendency does not operate (D’Aurizio
et al., 2014). In those special circumstances the reduction of the supply of credit
affects all the companies, but the limits hit bigger companies harder than smaller
ones. It comes from the observation that in the period of high economic
instabilities when the extra attempts are made by banks to reduce the risk
involved in credit provision the role of “soft” information, and gathered informally
within direct contacts with the companies becomes more important for the
creditors. It then effects in better access to credit for smaller companies. It relates
to the smaller agency costs assigned to the SMEs (Presbitero et al., 2014).
All the above contradictive statements on the development potential of
SMEs together with the great expectation concerning the functioning of SMEs in an
economy make the research on the reaction of small businesses to the economic
slowdown quite an encouraging and challenging task.

31
The SMEs in Polish Economy
According to the law of 1999, the enterprise sector in Poland is divided into
four size categories (Table 1). The definition takes into account both employment
and turnover limits and meets the EU standards.
Table 1
Definition of SME in Poland.
Employment Turnover
Micro 0-9 up to 2 million Euro
Small 10-49 2 - 10 million Euro
Medium 50-249 10 - 50 million Euro
Source: EUROSTAT (2015)
The statistics of the enterprises of different size show that the majority of
firms in Poland are very small ones (Table 2). More than 95% of enterprises
employ less than 10 workers. Small enterprises account for 3.56% of enterprises
and medium firms constitute almost 1%. Large enterprises make up only 0.19% of
enterprises. As in any other economy, in terms of numbers SMEs predominate in
the business sector in Poland. The shares of SMEs in employment and value added
are visibly smaller than their shares in the number of enterprises. SMEs employ
less than 70% of total labor force in non-financial sector and produce slightly
more than half of value added. This is consistent with the universal rule that TFP
(total factor productivity) in SMEs is lower than the one in LEs (Bąkiewicz, 2010).
32
Table 2
Size structure of enterprise sector in Poland and EU, 2015 (per cent). 1
Size class Number of enterprises Number of employment Value added
(employment) Poland EU-28 Poland EU-28 Poland EU-28
Micro
95.27 92.29 36.62 28.86 14.89 21.5
(0 – 9)
Small
3.56 6.46 13.80 20.69 14.59 18.28
(10 – 49)
Medium
0.98 1.05 18.73 17.4 20.89 18.55
(50 – 249)
Large
0.19 0.2 30.85 33.05 49.62 41.67
(250+)
Total 100 100 100 100 100 100
SMEs 99.81 99.98 69.15 67.95 50.38 58.33
Source: EUROSTAT (2015)
The Macroeconomic Symptoms of the Global Financial Crisis
The signs of the global financial crisis have been well described in the
economic literature (Bourke, 2014; Steinerowska-Streb, 2011). The key
macroeconomic developments since 2008 were observed in the area of finances,
production and demand. It was manifested by the drop of gross domestic
production, employment and income. It was also accompanied by the sharp
decline in gross capital formation (housing, structures, plant and equipment) and
much stronger growth in exports of goods and services than final domestic
demand in most EU economies.
The economic slowdown changed the business environment through the
inhibitions or declines in consumer and government spending, increased
competition, the reduction of the supply of external financing and the
1
Eurostat’s structural business statistics cover the ‘business economy’, which includes industry,
construction and many services (Sections B to N and Division 95); financial and insurance activities
(Section K) are treated separately within structural business statistics because of their specific nature and
the limited availability of most types of standard business statistics in this area. As such, the term ‘non-
financial business economy’ is generally used to refer to those economic activities covered by Sections B
to J and L to N and Division 95 and the units that carry out those activities. Structural business statistics
do not cover agriculture, forestry and fishing, nor public administration and (largely) non-market
services, such as education or health (EUROSTAT, 2015).
33
deterioration in of financial liquidity of many companies related to this
(Czerwińska-Lubszczyk and Michna, 2013). The funds available to companies for
investments and production growth were significantly reduced. The rise of the
costs of deposits, the deterioration of the climate for investments, loss of
confidence in financial markets were also important for the reduction of the
availability of credit after the collapse of the Lehman Brothers Bank. The rise of
uncertainty in the market forced many banks to tighten the credit risk assessment
criteria. Sharp reduction in the level of economic downturn and rising
unemployment also reduced demand for goods and services. It all resulted in the
deterioration of the financial outcomes of the companies and increased rate of
bankruptcy (Euler Hermes 2009). So, it is not surprising that even in Poland,
where the financial crisis was relatively mild, almost ¾ of the companies
perceived the crisis as an important factor that negatively affected their
operations (Zelek, 2011).
The depth of the economic downturn contrasted sharply among EU
Member States. Among the East-European economies Hungary and Romania were
especially seriously hit by the crisis, and the other countries of the region as Czech
Republic and Slovakia, were hardly touched by the economic slowdown. For
Poland the manifestations of the crisis were rather slight and the economy
maintained the positive rate of growth over the entire period of the slowdown
(GUS, 2014). GDP growth in Poland dropped from more than 6% in 2006 and
2007, 5,1% in 2008, to 1,6% in 2009, 3,9% in 2010, 4,5% in 2012, 2,0% in 2013
and 1,6% in 2014. More, domestic demand (adjusted for inflation) was higher in
2013 than in 2008 in only a handful of countries (Germany, Luxembourg, Sweden,

34
Poland, and to a lesser extent, France, Belgium and Austria) and the difference was
the highest in Poland (7%) compared to average minus 4% for EU-28. The export
change 2008-2013 was positive in the majority of EU members, with the average
7% for EU-28 and 20% for Poland. Summing up, Polish economy was one of not
many that experienced rather shallow economic decline and fast recovery from
the crisis.
The Performance of SMEs in Poland during the Economic Slowdown.
The statistics show that just before the crisis the dynamics of the SMEs was
significantly higher than in the rest of the economy (European Commission, 2012;
GUS, 2015).2 And, in the very beginning the crisis strongly hit the SMEs and the
later were responsible for the majority of bankruptcies in Poland at that time
(Table 3).
Table 3
The changes in the enterprise sector in Poland during the global financial
crisis, 2008-2015 (2008=100).
Number of Employment Value-added Gross
enterprises investments
Size class
2009 2015 2009 2015 2009 2014 2009 2011
(employment)
Micro
92.75 94.80 94.85 92.60 77.36 96.58 64.45 64.63
(0 – 9)
Small
93.05 100.97 96.82 99.94 75.75 116.45 63.47 67.34
(10 – 49)
Medium
99.95 91.73 99.51 93.40 81.43 105.12 66.98 70.50
(50 – 249)
Large
98.21 88.80 96.90 92.81 83.00 115.34 68.51 70.92
(250 +)
Total 92.86 94.96 96.62 93.76 80.70 110.07 67.32 70.00
SMEs 92.82 94.98 96.49 94.20 78.63 105.34 65.72 68.77
Source: Bąkiewicz (2015)
2
As we know, this is a part of the long-term trend of the Polish economy that started with the
transformation from the centrally planned economy and leads to being like the structure developed in
high-income European economies (Bąkiewicz 2012b).
35
The data on the number of enterprises, employment, production and investment
that include the de-lamination of the non-financial businesses into four size
classes make an interesting picture of the enterprise sector in Poland during the
economic slowdown. First, the small enterprises recorded the strongest slowdown
in the very first months of the crisis. And, in this sector the recovery was the
fastest one and the final results were the most visible one. In other words, the
economic growth in the longer term was recorded mostly in small enterprises.
And, this reaction of the SMEs to the crisis confirms their big sensitivity to the
changes of external environment.
Second, as far as the large enterprises are concerned, they were the second most
active sector in Poland during the slowdown. The results of the crisis became
visible here with a few months delay and the recovery was then quite intensive.
Although the sector lost much employment in 2009 it then regain the value added
to the pre-crisis level. It might suggest that capital-intensive technology upgrading
in the largest companies took place, so the crisis forced the modernization of the
sector.
Third, the micro enterprises managed to pass the crisis with a visible loss. As we
know, many of them stay in a market regardless the production level or revenue
as they are the only source of employment and income generation (Bąkiewicz,
2015). But, following the development model of mature economies, they lose their
share in production and the crisis seems the accelerate the process.
Finally, the records of medium size companies are rather disappointing. Their lost
quite a lot of employment from 2008 level and did not managed to regain their
36
pre-crisis production level up to 2014. It points at the weakness of this size class
of enterprises in Poland. It contrasts with the developments typical for mature,
high-income economies.
The Specificity of SMEs – Crisis Perspective
As we know Polish economy has coped quite well with the crisis and the
slowdown was rather mild. The final effect was surly a result of a aggregated
reaction of all economic agents, the SMEs among them. In this paper we argue that
the reactions of the SMEs to the global turbulences were determined by the
characteristics of small business. The major features of the SMEs from the crisis
perspective are presented below.
External financing in the SMEs during global financial crisis
The sharp reduction of the availability of external financing is the very first
symptom of the financial crisis that one may call over. The impact of this factor
depends on the company’s demand for external financing and scale of the drop of
supply of external funds. As far as the first factor is concerned the SMEs in Poland
use any external financing to a lesser extent (60.1% in 2010) than larger
companies (71.4%, respectively) (PARP, 2013) and the leasing is the most popular
form of external financing used by the SMEs in Poland. As far as the demand for
credit for investments is concerned ¾ of the SMEs in Poland use their own
finances only. The structure of finances in Polish SME only slightly differs from the
EU average (Table 4). A clear difference appears only in the proportion of
companies that use external financing only. It may be associated with a significant
share of EU structural funds in the financing of Polish enterprises.
37
Table 4
Finances of the SMEs, Poland and EU average, 2009 (per cent).
Sources of financial capital Credit applications
Own Own and External With Not submitted
only external only other Fearing Lack of Other
sources refusal own reasons
funds
EU 27 16 31 28 22 7 39 30
Poland 13 27 41 19 8 43 29
Sources: GUS (2011), European Commission (2009)
According to the study made by National Bank of Poland (NBP, 2009) the
majority of the owners of the SMEs are anxious to use external financing. Bank
credit is usually seen by them not as a chance to develop a business but as an
eventual rescue at risk of bankruptcy. More, the loans are regarded as costly and
time consuming source of funds. That is why the majority of the managers of small
business in Poland has any experience in applying for credit or even subsidy.
Paradoxically, the better the company’s condition the bigger its knowledge about
the possibilities of external financing and the higher its involvement in external
financing.
The structure of financing seems to reflect the overall strategy of the
majority of SMEs in Poland (IWI, 2009). Namely, the majority of them operates
according the conservative strategy, does not take risky actions, innovate or make
dramatic changes of their operations (Orłowski et al., 2009; Dominiak, 2005). As a
result, a typical SME in Poland is not engaged in risky financial operations, its
external liabilities are small and its dependency on external financing is not
significant one (IBDPP, 2009). Such a cautious approach might reduce a dynamic
influence of SMEs on the economy, but it can reduce the danger of bankruptcy
38
under economic downturn and still have a stabilizing effect on the economy in the
turbulent times.
As far as the availability of credit during the financial crisis in Poland is
concerned in 2008 during the first wave of the crisis the banking sector reduced
the supply of credit sharply and lifted their expectations concerning guarantees
and formal requirements. The data on the value of corporate loans in Table 5 show
that in 2009 compared to 2008 the businesses lending fell by more than 5%. The
large enterprises faced much sever reduction of credit (over 12%) while the value
of loans to SMEs increased by 1.5%. The reduction of credit to large enterprises
was recorded in 2010, too, but the drop was not as big as the year before. The
increase of loans to SMEs in two subsequent years was very high and almost twice
exceeded the growth in loans to large enterprises. And, the data show that
restriction on bank lending at the beginning of the crisis was much more focused
on large enterprises. Small businesses also experienced the deterioration of
external financial conditions, but too much smaller extend. As we can see, the
availability of credit during crisis for companies of different size in Poland is not
consistent with the statements Klein (2014) regarding the availability of funds in
the corporate sector in crisis conditions.
Summing up, weak dependence on external financing of the SMEs in Poland and
moderate only and temporary worsening of financing conditions make the direct
impact of financial factors on the SMEs operations rather insignificant. More, there
are premises to say that the experiences of small businesses in Poland are in line
with the records of the Italian SMEs during the economic turbulences. In the latter
case rising instability in financial markets during the crisis made the banks more
39
sensible to informal “soft” information that in turn made small business more
attractive as a lenders (D’Aurizio et al., 2014).
Table 5
Credit for the enterprises in Poland, 2008-2013 (million PLN and per cent).
Value of total credit (million Change of the value of total loans (per
PLN) cent)
Year Total SMEs LEs Total SMEs Les
2008 233,3 125,3 108
2009 222,1 127,2 94,9 -5,27 1,5 -12,13
2010 219,7 127 92,7 -1,08 -0,16 -2,32
2011 264,5 159 105,5 20,39 25,2 13,81
2012 272,3 164,9 107,4 2,95 3,71 1,8
2013 278 163,9 114 2,09 -0,6 6,14
Source: UKNF (2014)
Domestic versus external market for the SMEs
Aggregated demand is one of the basic factors that determine the level of
production. In case of Poland during the global financial crisis the drop of demand
was recorded in exports mainly and the changes of domestic demand were rather
small (Table 6). More, the drop of exports in Poland in 2008 compared to the EU
average (12%) was not very big and in 2009 the growth of exports was recorded.
In the 2nd quarter of 2009 only the drop of domestic demand in Poland occurred.
Though the initial decline of demand, the upward trend has been maintained.
Table 6
Domestic demand and exports change in Poland, 2008-2009 (per cent).
I Q II Q III Q IV Q I Q II Q
2008 2008 2008 2008 2009 2009
Domestic
demand 6,4 6,3 5,0 2,9 0,9 -1,4
Exports growth 0,0 -0,8 -0,1 -0,2 0,9 2,9
Source: GUS (2015)
40
The impact of two basic components of demand on the enterprises depends
on the structure of their market – domestic versus foreign one. As the data in
Table 7 show, the internationalization of the enterprises in Poland presents
universal regularities in which the smaller the enterprises the lower is the
propensity to export. The share of small enterprises in exports in Poland is
approximately ¼, that is much less than their share in employment and
production. In other words, for the SMEs in Poland the domestic demand is much
more important as a determinant of the level of production than external demand.
Many studies confirmed that the local demand and the level of living of the local
population is the most important factor here (Wach, 2007). The SMEs in Poland
are strongly represented across all sectors with the exception of financial services
and capital-intensive sectors like energy and cement production (see figure
below). The VA share of Polish SMEs is especially high (above 50%) in
construction, retail trade, hotels, restaurants and property administration. And,
the above mentioned regularity is the strongest among small businesses operating
on retail trade and services, so the large part of the SMEs.
So, we can explain good records of the SMEs in Poland during the latest
financial crisis at least partially with the low level of internationalization of the
sector. In other words, their concentration on domestic market helps them to pass
the crisis rather smoothly and it may also explain the relatively rapid return of
small business to the growth path.
41
The perception of the crisis by the SMEs and their strategic response
As the study made by Kaliszczak and Urban (2009) shows 1/3 of the SMEs
have not taken any special action during the economic slowdown. The actions, if
any, concentrated on costs reduction (41% of companies that make any special
steps) and investments’ cuts (14%). It means that the majority of the SMEs resign
from using the crisis to modernize. The other study displayed that almost a half of
the entrepreneurs in Poland regards crisis as a chance to develop their businesses
(Table 8). SMEs are more active towards crisis than the micro ones. The other
studies made by PKPP Lewiatan and Deloitte (2009) and WOG (2011) suggest also
the modernization tendency to be greater the larger the company.
Table 7
Internationalization of enterprises in Poland, 2007-2011 (per cent).
Size of employment 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Importers (per cent of enterprises)
Total 6,0 5,4 5,3 5,2 7,1
0–9 4,5 3,6 3,5 3,4 5,4
10–49 37,7 41,8 39,2 39,6 39,2
50–249 55,8 59,8 58,5 57,4 57,3
> 249 86,9 90,2 87,2 88,2 89,1
Exporters (per cent of enterprises)
Total 3,4 3,3 3,6 3,5 3,9
0–9 2,2 1,8 2,1 2,0 2,6
10–49 28,4 32,0 32,1 32,4 28,6
50–249 43,9 47,7 48,6 47,5 45,0
> 249 64,3 69,1 66,1 66,3 66,9
Exports as a share of total sale
Total 13,4 13,1 13,7 14,6 15,2
0–9 3,3 3,0 2,9 3,2 3,1
10–49 7,3 6,4 7,6 8,4 8,0
50–249 10,8 10,4 10,7 11,3 12,3
> 249 20,3 19,1 18,8 19,1 20,2
Share of SMEs (10+) in exports 26,8 26,5 27,3 26,3 25,7
Source: GUS (2015)
42
Branch structure of enterprises of different size in Poland, 2012.
Source: ECORYS (2013)
Table 8
The attitudes towards economic crisis by the entrepreneurs.
Acceptance of the statements in per cent The enterprises
Micro Small Medium
During the economic crisis a company must follow its
precise plan of action. 41 52 63
The way my company operates during the economic
crisis depends only on the steps made by the company. 52 49 41
I am optimistic as far as the future of my business is
concerned and I believe the economic situation will
improve soon. 65 68 59
I am afraid my company will go bankrupt if the currents
economic crisis last a little bit longer. 19 17 14
Crisis can be a good opportunity for searching new
chances to develop my business. 46 50 51
During the economic crisis a company should aim to
survive and do not invest. 37 35 23
I am so concentrated on the current problems of my
business that I do not have time to think about
development. 21 26 16
Source: Orłowski et al. (2010).
Poland scores above the EU average as far as entrepreneurship is
concerned. Self-employment rate in Poland in 2010 was 18% compared to 14% in
EU. 14% of adults in Poland in 2009 have started their business or were taking
steps to start one, compared to 12% in EU (European Commission, 2012). But, the
43
studies concerning the organization and the controlling of the small businesses
give rather poor picture of the managerial qualifications. Study by Kaliszczak and
Urban (2011) showed, the overwhelming majority of the SMEs do not have any
procedures to deal with the deterioration of the macroeconomic situation. The
medium businesses and exporting enterprises only are better prepared for the
economic slowdown. And, more than ¾ of the entrepreneurs have any long-term
strategy of their business development. They mostly concentrate on everyday
duties that are regarded as so time consuming that there is no time left for
planning. They - as a rule - do not see the need to build comparative advantage as
they concentrate on short term financial outcomes. The strategies for building
relations with customers and employees are very rare. The importance of human
capital in a company is manifested by the attempts to maintain employment in
times of crisis rather that to build human capital as a routine operation. The plans
if any concentrate on market penetration (39% of the SMEs that have formal
strategies) and diversification of production (34%) rather than on cost
optimization or strategic alliances. They are based on intentions and do not
contain precise steps that are to lead to the aims pursued. One could also take into
consideration the fact that the SMEs in Poland are the less innovative in European
Union (18 per cent of the SMEs in Poland were innovative ones in 2006-2008
compared with 75% in Germany at the same time (PARP, 2013).
The response of the SMEs to the deterioration of the external conditions is
a consequence of the perception of its significance by the entrepreneurs, too. As
far as the latest global financial crisis is concerned more than half of the SMEs
owners were quite optimistic about the economic situation in Poland during the
44
first wave of the crisis (BCC, 2009). In September 2008 almost ¾ of the SMEs
predicted and increase of revenues, more than 70% expected growing income and
1/3 expected their market share to rise, 40% planned to introduce new product to
the market. They expected better access to external financing, European funds
including reduction of the informal economy, investments and the modernization
of technology. The expectations of entrepreneurs in 2009 in Poland were the most
optimistic in Europe (60% of managers expected an increase of turnover in the
next 2-3 years - such high scores are recorded in Austria and Norway only and the
lowest rates were recorded for Greece and Malta - less than 20%) (European
Commission, 2015). The pessimism of the entrepreneurs in Poland raised in 2010
only and 30% of entrepreneurs expected the economic situation to deteriorate.
The problems were identified mostly in the reduction of orders and revenues.
Even at that time less than 20% of entrepreneurs were afraid of bankruptcy due to
the economic crisis (Euler Hermes, 2011).
The questionnaires made in 2009 showed that many entrepreneurs were
more pessimistic as far as the macroeconomic situation in Poland is concerned as
well the condition of the branch their operate in than the market for their own
products (PricewaterhouseCoopers Polska, 2011). They did not change the
perception of the major barriers of their operations and the competition, taxes and
bureaucracy barriers remained the most important determinants. As research
made by Kaliszczak and Urban (2011) showed for the majority of the
entrepreneurs the intuition rather than market research was the foundation of
their decision making. And it could suggest, that the entrepreneurs were shaping
their ideas concerning the crisis on the basis of the media reports and popular
45
opinions and not their own business experiences. The good records of both
domestic and external demands in case of Poland during the global domestic crisis
seem to confirm the thesis, that for many entrepreneurs the crisis remained a
media phenomenon only. So, paradoxically, the optimistic approach to the
business perspectives could be at least partly explained by the lack of information
that shapes their perception of the chances and threats offered by the market.
And, the awareness of the crisis by the SMEs in Poland could be a result both of the
scale of the economic slowdown and the access to the information by the
entrepreneurs. Such an approach to business development can at least partially
explain quite limited steps undertaken by the majority of the SMEs during the
slowdown.
Conclusions
The SMEs in Poland fared quite well during the global financial crisis. After
a relatively deep but short deterioration, they quickly returned to the growth path.
In general the impact of the economic crisis on the majority of the SMEs was
rather limited. The majority of entrepreneurs did not make any radical changes in
their activities. They usually were concentrated on cost reduction and
investments’ cuts, if any. The search for new markets, products and technology
modernization was observed in a few cases only. They were usually concentrated
on survival rather than on using a chance to modernize and develop.
The modest reaction to the crisis could be at least partially a result of
rather mild slowdown in Poland during the global financial crisis. But, there are
promises to say that the crisis exposes poor strategic thinking among small
46
businesses in Poland as the entrepreneurs in reaction to the crisis would rather
hold their breath for a while to get some time to look at the situation around,
rather than implement hitherto planned corrective procedures. It may be a part of
the problem that the majority of small businesses are run without professional
management, and they lack long term strategy and risk taking procedures.
Generally, the short term perspective that predominates in small businesses
prevents them from using the crisis to modernize. But, on the other hand, such an
conservative approach makes them quite resistant to the external shocks.
At the macroeconomic level response to the crisis, SMEs can be crucial for
determining the role of these enterprises in the economy. Indeed, there are
reasons to believe that the specific features of small businesses are the base for
their stabilizing function in the economy. However, their conservative approach to
risk taking and investments in unstable conditions may limit the role of the SMEs
in innovations and development. All in all, it may mean that – opposite to the
popular view that identifies small business with, entrepreneurship,
innovativeness and dynamics the SMEs would be an economic stabilizer rather
than accelerator. And this is definitely an important issue that deserves further
study.
47
References
Barney, J.B. and Ouchi, W.G. (1986), Organizational Economics, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco.
Bąkiewicz, A. (2010), Strukturalnie aspekty rozwoju gospodarczego, Doświadczenia
azjatyckie, Warsaw University, Warsaw.
Bąkiewicz, A. (2012a), “Is Small Beatifull? Some reflections on small business and
economic development”, in Woźniak M.G. (ed.), Nierówności społeczne I wzrost
gospodarczy, t. 25, University of Rzeszów, Rzeszów.
Bąkiewicz, A. (2012b), “Transformation of economic system in Poland. The SMEs and the
UE integration”, Revista Universitaria Ruta, 13:71-86.
Bąkiewicz, A. (2015), “Małe i średnie przedsiębiorstwa w Polsce w dobie globalnego
kryzysu finansowego”, Przedsiębiorczość i Zarządzanie, t. XVI:77-91.
BCC (2009), Jak jest – jak być powinno. Stan rzeczywistości gospodarczo-społecznej i
rekomendacje, Business Centre Club, Warsaw.
Borowiecki, R. (2010), Przedsiębiorstwo w obliczu wyzwań współczesnej gospodarki,
Economic University, Krakow.
Bourke, T. (2014), Bibliography of the Global Financial / Economic Crisis, European
University Institute Library, 29th edition, available at http://biblio.eui.eu/.
Czerwińska-Lubszczyk and A., Michna, A. (2013), "MSP w warunkach spowolnienia
gospodarczego”, Zeszyty naukowe Politechniki Śląskiej, z. 64: 21-31.
D’Aurizio, L., Oliviero, T. and Romano, L., (2014), “Strategie E Performance Delle Imprese
Familiari Negli Anni Della Crisi”, CSEF working paper no.357.
Dominiak, P. (2005), Sektor MSP we współczesnej gospodarce, PWE, Warsaw.
ECORYS (2012), EU SMEs in 2012: At the Crossroads. Annual Report on Small and Medium-
sized Enterprises in the EU, Rotterdam.
Euler Hermes (2009), Raport grupy Euler Hermes dotyczący upadłości firm w Polsce,
Warsaw.
Euler Hermes (2011), Płynność finansowa w końcu 2010 roku, Warsaw.
European Commission, (2006), “Nowa definicja MŚP”, available at
http://europa.eu.int/48omm./enterprise/enterprise_policy/sme_definition/index
_pl.htm.
European Commission (2012), SME fact sheet, Poland 2012, EC, Brussels.
European Commission (2015), “Annual Report on European SMEs”, available at
http://ec.europa.eu/growth/index_en.htm.
EUROSTAT (2015), “Structural Business Statistics, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises
(SMEs)”, available at http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/structural-business-
statistics/ structural-business-statistics/sme.
Garcia-Appendini, E. (2011), “Lending to Small Businesses. The Value of Soft Information”,
SSRN Working Paper 1750056, available at http://ssrn.com/abstract=1750056,
(dostęp 9.02.15).
International Journal of Small and Medium Enterprises and Business Sustainability,Vol.1, No.1 (July 2015), pp. 23-50
48
Gibb, A.A. (2000), “SME Policy, Academic Research and the Growth of Ignorance, Mythical
Concepts, Myths, Assumptions, Rituals and Confusions”, International Small
Business Journal, 18 (3):13-35.
GUS () (2011), Działalność przedsiębiorstw niefinansowych w 2009 roku, Główny Urząd
Statystyczny, Warsaw
GUS (2014), Polska 1989-2014, Główny Urząd Statystyczny, Warsaw.
GUS (2015), „Informacja statystyczna”, Główny Urząd Statystyczny, Warsaw, available at
http://www.stat.gov.pl/gus.
IBDPP (2009), Międzypokoleniowy transfer wiedzy w polskich firmach – mentoring i e-
learning, Instytut Badań nad Demokracją i Przedsiębiorstwem Prywatnym,
Warsaw.
IWI (2009), Strategie funkcjonowania i procesy inwestycyjne przedsiębiorstw w sytuacji
znaczącego pogorszenia się koniunktury w gospodarce lub konkretnych branżach,
Instytut Wiedzy i Innowacji, Warsaw.
Kaliszczak, L. And Urban L. (2011), „Zachowania małych i średnich przedsiębiorstw
w warunkach spowolnienia gospodarczego w Polsce”, in Woźniak M.G. (ed.),
Nierówności społeczne i wzrost gospodarczy, t. 24, University of Rzeszów, Rzeszów.
Klein, N. (2014), “Small and Medium Size Enterprises, Credit Supply Shocks, and
Economic Recovery in Europe”, WP/14/98, International Monetary Fund,
Washington, D.C.
Kotler, Ph. (2012), Marketing, Rebis, Poznań
Matejun, M. (2007), „Wewnętrzne bariery rozwoju sektora MSP”, in Lachniewicz, S. (ed.),
Zarządzanie rozwojem organizacji, Lodz Politechnic, Łódź.
Michalczuk, G. (ed.) (2009), Czynniki i narzędzia rozwoju MSP, Białystok, Uniwersytet w
Białymstoku.
NBP, (2009), Ocena kondycji ekonomicznej sektora przedsiębiorstw niefinansowych w 2008
roku w świetle danych F-01/I-01, Instytut Ekonomiczny NBP, Warsaw.
OECD, (2009), The Impact of the Global Crisis on SME and Entrepreneurship Financing and
Policy Response, Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs and Local Development,
Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development, Geneva.
Orłowski, W., Pasternak, R., Flaht, K. And Szubert D., (2010), Procesy inwestycyjne i
strategie przedsiębiorstw w czasach kryzysu, PARP, Warsaw.
PARP, (2013), Raport o stanie sektora małych i średnich przedsiębiorstw w Polsce w latach
2011–2012, Warsaw.
Piasecki, B. (1998), Przedsiębiorczość i mała firma. Teoria i praktyka, Lodz University,
Łódź.
Petersen, M.A. (2004), “Information: Hard and Soft, Kellogg School of Management”,
working paper, June, Northwestern University.
PKPP Lewiatan and Deloitte (2009), Monitoring kondycji sektora MSP, 2009, PKPP,
Warsaw.
Presbitero, A., Udell, G.F. and Zazzaro, A. (2014), “The Home Bias and the Credit Crunch: A
Regional Perspective”, Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, (suppl.). 46(1): 54-84.
49
PricewaterhouseCoopers Polska, (2011), 14. Doroczne badanie CEO Survey. Polska
perspektywa, PwC, Warsaw.
Steinerowska-Streb, I. (2011), „Światowy kryzys gospodarczy a zarządzanie w polskich
przedsiębiorstwach”, Master of Business Administration, 3/110: 19–29.
Wach, K. 2007, “Local Market Readiness and Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises'
Development. An Empirical Investigation”, MPRA Paper No. 31596, available at
http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/31596/.
WOG (2011), Strategie przedsiębiorstw w czasach kryzysu, Wielkopolskie Obserwatorium
Gospodarcze, Poznań.
Zelek, A. (2011), „Strategia przedsiębiorstwa w walce z kryzysem”, Firma i Rynek, no
42:11-14.
50
Entrepreneurship in the Shadow Economy: A
Review of the Alternative Policy Approaches
Colin C Williams
Sheffield University Management School (SUMS),

University of Sheffield
Conduit Road, Sheffield S10 1FL, UK.
E-mail: c.c.williams@sheffield.ac.uk
Abstract
The aim of this paper is to review the various policy approaches that can be used
to tackle entrepreneurship in the shadow economy. To do this, it firstly reviews four
possible policy options, namely taking no action, eradicating shadow entrepreneurship,
moving legitimate entrepreneurship into the shadow economy, or transforming shadow
entrepreneurship into legitimate entrepreneurship. Revealing that transforming shadow
entrepreneurship into legitimate entrepreneurship is not only the most viable option but
also the approach most commonly adopted by supra-national agencies and national
governments, a review is then undertaken of how this can be achieved using either direct
controls, which seek to increase the costs of shadow entrepreneurship and/or the
benefits of legitimate entrepreneurship, or indirect controls that seek to generate a
commitment to compliance and greater self-regulation. How these approaches can be
combined is then reviewed. The outcome is a comprehensive review and evaluation of the
various policy approaches available to policy-makers for addressing shadow
entrepreneurship along with some recommendations regarding the way forward.
Keywords: entrepreneurship; informal economy; shadow economy; tax compliance;

public policy.
JEL codes: E26, H26, J46, O17
Introduction
In recent years, a burgeoning literature has emerged on entrepreneurship
in the shadow economy (Achua and Lussier, 2014; Aidis et al., 2006; Bruton et al.,
2012; Bureau and Fendt, 2011; Kus, 2014; Mróz, 2012; Welter and Smallbone,
2011; Williams, 2006; Williams and Nadin, 2010a). This literature has investigated
not only the prevalence of shadow entrepreneurship (Autio and Fu, 2014;
51
Williams, 2013) and the determinants of its variable prevalence (Dau and Cuervo-
Cazurra, 2014; Siqueira et al, 2014; Thai and Turkina, 2014), but also who
participates (Thai and Turkina, 2014; Williams and Martinez-Perez, 2014;
Williams and Nadin, 2010b; Williams and Round, 2007, 2008; Williams and
Youssef, 2013) and their motives, such as whether they are necessity- and/or
opportunity- driven (Adom, 2014; Adom and Williams, 2012; Maloney, 2004;
Perry et al., 2007; Williams et al., 2009). However, despite this growing
understanding of the prevalence, nature and motives underpinning shadow
entrepreneurship, scholarship is lacking on what is to be done about
entrepreneurship in the shadow economy. The aim of this paper is to fill this gap
in the literature.
To do this, the next section evaluates the range of potential policy options
available for tackling shadow entrepreneurship. Identifying that the consensus is
that shadow entrepreneurship needs to be legitimized, the third section provides
a conceptual framework of the potential policy approaches available. This is
followed in the fourth section by a review of the direct controls that can be used to
legitimize shadow entrepreneurship followed in the fifth section by the indirect
controls that can be used to do so. Rather than treat these direct and indirect
controls as either/or choices, the sixth section then reveals the various policy
approaches that can be adopted which combine direct and indirect controls when
tackling shadow entrepreneurship, namely the responsive regulation and slippery
slope approaches. The seventh and final section then draws conclusions about the
ways forward for tackling shadow entrepreneurship. The outcome is a
52
comprehensive review of the policy approaches and measures available to policy
makers along with some suggestions regarding the way forward.
At the outset nevertheless, entrepreneurship in the shadow economy need
to be defined. Reflecting the strong consensus in the literature, the shadow
economy is here defined as monetary transactions not declared to the state for tax,
benefit and/or labor law purposes when they should be declared but which are
legal in all other respects (Williams and Nadin, 2010a). The working definition of
an entrepreneur meanwhile, is somebody actively involved in starting a business
or is the owner/manager of a business (Harding et al., 2006; Reynolds et al.,
2002). Shadow entrepreneurs are therefore those starting a business or are the
owner/manager of a business engaged in monetary transactions not declared to
the state for tax, benefit and/or labor law purposes when they should be declared
but which are legal in all other respects. The only illicit aspect of such endeavor in
consequence, is that when trading licit goods and/or services, some or all of their
monetary transactions are not declared. Entrepreneurs trading illicit goods and
services (e.g., drug trafficking, gun-running) are not shadow entrepreneurs, but
part of the separate criminal economy (Smith and McElwee, 2013).
Hypothetical Policy Options
Hypothetically, four potential policy options exist with regard to tackling
shadow entrepreneurship. Policy-makers can either choose to: take no action;
pursue the eradication of shadow entrepreneurship; move legitimate
entrepreneurship into the shadow economy; or transform shadow
entrepreneurship into legitimate entrepreneurship. Even if some of these possible
53
policy options might appear a little far-fetched, commentators have advocated
them all in recent decades. Consequently, one cannot reject any of them without
evaluating their implications.
Take no action
A first potential option is for governments to take no action. The rationales
for doing nothing about shadow entrepreneurship are that it is a seed-bed for new
venture creation, a breeding ground for the micro-enterprise system and a test-
bed for fledgling enterprises and therefore no action should be taken. Indeed, a
2012 survey of 595 small business owners in the UK reveals that 20% report that
they traded in the shadow economy when starting-up their business venture, with
64% stating that the main reason for doing so was to test the viability of their
business venture (Williams and Martinez, 2014a,b).
The problem with doing nothing however, is that shadow entrepreneurship
has significant deleterious implications for legitimate entrepreneurs (e.g., unfair
competition), shadow entrepreneurs (e.g., pressure to enter exploitative
relationships with the legitimate sector), customers (e.g., lack of legal recourse if a
poor job is done) and governments (e.g., reduced public revenue) (for a review,
see OECD, 2015; Williams, 2014a, 2015). Until now however, no evaluations have
been conducted of the extent to which such deleterious impacts are valid in
practice. This is a significant gap that needs to be filled in future studies. Despite
this lack of evidence however, the strong consensus of both scholars and policy-
makers is that on balance, the deleterious impacts outweigh any benefits of
shadow entrepreneurship. The consequent consensus is that doing nothing is not
54
a feasible option. Interventions are viewed as necessary. What type of
intervention, therefore, is needed?
Move legitimate entrepreneurship into the shadow economy
A second potential option is to shift legitimate entrepreneurship into the
shadow economy. Although not explicitly argued by any commentators, there have
been policy proposals which err in this direction. Some scholars advocate a de-
regulation of the legitimate sector in order to tackle shadow entrepreneurship
based on the belief that shadow entrepreneurship because of over-regulation in
the market (Sauvy, 1984; De Soto, 1989, 2001). The consequent objective is to de-
regulate the legitimate realm so that all activities are performed in a manner akin
to what is currently the shadow sector, although they would no longer be shadow
entrepreneurship because they would be conforming to the regulations that
remain.
However, several intransigent problems exist with this hypothetical option.
The view is that de-regulation reduces shadow entrepreneurship. The evidence
nevertheless is that decreasing the level of state intervention does not result in a
legitimatization of shadow entrepreneurs but quite the opposite, greater levels of
shadow entrepreneurship (Kus, 2010, 2014; Williams, 2013b, 2014a,b). As such,
this option is not viable. Indeed, few currently advocate such a possibility.
Eradicate shadow entrepreneurship
Another hypothetical option is to eradicate shadow entrepreneurship. If
shadow entrepreneurs are viewed as “rational economic actors” who evade tax so
long as the pay-off is greater than the expected cost of being caught and punished
55
(Allingham and Sandmo, 1972), eradication can be achieved by altering the
cost/benefit ratio confronting those engaged or thinking about engaging in
shadow entrepreneurship (e.g., Grabiner, 2000; Hasseldine and Li, 1999;
Richardson and Sawyer, 2001). This can be achieved by raising the costs of
operating as a shadow entrepreneur firstly, by increasing the perceived or actual
likelihood of detection and secondly, the penalties and sanctions for doing so. In
this “negative reinforcement” approach in consequence, shadow entrepreneurship
is eradicated using “sticks” to punish “bad” (non-compliant) behavior.
However, whether this is practical and desirable is open to question. On the
practicality side, the issue is whether this is effective. Although some studies
reveal that improving detection and/or penalties reduces the shadow economy
(De Juan et al., 1994; Slemerod et al., 2001), others identify that the shadow
economy grows (Bergman and Nevarez, 2006; Murphy, 2005) and thus that “it is
not sensible to penalize illicit work with intensified controls and higher fines”
(Schneider and Enste, 2002: 192). This is because a penalizing approach alienates
shadow entrepreneurs, reducing their willingness to comply and increases the
shadow economy by reducing their belief in the fairness of the system (Murphy,
2005).
It can also be questioned whether eradicating shadow entrepreneurship is
desirable. If shadow entrepreneurship is recognized as a breeding ground for the
micro-enterprise system and a seedbed for enterprise culture, this realm is a
potential asset that needs to be fostered (e.g., Williams, 2006). Eradicating this
sphere will consequently eliminate precisely the enterprise culture and
entrepreneurship that governments wish to nurture. The consequent challenge for

56
policy-makers is to “join-up” their policy approach towards shadow
entrepreneurship with their agendas to foster enterprise culture and
entrepreneurship. Indeed, unless achieved, then governments with each new
initiative to eradicate shadow entrepreneurship will destroy precisely the
entrepreneurship and enterprise culture that they wish to nurture.
Transform shadow entrepreneurship into legitimate entrepreneurship
Rather than take no action, transfer legitimate entrepreneurship into the
shadow economy or eradicate shadow entrepreneurship, a final option is to
transform shadow entrepreneurship into legitimate entrepreneurship (Dekker et
al., 2010; European Commission, 2007, Renooy et al., 2004; Small Business
Council, 2004, Williams, 2006; Williams and Nadin, 2012a,b, 2013, 2014; Williams
and Renooy, 2013). The benefits of doing so vary according to whether legitimate
and shadow businesses, customers or the government, are considered.
For legitimate entrepreneurs and enterprises, transforming shadow
entrepreneurship into legitimate entrepreneurship would stop the unfair
competitive advantage of shadow businesses over those playing by the rules
(Evans et al., 2006; Renooy et al., 2004). It would also enable the business
community to pursue a “high road” rather than “low road” approach by shifting
towards greater regulatory standards on working conditions such as health and
safety and labor standards (Grabiner, 2000; Renooy et al., 2004; Williams and
Windebank, 1998). For shadow entrepreneurs meanwhile, the benefits of
legitimizing are manifold. They escape the pressure to enter exploitative
relationships with the legitimate realm (Gallin, 2001; Williams and Windebank,
57
1998) and achieve the same levels of legal protection as legitimate entrepreneurs
(ILO, 2014; Morris and Polese, 2014). They are also able to secure legitimate
intellectual property rights for their products and processes (De Beer et al., 2013)
and overcome the structural impediments which prevent business growth such as
their lack of access to advice and support as well as capital (ILO, 2014).
For customers, the advantages of legitimizing shadow entrepreneurship
are that such customers benefit from legal recourse if a poor job is done, have
access to insurance cover, enjoy guarantees with regard to the work conducted,
and have more certainty that health and safety regulations are followed (Williams
and Martinez, 2014c).
Finally, the benefits for government of transforming shadow
entrepreneurship into legitimate entrepreneurship are that this improves the
level of public revenue, thus enabling governments to pursue higher expenditure
on social protection and integration projects (Williams and Windebank, 1998). It
also facilitates a joining-up of the policy approach towards shadow
entrepreneurship with the more general policy approach towards harnessing
enterprise culture and entrepreneurship (Dekker et al., 2010; European
Commission, 2007, Small Business Council, 2004).
Summary of hypothetical policy options
This review of the four hypothetical policy options towards shadow
entrepreneurship reveals that the first option of doing nothing is unacceptable.
This would leave intact the current negative impacts on legitimate entrepreneurs
(e.g., unfair competition), shadow entrepreneurs (e.g., the inability to gain access
58
to credit to expand), customers (e.g., no guarantee of health and safety standards)
and governments (e.g., taxes owed are not collected). Secondly, transforming
legitimate entrepreneurship into shadow entrepreneurship is undesirable
because little evidence exists that de-regulation reduces the shadow economy and
third and finally, eradicating shadow entrepreneurship is unacceptable because it
results in governments stamping out precisely the enterprise culture and
entrepreneurial endeavor that they otherwise wish to foster. Transforming
shadow entrepreneurship into legitimate entrepreneurship therefore appears to
be the most viable policy option. How, therefore, can this be achieved?
Policy Approaches towards Shadow Entrepreneurship
To understand the policy approaches available for transforming shadow
entrepreneurship into legitimate entrepreneurship, next table sets out a heuristic
conceptual framework. This distinguishes between direct and indirect controls.
Direct controls seek to transform shadow entrepreneurship into legitimate
entrepreneurship by ensuring that benefits of operating in the legitimate economy
outweigh the costs of working in the shadow economy. This is accomplished either
by using deterrence measures to increase the costs of non-compliance (“sticks”)
and/or by making the conduct of legitimate entrepreneurship more beneficial
(“carrots”). Indirect controls meanwhile, shift away from using “sticks” and
“carrots”, and instead focus on developing the psychological contract (or what
might also be called the social contract) between the state and its citizens in order
to encourage a commitment to compliance among entrepreneurs and therefore
greater self-regulation. Here, each approach is reviewed in turn so as to highlight
59
the measures available for transforming shadow entrepreneurship into legitimate
entrepreneurship.
Typology of policy approaches for tackling shadow entrepreneurship

Approach Method Measures
Improved Data matching and sharing
Direct controls: detection Joined up strategy
deterrents Joint operations
(“sticks”) Increased Increased penalties for evasion
penalties
For start-ups Simplification of compliance
Direct and indirect tax incentives
Supply chain responsibility
Direct controls: Support and advice to start-ups
Incentives For established Supply-side incentives (e.g. society-wide
(“carrots”) shadow amnesties; voluntary disclosure; smoothing
entrepreneurs transition to legitimization)
Demand-side incentives (e.g. service vouchers;
targeted direct taxes; targeted indirect taxes)
Change informal Tax education
institutions Normative appeals
Indirect (values, norms and Education and awareness raising of benefits of
controls: beliefs) legitimate entrepreneurship
reduce
asymmetry Change formal Procedural fairness and justice
between formal institutions (laws, Redistributive justice
and informal regulations and Wider economic and social developments
institutions codes) (e.g., social protection, equality, growth
strategies for quality employment,
entrepreneurship support)
Direct Controls Approach
The conventional policy approach for tackling the shadow economy in
general and shadow entrepreneurship more particularly, is to use direct controls.
As the OECD (2008: 82) summarize, “Combating informal employment requires a
comprehensive approach to reduce the costs and increase the benefits to business
and workers of operating formally”. To evaluate this direct controls approach
therefore, firstly, the use of deterrence measures to detect and punish non-
compliant (“bad”) behavior (i.e., shadow entrepreneurship) is reviewed followed

60
secondly, the use of incentives (“bribes”) that make it easier to undertake and
reward compliant (“good”) behavior (i.e., legitimate entrepreneurship).
Deterrence measures
During the early 1970s, Allingham and Sandmo (1972) argued that the
non-compliant, such as shadow entrepreneurs, are rational economic actors who
evade tax when the pay-off is greater than the expected cost of detection and
punishment. To deter them therefore, the objective is to change the cost/benefit
ratio facing those participating or considering participation in shadow
entrepreneurship (e.g., Grabiner, 2000; Hasseldine and Li, 1999; Job et al., 2007;
Richardson and Sawyer, 2001). When using deterrence measures, this is achieved
by increasing the actual and perceived risks and costs associated with
participation in shadow entrepreneurship firstly, by raising the perceived or
actual likelihood of detection and/or secondly, increasing the penalties and
sanctions for those caught. This is therefore a “negative reinforcement” approach;
it seeks to use “sticks” to punish non-compliant (“bad”) behavior.
A large and expanding body of scholarship nevertheless, reveals that
increasing penalties or the probability of detection does not lead to greater
compliance (Feld and Frey, 2002; Murphy, 2005; Varma and Doob, 1998; Shaw et
al., 2008; Webley and Halstead, 1986). Instead, it raises non-compliance, not least
due to a breakdown of trust between the state and its citizens (Ayres and
Braithwaite, 1992; Murphy and Harris, 2007; Tyler et al., 2007; Williams, 2001).
Indeed, the most telling critique of the use of deterrents is the finding that many
voluntarily comply even when the level of penalties and risks of detection would
61
suggest that they should not if they were truly rational economic actors (Murphy,
2008). Obviously, other factors must be at work engendering this commitment to
compliance beyond the level of deterrents.
Another reason for caution with regard to the use of deterrents is that their
unintended and unwanted broader impacts. As already mentioned, they lead to
one hand of government eradicating precisely the entrepreneurial endeavor that
other hands of government wish to foster. When this is combined with the
recognition that punishing non-compliant (“bad”) actions is not necessarily the
most effective means of changing the behavior of shadow entrepreneurs, the
result has been a questioning of the value of such measures. New measures have
thus emerged.
Incentive measures/“bribes”
Given the goal of transforming shadow entrepreneurship into legitimate
entrepreneurship, rather than eradicating it, a shift has taken place away from
deterrence measures and towards providing incentives to encourage shadow
entrepreneurs to legitimize their endeavor (Small Business Council, 2004;
Williams, 2006). Put another way, rather than punish “bad” (non-compliant)
behavior, measures have sought to reward “good” (compliant) behavior, rather
than taking it as given. When tackling shadow entrepreneurship, and as displayed
in Table 1 above, these measures take two forms.
On the one hand, a range of measures can be introduced that provide
incentives for entrepreneurs at the business start-up stage to establish their
ventures on a legitimate basis. These measures can include the simplification of
62
compliance so as to make it easy to do so, the use of direct and indirect tax
incentives to make it beneficial to start-up legitimately, and the provision of
support and advice to entrepreneurs about how to start-up legitimately.
On the other hand, measures can be introduced that provide incentives for
established shadow entrepreneurs to make the transition to legitimate
entrepreneurship. Such measures can take the form of either supply-side
measures targeting shadow entrepreneurs or demand-side measures targeting
their customers and providing them with incentives to use legitimate rather than
shadow enterprises. Firstly, therefore, supply-side measures that in effect seek to
“bribe” shadow entrepreneurs to make the transition to legitimate
entrepreneurship can be used, such as the use of society-wide amnesties,
voluntary disclosure schemes and the introduction of schemes that facilitate them
to undergo a smooth transition to legitimacy. Secondly, there are demand-side
measures that again in effect “bribe” customers to use legitimate rather than
shadow enterprises when sourcing goods and services. These include the use of
for example service vouchers and targeted direct and indirect tax incentives (see
Williams, 2015).
Indirect Controls Approach
The problem with using direct controls to alter the cost/benefit ratio
confronting shadow entrepreneurs is that they are not only expensive but also
often effective (Alm, 2011). Rather than “bribe” somebody to be compliant for
example, it has been recognized that a more effective approach is to engender a
commitment in them to being compliant so that self-regulate. The result has been
63
a move beyond the use of “sticks” and “carrots” and the adoption of indirect
controls to improve the psychological contract between the state and
entrepreneurs (Alm et al., 1995; Torgler, 2003; Weigel et al., 1987; Wenzel, 2002).
The goal is to engender voluntary commitment to compliant behavior rather than
force entrepreneurs to comply using threats, harassment and/or bribes (Kirchler,
2007; Torgler, 2007, 2011).
To understand the tools that can be used to achieve this, it is first necessary
to recognize that there exists an institutional asymmetry between the laws, codes
and regulations of legitimate institutions and the norms, beliefs and values of
shadow institutions. Shadow entrepreneurship occurs when the norms, values
and beliefs (informal institutions) differ to the laws and regulations (formal
institutions), resulting in what formal institutions deem to be illegal activities
being seen as socially legitimate in terms of the norms, values and beliefs of
entrepreneurs (Williams and Shahid, 2015). To tackle shadow entrepreneurship
therefore, there is a need to reduce this asymmetry between the formal and
informal institutions. This can be achieved either by changing the informal
institutions and/or the formal institutions.
Changing the informal institutions
To change this institutional asymmetry, one approach is to change the norms, values and beliefs of
potential and existing entrepreneurs regarding the acceptability of working in the shadow economy so
that these are in symmetry with the formal institutions. This can be achieved by improving tax
knowledge, using awareness raising campaigns about the costs of shadow entrepreneurship and benefits
of legitimate entrepreneurship work, and normative appeals.
64
Improving tax knowledge.
Educating entrepreneurs about the benefits of acting legitimately is
important if the norms, values and beliefs are to be in symmetry with the codified
laws and regulations of formal institutions. To do this, entrepreneurs require two
types of education. Firstly, there is the need to educate entrepreneurs about what
the current system requires by providing information regarding their
responsibilities. A significant portion of tax evasion is unintentional, resulting from
a lack of knowledge, misunderstandings and a false interpretation of their
responsibilities (Hasseldine and Li, 1999; Natrah, 2013). A solution in
consequence, is to provide greater information to entrepreneurs (Internal
Revenue Service, 2007; Vossler et al., 2011).
Secondly, and more broadly, entrepreneurs also need educating about the
value and benefits of paying taxes in order to prevent intentional evasion by
developing their intrinsic motivation to comply. A solution to reduce intentional
evasion in consequence, is to educate entrepreneurs about where their taxes are
spent by informing them of the public goods and services they receive (Bird et al.,
2006; Saeed and Shah, 2011). Signs such as “your taxes are paying for this” on civil
construction schemes (e.g., new roads) are one way of doing so by conveying a
clear message of where taxes are being spent. Signs in hospitals, schools, medical
centers and on ambulances can also be used in this regard.
Awareness-raising campaigns.
A further means of changing attitudes towards compliance is to raise
awareness by informing either: entrepreneurs of the costs and risks of operating
65
in the shadow economy; potential customers of the risks and costs; entrepreneurs
of the benefits of being legitimate, and/or potential customers of the benefits of
using the legitimate economy. Indeed, the evidence is that such advertising
campaigns are effective and cost efficient. In the UK, an evaluation of the
advertising campaigns run by the tax office reveals that as a result, some 8300
additional people registered to pay tax who would not have otherwise done so,
paying tax of £38 million over three years, providing a return of 19:1 on the
expenditure of £2 million. This compares with an overall return of 4.5: 1 on the
£41 million a year spent on all its compliance work in 2006-07 (National Audit
Office, 2008).
Using normative appeals.
Normative appeals to entrepreneurs to act legitimately are another
potential way forward. Their effectiveness depends in part on the nature of the
appeal made. Chung and Trivedi (2003) examine the impact of normative appeals
on a friendly persuasion group who were required to both generate and read a list
of reasons why they should comply fully and compared with a control group not
asked to do so. The participants in the friendly persuasion groups report higher
earnings than the control group.
Changing the formal institutions
Besides changing the norms, values and beliefs of entrepreneurs in order to
align them with the formal institutions, policy can also seek to better align the
formal institutions with the norms, values and beliefs of society. This is
particularly important in societies in which there is a lack of trust in government,

66
such as due to public sector corruption (European Commission, 2014) or in
societies where entrepreneurs do not believe that they receive back from
government what they expect. Two types of change are required so far as formal
institutions are concerned. Firstly, there is often a need to change internal
processes in the formal institutions to improve the perception amongst
entrepreneurs that there is tax fairness, procedural justice and redistributive
justice. Secondly, there is a need to change the products of formal institutions by
pursuing wider economic and social developments. Here, each is considered in
turn, starting with the changes required in internal processes.
Improving procedural justice.
Procedural justice refers to the extent to which entrepreneurs perceive the
government to treat them in a respectful, impartial and responsible manner
(Braithwaite and Reinhart, 2000, Murphy, 2005; Taylor, 2005; Tyler, 1997,
Wenzel, 2002). This has a significant effect on compliance. If entrepreneurs view
the tax administration as treating them in such a manner, then entrepreneurs are
more likely to be compliant (Hartner et al, 2008; Murphy, 2003; Murphy et al.,
2009; Torgler and Schneider, 2007; Wenzel, 2002). As Wenzel (2006) finds,
compliance was significantly higher among taxpayers perceiving there to be
interactional fairness. Being treated politely, with dignity and respect, being given
a say, and having genuine respect shown for one’s rights and social status all
enhance compliance (Alm et al., 1993; Feld and Frey, 2002; Gangl et al., 2013;
Hartner et al., 2008; Murphy 2005; Tyler, 1997, 2006; Wenzel, 2002).
67
Developing procedural fairness.
Procedural fairness refers to the extent to which entrepreneurs believe that
they are paying their fair share compared with others (Kinsey and Gramsick,
1993; Wenzel, 2004a,b). Entrepreneurs receiving procedurally fair treatment are
more likely to trust the authorities, accept its decisions and follow its directions
(Murphy, 2005). The fairness of the tax system is one of the most important
determinants of whether they do so (Bobeck and Hatfield, 2003; Hartner et al.,
2007, 2011; Kirchgässner, 2010, 2011; McGee, 2005, 2008; McGee et al., 2008;
Molero and Pujol, 2012). Conversely, where there are grievances among
entrepreneurs that they are not receiving fair treatment, non-compliance
increases (Bird et al., 2006).
Enhancing redistributive justice.
Redistributive justice refers to whether entrepreneurs believe they receive
the goods and services they deserve given the taxes that they pay (Kinsey and
Gramsick, 1993; Kinsey et al., 1991; Richardson and Sawyer, 2001; Thurman et al.,
1984). Taxes are the prices paid for the goods and services provided by
government. The question for the moral evaluation of taxes is whether this price
corresponds to the value of these goods and services (i.e., whether it is seen as
“just”), namely whether there is a “just price” (Kirchgässner, 2010). Entrepreneurs
are more likely to break the psychological contract with the state, the less they
perceive the tax system as fair. To achieve commitment, the tax system must be
seen as fair. If entrepreneurs do not receive the goods and services they think that
they deserve given the taxes they pay, then non-compliance increases (McGee,
68
2005). The result is that entrepreneurs need to be educated about where their
taxes are spent. When entrepreneurs do not know, or do not fully understand
what public goods and services are provided with their taxes, then compliance is
lower (Lillemets, 2009). There is thus a need for government to explain how taxes
are spent and to elicit agreement regarding the public goods and services
provided by government.
Changing the products of formal institutions: wider economic and social
developments.
To achieve self-regulation amongst entrepreneurs, it is also necessary to
change the products of formal institutions in terms of the wider economic and
social developments pursued (Vanderseypen et al., 2013; Williams and Renooy,
2013, 2014). Until now, there have been three contrasting theoretical standpoints
regarding what broader economic and social developments are needed to reduce
shadow entrepreneurship.
Firstly, the “modernization” thesis purports that shadow entrepreneurship
decreases as economies modernize and develop and therefore that economic
development and growth is needed to reduce shadow entrepreneurship (ILO,
2012). Secondly, the “neo-liberal” thesis asserts that the prevalence of shadow
entrepreneurship directly results from high taxes, public sector corruption and
state interference and therefore that tax reductions, resolving public sector
corruption and reducing the regulatory burden are required (De Soto, 1989, 2001;
London and Hart, 2004; Nwabuzor, 2005; Sauvy, 1984; Schneider and Williams,
2013). Third and finally, the “structuralist” thesis argues that shadow
69
entrepreneurship is the outcome of inadequate levels of state intervention in work
and welfare. The focus therefore should be less upon transforming shadow
entrepreneurship into legitimate entrepreneurship and more upon introducing
social protection, reducing inequality and pursuing labor market interventions to
help vulnerable groups (Castells and Portes, 1989; Davis, 2006; Gallin, 2001;
Slavnic, 2010; Taiwo, 2013).
In recent years, these competing theories have been evaluated
(Vanderseypen et al., 2013; Williams, 2013a, 2014a,b,c,d; Williams and Renooy,
2013, 2014; Williams et al., 2013a). Analyzing the relationship between cross-
national variations in the level of shadow entrepreneurship and cross-national
variations in the various aspects of the broader economic and social environment
deemed important by each perspective, the finding is that shadow
entrepreneurship is lower in wealthier economies with stable high quality
government bureaucracies and those with lower poverty levels, more equality,
greater levels of social protection, more effective redistribution via social transfers
and greater state intervention in the labor market to protect vulnerable groups.
Combining Direct and Indirect Controls
To tackle shadow entrepreneurship, it is not an either/or choice between
direct or indirect controls. Although most national governments have used direct
controls, especially punitive measures to increase the costs of participating in
shadow entrepreneurship (see OECD, 2015; Williams, 2015a), this does not mean
that the solution is to use either “bribes” or indirect controls. These approaches
are not mutually exclusive.
70
Indeed, a growing recognition has been that even if indirect controls are a
useful and innovative way of transforming shadow entrepreneurship into
legitimate entrepreneurship which could be usefully adopted (Williams, 2014a;
Williams and Renooy, 2013), they are insufficient on their own. Direct controls are
also needed. For example, governments may change the culture of tax offices
towards a more customer-oriented approach and introduce public campaigns to
engender greater commitment to compliance, whilst simplifying regulatory
compliance for business start-ups and introducing incentives for established
shadow entrepreneurs (e.g., amnesties). However, at the same time, and in
relation to those who do not comply, they may also pursue improvements in the
probability of detection and tougher sanctions.
The debate at present therefore is not over whether to use direct or
indirect controls. The emergent consensus is that both are needed. Instead, the
major issue is determining which specific policy measures in each approach are
most effective and what is the most effective way of combining and sequencing
these measures to engender effective compliance. For example, measures to
improve detection through inspections are currently often combined with
campaigns to raise awareness. Tougher sanctions furthermore, often follow
amnesties and voluntary disclosure schemes. However, whether these are the
most effective combinations and sequences are not known. Despite this, two
particular approaches have emerged recently that provide ways of combining
these approaches in particular sequences, namely the responsive regulation
approach and the slippery slope framework.
71
Responsive regulation
Responsive regulation engages entrepreneurs to openly think about their
obligations and accept responsibility for regulating themselves in a manner
consistent with the law. This is an approach that seeks to win their “hearts and
minds” so as to engender a commitment to compliance so that they regulate
themselves rather than need to be regulated by external rules. Nevertheless,
although this approach gives primacy to the use of indirect controls, it does not
exclusively limit itself to such measures (see Braithwaite, 2009).
The Australian Tax Office for example has gone some way to adopting this
responsive regulation approach. In the first instance indirect controls are used to
facilitate voluntary self-regulation, followed by persuasion and only for the small
minority refusing to be compliant does it then use punitive measures (Braithwaite,
2009; Job et al., 2007). Pu another way, this approach is based on a regulatory
pyramid. This sequence’s the measures used from the least intrusive which are
used first to the most intrusive which are employed as a last resort. It is founded
upon the belief that tax authorities do not need in the majority of cases to pursue
coercion to engender compliance. Instead, it commences with the indirect control
measures and only if these do not work, does the level of intrusiveness escalate
until it reaches the policy intervention that elicits compliance. This is founded
upon the recognition that there exists a continuum of attitudes towards
compliance and different policy responses can be therefore sequenced starting
with indirect controls and moving through bribes to sanctions.
72
Whether this ordering is the appropriate combination and sequence is
debatable. Until now, no evaluations of whether this sequencing is the most
appropriate and/or effective means of engendering compliance have been
conducted. Although it seems logically the most appropriate and effective, no
evidence-base currently exists that this is the case.
Slippery slope framework
Another way of combining direct and indirect controls is to adopt the
“slippery slope framework” (Kirchler et al., 2008). This distinguishes two types of
compliance approach, namely voluntary compliance (akin to an indirect controls
approach) and enforced compliance (akin to a direct controls approach).
Voluntary compliance is viewed as occurring where there is trust in the
authorities. Enforced compliance meanwhile is viewed as requiring the authorities
to have power (i.e., the ability to get citizens to do what they were before not going
to do, in the way in which the authorities wish them to do it). When there is
neither trust in authorities and authorities have no power, then shadow
entrepreneurship will be prevalent.
To tackle shadow entrepreneurship therefore, one can either increase the
power of authorities and/or trust in the authorities. The direct controls approach
puts the emphasis on increasing the power of authorities, whilst the indirect
controls approach puts more emphasis on increasing the trust of authorities. In
practice however, these are not mutually exclusive. Both can be used together. The
slippery slope framework does so in order to elicit legitimate entrepreneurship.
73
Wahl et al. (2010) randomly presented participants with one of four
different descriptions of a fictitious country, in which the authorities were
depicted on the one hand, as either trustworthy or untrustworthy and on the
other hand, as either powerful or powerless. Their results reveal that participants
paid significantly more taxes when both power and trust were high. They
additionally revealed that voluntary compliance was highest when the authorities
were both trustful and powerful, while enforced compliance was highest when
authorities were portrayed as powerful, but not trustworthy. This is further
reinforced by two additional surveys of real-world taxpayers (Muehlbacher et al.,
2011a,b). The outcome is that a combination of both greater trust in authorities
and the greater power of authorities are viewed as a potent combination. Based on
this, the suggestion is that pursuing both is the most effective means of tackling
shadow entrepreneurship (Kogler et al., 2015).
Conclusions
This paper has reviewed what might be done to tackle shadow
entrepreneurship. To do this, it has reviewed four possible policy options, namely
taking no action, pursuing the eradication of shadow entrepreneurship, moving
legitimate entrepreneurship into the shadow economy, or transforming shadow
entrepreneurship into legitimate entrepreneurship. This has revealed that doing
nothing would leave intact the current negative impacts on legitimate
entrepreneurs (e.g., unfair competition), shadow entrepreneurs (e.g., the inability
to gain access to credit to expand), customers (e.g., no guarantee of health and
safety standards) and governments (e.g., taxes owed are not collected). There is no
74
evidence, moreover, that de-regulation of the legitimate sector tackles shadow
entrepreneurship, whilst eradicating shadow entrepreneurship would result in
governments repressing and eradicating precisely the entrepreneurial endeavor
and enterprise culture that they otherwise wish to foster. Transforming shadow
entrepreneurship into legitimate entrepreneurship is thus revealed to be the most
viable policy choice.
To show how this can be achieved, this paper has revealed how either
direct controls or indirect controls can be employed, and the various direct control
measures have been reviewed along with the various indirect controls. This has
displayed that the currently dominant approach of using direct controls that seek
to improve detection and increase punishment is a rather limited approach and
that there is a much larger toolkit available for tackling shadow entrepreneurship.
Moreover, the various tools are not mutually exclusive. To display this, this paper
has outlined various ways of combining direct and indirect controls when tackling
shadow entrepreneurship, namely responsive regulation and the slippery slope
framework. The outcome is that a comprehensive review has been provided of the
various policy approaches available to policy makers along with some suggestions
regarding how they can be combined. If this paper thus encourages governments
to experiment with wider measures for tackling shadow entrepreneurship, then it
will have achieved its goal. If it also encourages more research on the most
effective means of combining and sequencing these measures, then it will have
achieved its wider objective.
75
References
Achua, C.F. and R.N. Lussier (2014), “Entrepreneurial drive and the informal economy in Cameroon”,
Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, 19(4): 1-14.
Adom, K. (2014), “Beyond the marginalization thesis: an examination of the motivations of informal
entrepreneurs in sub-Saharan Africa: insights from Ghana”, International Journal of
Entrepreneurship and Innovation, 15(2): 113-125.
Adom, K. and C.C. Williams (2012), “Evaluating the motives of informal entrepreneurs in Koforidua,
Ghana”, Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, 17(1): 1-16.
Aidis, R., F. Welter, D. Smallbone and N. Isakova (2006), “Female entrepreneurship in transition
economies: the case of Lithuania and Ukraine”, Feminist Economics, 13(2): 157-83.
Allingham, M. and A. Sandmo (1972), “Income tax evasion: a theoretical analysis”, Journal of Public
Economics, 1(2): 323-38.
Alm, J. (2011), “Designing alternative strategies to reduce tax evasion”, in M. Pickhardt and A. Prinz
(eds.), Tax Evasion and the Shadow Economy, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, 13-32.
Alm, J., B. Jackson and M. McKee (1993), “Fiscal exchange, collective decision institutions and tax
compliance”, Journal of Economic Behaviour and Organization, 22: 285-303.
Alm, J., I. Sanchez and A. De Juan (1995), “Economic and non-economic factors in tax compliance”,
Kyklos, 48: 3-18.
Autio, E. and K. Fu (2014), “Economic and political institutions and entry into formal and informal
entrepreneurship”, Asia Pacific Journal of Management, doi: 10.1007/s10490-014-9381-0.
Ayres, I. and J. Braithwaite (1992), Responsive Regulation: transcending the deregulation debate,
Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Bergman, M. and A. Nevarez (2006), “Do audits enhance compliance? An empirical assessment of VAT
enforcement”, National Tax Journal, 59(4): 817-32.
Bird, R., J. Martinez-Vazquez and B. Torgler (2006), “Societal institutions and tax effort in developing
countries”, in J. Alm, J. Martinez-Vazquez and M. Rider (eds.), The Challenges of Tax Reform
in the Global Economy, Springer, New York, 283-338.
Bobeck, D.D. and R.C. Hatfield (2003), “An investigation of the theory of planned behavior and the role
of moral obligation in tax compliance”, Behavioural Research in Accounting, 52(1): 13-38.
Braithwaite, V. (2009), Defiance in Taxation and Governance: resisting and dismissing authority in a
democracy, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham.
Braithwaite, V. and M. Reinhart (2000), The Taxpayers’ Charter: does the Australian Tax Office comply
and who benefits, Centre for Tax System Integrity Working Paper no.1, Australian National
University, Canberra.
Bruton, G., D, Ireland and D. Ketchen (2012), “Toward a research agenda on the informal economy”,
Academy of Management Perspectives, 26(3): 1-11.
Bureau, S. and J. Fendt (2011), “Entrepreneurship in the informal economy: why it matters”,
International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, 12(2): 85-94.
Castells, M. and A. Portes (1989), “World underneath: the origins, dynamics and effects of the informal
economy”, in A. Portes, M. Castells and L. Benton (eds.), The Informal Economy: studies in
advanced and less developing countries, John Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 1-19.
Chung, J. and V.U. Trivedi (2003), “The effect of friendly persuasion and gender on tax compliance
behavior”, Journal of Business Ethics, 47(2): 133-45.
Dau, L.A. and A. Cuervo-Cazurra (2014), “To formalize or not to formalize: entrepreneurship and pro-
market institutions”, Journal of Business Venturing, 29(4): 668-86.
76
Davis, M. (2006), Planet of Slums, Verso, London.
De Beer, J., K. Fu and S. Wunsch-Vincent (2013), The Informal Economy, Innovation and Intellectual
Property: concepts, metrics and policy considerations. Economic Research Working Paper no.
10, World Intellectual Property Organization, Geneva.
De Juan, A., M.A. Lasheras and R. Mayo (1994), “Voluntary tax compliant behavior of Spanish income
taxpayers”, Public Finance, 49: 90-105.
De Soto, H. (1989), The Other Path: the economic answer to terrorism, Harper and Row, London.
De Soto, H. (2001), The Mystery of Capital: why capitalism triumphs in the West and fails everywhere
else, Black Swan, London.
Dekker, H., E. Oranje, P. Renooy, F. Rosing and C.C. Williams (2010), Joining up the Fight against
Undeclared Work in the European Union, DG Employment, Social Affairs and Equal
Opportunities, Brussels.
European Commission (2007), Stepping up the Fight against Undeclared Work, European Commission,
Brussels.
European Commission (2014), Special Eurobarometer 397: Corruption, European Commission,
Brussels.
Evans, M., S. Syrett and C.C. Williams (2006), Informal Economic Activities and Deprived
Neighbourhoods, Department of Communities and Local Government, London.
Feld, L.P. and B. Frey (2002), “rust breeds trust: how taxpayers are treated”, Economics of Government,
3(2): 87-99.
Gallin, D. (2001), “Propositions on trade unions and informal employment in time of globalization”,
Antipode, 19(4): 531-49.
Gangl, K., S. Muehlbacher, M. de Groot, S. Goslinga, E. Hofmann, C. Kogler, G. Antonides and E.
Kirchler (2013), “How can I help you?: perceived service orientation of tax authorities and tax
compliance”, Public Finance Analysis, 69(4): 487-510.
Grabiner, L. (2000), The Informal Economy, HM Treasury, London.
Harding, R., D. Brooksbank, M. Hart, D. Jones-Evans, J. Levie and J. O’Reilly (2006), Global
Entrepreneurship Monitor United Kingdom, 2005,London Business School, London.
Hartner, M., S. Rechberger, E. Kirchler and A. Schabmann (2008), “Procedural justice and tax
compliance”, Economic Analysis and Policy, 38(1): 137-152.
Hartner, M., S. Rechberger, E. Kirchler and M. Wenzel (2011), “Perceived distributive fairness of EU
transfer payments, outcome favourability, identity and EU-tax compliance”, Law and Policy,
33(1): 22-31.
Hasseldine, J. and Z. Li (1999), “More tax evasion research required in new millennium”, Crime, Law and
Social Change, 31(1): 91-104.
ILO (2012), Statistical Update on Employment in the Informal Economy, International Labour
Organisation, Geneva.
ILO (2014), Transitioning from the informal to the formal economy. Report V (1), International Labour
Conference, 103rd Session (2014), ILO, Geneva.
Internal Revenue Service (2007), “Understanding taxes”, available at
http://www.irs.gov/app/understandingTaxes/jsp/ (accessed 14 May 2014).
Job, J., A. Stout and R. Smith (2007), “Culture change in three taxation administrations: from command
and control to responsive regulation”, Law and Policy, 29(1): 84-101.
Kinsey, K. and H. Gramsick (1993), “Did the tax reform act of 1986 improve compliance?: three studies
of pre- and post-TRA compliance attitudes”, Law and Policy, 15(2): 239-325.
77
Kinsey, K., H. Gramsick and K. Smith (1991), “Framing justice: taxpayer evaluations of personal tax
burdens”, Law and Society Review, 25(4): 845-73.
Kirchgässner, G. (2010), Tax Morale, Tax Evasion and the Shadow Economy, Discussion Paper no 2010-
17, Department of Economics, University of St. Gallen, St. Gallen.
Kirchgässner, G. (2011), “Tax morale, tax evasion and the shadow economy”, in F. Schneider (ed.),
Handbook of the Shadow Economy, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, 347-74.
Kirchler, E. (2007), The Economic Psychology of Tax Behaviour, Cambridge University Press,
Cambridge.
Kirchler, E., E. Hoelzl and I. Wahl (2008), “Enforced versus voluntary tax compliance: the ‘slippery
slope’ framework”, Journal of Economic Psychology, 29: 210–25.
Kogler, C., S. Muelbacher and E. Kirchler (2015), “Testing the ‘slippery slope framework’ among self-
employed taxpayers”, Economics of Government, doi 10.1007/s10101-015-0158-9.
Kus, B. (2010), “Regulatory governance and the informal economy: cross-national comparisons”, Socio-
Economic Review, 8(3): 487-510.
Kus, B. (2014), “The informal road to markets: neoliberal reforms, private entrepreneurship and the
informal economy in Turkey”, International Journal of Social Economics, 41(4): 278-93.
Lillemets, K. (2009), Maksumoraal maksukäitumise kujundajana ja selle peamised isikupõhised
mõjutegurid, available at http://www.riigikogu.ee/rito/index.php?id=14002&op=archive2
(accessed 11 May 2014).
London, T. and S.L. Hart (2004), “Reinventing strategies for emerging markets: beyond the transnational
model”, Journal of International Business Studies, 35(5): 350-70.
Maloney, W.F. (2004), “Informality revisited”, World Development, 32(7): 1159-78.
McGee, R.W. (2005), “The ethics of tax evasion: a survey of international business academics”, Paper
presented at the 60th International Atlantic Economic Conference, New York, October 6-9.
McGee, R.W. (2008), Taxation and Public Finance in Transition and Developing Countries, Springer,
New York.
McGee, R.W., J. Alver and L. Alver (2008), “The ethics of tax evasion: a survey of Estonian Opinion”,
in R.W. McGee (ed.), Taxation and Public Finance in Transition and Developing Countries,
Springer, Berlin, 119-36.
Molero, J.C. and F. Pujol (2012), “Walking inside the potential tax evader’s mind: tax morale does
matter”, Journal of Business Ethics, 105: 151-162.
Morris, J. and A. Polese (2014), “Introduction: informality – enduring practices, entwined livelihoods”,
in J. Morris and A. Polese (eds.), The Informal Post-Socialist Economy: embedded practices
and livelihoods, Routledge, London, 1-18.
Mróz, B. (2012), “Entrepreneurship in the shadow: faces and variations of Poland’s informal economy”,
International Journal of Economic Policy in Emerging Economies, 5(3): 197-211.
Muehlbacher, S., C. Kogler and E. Kirchler (2011a), An Empirical Testing of the Slippery Slope
Framework: The Role of Trust and Power in Explaining Tax Compliance, University of Vienna
Department of Economics Working Paper, Vienna.
Muehlbacher, S., E. Kirchler and H. Schwarzenberger (2011b), “Voluntary versus enforced tax
compliance: empirical evidence for the ‘slippery slope’ framework”, European Journal of Law
and Economics, 32: 89–97.
Murphy, K. (2003), “Procedural fairness and tax compliance”, Australian Journal of Social Issues, 38(3):
379-408.
Murphy, K. (2005), “Regulating more effectively: the relationship between procedural justice, legitimacy
and tax non-compliance”, Journal of Law and Society, 32(4): 562-89.
78
Murphy, K. (2008), “Enforcing tax compliance: to punish or persuade?”, Economic Analysis and Policy,
38(1): 113-35.
Murphy, K. and N. Harris (2007), “Shaming, shame and recidivism: a test of re-integrative shaming
theory in the white-collar crime context”, British Journal of Criminology, 47: 900-17.
Murphy, K., T. Tyler and A. Curtis (2009), “Nurturing regulatory compliance: is procedural fairness
effective when people question the legitimacy of the law?”, Regulation and Governance, 3(1):
1-26.
National Audit Office (2003), Tackling Fraud against the Inland Revenue, Stationary Office, London.
Natrah, S. (2013), “Tax knowledge, tax complexity and tax compliance: taxpayers’ view”, Procedia: Social
and Behavioural Sciences, 109: 1069-76.
Nwabuzor, A. (2005), “Corruption and development: new initiatives in economic openness and
strengthened rule of law”, Journal of Business Ethics, 59(1/2): 121-38.
OECD (2008), OECD Employment Outlook, OECD, Paris.
OECD (2015), Informal entrepreneurship, OECD, Paris.
Perry, G.E., W.F. Maloney, O.S. Arias, P. Fajnsylber, A.D. Mason and J. Saavedra-Chanduvi (2007),
Informality: exit or exclusion, World Bank, Washington DC.
Renooy, P., S. Ivarsson, O. van der Wusten-Gritsai and R. Meijer (2004), Undeclared Work in an Enlarged
Union: an analysis of shadow work - an in-depth study of specific items, European Commission,
Brussels.
Reynolds, P., W.D. Bygrave, E. Autio and M. Hay (2002), Global Entrepreneurship Monitor: 2002,
Executive Monitor, London Business School, London.
Richardson, M. and A . Sawyer (2001), “ A t axonomy of the t ax compliance l iterature: further
findings, problems and prospects”, Australian Tax Forum, 16(2): 137–320.
Saeed, A. and A. Shah (2011), “Enhancing tax morale with marketing tactics: a review of the literature”,
African Journal of Business Management, 5(35): 13659-65.
Sauvy, A. (1984), Le Travail Noir et l’Economie de Demain, Calmann-Levy, Paris.
Schneider, F. and C.C. Williams (2013), The Shadow Economy, Institute of Economic Affairs, London.
Schneider, F. and D. Enste (2002), The Shadow Economy: an international survey, Cambridge
University Press, Cambridge.
Shaw, J., J. Slemrod and J. Whiting (2008), Administration and Compliance, Institute for Fiscal Studies,
London.
Siqueira, A.C.O., J. Webb and G.D. Bruton (2014), “Informal entrepreneurship and industry conditions”,
Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice DOI: 10.1111/etap.12115
Slavnic, Z. (2010), “Political economy of informalisation”, European Societies, 12(1): 3-23.
Slemrod, J., M. Blumenthal and C.W. Christian (2001), “Taxpayer response to an increased probability
of audit: evidence from a controlled experiment in Minnesota”, Journal of Public Economics,
79(3): 455-83.
Small Business Council (2004), Small Business in the Informal Economy: making the transition to the
formal economy, Small Business Council, London.
Smith, R. and G. McElwee (2013), “Confronting social constructions of rural criminality: a case story on
‘illegal pluriactivity’ in the farming community”, Sociologia Ruralis, 53(1): 112-34.
Taiwo, O. (2013), “Employment choice and mobility in multi-sector labour markets: theoretical model
and evidence from Ghana”, International Labour Review, 152(3–4): 469–92.
79
Taylor, N. (2005), “Explaining taxpayer noncompliance through reference to taxpayer identities: a social
identity perspective”, in C. Bajada and F. Schneider (eds.), Size, Causes and Consequences of
the Underground Economy: an international perspective, Ashgate, Aldershot, 39-54.
Thai, M.T.T. and E. Turkina (2014), “Macro-level determinants of formal entrepreneurship versus
informal entrepreneurship”, Journal of Business Venturing, 29(4): 490-510.
Thurman, Q.C., C. St. John and L. Riggs (1984), “Neutralisation and tax evasion: how effective would a
moral appeal be in improving compliance to tax laws?”, Law and Policy, 6(3): 309-27.
Torgler, B. (2003), “To evade taxes or not: that is the question”, Journal of Socio-Economics, 32(2): 283-
302.
Torgler, B. (2007), “Tax morale in Central and Eastern European countries”, in N. Hayoz and S. Hug
(eds.), Tax Evasion, Trust and State Capacities: how good is tax morale in Central and Eastern
Europe?, Peter Lang, Bern, 155-86.
Torgler, B. (2011), Tax Morale and Compliance: review of evidence and case studies for Europe, World
Bank Policy Research Working Paper 5922, World Bank, Washington DC.
Torgler, B. and F. Schneider (2007), Shadow economy, tax morale, governance and institutional quality:
a panel analysis, IZA Discussion Paper no. 2563, IZA, Bonn.
Tyler, T. (1997), “The psychology of legitimacy: a relational perspective in voluntary deference to
authorities”, Personality and Social Psychology Review, 1(4): 323-45.
Tyler, T.R. (2006), Why People Obey the Law, Princeton University Press, Princeton.
Tyler, T.R., L. Sherman, H. Strang, G. Barnes and D. Woods (2007), “Reintegrative shaming, procedural
justice and recidivism: the engagement of offenders’ psychological mechanisms in the Canberra
RISE drinking and driving experiment”, Law and Society Review, 41: 533-86.
Vanderseypen, G., T. Tchipeva, J. Peschner, P. Rennoy and C.C. Williams (2013), “Undeclared work:
recent developments”, in European Commission (ed.), Employment and Social Developments in
Europe 2013, European Commission, Brussels, 231-74.
Varma, K. and A. Doob (1998), “Deterring economic crimes: the case of tax evasion”, Canadian Journal
of Criminology, 40: 165-84.
Vossler, C.A., M. McKee and M. Jones (2011), Some effects of tax information services reliability and
availability on tax reporting behavior. Available at http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/38870/
(accessed 11 May 2014).
Wahl, I., B. Kastlunger and E. Kirchler (2010), “Trust in authorities and power to enforce tax
compliance: an empirical analysis of the ‘slippery slope framework’”, Law and Policy, 32(2):
383–406.
Webley, P. and S. Halstead (1986), “Tax evasion on the micro: significant stimulations per expedient
experiments”, Journal of Interdisciplinary Economics, 1: 87-100.
Weigel, R., D. Hessin and H. Elffers (1987), “Tax evasion research: a critical appraisal and theoretical
model”, Journal of Economic Psychology, 8(2): 215-35.
Welter, F. and D. Smallbone (2011), “Institutional perspectives on entrepreneurial behavior in
challenging environments”, Journal of Small Business Management, 49(1): 107–25.
Wenzel, M. (2002), “The impact of outcome orientation and justice concerns on tax compliance: the role
of taxpayers’ identity”, Journal of Applied Psychology, 87: 639-45.
Wenzel, M. (2004a), “An analysis of norm processes in tax compliance”, Journal of Economic
Psychology, 25(2): 213-228.
Wenzel, M. (2004b), “The social side of sanction: personal and social norms as moderators of
deterrence”, Law and Human Behaviour, 28(3): 547-67.
Wenzel, M. (2006), “A letter from the tax office: compliance effects of informational and interpersonal
fairness”, Social Fairness Research, 19: 345-64.
80
Williams, C.C. (2001), “Tackling the participation of the unemployed in paid informal work: a critical
evaluation of the deterrence approach”, Environment and Planning C, 19(5): 729-49.
Williams, C.C. (2006), The Hidden Enterprise Culture: entrepreneurship in the underground economy,
Edward Elgar, Cheltenham.
Williams, C.C. (2013a), “Evaluating cross-national variations in the extent and nature of informal
employment in the European Union”, Industrial Relations Journal, 44(5-6): 479-94.
Williams, C.C. (2013b), “Tackling Europe’s informal economy: a critical evaluation of the neo-liberal
de-regulatory perspective”, Journal of Contemporary European Research, 9(3): 261-79.
Williams, C.C. (2013c), “Beyond the formal economy: evaluating the level of employment in informal
sector enterprises in global perspective”, Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, 18(4),
DOI: 10.1142/S1084946713500271.
Williams, C.C. (2014a), Confronting the Shadow Economy: evaluating tax compliance behavior and
policies, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham.
Williams, C.C. (2014b), “Tackling enterprises operating in the informal sector in developing and
transition economies: a critical evaluation of the neo-liberal policy approach”, Journal of Global
Entrepreneurship Research, 2(9), available at http://www.journal-jger.com/content/2/1/9.
Williams, C.C. (2014c), “Out of the shadows: a classification of economies by the size and character of
their informal sector”, Work, Employment and Society, 28(5): 735–53.
Williams, C.C. (2014d), “Evaluating cross-national variations in envelope wage payments in East-
Central Europe”, Economic and Industrial Democracy: an International Journal,
doi:10.1177/0143831X13505120.
Williams, C.C. (2015), Informal Entrepreneurship: policy briefing, OECD, Paris.
Williams, C.C. and A. Martinez (2014a), “Do small business start-ups test-trade in the informal
economy? evidence from a UK small business survey”, International Journal of
Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 22(1): 1-16.
Williams, C.C. and A. Martinez (2014b), “Is the informal economy an incubator for new enterprise
creation? a gender perspective”, International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour and
Research, 20(1): 4-19.
Williams, C.C. and A. Martinez (2014c), “Why do consumers purchase goods and services in the
informal economy?”, Journal of Business Research, 67(5): 802-6.
Williams, C.C. and S. Nadin (2010a), “Entrepreneurship and the informal economy: an overview”,
Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, 15(4): 361-378.
Williams, C.C. and S. Nadin (2010b), “The commonality and character of off-the-books
entrepreneurship: a comparison of deprived and affluent urban neighborhoods”, Journal of
Developmental Entrepreneurship, 15(3): 1-14.
Williams, C.C. and S. Nadin (2012a), “Tackling entrepreneurship in the informal economy: evaluating
the policy options”, Journal of Entrepreneurship and Public Policy, 1(2): 111-24.
Williams, C.C. and S. Nadin (2012b), “Tackling the hidden enterprise culture: government policies to
support the formalization of informal entrepreneurship”, Entrepreneurship and Regional
Development, 24(9-10): 895–915.
Williams, C.C. and S. Nadin (2012c), “Beyond the commercial versus social entrepreneurship
dichotomy: a case study of informal entrepreneurs”, Journal of Developmental
Entrepreneurship, 17(3): 1-15.
Williams, C.C. and S. Nadin (2013), “Harnessing the hidden enterprise culture: supporting the
formalization of off-the-books business start-ups”, Journal of Small Business and Enterprise
Development, 20(2): 434-47.
81
Williams, C.C. and S. Nadin (2014), “Facilitating the formalisation of entrepreneurs in the informal
economy: towards a variegated policy approach”, Journal of Entrepreneurship and Public
Policy, 3(1): 33-48.
Williams, C.C. and P. Renooy (2013), Tackling Undeclared Work in 27 European Union Member States
and Norway: approaches and measures since 2008, European Foundation for the Improvement
of Living and Working Conditions, Dublin.
Williams, C.C. and P. Renooy (2014), Flexibility@Work 2014: Bringing the Undeclared Economy out of
the Shadows – the Role of Temporary Work Agencies, Randstad, Amsterdam.
Williams, C.C. and J. Round (2007), “Entrepreneurship and the informal economy: a study of Ukraine’s
hidden enterprise culture”, Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, 12(1): 119-136.
Williams, C.C. and J. Round (2008), “The hidden enterprise culture of Moscow: entrepreneurship and
off-the-books working practices”, Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, 13(4): 445-62.
Williams, C.C. and M.S. Shahid (2015), “Informal entrepreneurship and institutional theory: explaining
the varying degrees of (in)formalisation of entrepreneurs in Pakistan”, Entrepreneurship and
Regional Development, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/08985626.2014.963889 .
Williams, C.C. and J. Windebank (1998), Informal Employment in the Advanced Economies:
implications for work and welfare, Routledge, London.
Williams, C.C. and Y. Youssef (2013), “Evaluating the gender variations in informal sector
entrepreneurship: some lessons from Brazil”, Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship,
18(1): 1-16.
Williams, C.C., J. Round and P. Rodgers (2009), “Evaluating the motives of informal entrepreneurs:
some lessons from Ukraine”, Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, 14(1): 59 -71.
Williams, C.C., J. Round and P. Rodgers (2013), The Role of Informal Economies in the Post-Soviet
World: the end of transition?, Routledge, London.
82
‘Collectivism’ and Innovation: Small and
medium-sized enterprises as local/rural industry
in some East Asian countries
Tomoko Oikawa
Euro-Asia Centre,
Dept of Economics,
Kemmy Business School,
University of Limerick
Castletroy, Co. Limerick, Ireland
Email: tomoko.oikawa@ul.ie
Abstract
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs hereafter) in the local districts in

Southeast Asian countries, Thailand, Indonesia and Japan are explored. The aim is to show
how ‘collectivism’ in these Asian countries is linked with innovation in rural/local
industry. ‘Collectivism’ is an abstract concept itself. The exploration of community-based
‘collectivism’ in actuality in these countries shows that ‘collectivism’ is the dynamic of
innovation to fight against economic difficulties, depopulation and poverty in rural/local
district. The main focus is on ‘one village, one product’ movement in Japan and Thailand.
Indonesia is an interesting case of innovation in terms of community-based industry. In
the case of Japan, other rural/local movement among SMEs is introduced in relation to
community-based collectivism and innovation. The paper explores the issues why things
were, how they were, how they got to be that way and what was making them change. For
this a historical, political economy, and anthropological perspective is necessary. The
main findings are: 1. ‘Collectivism' is the inner dynamic of innovation in rural/local
industry in these Asian countries. 2. Community-based ‘collectivism’ as solidarity and
cooperative capability is the foundation of innovation. 3. SMEs as rural/ local industry as
such could be gathering momentum in these countries. 4. These rural/local industries
tend to be self-reliant and sustainable.
Keywords: ‘collectivism’, innovation, SMEs, rural/local industry, Japan, Thailand,

Indonesia
JEL codes: D2, Z1
Introduction
SMEs are fundamental for local economy in terms of job creation and local
prosperity. Having faced 'hollow-out' and increasing cheaper imported

83
commodities, in line with decreasing of local population, local SMEs need to be
innovative for survival, development and prosperity. This is the case for Japan in
particular. SMEs in Southeast Asia are greatly highlighted as supporting industry
for multinationals. However, the paper is concerned with rural industry, which
consists overwhelmingly of micro enterprises. It is worth noting that they have
shown a remarkable development and they could show the potential for further
development to be the leading or viable rural industry.
The paper focuses on the actualities of these businesses in rural/local
district in these Asian countries and their linkage to the dynamic of ‘collectivism’
in relation to innovation. Such kind of culture could have been a major drive for
their fight to survive against hard times. Such culture could have inspired and
supported innovation. ‘Collectivism’ can be power in such a way. The salient
features of ‘collectivism’ could be seen in community-based innovation in these
Asian countries. How such a relationship would have worked out in these
countries. This is the main argument in this paper. The case studies about
Thailand, Indonesia and Japan are presented here. They are built up on the basis
of secondary materials (Asian Economy, Journal of Asian Studies, Journal of
Southeast Asian Studies, and others).
Thailand and Indonesia are at the different phases from Japan in terms of
economy and technology. However, with regard to the significance of SMEs as
rural/local industry there is no difference between these countries. The recent
studies (Mizuno, 1996; Sakata, 2012; Kurose, 2011; Yokomoto, 2008; Nakamura,
2009: Shibayama, 2011) show that community-based rural/local industries have
succeeded in innovation of organization, product and process in Indonesia,

84
Thailand, Vietnam and Japan. A lot of articles and books are published about ‘one
village, one product (OVOP)’ movement and policy both in Thailand and Japan
(Natsuda, et al.,2012; Takei, 2007; Kaewmanotham, 2008; Matsui and Yamagami,
2006). In reality, there have arisen a number of issues in the process in this
movement and policy. This could be explained from the viewpoints of historical,
political economy and cultural values to pertinent district and/or country.
The paper argues: (1) there are differences between Thailand, Indonesia
and Japan in terms of ‘collectivism’, (2) community-based industry with
innovative activities are picking up in the case of Japan (Nakamura, 2009;
Shibayama, 2011), and Thailand and Indonesia have witnessed the rise of
community-based innovation as rural/local industry (Mizuno, 1996; Kurose,
2011; Yokomoto, 2008). (4) ‘collectivism’ has shown the dynamic of innovation
with great potentialities for sustainable economic development.
The paper is divided into five sections as follows: (i) literature review; (ii)
‘One village one product movement (OVOP)’ and other rural/local SMEs in Japan;
(iii) ‘One Tambon (villages) one product movement (OTOP)’ in Thailand; (iv)
community-based innovation in rural industry in Indonesia; (v) significance of
community-based rural/local industry – historical and cultural background of
‘collectivism’; and (vi) conclusion.
Literature Review
‘Collectivism’ and innovation
Schumpeter (1934 (2008)) states that innovation is not just technology
development but the social process of destruction of gewohnten bahnen (beaten

85
tracks). Recent studies (Numagami, 1999; Page, 2007) claim that innovation is the
social process where the optimal choice is taken via interaction among various ideas.
There has been published the voluminous works in relation to
‘collectivism’ and individualism, mostly from the viewpoints of psychology and
management. There are a small number of studies concerning relationships of
innovation with individualism and/or ‘collectivism’ (Taylor and Wilson, 2012;
Černe et al., 2013; Morris et al., 1993) found so far. These studies focus on the
psychoanalysis of ‘collectivism’ and individualism for inventive activities.
Although the term ‘‘collectivism’’ is not mentioned, Fujimoto (2007) indicates that
among product-process architecture (integral, modular, closed, and open types),
integral architecture is Japan specific way of product-process design. It is carried
out through integration of various ideas from various divisions in the company.
The integral architecture may show a type of ‘collectivism’ representative of
Japanese cultural values. This aspect further leads to the principles of the keiretsu
relationships as the cultural core values in Japanese society (Oikawa, 2011). The
keiretsu relationships between suppliers and users would be said to be
interdependent in terms of improvement or innovation. The relationships are
based on the cultural core values - trust and dependence as social relations in
Japan. These values are embodied in the keiretsu relationships and could be at the
national level (Oikawa, 2011). Basically as an abstract concept, '‘collectivism’' in
Southeast Asian countries and Japan may be interpreted in relation to innovation
when it is approached from the viewpoints of history, political economy and social
anthropology. In historicization of culture and social organization as observed
ethnographically, the point is to try to make sense of why things were how they
86
were, how they got to be that way, and what was making them change (Wolf,
1982).
Other studies with regard to the relationships between ‘collectivism’ and
innovation as empirical studies (Goncalo and Staw, 2006; Yao, et al., 2012) may
not necessarily be positive about the linkage between ‘collectivism’ and
innovation. The former (Goncalo and Staw, 2006) compares individualism with
‘collectivism’ in terms of group creativity, and concludes that individualistic
groups are more creative than collectivistic groups. The latter investigates Chinese
employees’ individualism–’collectivism’ culture orientation and their idea
generation behavior. It concluded that partial correlation results showed that both
horizontal individualism and horizontal ‘collectivism’ had positive influences on
idea generation, but vertical ‘collectivism’ had a positive impact on idea
implementation. All in all, most of these studies shown above have taken the
approach from psychological and managerial viewpoint in organizational settings
– established company.
Classification of SMEs
SMEs can be classified depending on i) nature, and ii) activity in relation to
innovation. Concerning (i), Kiyonari (1972) classified SMEs into four categories: 1)
local industry, 2) community-based industry, 3) production related big business,
4) none of the above. Activity in relation to innovation is divided into three
categories: suppliers, independent enterprises or entrepreneur, and ‘between’
(White Paper on Small and Medium Enterprises in Japan). Kiyonari (1972) defines
community-based industry as follows:
87
Community-based industry mainly develops out of traditional industries and
is a corporate group that procures its labor resources and raw materials
from pre-existing local markets. In many cases, the labor supply for such
industries is closely connected to local agriculture and is employed in labor-
intensive production processes. The enterprises involved are mostly from
small to petty in scale. The products manufactured are in many cases locally
typical items, and the markets for them are not limited locally, but located
throughout the country and the overseas (Kiyonari, 1967: 63)
In fact community-based enterprises may be mingled with local SMEs, for
example, in the case of rural/local economy revitalization movement (Nakamura,
2009).
‘One Village One Product (OVOP)’ Movement in Japan
It originally started in 1961 in a village, Oyama, in the Oita Prefecture in
south-western Japan as a ‘village revitalization movement’. The aim was
revitalization of the village’s economy. Its catch phrase was ‘Let’s go to Hawaii on
holidays planting plums and chestnuts.’ This is called NPC (new plum and
chestnut) movement. The village is mountainous and each farmer’s rice field was
very small. 80 per cent of the village is forested mountains and fields. Despite of such
circumstances both the central and prefectural government encouraged the increase of
rice production and of livestock farming. Many villagers were working in forested
mountains and as seasonal workers to earn additional income. The villagers with the
agricultural cooperative and the mayor of the village started the campaign to contribute
to local economy development and poverty alleviation. The original concept of this
88
movement was to select products unique to the region. The village is naturally suitable
for plums and chestnuts ubiquitous, which require light labor and earn much income.
At present, apart from plum and prune, the main focus is mushroom – enoki and then
shiitake added - , for which saw dust is used and it is plentiful in the village. In
addition, wild herbs are on the list. Older people are joining to collect herbs, which are
highly valued in the market. Above products are just the main examples. OVOP
movement has developed into enhancing local communities’ entrepreneurial skills by
utilising local resource and knowledge, creating value-adding activities through
branding of local products in local economy. The basic principle of this movement is
that the grassroots in the community are the leading driver of self-reliance, and the
administration is for indirect support, not financial but technical help. The governor of
Oita prefecture subsequently backed this movement. In this movement the education of
people is most important, which makes it feasible to be self-reliant and creative, for
sustainable development, and 'local link, global reach'. The movement has continued,
developed, and expanded. There have arisen problems, depopulation for example, but
they have found a solution. The principle is the ‘products must be super best quality
and local people must be employed (Yahata Kinji, the President of the Oyama
Agriculture Cooperative, 2009).
One Tambon (Villages) One Product Movement and Policy in Thailand
In 2001 the Thai government introduced 'One Village One Product (OVOP)'
scheme in Japan as One Tambon (villages) One Product (OTOP)' in Thailand to
promote rural and local development. By that time Thai had fulfilled a high
economic growth rate through industrialization policy relying on foreign direct
investment inflows and export expansion through multinational corporations.

89
However, on the other hand, this high economic growth caused inequalities
between urban and rural areas. While having supported Thai economy supplying a
plenty of resources and cheap labor force, rural areas had suffered poverty,
depopulation, and destruction of environment. Further the Asian economic crisis
in 1997 and its aftermath have exhausted these areas.
In order to make a breakthrough in such a situation and to revitalize rural
economy, the Thaksin government loaned up to 1 million baht to every Thai
village for development projects and at the same time established a Village and
Rural Revolving Fund, which serves as a source of capital for the OTOP project as a
model of OVOP movement in Oita (Kaewmanotham, 2008).
However, the OTOP project is basically distinctive from the OVOP
movement in terms of drive (Fujioka, 2007). It is the Thaksin government that had
taken the initiative throughout the process. The distinction is obvious in particular
in terms of the relationships between grassroots community, local government
and the central government. The OVOP in Japan is by and for local people, who are
the subject of the movement, and the local government was the main helper even
against the central government. The OTOP project in Thailand took priority to
achieve visible outcome over to encourage and to promote the grassroots’
initiative. In fact no new organization was established in Tambon, the base of the
grassroots community. It is noted that in most communities there had been only
limited people who participated in local products in terms of labor force, raw
materials, design and market before the OTOP project is introduced and the
project had no actual attempt to break such a situation. The OTOP project targeted
at the support for superior, promising producers rather than for strengthening
90
weak ones’ technology and group management. As a whole, the project even had
created the gap expanding between local producers rather than alleviating. The
grassroots communities did not take a keen interest in sharing the benefit from
the project. It is getting difficult for the local people to maintain solidarity, and
mutual aid. Self-reliance spirit also is getting weak (Kaewmanotham, 2008).
Recently, the Thai government launched the “sufficient economy policy”, in which
the government claims to strengthen rural communities. However, this does not
necessarily result in the strengthening of rural communities (Rakyutidharm,
2009). It is the reality that OTOP project created new job and chance to be
employed. People are not necessarily to work away from home (Kaewmanotham,
2008), but there also exists the fact the income is not enough for their living,
depending on the types of process where they are engaged in and whether they
have access to get financial supports (Takei, 2007).
Community-based Innovation in Rural Industry in Indonesia
Most of sentra industri (industrial center), which consists of at least 20
enterprises producing more or less the same products, are located in Java
(Tambunan and Supratikno, 2004). Distinctive from the case of rural/local
industry in Thailand, Indonesia has no definite leading industry for development
and looks that leading developing industry is dispersing (Sato, 2011).
This section will explore two case studies on rural weaving industry in
West Java. One is village-level textile industry with more than 50 years' history
(Mizuno, 1996), and the other silk weaving industry with about 10 years’
(Yokomoto, 2008).
91
During the late 1960s and 1970s big business advanced and rural
industries were declining, threatened by competition from large urban
corporations by the open policy towards foreign investment and promotion of
Indonesian-Chinese investment under the Suharto administration. Until then this
surveyed rural weaving industry was developing into a factory production system
under the Sukarno administration’s policy for indigenous Indonesians (pribumi)
through a system of cooperatives. Indonesia’s weaving industry is a mixture of
enterprises, consisting of foreign capital, state corporations, Chinese-owned
capital, cooperatives, and pribumi entrepreneurs who are the owners of most
small-scale manufacturing businesses and employ two-thirds of Indonesian
industrial work force. Such an overwhelming number of petty enterprises seldom
invest in forms of manufacturing, and even export industries remained organized
as petty enterprises depending mainly on family labor (Mizuno, 1996).
Background – (1)
In 1993 the governor of West Smatra visited Oita for OVOP movement.
Since then until 2002 the West Smatra government organized the exchange event
with Oita prefecture every year. However, the OVOP movement has never been
materialized in Indonesia. There seems to be three main reasons for this (Matsui,
2007): 1) the central government had been indifferent to the OVOP movement. In
particular the Suharto government had held fast to the centralized administrative
framework and ruined the potential of local revitalization measures based on the
local initiative before it had a chance to develop; 2) the existence of village was
based on the administrative desa, which was introduced by the Suharto
92
government and destroyed the traditional framework of naturally developed
village. Under such circumstances village itself is weak in identity; and 3) under
the Suharto government the village is not located as the subject for development,
but the object for the administrator to enter, to monitor and to develop. In line
with this policy, ‘the movement back to village (GKD)’ was advocated by the
governor in 1995. The GKD movement consists of four factors: One village one
good production, entry of technology and of entrepreneur into village, prosperity
of village market. The basic idea of this movement is that the development of
villages depends on funds, talent and technology provided from the outside.
Background – (2)
After the collapse of the Suharto government in 1998, the new Habbie
government started the decentralization, and its local development policy
changed. In this process the locally produced using local resources movement is
expanding. The phrase of ‘the government is facilitator’ became common
knowledge (Matsui, 2007).
Case studies
A Case Study of community-based weaving industry in West Java (Mizuno,
1996)
The Majalaya region in West Java has a long history as weavers. During the
late 1960s the weavers were not able to continue the factory system they had
organized up until that time. It was not until 1976 that this surveyed village began
to see any chance of recovery from the disastrous situation that had occurred in its
weaving industry over the previous three years. The villagers and surrounding
93
areas took the following measures to overcome the crisis: i) they experimented
with a number of new products, the market for had not yet been monopolized by
the large textile firms and power-loom weaving firms, and attempted to make
existing products cheaper than power-loom weaving firms; ii) for this purpose
they made concerted efforts to cut production costs; iii) they organized a new
division of labor among themselves; iv) many weavers turned to commerce in an
attempt to open new urban markets for their products among middle- and low-
end consumers. And a large number of locally based traders took innovative
measures to open up new marketing networks. Measures (iii) and (iv) were
especially effective. As a result a weaving production area/community centering
around the village was formed, which was freed from dependence on either
factories or wholesalers in other regions. The weaving business within this new
division of labor put out some work to home workers and hired very little wages
labor, thus realizing a system of production that must be classified as “petty
commodity production”. This new division of labor reflects the village’s economic
status differences. This makes it possible for members of the village’s lower and
middle strata to easily set up weaving and cloth trading businesses with very
small amounts of initial capital. Further there are added issues in terms of cultural
values.
Mizuno (1996) got to the additional points which should be considered in
this community-based weaving rural industry. One is that in spite of the fact that
the pay is better working for others as wage labor or weavers, the choice of lower
paying independence can be attributed in part to the community’s character,
which prefers self-employed work to working for someone else. Another is that
94
independent businesses, despite the low income offered for weavers, produce
about the same amount of income as rice farming among middle-strata owner
operators in the village.
Silk industry in Tasikmalaya Prefecture, in West Java (Yokomoto, 2005,
2008).
In this prefecture, the Sericulture Cooperative took the lead in the silk
industry, buying cocoons from farmers, producing silk and selling the silk
products and the sericulture farmers play the role of suppliers of raw material. In
doing so, the industry secured stable supply of raw material and created new job
opportunities. In short, the Sericulture Cooperative is establishing social division
of labor of local industry in Tasikmalaya Prefecture. This is outstanding.
West Java is one of the most prosperous in silk industry in Indonesia. In
1993 PT Indo Jado Sutera Pratama started operation of silk mill, which is the
largest in Indonesia. This company bought cocoons from sericulture farmers and
sold silk mill to silk industry in Indonesia. In fact most cocoons are imported.
However, since the Asian economic crisis it became impossible to import because
of the dramatic depreciation of Indonesian currency and increase of imported
cocoon price. The company was closed down in 2003, October. This has led to
integrated system of silk production. The Sericulture Cooperative has succeeded
in this production system based on cocoon production as raw material since
January in 2004, thus incorporating raw material producers in division of labor
system, and forming social division of labor of local industry. Such rural/local
industry subdivides production process and entrusts it to specialists and ordinary
95
workers. It creates low-cost production system and chance of employment for
ordinary workers.
Significance of Community-based Rural/Local Industry – Historical and
Cultural Background of ‘Collectivism’ and Innovation
‘One Village One Product’ movement in Japan started from a small village as
community-based movement with the passionate leader as the mayor of village.
Hereafter, the mayor of the prefecture acknowledged the significance of this
movement and supported technically and commercially. In retrospect this
movement has a long history as the background of mainly agriculture
cooperatives’ movement which may ascend to before the Second World War
(Matsui, 2006). Through such rural areas’ organization, rural economy
improvement, agricultural improvement or life improvement has continued
slowly but steadily (Matsui, 2006). In fact there have existed a lot of similar
movements in local areas among community and/or local SMEs in Japan at
present. They are not always limited in OVOP policy, but their targets are same,
revitalizing the rural/local economy to be independent and sustainable through
establishment of the basic rural/local industry (Nakamura, 2009, 2013). For this a
lot of local villages/towns are challenging for independence and sustainability
through innovative activity to establish local economic circulation. Local SMEs are
expanding the keiretsu networking to new ‘meshing’ (2007 White Paper on Small
and Medium Enterprises in Japan). This movement includes the establishment of
cooperatives and joint projects, joint R & D, or Joint production. They shift to local
industrial association (56.4%), heterogeneous business cooperatives and studying
96
circles (64.1%). They exchange information, ideas or knowledge with other SMEs.
The main aim is that each enterprise brings in their own strength each other for
the cooperatives and creates new value-added commodities (2008 White Paper on
Small and Medium Enterprises in Japan). They pay a visit to other companies on a
daily basis and get merits such as, that they are able to judge precisely their
clients’ level of technology or skills (73.0%), or that it is straightforward for them
to modify or to propose technical matters with their clients (65.1%) (2010 White
Paper on Small and Medium Enterprises in Japan). The keiretsu principles as the
cultural core values, trust and dependence, (Oikawa, 2011) should provide a solid
foundation for these movement.
Thailand has a distinctive community culture (watthanatham chumchon),
which consists of a wide variety of numerous community cultures depending on
the district (tambon). Originally the idea of ‘community (chumchon)’ appeared in
the early 1980s among NGO activists, researchers and intellectuals (Shigetomi,
2009). These people understood local agricultural groups in terms of traditional
mutual cooperation and friendships, as ‘community (chumchon)’. In line with the
motion above around the 1980s rural people created new type of economic
organization such as ‘savings cooperative’ and ‘rice bank’. These organizations
were funded and managed by the people themselves. This thought, watthanatham
chumchon, has spread wide in Thai society and had considerable impact on
politics in Thailand at present (Shigetomi, 2009).
Indonesia has two outstanding cultural values, gotong royong (mutual and
reciprocal assistance) and musyawarah mufakat (consensus and unanimous). The
historical background of gotong royong in origin is opaque. However, it is since the

97
independence day of Republic of Indonesia in 1 st of June 1945 that gotong royong
is publicly and officially declared as the embodiment of the principles of the
national foundation. Apart from gotong royong, musyawarah mufakat (consensus
and unanimous) has a long history in Indonesia. It goes back to the village
ordinance in 1906. This is a kind of Indonesian village-level democracy (Mizuno,
2008). Musyawarah mufakat has been functioning well outside the parliament, for
example in the case of labor dispute. Its principle is a democracy based on the
belief in God (Mizuno, 2003).
Conclusions
The community-based rural/local industry needs to persevere in their
effort for innovation. Their innovation is the process of people' consensus
formation in community. Its salient features are that these community-based
enterprises employ local people, and use rural/local resources, less wasteful. They
are concerned about protecting environment. They are attached their
surroundings.
Important, they can make rural/local economy independent and
sustainable by creating regional economic circulation. At the very bottom of these
community-based movements the cultural core values should exist.
98
References:
Černe, M., Jaklič, M., and Škerlavaj, M. (2013), “Decoupling management and
technological innovations Resolvomg the individualism-’collectivism’
controversy”, Journal of International Management, 19 (2): 103-117.
Fujimoto, T. (Sept. 2007), “Architecture-Based Comparative Advantage--A Design
Information View of Manufacturing”, Evolutionary & Institutional Economics
Review, 4 (1): 55-112.
Fujioka, R. (2007), “OTOP project as the Local Revitalization Policy in Thailand”, Aji-
ken World Trend, 137 (2): 20-23.
Goncalo, J. A. and Staw, B. M. (2006), “Individualism-’collectivism’ and group
creativity”, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 100: 96-
109.
Kaewmanotham, M. (2008), “Thai ni okeru OTOP project to Jizoku Kanou na Hatten
(OTOP project and sustainable development in Thailand”, Journal of the faculty
of international studies, Utsunomiya University, 26 (1), 63-71.
Kiyonari, T. (1967), Gendai Nihon no shō-reisai kigyō (Small and petty enterprises in
modern Japan), Tokyo: Bungadō-ginkō-kenkyū sha.
Kiyonari, T. (1972), Gendai chūshō kigyō no shin-tenkai (New evolution of small and
medium-sized enterprises), Tokyo: Nihon-keizai-shinbunsha.
Kurose, N. (2011), Higashi ajia chushokigyo no hahatten to kongo no kadai
(Development of East Asian SMEs and Issues for future), SMEs Research
Centre.
Matsui, K. and Yamagami, S. (2006), Issos Ippin Undo to Kaihatsu Tojyokoku: Nihon
no Chiiki Shinko ha dou Tsutaeraretaka (One Village, One Product Movement
and Developing Countries: how Japan's rural development strategy was
transferred). Chiba: Institute of Developing Economics (IDE) and Japan
External Trade Organization (JETRO).
Mizuno, K. (1996), Rural Industrialization in West Java – A case study of community-
based weaving industry in West Java. Occasional Papers Series, No. 31, IDE-
JETRO.
Mizuno, K. (2003), “Indonesia ni okeru rousifunso shoriseido to sono funso jirei (Labor
dispute processing system and the case studies in Indonesia), Ajia Keizai, XLIV-
5∙6:167-198.
Mizuno, K. (2008), “Sonraku gyosei ha do kawattaka – Indonesia teki sonraku
minshushugi no saisei (How has village-level administration changed? Revival
99
of Indonesian village-level democracy)”, Ajiken wa-rudo torendo (Asiken World
Trend), No.154: 22-24.
Morris, M. H., Avila, R. A., and Allen, J. (1993), “Individualism and the Modern
Corporation: Implications for Innovation and Entrepreneurship”, Journal of
Management, 19 (3): 595-612.
Nakamura, R. (2009), “Tiikikeizai junkan ni yoru jiritu to kakusa no kaisho wo
mezasite (Toward self-reliance and resolution of inequality rural/local districts
through local economic circulation)”, JOYO ARC (Sept),
Nakamura, R. (2013), “Chiho Keizai no jiritsu to jizokukanosei ni mukete (Towards
independence and sustainability of local economy)”, DIO (Sept).
Natsuda, K., Igusa, K., Wiboonpongse, A., and Thoburn, J. (2012), “One Villge One
Product – rural development strategy in Asia: the case of OTOP in Thailand”,
Canadian Journal of Development Studies, 33 (3): 369-385.
Numagami, T. (1999), Ekisho display no gijutsukakushin-shi (History of technological
innovation in liquid crystal display. Tokyo: Hakuto-shobo.
Oikawa, T. (2011), “Economic organization and Social solidarity: Keiretsu as a
Local/Global Concept”, Firm-Level Internationalization, Regionalism and
Globalization, Elaine Hutson,Rudolf Sinkovics andJenny Berrill (Eds.), 365-378,
UK and USA:Palgrave Macmillan.
Page, S. E. (2007), The Difference: How the power of diversity creates better groups,
firms, schools and societies. Prinston, NJ: Prinston University Press.
Rakyutidharm, A. (2009), “‘Making of community’ in a commercialized community in
Northern Thailand”, Southeast Asian Studies, 47 (1): 89-110.
Sato, Y. (2011), “Jinko, Shigen taikoku ni okeru sangyo hatten – Indonesia no jirei
(Industrial development in population big and resources rich country- the case of
Indonesia)”, Hatten tojokoku no sangyo, kigyo, shijo (Industry, enterprises,
Market in developing country), Watanabe Mariko (Ed.), Ajia Keizai kenkyujo
(Japan: Institute of Developing Economies).
Schumpeter, J.A., 1934 (2008), The Theory of Economic Development: An Inquiry into
Profits, Capital, Credit, Interest and the Business Cycle, translated from the
German by Redvers Opie, New Brunswick (U.S.A) and London (U.K.):
Transaction Publishers.
Shibayama, K. (2011), “Various phase of innovation – recent characteristics in local
industry”, Japan Finance Corporation Research Papers, 10: 1-32.
Shigetomi, S. (2009), “Tai ni okeru Komyunitei-shugi no tenkai to fukyu (the
development and spread of communitism in Thailand)”, Ajia Keizai (Asian
Economy), L-12: 21-54.
100
Takei, I. (2007), “A Study on One Tambon and One Product Policy and Rural
Household Economy in Thailand”, Journal of Takasaki Economic University, 49
(3 & 4): 167-180.
Tambunan, T., and Supratikno, H. (2004), “The development of small and medium
enterprises clusters in Indonesia”, Gadja Mada International Journal of
Business, 6 (1): 29-44.
Tayor, M. Z., and Wilson, S. (2012), “Does culture still matter? The effect of
individualism on national innovation rate”, Journal of Business Venturing, 27
(2): 234-247.
Wolf, E. (1982). Europe and the People without History. Berkeley: University of
California Press.
Yao, X., Wang, S., Dang, J., and Wang, L. (2012), The Role of Individualism-
’collectivism’ in the Individual Creative Process, Creativity Research Journal,
24 (4): 296-303.
Yokomoto, M. (2005), “Indonesia ni okeru jibasangyo no tenbo (Prospect of rural
industry in Indonesia)”, Ajia Keizai (Asian Economy), 46 (2): 35-53.
Yokomoto, M. (2008), “Indonesia jibasangyo noshotiku soshutsu koka (Income
creation effect of Indonesian rural industry)”, Ajia Kenkyu (Asian Studies), 54
(3): 52- 70.
101
Relationship Management in Tourism
Microenterprises as an Element in Building a
Competitive Advantage
Maciej Debski & Michał Szaniawski
University of Social Sciences

Lucka Str. 11, 00-842
Warsaw, Poland
Emails: mdebski@spoleczna.pl & michal_szaniawski@poczta.onet.pl
Abstract
Tourism is central to the growth of numerous regions across the world, including
Poland. A substantial part of infrastructure designed to serve tourists is created by
microenterprises. These entities possess limited human or financial resources, and this
translates into reduced possibilities for applying diverse competitiveness instruments. It
seems that an attractive concept recommended to be pursued for their growth is
relationship marketing. For the purposes of this paper, the authors conducted consumer
research using the PAPI method and a series of interviews within the companies
discussed. The results obtained helped to positively verify the hypothesis presuming that
microenterprises enjoy substantial potentials for establishing relationships, though these
potentials are not fully used. Moreover, the findings from the consumer research revealed
the factors pivotal in delivering tourist satisfaction, which is then an essential
requirement for developing positive relationships.
Key words: relationship marketing, tourism, microenterprises, loyalty

JEL codes: M31, M10
Introduction
As evidenced by statistics, tourism is a significant sector of the economy
which proves to be at the core of regional growth across many areas. It should be
also highlighted that following a certain decline over 2008-2010, the tourism
demand, and thus tourism expenditures tend to soar. As a consequence, shifts
occurred in the supply domain and they show up as: an increased number of
tourism enterprises, including entities providing accommodation facilities. This is
102
also the case in Poland evidenced by a robust expansion of hotel facilities, with a
wide range of microenterprises offering accommodation services. In essence,
there are hundreds or even thousands of them in localities attracting tourism
traffic, thereby spawning strong competition and seeking diverse competitive
advantages which are likely to stimulate the demand for their services.
An important component underpinning competitiveness of the tourism
enterprise is an appropriate establishment of relationships with customers as well
as stakeholders constituting the microenvironment surrounding the facility. Such
a situation results from several factors, among which two prevail. First, it is
necessary to indicate the specifics underlying Poland as a tourism destination.
Basically, this is a country standing out for its immense attractiveness, though at
the same time, it is not at a level likely to be compared to many European
countries such as, e.g. Italy, France, Spain, or Greece. As a result, the prevailing
group of tourists in Poland are domestic visitors. This situation is significant for
enterprises operations, because for that group of customers it is more probable
that they will return and stay at the same place again, which certainly provides the
argument in favour of forging relationships with customers. Furthermore, for
Poland as well as for the majority of countries, a key reason behind tourism
travels is a leisure motive. However, that does not imply that a cognitive motive is
irrelevant. After all, it is more typical for incoming tourists, and for numerous
domestic tourists that this constitutes a complementary element. The prevalence
of leisure tourism produces increased probability that a satisfied customer returns
to the same site, which is another argument in support of developing relationships
and building customer loyalty.

103
Second, it is also important to keep in mind the specifics of the tourism
product. This is a product where a remarkably vital role is given to services and
human resources in the enterprise, thereby delivering customer satisfaction in a
specific manner, which proves to be the bedrock for positive relationships or even
a peculiar partnership between an entrepreneur and customer. For instance, it is
relatively easy to imagine that deficiencies in the facility will be offset by the
attitude and behaviour exhibited by the owner or their employees and despite
some shortcomings, a tourist will be satisfied at the end of their stay.
It seems that today in countries across Europe, systemized operations
geared towards establishing relationships are principally performed by larger
tourism enterprises, particularly hotel enterprises, which makes it worthwhile
considering what activities in this field may be undertaken by microenterprises, as
in their case such activities may be seen as innovative and a vital source of the
competitive advantage. Specifically, it should be emphasized that appropriate
management of relationships with customers should result not only in repeated
use of enterprise’s services, but also in recommending it to others.
As a consequence, the objective of the paper is to analyse the activities
facilitating the development of relationships with customers using tourism
microenterprises and to identify the potentials in this respect. The objective
outlined is related to the primary research hypothesis holding that appropriate
development of relationships with customers using tourism microenterprises may
be a key contributor to the competitive advantage, though potentials for
harnessing marketing tools are not fully used.
104
Relationship marketing in the light of the literature
The significance of the establishment and cultivation of relationships with
an enterprise’s partners is displayed in an explicit way by Kotler and Keller (2012)
while writing “build an effective network of relationships with key stakeholders,
and profits will follow” (page 22). This statement specifies relationships
adequately established as a requirement sufficient for generating profit by an
enterprise. Whereas Sherrell and Bejou (2007) bring attention to the fact that
forging strong relationships with customers is a source of significant competitive
edge that is difficult for competitors to copy. Meanwhile, Tareq (2012)
underscores that relationship marketing is markedly important for services due to
their intangible character and thus resultant strong interactions with customers.
Nevertheless, it is advisable to consider what relationship marketing stands
for. Kotler and Keller (2012) define it as activities aimed at building mutually
satisfying long-term relationships with key parties – customers, employees,
marketing partners and entities from the financial industry. Importantly, they
argue that the cultivation of these relationships becomes the overruling aim of
marketing.
A broad review of definitions illuminating relationship marketing is
conducted by Otto (2004). The author underscores that the essence of the concept
investigated is manifested by the approach embraced by Rydel and Ronkowski
claiming that “relationship marketing means a concept of management and
operation on the market, whereby market efficiency of companies is dependent on
their establishment of partner relationships with market stakeholders. The
concept involves building loyalty relationships with customers and strategic

105
alliances with business partners” (Otto 2004:43). It should be kept in mind that
the authors above place an emphasis on the fact that the source of organizational
benefits may not only be building relationships with customers but also
strengthening collaboration with diverse external partners. Overall, such an
approach is consistent with one of the key theoretical models illustrating
relationships – the six market model (Christopher, et al., 1994). Its authors
highlight the expedience of building a positive image and relationships with such
stakeholders as: suppliers, influential institutions, intermediaries, employees or
potential employees, and thus it is possible to generate better value for customers,
and subsequently to nurture their loyalty.
Another fundamental issue related to the idea of relationship marketing is
addressed by Shirazi and Som (2011, 2010) who argue that its aim is to create
long-term, trust-based and mutually beneficial relationships that have an impact
on customer satisfaction and loyalty Essentially, it is necessary to put a
tremendous focus on the issue of mutual benefits arising from partnerships, as
they seem to be the key to forging any relationships. The focus on that topic and a
strategic dimension of relationships was brought by Casielles, et al. (2005) who
defined relationship marketing as a competitive strategy seeking to create, sustain
and develop positive relationships with customers, which today is perceived as a
management concept concerned with the whole marketing activity and generating
benefits to both companies and consumers alike.
Currently, the issue of relationship marketing is quite often addressed in
the reference literature. A wide range of authors point out benefits produced by
implementation of the concept discussed. Goldsmith and Tsiotsou (2012) specify

106
three benefits: (i) maintaining a customer costs less than acquiring a new one; (ii)
when a client is familiar it is easier to tailor the offer to his needs; and (iii) a
satisfied customer creates a positive word-of-mouth endorsement for a product.
Clearly, these benefits seem fairly obvious, but on the other hand, while observing
entrepreneurs, doubts may emerge as to whether these profits are widely
appreciated. Many doubts as to the application of the concept discussed and the
quest for maximising its effectiveness causes that relationship marketing, also in
the tourism sector, comes into spotlight of scientists and their research efforts.
Typically, analyses conducted reveal benefits resulting from building partnerships
with entities from the environment surrounding various organizations,
particularly customers. Though, it should be underlined that with the abundance
of studies dedicated to the use of the discussed concept by multiple entities,
analyses centred on tourism enterprises are in short supply (Richard and Zhang
2012). And if there are any, the majority of them refer to larger organizations,
specifically travel agencies and hotels. For example, Goswami and Sarma (2014)
investigated the drivers triggering “delight” among customers. In effect, they
considered what elements of their product may push its assessment as to
substantially surpass expectations. In another study which did not actually pertain
to tourism enterprises, Helgesen (2007) sought for sources of customer
satisfaction on the B2B market while showing that the price is not necessarily the
only source (2007).
This view is consistent with that outlined in the research conducted by
Jang, et al. (2006) who, using a group of 39 hotels, examined correlations between
the level of websites use utilized to cultivate relationships with customers and
107
financial performance. The results gained corroborated the existence of a robust
correlation between these two variables. In general, a plethora of studies refer to
the application of information technologies, including CRM systems, in a bid to
develop relationships with customers. For instance, such an analysis for hotels
was completed by Ku (2014) who turned the attention to the shift in the
importance if IT systems across enterprises analyzed. The author argues that their
role not only involves the support of transaction processes but increasingly strives
for strategic reinforcement through opportunities for collecting information, and
thus customizing the offer.
The literature also includes, though fewer, empirical studies devoted to the
exploitation of relationship marketing in microenterprises. In this group the
attention should be paid to the research carried out by Choo and Petrick (2012)
among customers staying at American farms. They showed that relationships not
only with owners of facilities they made use of, but also with other tourists and
enterprises in the region were pivotal for the respondents, and these findings will
be essential for further discussions.
In the paper presented, the authors concentrate on the narrow
understanding of relationships as well as the issues of cultivating ties, building
commitment and loyalty among customers. The efficacy of activities in this respect
entails the need to alter the philosophy and mind-set in many enterprises.
Specifically, Morais, et al. (2005) place the spotlight on such transformation driven
by growing competition processes on the tourism market. The specifics
underlying this shift were clearly illustrated in Table 1. Principally, it provides the
collation differentiating the traditionally understood marketing seeking to

108
conclude a transaction and the concept behind relationship marketing. The
collation explicitly emphasizes long-term operations striving for building
relationships, indicates the significance given to retaining a customer and
stimulating his shopping, or reveals the implications of the quality and issues of
customer service.
Table 1
Transaction marketing versus relationship marketing
Transaction marketing Relationship marketing
Focus on single sale Focus on retaining a customer
Product attributes are principal Benefits yielded by purchase of the product are
principal
Short-term operating scale Long-term operating scale
Customer service not so important Customer service tremendously important
Limited customer commitment to the company High customer commitment to the company
Minor contact with a customer Continuous contact with a customer
Production departments responsible for quality Everybody responsible for the quality
Source: Payne (1996), Marketing usług, PWE, Warsaw, p. 53.
It should be remembered that a fundamental effect of building
relationships with customers is their loyalty, which should result in repeated
purchase of the product offered by the specific marketer. However, it seems that
similar importance is attached to the second effect of loyalty that is product
recommendation, which should stimulate the demand for them. This effect is
remarkably important in tourism where tourists, driven by a dominating cognitive
motive in their travels, in most cases fail to return to the same site. Yet, at the
same time they may give recommendations to it.
Broadly speaking, it seems that the majority of enterprises, especially small
ones, across Poland fail to perform systemized operations aimed at developing
relationships with customers. As emphasized by Ławicki (2005) “attempts made
by domestic producers and retailers in the domain of customer acquisition end
when he walks away from the cash desk” (page 17). Certainly, this assertion
109
suggests the need to address the topic of creating appropriate relationships
among Polish entrepreneurs. These themes, in relation to microenterprises
operating on the tourism sector, will be explored in further sections of this paper.
Relationship management in tourism microenterprises – model approach
The issue of building and managing relationships across tourism
microenterprises may be analysed from at least two perspectives: process and
tool. In the first approach (in line with the model – Figure 1) the issue discussed
should be viewed as a management process in the enterprise. The immense
emphasis should be placed on the fact that customer loyalty will not be effectively
created due to accidental, one-off and unplanned operations. Above all, its
creation, manifested in repeated use of services provided by the specific
enterprises and its recommendations, is the outcome of informed and long-term
activities.
As displayed in Figure 1, the starting point for the process investigated is a
travel decision which entails selection of destination and accommodation facilities
at the destination. While searching for information in order to make a choice, a
consumer encounters diverse marketing messages from both entities responsible
for growth of tourism regions as well as tourism enterprises. Principally, a
potential customer is made a promise during promotional activities, and then
“customer creation” begins; over this period the initial contact between the
entrepreneur and the tourist is established, and subsequently promises that are
made will be verified during the stay. If the entrepreneur promises more than he
110
is capable of providing, it may give rise to customer disenchantment and
dissatisfaction even when the product offered was relatively good.
Figure 1
Building relationships – process approach
Beginning of “customer Promotion

creation”
Promise
1. Travel decision 2. Location 3. Accommodation

selection selection
intermedia
ry
5. - no contact – relationship,
- possibility of return;
- possibility of recommendation 4. Stay 4. Purchase
Satisfaction or its lack

Striving for loyalty
Source: Own study
According to Richard and Zhang (2012) satisfaction may be defined as
disparity perceived between expectations, and being a consequence of
consumption, an assessment of the real product value. Thus, it is important to
prevent the disparity from occurring, and accordingly when practising long-term
management, it is advisable not to overstate the offer.
The outcome of effective activities within marketing communication should
be purchase made, which thus result in the stay at the specific destination and use
of services offered by a specific entrepreneur. During the stay, consumption takes
111
place, thereby delivering satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the purchase
completed. As a consequence, as shown in Figure 1, a customer may repeatedly
make use of enterprise service or recommend it. It is rather hard to anticipate
such positive behaviours in the case of lack of satisfaction with the purchase made.
However, it should be simultaneously underlined that arguably, repeated contacts
between a tourism entrepreneur and his individual customers do not take place,
which appears to be the most common consumer behaviour. Even in the case of
satisfaction delivered by the stay, the tourist typically does not experience any
bond with the entrepreneur. Particularly, when a cognitive motive tends to be a
prevailing incentive behind travelling, a tourist does not consider quick return to
the specific enterprise. Therefore, it is essential to exploit tools facilitating the
establishment of relationships, enhancement of loyalty and stimulation of
behaviours positive to the enterprise.
The model displayed in Figure 1 presented “customer creation” from the
process viewpoint. On the whole, it was stressed that the process starts once the
promotional activities are launched when initial contacts are established between
an entrepreneur and a client and the promises are made. In addition, attention
was also drawn to the relevance of the demand and its satisfaction for further
behaviours exhibited by consumers. However, this model passed over the tool
aspect intended to enhance relationships, and therefore it appears expedient to
expand it by an instrumental model which will set the stage for the research
conducted.
112
Figure 2
Tool model – building relationships with a customer of the tourism
microenterprise
Promotion Promotion
instruments
H1
Promise
H4
Internal
quality
Purchase and Product

H2 consumptionsu quality
mpcja
External
quality
Satisfaction Keeping the

promises
H3
Repeated purchase Incentives to

and return
recommendation
Source: Own study
The aim of the paper prepared and, as a consequence the research presented, is
to disclose the specifics and identify the opportunities for setting up relationships with
customers of microenterprises offering accommodation services. The theoretical
analysis which produced the model presented in Figure 2 made it possible to formulate
four research hypotheses:
H1: Key factors influencing the selection of the microenterprise providing
accommodation services may include recommendations. Location, standard
and related price, which is typical for most of entities providing
accommodation services
113
H2: A crucial factor contributing to the satisfaction with the demand, which
distinguishes a microenterprise as compared to large accommodation
facilities, is hospitability and the ambience created by the owner.
H3: A primary incentive facilitating repeated purchase and giving
recommendation to accommodation service is satisfaction with the stay.
Once a tourist leaves, activities conducted in this regard have curtailed
importance, and a microenterprise enjoys less potential to act than a
medium-sized or large enterprise.
H4: Due to reduced resources at the disposal of tourism microenterprises, it is
vital to build relationships with surrounding environment in a bid to create a
value for customers
The above hypotheses implied seeking for answers to key research
questions. First, the authors intended to recognize the factors guiding the
selection of the accommodation facility by tourists, and to inspect whether any
differences emerge between microenterprises and larger entities. Overall, it was
assumed that key factors driving purchase decisions made by tourists are similar,
while keeping in mind various expectations held by customers searching for
accommodation in a guesthouse and those looking for accommodation in a hotel.
Principal, practical objectives behind the establishment of relationships with
customers are to induce them to make a repeated purchase and recommend the
product to other, potential customers. According to the model previously revealed,
which was also emphasised in the third hypothesis, satisfaction with the stay
proves to be a core requirement for these activities. Therefore, it was justified to
raise the question of which factors generate customer satisfaction? The second
114
hypothesis supported that elements distinguishing micro-facilities include
hospitability, specific ambience and opportunities for direct contact with owners,
which should constitute a significant source of the competitive advantage.
Altogether, it is necessary to remember, as highlighted in hypotheses 3 and
4, that microenterprises definitely possess less human and financial resources,
which translates into limitations concerned with affecting their environment. This
fact involves relatively scant potentials for harnessing tools designed to stimulate
tourists to return, though on the other hand these specifics should foster the
expansion of diverse cooperative links with other entrepreneurs in the region
with the goal of generating extra value for customers. Rewards stemming from
collaboration with other stakeholders should emerge across all stages of building
relationships with a customer, starting from joint promotion, through offering
extra value when staying in the facility, to encouraging their return.
It should be noted that a tourist while leaving his dwelling place not only
typically buys access to attractions or a one-off tourism service. More broadly, the
service package is subject to tourist consumption and, as emphasized by
Vassiliadis (2008), tourist satisfaction relies on numerous elements of the tourism
product such as: transport, catering infrastructure, accommodation facilities,
attractiveness or service costs. The upshot of the situation is the fact that robust
interdependencies occur among elements of the destination tourism product;
these are fragmentary products being complementary to one another. In effect,
collaboration among stakeholders of the tourism market within a specific region
proves to be advisable as cooperation may yield a significant competitive
advantage over other destinations and entities operating in their areas.

115
Building relationships with customers of microenterprises offering
accommodation services – research findings
In order to verify the research hypotheses formulated, a two-section own
research was conducted. The first part, being the consumer survey in its character,
rested on the PAPI (paper and pencil interview) method. Its aim was to recognize
consumer behaviours with regard to the topics addressed in the paper. As a result,
141 adequately completed questionnaires were obtained. Meanwhile, it should be
underscored that a survey was preceded by an introductory phase designed to
prepare an appropriate questionnaire. During that phase 41 interviews were
carried out in the paper form where respondents faced questions related to
factors influencing their selection of a guesthouse, satisfaction with the stay, as
well as instruments likely to induce them to return to the guesthouse or to
recommend it to acquaintances.
Table 2 illustrates the respondents’ demographic structure. The attention
needs to be drawn to the fact that persons aged below 25 accounted for 73%
which will certainly have implications for the survey findings. However, these are
persons who largely make use of smaller accommodation facilities rather than
hotels. Moreover, young people stand out for their high tourism activity. Another
feature characteristic to the group selected is the fact that nearly half of the
respondents come from large cities, which may leave these people relatively more
eager to travel to areas marked by superior environmental appeal, and the survey
demonstrated in this paper was continued among enterprises operating in this
region.
116
Table 2
Characteristics of respondents
Respondents’ sex
Men 36% Women 64%
Respondents’ age
Below 25 years 25-35 36-45 Above 45 years
73% 17% 9% 1%
Respondents’ place of residence
Countryside Town up to 10,000 Town 10,000- Cities above 100,000
100,000
22% 8% 22% 48%
Source: Own study based on the survey results
In the second section of the survey, the authors placed focus on
entrepreneurs, and its objective was to verify consumer's expectations with real
operations performed in tourism microenterprises. During this phase the survey
was aimed at 166 entities functioning in the territory of the Nowosądecki District
identified as a tourist attractive mountain area. 12 entities decided to take part in
the survey and provide responses to the interview questions. Due to the low
number of stakeholders participating in this part of the survey, the results
obtained should be approached with caution and avoiding generalizations.
Nevertheless, it should be underscored that these findings allowed for formulation
of several interesting suggestions.
The first issue addressed in the consumer survey was an attempt to answer
the question of whether loyalty to regions and tourism facilities has a significant
importance. When looking at the responses given by the respondents and
presented in Table 3, the answer should be affirmative. More than 71% of those
surveyed at least occasionally return to places previously visited, whereas more
than 60% of respondents reported that they occasionally at least, recommend
accommodation facilities. Evidently, these answers, even having considered the
117
sample size, suggest immense relevance of the problems analysed. These insights
were also confirmed by entrepreneurs in their responses in the second section of
the survey – 70% of them indicated “tremendously high” significance of persons
who return for operating their enterprises, while 90% said that they experience
tourist visitations as a result of recommendations. However, a positive picture
painted by the responses given may be tarnished by the frequency of tourism
travels practiced by the respondents. Over half of them travel once a year or even
more rarely which, combined with their age structure, means that they did not
have many opportunities of “returning” to either the locality or the facility.
Table 3
Collective compilation of answers to questions selected
Frequency of travels for purposes of tourism
1 a year or more rarely 2-3 times a year More than 3 times a year
54% 35% 11%
Frequency of returns to the same locality
Frequently Sometimes Rarely Never
23% 48% 25% 4%
Frequency of returns to the same accommodation facility
24% 40% 25% 11%
Frequency of recommendations given to the accommodation facility
11% 47% 17% 15%
Source: Own study based on the survey conducted
The model portrayed in Figure 2 indicates promotional activities as a basis
for building relationships with customers of accommodation facilities, when a
potential customer faces a specific promise regarding the facility. Important
information for creating effective demand is included in the answers to the
question as to what factors drive the selection of the accommodation facility by
118
consumers, because these are elements to be exploited in promotion. As can be
seen in Table 4, key factors include price, room standard, facility amenities and
friends’ recommendations. Thus, it should not come as a surprise that the highest
average rating went to the price – which is a measurable factor and holds the key
to the selection in the case of most products. Subsequent places were taken by the
offering components that determine its quality, which alongside the price, appear
to be the second key incentive for purchase decisions. Though focus should be
brought to high ratings of factors related to location of the facility, e.g. transport.
These are product components offered by the enterprise which remain beyond its
control. Whereas high ratings for recommendations and opinions corroborate the
previous conclusions, and they provide an argument in support of the hypothesis
holding that it is tremendously important to strive for customer satisfaction so as
to prompt positive commentaries. While analysing the factors guiding the
selection of the accommodation facility it should be noted that in line with
hypothesis 1, the factors specified by the respondents are universal in their
character and do not expose the specifics behind tourism microenterprises.
119
Table 4
Factors guiding the selection of the accommodation facility
Factor Average Factor Average
rating rating
Price 4,55 Availability of stores 3,65
Room standard 4,24 Opportunity of purchasing breakfast 3,6
and lunch
Facility amenities 4,15 Development of the area around the 3,51
guesthouse
Proximity to attractions 4,06 Discounts on services provided by 3,47
other entrepreneurs in the region, e.g.
restaurants, excursions
Friends’ recommendations 3,97 Parking spaces 3,45
Facility appearance – photos on 3,97 Extra services offered by the 3,36
website guesthouse, e.g. fitness, sauna,
fireplace room, etc.
Accessibility to transport 3,83 Options to use the kitchen 3,29
Opinions in the Internet 3,79 Options to stay with pets 1,84
Options for reservation through the 3,73
Internet
Notice: Respondents assessed the relevance of individual factors within the scale 1-5
Source: Own study based on the survey findings
According to the model previously presented, the effect of selecting an
accommodation facility was the stay in it, consumption of its product, which
ultimately should deliver tourist satisfaction. Emergence of satisfaction with the
purchase made is, as shown in the hypothesis 3, the mainstay for building loyalty
among facility’s customers. Therefore, it is necessary to pose the question about
the elements of the product that create satisfaction with the stay.
120
Table 5
Implications of the selected product elements of the accommodation facility
for satisfaction with the stay
Factor Average Factor Average
rating rating
Cleanness of rooms 4,78 Delicious breakfasts 3,86
Respect for privacy 4,69 Options to spend time in front of the 3,72
guesthouse, e.g. barbecue
Attractive price 4,69 Access to the kitchen 3,52
Conformity of previous promises 4,55 Free coffee, tea, or cake 2,78
(e.g. from the website) with the
reality
Convenient location 4,34 Fireplace room in the guesthouse 2,5
Friendly and helpful host 4,31 Option to be given a lift to the 2,36
railway station by the hosts
Room amenities – e.g. hair-dryer, 4,06 Little welcome gift 2,24
fridge, towels, etc.
Properly operating Internet 4,02
The factors that topped the list were “cleanness of rooms”, “respect for
privacy” and “attractive price”, namely the elements that will strongly influence
satisfaction, also in the case of larger entities (see Table 5). But it is necessary to
emphasize that the fifth place was occupied by “friendly and helpful host” which is
typical for small accommodation facilities where a host welcomes guests, is
available to them and sets the tone for facility hospitability. Also, this parameter is
influenced by product elements that scored the last positions in the list, receiving
lowest ratings, i.e. option to be given a lift or a little welcome gift. Yet, it seems that
despite low ratings they should not be discarded, because while striving to create
an image of facilities, it is fundamental to grasp any opportunities for its
enhancement.
121
In Table 5 the spotlight should be placed on the place 4 and high ratings
awarded to “conformity of previous promises with the reality”. Such scores
suggest that in a bid to build long-term relationships with customers, it is vital to
keep to reality and refrain from making promises unlikely to be delivered so that
the tourist does not have a feeling of being deceived when running promotional
activities and making promises with regard to the product offered. And if such a
situation occurred, it may result in granting negative recommendations and
discouraging from taking use of facility services.
When discussing the ratings provided in Table 5, the focus should be
brought to high coherence with answers given by entrepreneurs. “Maintaining
cleanness in the facility” was ranked 2, and furthermore high positions were
scored by parameters affecting hospitality – “we strive to be nice, talk to our
guests” and “we are available to guests”. Moreover, elements related to the
amenities in the facility received high ratings. All in all, with all limitations to the
survey taken into account, it may be claimed that entrepreneurs properly identify
factors affecting tourist satisfaction with an accommodation facility.
A potential consequence of the satisfaction with the stay in the
accommodation facility, specified in the research model, may be repeated use of
its services, which is the most manifest evidence of loyalty to the product.
Therefore, a reasonably administering manager should seek to stimulate such
behaviours among his customers. The subsequent question of the survey referred
to assessment of potential tools likely to have positive implications for repeated
purchase of the product. The highest ratings were given to “ensuring a good
product during the stay”, which is consistent with the assertion displayed in the
122
hypothesis 3. Additionally, it should be also noted that two subsequent spots, with
slightly lower rating average, were taken by the financial rewards offered to
tourists for their repeated purchase made. Such behaviours should not be a
surprise as they are characteristic when purchasing most of the products. A
definitely lower score was earned by other instruments aimed at stimulating
loyalty; consumers indicated their relatively minor impact impetus.
Table 6
Assessment of tools encouraging to repeated use of the facility services
Factor Assessment Factor Assessment
Ensuring a good product during 4,06 Competition for customers, e.g. a 2,85
the stay will be the best incentive photo from the stay, or memory
to the return from the stay. For the winner,
e.g. free stay
Discount coupons for subsequent 4,01 Sending acknowledgement for 2,66
stay granted at departure the stay together with a photo
Regular customers granted 3,96 Questionnaires used to measure 2,32
discounts for an offer provided satisfaction with the stay
by other entrepreneurs in the
neighbourhood, e.g. in
restaurants
Loyal programmes offering 3,66 Sending holiday greetings 2,12
increasing discounts during
subsequent stays
Sending information about 3,48
special offers for regular
customers
It should be noted that the findings obtained repeatedly appeared to be
consistent with the answers provided by entrepreneurs, which should be
positively gauged. From among 12 interviews conducted, 11 owners reported that
“they strive to offer top-class services” and “the key to the return of customers is
123
their satisfaction with the stay”. Moreover, 7 persons confirmed the use of
discounts in order to urge to repeated purchase. No other instruments designed
for creating loyalty was indicated by more than 3 respondents, which implies their
negligible application. To some extent, such activities seem proper, consumers
pointed to their minor influence. Though, on the other hand, these tools are largely
cheap instruments, and their use could contribute to better perception of the
facility. Hence, they should not be easily disregarded. To recap, it should be
highlighted that answers given by entrepreneurs in interviews conducted gave
rise to the argument supporting the second part of the hypothesis 3.
Table 7
Importance given to selected elements of facility location and their impact
on purchasing decisions
Factor Assessment Factor Assessment
Competent information about 3,99 Organizing tours to 3,61
neighbouring attractions neighbouring attractions
Discounts on other attractions in 3,96 Discounts on restaurants 3,49
the neighbourhood
Discounts on ski lifts 3,82 Cooperation with travel agency 3,24
– offer of travels to the
neighbouring area
Cooperation with a transport 3,63 Cooperation with producers of 3,19
company – transport facilities local products – their offer in
for customers of the guesthouse the guesthouse
Frequently, it is exposed that microenterprises possess limited financial
resources, which thus translates into diminished possibilities of operations,
including reduced possibilities of harnessing specific marketing instruments.
However, these entities should not abandon opportunities to create value for
customers. For facilities offering accommodation services, due to immense

124
complementarity among tourism products, such opportunities are generated by
the surrounding environment, and the last hypothesis set in the survey assumed
relatively low use of these opportunities.
It should be revealed, as noted in Table 7, that respondents awarded a low
rating to the impact of enumerated elements of the surrounding environment on
their purchasing decisions. Though, it should be kept in mind that in the question
discussed, the authors focused only on opportunities arising from cooperation
with other entities operating on the territory of the specific destination. The
previous questions evaluated factors connected with location, transport and
accessibility to attractions. As evidenced by the findings, survey participants
principally expect discounts on products offered by other entrepreneurs.
Meanwhile, entrepreneurs predominantly indicated granting information about
the neighbourhood (9 persons and cooperation with local authorities – 6 persons).
While remaining opportunities stemming from the collaboration, including
discounts offered on complementary products, were tapped by more than 3
respondents. Such a result constitutes an argument in favour of adopting the
hypothesis 4, and lead to the conclusion that potentials related to the environment
and complementary among tourism products are not fully exploited, which is
further confirmed by casual statements expressed by entrepreneurs with regard
to barriers curbing the collaboration:
“I did not demonstrate any initiative in this direction”
“In our region many people hold the view that it is better to act alone
without any collaboration”
125
“Collaboration is seen as competition, everybody wants to retain guests at
their place and for themselves”
“Not everybody understands that we are strong in the group”
Above declarations, even though they only represent some examples, show
the attitude among minor entrepreneurs which is typical to multiple regions
across Poland. On the whole, it seems that operations centred on changes in
awareness among owners of the stakeholder group analysed are an essential step
along the road to the extensive use of horizontal relationships (with other
stakeholders in the region). Fundamentally, in tourism regions it is necessary to
launch initiatives seeking to disclose benefits derived from collaboration and
producing platforms for cooperation.
Conclusions
The principal hypothesis underpinning the paper referred to high
competitive potentials embedded in relationship marketing for tourism
microenterprises, but at the same time it emphasized insufficient exploitation of
opportunities ensued. Taken together, it seems that during the surveys numerous
arguments were found in support of its adoption. Both respondents as well as
entrepreneurs, as previously described, highlighted immense importance of
recommendations and “repeated purchases” for stirring up the demand for
services offered by accommodation facilities. Meanwhile, those tasked with
managing microenterprises who took part on the survey indicated limited use of
tools dedicated to the cultivation of relationships with customers.
126
In essence, detailed hypotheses formulated in the research section of the
paper helped extend the contents concerned with the second part of the
hypothesis set. Their verification allowed for identification of key factors being
core to purchasing decisions made on the accommodation facility. Alongside the
elements being integral to the product offered by the enterprise, the key role in
the purchasing process was played by location. It is necessary to remember that
factors critical to tourists should be displayed during promotional activities,
thereby becoming a specific promise made to a consumer.
The surveys found that consumer satisfaction with the stay is an issue
remarkably important for developing relationships with customers. Central to
satisfaction is a high rating given to the product consumed, which corresponded to
the findings from surveys carried out among agritourism enterprises by Laureiro
and Gonzalez (2008). Another crucial factor driving satisfaction indicated by
respondents is keeping to promises made during activities performed within
marketing communication.
Another conclusion significant for enterprises operations is hugely
restrained utilization of complementary inherent to tourism products and paucity
of mechanisms generating value for customers due to collaboration with the
surrounding environment. Specifically, the significance of benefits yielded by this
type of cooperation were corroborated by, for instance, the findings from the
research by Choo and Petrick (2012). Since microenterprises possess limited
resources, and the surveys show that it has relevance for intensity of activities
with regard to relationship marketing (Essawy, 2012), they should strive to
generate satisfaction among consumers or create incentives to encourage

127
repeated purchase of the service thanks to the partnership with other
stakeholders. While the rewards derived from long-term creation of such
relationships were found in the research conducted by Moliner-Velazquez, et al.
(2014).
The surveys summarized allowed for formulation of a plethora of
interesting conclusions, but on the other hand they failed to address all questions
posed, and they simply provoked new questions, e.g. why don’t entrepreneurs use
incentives to stimulate repeated purchased of their product, or what would should
happen to make them cooperate more closely. Therefore, further studies are
required to give insights into the domain discussed, specifically among
entrepreneurs.
128
References
Casielles, R., Alvarez L. and Martin A. (2005), “Trust as a key factor in successful
relationship between consumers and retail service providers”, Service
Industries Journal, 1 (25): 83-101.
Choo, H. and Petrick J. (2012), “Comparison Between First-timers and Repeaters
for Relationship Marketing Implications”, International Journal of Tourism
Research, 3 (14): 298-302.
Christopher, M., Payne A. and Ballantyne D. (1994), Relationship Marketing,
Butterworth Heinemann, Oxford.
Essawy, M. (2012), “The implementation of relationship marketing by
independent Egyptian hotels”, Tourism & Hospitality Research, 4 (12): 175-
187.
Goldsmith, R. and Tsiotsou R. (2012), “Implementing Relationship Marketing in
Hospitality and Tourism Management”, in R. Goldsmith, R. Tsiotsou (eds.),
Strategic Marketing in Tourism Services, Bingley, Emerald.
Goswami, S. and Sarma M.K. (2014), “Relationship Management: Dimensions for
Tourism”, SCMS Journal of Indian Management, 2 (11): 15-34.
Helgesen, O. (2007), “Drivers of customer satisfaction in business-to-business
relationships. A case study of Norwegian fish exporting companies
operating globally”, British Food Journal, 10 (109): 819-837.
Jang S., Hu C. and Bai B. (2006), “A canonical correlation analysis of e-relationship
marketing and hotel financial performance”, Tourism and Hospitality
Research, 4 (6): 241-250
Kotler, P. and Keller K. (2012), Marketing, Pearson, Rebis, Warsaw.
Ku, E. (2014), “Functional Integration and System Implementation of Customer
Relationship Management in Hotel Industry: A Multilevel Analysis”,
International Journal of Information Technology & Decision Making, 1 (13):
175-196.
Laureiro, S. and Gonzalez F. (2008), “The importance of quality, satisfaction, trust,
and image in relation to rural tourist loyalty”, Journal of Travel & Tourism
Marketing, 2 (25): 117-136.
Ławicki, J. (2005), Marketing sukcesu – partnering, Difin, Warsaw.
Moliner-Velazquez, B., Fuentes-Blasco M. and Gil-Saura I. (2014), “Value
antecentes in relationship between tourism companies”, Journal of
Business& Industrial Marketing, 3 (29): 215-226.
129
Morais, D., Dorsch M. and Backman S. (2005), “Building Relationship Between
Customers and Providers: A Focus on Resource Investments”, Journal of
Travel & Tourism Marketing, 1 (18): 49-57.
Otto, J. (2004), Marketing relacji. Koncepcja i stosowanie, Wydawnictwo C.H. Beck,
Warsaw.
Payne, A. (1996), Marketing usług, PWE, Warsaw.
Richard, J. and Zhang A. (2012), “Corporate image, loyalty, and commitment in the
consumer travel industry”, Journal of Marketing Management, 5-6 (28): 568-
593.
Sherrell, D. and Bejou D. (2007), “Assessing the productivity of relationship
marketing: Moving toward paradigm”, Journal of Relationship Marketing, 2
(6): 3-7.
Shirazi, S. and Som A. (2010), “Relationship marketing and community
involvement: two significant factors for tourism strategies”, in C. Brebbia, F.
Pineda (eds.), Sustainable tourism IV, WIT Press, Southampton
Shirazi, S. and Som A., (2011), “Destination Management and Relationship
Marketing: Two Major Factors to Achieve Competitive Advantage”, Journal
of Relationship Marketing, 2 (10): 76-87.
Tareq, H. (2012), “The impact of customer relationship marketing on customers’
image for Jordanian five star hotels”, Economics, Management and Financial
Markets, 4 (7): 716-725.
Vassiliadis, C. (2008), “Destination product characteristics as useful predictors for
repeat visiting and recommendation segmentation variables in tourism: a
CHAID exhaustive analysis”, International Journal of Tourism Research, 5
(10): 439-452.
130
Exploring characteristics of FTA use among SMEs
in Malaysia
Menaka Arudchelvan
Asian Development Bank Institute

Kasumigaseki Building 8F
3-2-5, Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda-ku,
Tokyo 100-6008, Japan
Email: menaka_sara@hotmail.com
Ganeshan Wignaraja1
Asian Development Bank

6 ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong City,
1550 Metro Manila, Philippines
Email: gwignaraja@adb.org
Abstract
The rapid proliferation of free trade agreements (FTAs) in Asia has sparked
academic and policy interest in FTA preference use by SMEs. Using firm survey data, this
paper evaluated the characteristics of SMEs that utilize FTA preferences in Malaysia, and
the policy implications. The econometric analysis indicates that certain SME
characteristics - firm size, a good understanding of FTA provisions, exposure to trade, and
a central geographical location – are positively associated with the likelihood of using
FTAs. The descriptive analysis suggested that key reasons for non-use of FTAs by SMEs
are a lack of information on the implications of FTAs and the absence of FTAs with major
trading partners. Concluding FTAs with major trading partners and improved business
support for SMEs (though public and private service provision) will help facilitate SME
use of FTAs.
Keywords: small and medium enterprises (SMEs), free trade agreements (FTAs), Asian
regional economic integration, empirical studies, survey
JEL codes: F13, F14
1
The views expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and should not be attributed to the Asian
Development Bank or the Asian Development Bank Institute.
131
Introduction
Malaysia is an interesting case study of small and medium sized enterprises
(SME) internationalization. The countryand its enterprises have considerable
engagement in global value chain (GVC) trade and are actively pursuing
liberalization through various routes, including unilateral liberalization and free
trade agreements (FTAs) (Kam, 2013; WTO, 2014). Although the People’s
Republic of China (PRC) is increasingly dominating Asia’s GVC trade, Malaysia is
also an active participant and accounted for 2.7% of global and 5.2% of Asian GVC
trade over the period 2009–2013.2 Interestingly, Malaysia ranks as the fourth
most active Asian economy in GVC trade and is only behind the PRC, Japan, and the
Republic of Korea. The electronics sector is particularly well-integrated and is the
key driver of Malaysia’s participation in these chains.
Furthermore, Malaysia has been actively pursuing the Economic
Transformation Programme (ETP), which aims to elevate the country to
developed nation status by 2020, targeting a gross national income per capita of
$15,000 (Pemandu, 2014). Encouraging SMEs to move up the production chain
and achieve greater internationalization are important steps in reenergizing
private sector activity and achieving developed nation status.
One of the six Strategic Reform Initiatives under the ETP is related to trade
liberalization (Pemandu, 2014). In an effort to strengthen local capabilities,
enhance capacity through greater foreign investment and technology, and foster
GVC participation, Malaysia has been following a multitrack approach of
negotiating multilateral trade and bilateral FTAs alongside unilateral liberalization
2
Authors estimates based on gross trade in parts and components and using data from the UN Comtrade database.
132
(WTO, 2014). Since signing the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Free Trade
Area (AFTA) in 1993, Malaysia’s network of FTAs has grown to 12 bilateral and
regional FTAs with 18 trading partners as of 2014. A further six agreements are
under negotiation (ADB, 2015).
However, despite the increasing number of FTAs to smooth the flow of
trade, there is mixed evidence of FTA utilization (Kawai and Wignaraja, 2011,
2013; Tambunan and Chandra, 2014) and there is scarce literature on the use of
FTAs by SMEs. In Malaysia, SMEs account for 97% of all enterprises but only 19%
of total exports. This paper seeks to improve our understanding of SME use of
FTAs in Malaysia. Policy implications from the research are also explored.
The paper is organized as follows. Section 2 reviews relevant literature on
firm-level use of FTA preferences. Section 3 maps the pattern of FTA use by SMEs.
Section 4 considers the SME characteristics associated with FTA use. Section 5
looks at SME perceptions of impediments to FTA and FTA strategy. Finally, Section
6 concludes.
Literature Review on Free Trade Agreement Preference Utilization
The “new new” trade theory of Melitz (2003) and Helpman et al. (2004)
emphasize that firm heterogeneity matters in international trade (i.e., that firms
are considered different in terms of efficiency and fixed and variable costs when
involved in trade). Accordingly, only a few highly efficient firms are able to export
and invest overseas as only they are able to make sufficient profits to cover the
large trade costs required for overseas operations.
133
Implicit in the above theory is the notion that SMEs are at a disadvantage in
participating trade and using FTAs. Compared to larger firms, SMEs face many
challenges in the global environment. Ting’s (2004) analysis of Malaysian SMEs
identified five key challenges: lack of access to finance, human resources
constraints, limited or no ability to adopt technology, lack of information on
potential markets and customers, and global competition. He also argued that
there is a high risk SMEs will be wiped out if they do not increase their
competitiveness in the new, rapidly changing world of globalization. Given these
challenges, the probability of SMEs engaging in international trade and using FTAs
is lower than that of large firms.
One of the major challenges to researching the impact of FTAs is the lack of
published information on trade flows (or individual business transactions)
enjoying tariff preferences. Transaction records on exports and imports for
preferential tariff purposes are filed with the authorities of origin, such as national
customs authorities or trade ministries, but not published. Thailand is one
exception to this norm, publishing annual information on FTA preference use,
albeit in the Thai language. Using Thai data, Chirathivat (2008) has shown that the
overall actual utilization rate for Thailand’s FTA partners has been rising, and
nearly doubled (from 16% to 27%) during 2005–2008. The 2008 utilization rates
of Thailand’s partners vary by market, with 72% for the Thailand–Australia FTA
and 28% for AFTA. Using data from Thai secondary sources, Kawai and Wignaraja
(2013) have shown that the overall actual utilization rate for Thailand’s FTA
partners rose further to around 61% in 2011, while the FTA utilization rate for the
Thailand–Australia FTA increased to 91% and AFTA to 52%. Tambunan and

134
Chandra (2014) narrow in on SMEs in ASEAN. In their scan of economic literature
and government supported programs they find that SMEs are by far the least
active economic actors in the region to make use of the flourishing trade
agreements.
In the absence of published data on preference utilization, micro-level
information obtained from interviews with firms as well as large-scale enterprise
surveys can be useful. In an early study, Kumar (1992) interviewed 15 trading
companies and manufacturers in Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, and Jakarta to identify
possible impediments to successful implementation of AFTA in the future. Kumar
reported that the main bottlenecks were likely to be non-tariff barriers
(standards, testing procedures, and customs procedures), a lack of information
about the Common Effective Preferential Tariff (CEPT) scheme of ASEAN,
domestic investment regulations, and subsidy schemes.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Asian Development Bank
Institute (ADBI) have also conducted comprehensive enterprise surveys in recent
years on the business impact of FTAs in several Asian countries (Kawai and
Wignaraja, 2011). The economies of Japan, the PRC, the Republic of Korea, and
three Southeast Asian countries (Singapore, Thailand, and the Philippines) were
included in the first round of surveys of 841 firms, with 28% indicating they used
FTA preferences. Interestingly, the average FTA use among the three Southeast
Asian economies was reported to be somewhat lower than for manufacturing
giants like Japan and the PRC. Furthermore, only 20% of the sampled firms said
that multiple rules of origin (ROOs) significantly added to business costs.
Weighing up the firm-level evidence, the study concluded that concerns about the
135
Asian FTA “noodle bowl” effect on business might have been overstated at the
time of the surveys.3 Nonetheless, the study noted the risk of an Asian “noodle
bowl” problem in the future with the growing number of FTAs in the region.
Some studies have explored the factors affecting FTA use at the firm level
using econometric analysis. Using a sample of Japanese firms, Takahashi and Urata
(2008) examined the influence of several enterprise characteristics (e.g. firm size,
trading relations with FTA partners, the ratio of overseas sales to total sales,
overseas business bases, and manufacturing membership) on FTA use. Firm size
and trading relations with FTA partners were found to be positive and significant
parameters. The authors concluded that large firms were more likely to use FTAs,
reflecting the costs of such practices, and that trading experience in FTA markets
also influenced the likelihood of FTA use.
In their study of Japanese multinational corporations (MNCs), Hiratsuka et
al. (2009) tested the relationship between firm size and FTA use, and various
enterprise characteristics (e.g., the share of local inputs among total inputs, the
share of imports with zero tariffs, and sector and country dummy variables). One
key finding was that large firm size (proxied by employment) positively correlated
with FTA use. Another was that firms actively engaged in international
fragmentation are likely to use FTAs for exports.
These econometric studies provide useful insights into the determinants of
FTA use at the firm level. However, they also focus on firms from Japan—a
developed industrial economy with relatively well-functioning markets and
3 The “noodle bowl” refers to the observation that multiple rules of origin in overlapping Asian FTAs may
raise transaction costs for businesses, particularly SMEs, for using tariff preferences in FTAs.
136
institutions—from which it is difficult to extrapolate to newly industrializing
economies. Furthermore, there may be methodological gaps in these studies. For
instance, in Takahashi and Urata (2008) the exclusive use of dummy variables as
regressors resulted in a model with weak explanatory power. On the other hand,
Hiratsuka et al. (2009) employed a sophisticated panel data analysis of a large
sample of Japanese MNCs but only a few explanatory variables were explored,
which could contribute to omitted-variable bias in the results.
Factors affecting firm-level FTA use in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the
Philippines were considered by Wignaraja (2014). Econometric analysis using
firm-level data produced some interesting results. Key results included: firm-
heterogeneity matters in FTA use. Acquiring knowledge about FTAs through in-
house efforts and actively forging links with FTA support institutions, building
technological capabilities, and membership of industrial clusters show up as
significant factors affecting the likelihood of firm-level regional trade agreement
(RTA) use. A lack of information about FTAs and the absence of FTAs with major
trading partners are the main reasons for non-use of RTAs. Key policy implications
include the need to improve business support for RTAs, to conclude RTAs with
major trading partners, and to create a database on preference use in RTAs. The
methodological approach of the paper will be utilized in this paper in assessing
the characteristics of firms participating in production networks and FTAs.
137
Mapping Patterns of FTA Use by SMEs
In 2012, ADB and ADBI developed and conducted a survey of 234 exporters
and importers in Malaysia.4 Manufacturing firms and in particular textiles and
garments; food and beverages; wood and wood products; electronics and
components; and automotive parts firms were targeted. The survey was
conducted across Malaysia covering firms in the northern, central, and southern
regions.
Firms in the sample were asked whether they used tariff preferences in
FTAs for exports, imports or both. These questions, along with those covering firm
characteristics, form the basis of this analysis of SMEs that use FTA preferences.
For more information on the survey please refer to Appendix (Table A1).
Use of FTA preference by firm size is shown in Table 1. Use of FTA
preferences is positively related to size with over 85% of giant firms in the sample
using FTA preferences compared to less than 22% of SMEs.
Table 1
Use FTA preferences by firm size
Firm Count
Small 45
Large 12
Giant 6
Total 63
% of firms
Small 21.7
Large 60
Giant 85.7
Total 26.9
Source: Authors’ calculations based on ADB/ADBI survey data.
4 The Malaysia survey was conducted as a part of the ADB/ADBI research project on the business impact of
FTAs. For the methodology for the firm surveys and the first wave of results, see Kawai and Wignaraja
(eds. 2011).
138
Narrowing in on SMEs we consider the FTAs that are currently in use and
those SMEs plan to use (Table 2). The bigger FTAs involving large regional groups
and large economies for example AFTA and ASEAN-PRC have greater use/planned
use. FTA use is also positively related to the FTA age, with older FTAs such as
AFTA, ASEAN-PRC, Malaysia-Japan, Malaysia-Korea having relatively greater
use/planned use than newer FTAs like Malaysia-Chile, which was came into effect
just before the this survey was conducted in January 2012. Large markets offer
greater business opportunity and economies of scale when doing business. With
the phased reduction in tariffs older FTAs note only offer grater margin of
preference but are also more likely to be known by businesses.
Table 2
Profile of SMEs that use, plan to use FTAs, by FTA
Malaysia-Chile FTA
Malaysia-India ECA
ASEAN Korea CEP
ASEAN-Japan CEP
EPA (13 July 2006)
Malaysian-Pakistan
ASEAN-India CEP
AANZFTA (01 Jan
CEP (01 Jan 2008)

ASEAN PRC CEP
Malaysia-NZ FTA
ASEAN FTA (01
(18 April 2012)

Malaysia-Japan
(01 Aug 2010)

(01 July 2011)
(01 July 2005)
(01 Dec 2008)
(01 Jun 2007)
(01 Jan 2010)

Jan 1993)
2010)
Number of SMEs
Used/Using 37 34 17 9 8 6 4 3 4 1 0
Plan to use 63 65 36 41 36 32 29 22 11 14 5
Use and plan to use 100 99 53 50 44 38 33 25 15 15 5
Number of SMEs as a share of total SMEs (%)
Used/Using 18.0 16.5 8.3 4.4 3.9 2.9 1.9 1.5 1.9 0.5 0.0
Plan to use 30.6 31.6 17.5 19.9 17.5 15.5 14.1 10.7 5.3 6.8 2.4
Use and plan to use 48.5 48.1 25.7 24.3 21.4 18.4 16.0 12.1 7.3 7.3 2.4
Note. The entry into force of each FTA is shown in the parenthesis. Multiple answers allowed.
139
Characteristics of SMEs that Use Free Trade Agreements
Model and Hypotheses
In seeking out the SME characteristics related to FTA utilization we use a probit model.
The FTA use model is specified as:
The hypotheses and variables in the model are described below.
FTAUSE is the dependent variable. It takes on a value of 1 if the firm
responds positively to the question “does your firm use tariff preference in FTAs
for exports, imports, or both,” or is 0 otherwise.
SIZE is measured by the number of permanent employees and is expected
to be positively related to FTA use. The larger the SME, the more resources it is
likely to have to meet the associated costs of using FTAs.
AGE is measured as the number of years the SME has been in operation.
Once again, we are ambivalent about the direction of causation. Older firms may
be more experienced in navigating trading rules and utilizing FTAs, but could also
be set in their ways and less inclined to utilize preferential tariff rates.
Alternatively, younger firms might be more active in taking advantage of the
opportunities made available through FTAs.
LOCATION takes on a value of 1 if the firm is located in central Malaysia or 0
otherwise. A firm’s geographical location is expected to be positively associated
with FTA use. Firms concentrated in major industrial centers are more likely to
use FTAs than geographically isolated firms, for two reasons. First, geographical
140
clusters of networked firms are characterized by information spillovers and
exchanges (including know-how on tariff preferences, rules of origin, and origin
administration). Second, public and private sector FTA support institutions are
more likely to provide technical assistance to firms in major industrial centers.
The sectoral dummy AUTO takes on the value of 1 if the firm is in the auto
industry or is 0 otherwise. Auto imports in Malaysia attract a high tariff and
therefore firms engaging in auto trade have a greater incentive to use preferences
available in FTAs. This variable is therefore expected to be positively correlated
with FTA use.
The variables FOREIGN OWNERSHIP, EXPORT SHARE OF SALES, and
PROPORTION OF RAW MATERIALS IMPORTED capture the extent to which the firm
is outward oriented. These variables are expected to be positively related to FTA
use. The greater the outward orientation the higher the likelihood the firm is
aware of international markets and trade regulations (including import tariffs,
FTA preferences, rules of origin, and custom procedures). Additionally, firms with
higher exposure to international trade have more to gain for using preferences
made available in FTAs.
KNOWLEDGE OF FTA is a dummy variable taking on the value of 1 if a firm
has some knowledge of FTAs or 0 otherwise. The variable captures the firm’s
proactive efforts in better understanding FTAs. FTA texts are complex, lengthy
legal documents requiring significant investment in specialist skills (e.g., trade
law, customs procedures, and business strategy) to derive the benefits of FTAs.
Given this firms that invest time in acquiring relevant in-house FTA expertise and
141
that actively build linkages with FTA support institutions are more likely to be
equipped to take advantage of FTA provisions.
Results
The regression results of factors affecting the use of FTAs are summarized
in Table 3 with a baseline specification (equation i) and alternative specifications
(equations ii–iv). In the discussion that follows we will be referring to the full
model (i.e., equation iv). The pseudo R2 in equation (iv) suggests that the
regressions explain about 20% of the variation in the data.
Table 3
Probit model of factors influencing FTA use
Malaysia
(i) (ii) (iii) (iv)
SIZE 0.0125 0.0135 0.0106 0.0103
(0.00)*** (0.00)*** (0.00)** (0.00)**
AGE -0.0110 -0.0118 -0.0075 -0.0081
(0.01) (0.014) (0.01) (0.01)
AUTO 0.4716 0.4321 0.6732 0.6119
(0.23)** (0.24)** (0.25)*** (0.26)**
LOCATION 0.5142 0.8069 0.7889
(0.21)** (0.23)*** (0.24)***
FOREIGN OWNERSHIP -0.6325 -0.5235
(0.56) (0.57)
EXPORT SHARE OF SALES 0.0062 0.0082
(0.00) (0.00)*
PROPORTION OF RAW 0.0157 0.0135
MATERIALS IMPORTED (0.00)*** (0.00)***
SOME KNOWLEDGE 0.4884

(0.25)*
Constant -1.0303 -1.2227 -1.7589 -1.8764
(0.18)*** (0.20)*** (0.25)*** (0.27)
n 207 207 207 207
Wald Chi2 14.72 20.64 47.33 51.16
Pseudo R2 0.07 0.10 0.22 0.24
Notes: Dependent binary variable: 1 = use of FTA preferences.
142
Standard errors are reported in parentheses. ***, **, and * indicate
significance at the 1%, 5%, and 10% levels, respectively.
The Pearson correlation coefficient matrix can be found in the Appendix
(see Table A2).
Size is significantly and positively associated with FTA use, suggesting that
even among a group of SMEs it is the larger firms that are more likely use FTA
preferences. The model suggests that the probability of use increases from 17% to
25% as the firm size increases from 25 to 50 employees. It increases further from
34% to 44% as firm size increases from 75 to 100 employees.
FTA use among firms in the auto industry is also significant and positive,
with the probability of using FTA preferences increasing by 15% for firms in the
auto industry. SMEs located in central Malaysia are also more likely to use FTAs
than geographically isolated firms. The probability of using FTA preferences
increases by 19% if the SME is located in central Malaysia, highlighting the greater
availability of support and technical assistance in major industrial centers and the
scope for information spillovers and exchanges between firms.
Exposure to international trade, as captured by the export share of sales,
and the proportion of raw materials imported are positive indicators of FTA use.
The probability of FTA use increases from 24% to 30% when the export share of
total sales increases form 50% to 75%. Similarly, as the proportion of raw
materials increases from 50% to 75%, probability of FTA use increases from 31%
to 43%. Finally, a firm’s investment in acquiring knowledge to use FTAs also
increases the probability of use by 12%.

143
This is a very interesting result suggesting that an SME’s use of FTAs is
largely related to its capability in terms of understanding FTA provision, access to
financial and human resources captured by size, exposure to trade captured by the
proportion of raw materials imported, and firm location and sector.
SME Perceptions of Impediments to FTA Use and FTA Strategy
This section looks at descriptive information from the firm survey on the
perceived impediments to using FTAs, views on FTA content and support services
sought by SMEs.
Perceived Impediments
The survey results suggest that the most significant barrier to FTA use
among SME firms is lack of information, with 114 SMEs ranking lack of
information as one of their top three reasons for not using FTAs (Figure 1). Two
other major barriers are that firms do not see the need to use FTAs and that firms
are not interested in trading with current FTA partners.
Figure 1
Impediments to FTA use
(number of firms)
FTA = free trade agreement.
Source: Authors’ calculations based on ADB/ADBI survey data .
144
SME Views on FTA Content
With the proliferation of FTAs there is a need to future proof FTAs to cover
21st century issues. So FTAs not only eliminate tariffs and non-tariff barriers to
trade in goods and services and agriculture, but also seek to establish or expand
rules on a wide range of issues including intellectual property rights, foreign direct
investment, competition and consumer policy, trade and labor, trade and
environment and other trade-related issues.
When enquired about the issues most pertinent to SMEs their response
was strongly in favor issues that reduce the cost of doing business and increasing
international engagement (Figure 2). Trade facilitation was ranked as the most
pertinent issue for SMEs. That is simplifying the procedures and controls
governing the movement of goods across national borders. For example increased
transparency in rules and regulations, simplifying the clearance process so there is
little need for multiple documents in different formats and with different data
elements, harmonizing the standards and practices with international convention,
and standardizing documents and electronic data requirements will all reduce the
transaction cost at the interface between business and government.
145
Figure 2
SME responses to areas appropriate to be covered by FTAs
(number of firms)
Note: Multiple responses allowed
The second most highly ranked issue to be included in FTAs is related to
foreign direct investment. Investment provisions in FTAs are meant to make it
easier for foreign investors to invest in the market under consideration. For
example through easier market access, national treatment so foreign investors
don’t face unfair discrimination when competing with local firm and other
regulations on the performance requirements such as local content and
employment. For a cash-strapped SME foreign investment is not only an important
source of funds but also a key vehicle for launching themselves onto the
international market.
Other 21st century issues like Intellectual property, competition law,
government procurement, environmental standards and labor standards did not
rank as being key issues of concern for SMEs.
146
Support Sought by SMEs
To encourage greater FTA use, the SMEs in the sample would like the
government to provide more information on the implications of FTAs for
businesses, more training on the FTAs under implementation, and enhanced
consultations before, during, and after FTA negotiations (Figure 3). This suggests
there is a real role for public policy in addressing limited FTA use.
Figure 3
Services requested by firms to adjust to FTAs
(number of firms)
FTA = free trade agreement, SME = small and medium-sized enterprise.
The most sought public sector organizations for FTA-related issues were
Malaysia’s Ministry of Trade and Customs department (Figure 4). Among private
sector institutions were business and industrial associations and chambers of
commerce.
147
Figure 4
Forms of institutional support sought by SMEs when encountering problems with FTAs
(number of firms)
Conclusions
This paper evaluated the characteristics of SMEs that utilize FTA
preferences in Malaysia, and the policy implications. The analysis was carried out
using survey data of 234 exporters and importers. It sought to improve our
understanding of the internationalization of SMEs in Asia and contribute to the
scant literature.
Several findings come out of the econometric analysis. First, SME size is
positively associated with FTA use capturing perhaps the costs associated with
understanding the complex and lengthy legal documents. Second, in addition to
size, a good understanding of FTA provisions and exposure to international trade
encourages greater use of FTAs. Firms that invest resources in acquiring relevant
in-house FTA expertise and that actively build linkages with FTA support
148
institutions were found to be more likely to use FTAs. Third, the study also found a
positive and significant relationship between exposure to trade, as measured by
export share of sales and the proportion of raw materials imported, and FTA use.
This result is not surprising since the greater the outward orientation, the higher
the likelihood the firm is aware of international markets and trade regulations
(including import tariffs, FTA preferences, rules of origin, and customs
procedures). Additionally, firms with higher exposure to international trade have
more to gain from using the preferences made available in FTAs. Fourth, firms
located in central Malaysia are also more likely to use FTA preferences,
highlighting perhaps the greater availability of support and technical assistance in
major industrial centers and the scope for information spillovers and exchanges
between firms.
The descriptive analysis on the barriers to FTA use found that lack of
information is the predominant reason for not utilizing preferences under an FTA.
Other top responses included firms not seeing the need to use FTAs and firms not
being interested in trade with the current FTA partners. For instance, a given firms
main trading partner might be the United States and Malaysia presently lack an
FTA with the United States. The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) – which includes
the United States and Malaysia – was under negotiation at the time of writing this
paper.
Trade facilitation and foreign investment were identified as pertinent
issues of interest to SMEs seeking greater international engagement through FTAs.
Increased trade facilitation is seen to reduce the transaction cost at the interface
between business and government while greater foreign investment helps SMEs
149
gain greater access to finance and launch themselves onto the international
market.
The above findings from Malaysian firms reinforce what researchers have
known from micro-level studies of international trade— firm size is positively
related to firm-level trade performance and FTA use (e.g. Greenaway and Kneller,
2007; Tambunan and Chandra, 2014). The findings also provide new insights on
impediments to FTA use with a lack of information emerging as a key barrier to
SMEs using FTAs.
This information hurdle can be addressed by enhanced SME policy support
including providing more analysis on the implications of FTAs on businesses,
more training on FTAs under implementation, and enhanced consultations before,
during, and after FTA negotiations. A combination of public and private
institutional support services is an effective means of delivering institutional
support services to SMEs. This would also involve close coordination among the
following intuitions: the Ministry of Trade and Customs, business and industrial
associations, and chambers of commerce. With these policies in place, SMEs in
Malaysia and Asia may internationalize more efficiently and access the global
market.
Furthermore, a country lacking an FTA with a firm’s main trading partner
(such as the United States) can discourage FTA use by SMEs. If a TPP (including
both Malaysia and the United States) eventually gets concluded, Malaysian SMEs
will have an incentive to make use of such an agreement with a major trading
partner.
150
Some limitations in the data and methodology should be noted. Firstly,
given the small sample size, the statistical power of the estimation is reduced
leading to the possibility of a Type II error, where the significance of a variable
under consideration is incorrectly dismissed. Secondly, the FTA preference use
model are static as only cross-sectional data were available. As panel data
becomes available over time, we will become increasingly able to investigate the
changes in policy and enterprise responses. Finally, there are other factors that
may influence FTA preference use, such as trade policies, domestic regulations,
infrastructure, and business support services. Attempting to incorporate these
policy factors in future econometric work may provide additional insights. Thus,
the results should be interpreted with caution.
151
References
ADB (2015), "Asia Regional Integration Center FTA database", Manila: Asian Development
Bank, available at http://www.aric.adb.org (accessed 10 January 2015).
Chirathivat, S. (2008), "ASEAN’s Strategy toward an Increasing Asian Integration", in A.

Shigeyuki and B. Nidhipraba (eds.), East Asian Economies and New Regionalism,
Kyoto University Press, Kyoto.
Greenaway D, and Kneller R. (2007), "Firm Heterogeneity, Exporting and Foreign Direct
Investment", Economic Journal, 117: 134–161.
Helpman, E., M. J. Melitz, and S. R. Yeaple (2004), "Export versus FDI with Heterogeneous
Firms", American Economic Review, 94(1): 300–316.
Hiratsuka, D., K. Hayakawa, K. Shino, and S. Sukegawa (2009), "Maximising the Benefits
from FTAs in ASEAN", in J. Corbett and S. Umezaki (eds.), "Deepening East Asian
Integration", ERIA Research Report 2008-1, Economic Research Institute for
ASEAN and East Asia, Jakarta.
Kam, A. J.-Y. (2013), "International Production Networks and Host Country Productivity:
Evidence from Malaysia" Asian-Pacific Economic Literature, 27: 127–146.
Kawai, M., and G. Wignaraja (eds.) (2011), Asia’s Free Trade Agreements: How Is Business
Responding? Edward Elgar, Cheltenham.
Kawai, M., and G. Wignaraja (2013), "Patterns of Free Trade Areas in Asia", Policy Studies
No. 65, East-West Center, Honolulu.
Kumar, S. (1992), "Policy Issues and the Formation of the ASEAN Free Trade Area", in P.
Imada and S. Naya (eds.), AFTA: The Way Ahead, Institute of Southeast Asian
Studies, Singapore.
Melitz, M. J. (2003), "The Impact of Trade on Intra-industry Reallocations and Aggregate

Industry Productivity", Econometrica,17(6): 1,695–1,725.
Nelson, R. R., and S. G. Winter. 1982. An Evolutionary Theory of Economic Change.

Cambridge, MA: Belknap/Harvard University Press.
Ng, F., and A. Yeats (2003), "Major Trade Trends in East Asia—What are their Implications
for Regional Cooperation and Growth?", World Bank Policy Research Working
Paper 3084, World Bank, Washington, DC.
152
Performance Management and Delivery Unit (PEMANDU) (2014), Economic
Transformation Programme Annual Report 2013, available at
http://etp.pemandu.gov.my/annualreport2013/upload/ENG/ETP2013_ENG_full_
version.pdf.
Tambunan, T. and Chandra, A. C. (2014), "Utilisation Rate of Free Trade Agreements

(FTAs) by Local Micro-, Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises: A Story of ASEAN",
Journal of International Business and Economics 2(2): 133–163.
Takahashi, K. and S. Urata (2008), "On the Use of FTAs by Japanese Firms", RIETI
Discussion Paper Series 08-E-002, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and
Industry, Tokyo.
Ting, O. K. (2004), "SMEs in Malaysia: Pivot Points for Change", available at

http://www.mca.org.my.
Wignaraja, G. (2014), "The Determinants of FTA Use in Southeast Asia: A Firm-level

Analysis", Journal of Asian Economics 35: 32–45.
World Trade Organization (2014), "Trade Policy Review", Report of the Secretariat,
Malaysia, availale at http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/tpr_e/g292_e.pdf.
153
Appendix
Characteristics of firms
The survey included both exporters and importers and the majority of
firms (216) were importers compared with 86 exporters (Table A1). Of these
firms, 69 were both exporters and importers of goods. The firms were distributed
across five key manufacturing sectors and were predominantly small firms—
88.5% of the firms in the sample were small firms with fewer than 100 employees.
Table A1
Characteristics of surveyed firms
C %
ount
Type of Traders
Exporters only 17 7.3
Importers only 147 62.8
Export and import 69 29.5
No answer 1 0.4
Size
Small 2 8
07 8.5
Large 2 8.
0 5
Giant 7 3
Sector
Textiles and garments 4 2
9 0.9
Food and beverages 2 1
6 1.1
Wood and wood products 2 9.
3 8
Electronic products and 8 3
components 7 7.2
Automotive and parts 4 2
7 0.1
Other 2 0.
9
Foreign Ownership
Foreign owned 2 1
4 0.3
Domestically owned 2 8
10 9.7
Total Number of 2 1
Respondents 34 00
154
Table A2
Pearson correlation coefficients
Export Proportio
Foreign
Electronic Tech. Labor share n of raw
Size Age Auto Central ownershi R&D ISO
s license productivity of materials
p
sales imported
Size 1.00
Age 0.25 1.00
Auto 0.06 0.02 1.00
Electronics -0.07 -0.03 -0.38 1.00
Central -0.05 0.01 0.07 -0.06 1.00
Foreign ownership 0.28 -0.04 0.01 -0.01 -0.10 1.00
Tech license 0.31 0.02 -0.10 0.09 -0.05 0.49 1.00
R&D 0.05 -0.10 0.06 0.10 0.06 0.28 0.25 1.00
ISO 0.35 0.15 0.15 -0.04 0.05 0.23 0.22 0.31 1.00
Labor productivity -0.08 -0.10 -0.03 -0.03 0.25 -0.02 -0.05 -0.08 -0.05 1.00
Export share of sales 0.36 0.02 -0.05 -0.08 -0.14 0.37 0.42 0.15 0.14 -0.06 1.00
Proportion of raw
materials imported 0.18 -0.04 -0.10 -0.03 -0.15 0.44 0.33 0.14 -0.01 -0.06 0.67 1.00
Some knowledge of FTAs 0.02 0.02 0.20 -0.21 0.09 -0.06 -0.08 -0.07 -0.01 0.07 -0.06 0.10
FTA = free trade agreement, R&D = research and development.

155
Social entrepreneurship in Asia: a literature
review
Savita Shankar
Keio Business School

Keio University
Yokohama Kanagawa, Japan
E-mail:savita.shankar@keio.jp
Abstract
This paper reviews the literature in peer-reviewed journals on social enterprises

in South, East and Southeast Asia. The country studies indicate that evolution of social
enterprises in a country seems to be closely related to historical events that create
favorable conditions. Typologies of social enterprises that develop in a country appear to
be a result of its socio-economic circumstances, cultural factors and regulatory
environment. The literature on social enterprises in the Asian context is largely limited to
some studies on development of social enterprise in specific countries and conceptual
papers in which the Grameen Bank case features as an example. This limited nature of the
literature is a surprising finding if one were to consider the current level of social
enterprise activity in Asia. The short history of social entrepreneurship research, the
difficulties in developing a working definition of a social enterprise and the dominance of
Western debates in the social entrepreneurship literature have all contributed to the lack
of adequate literature based on empirical studies in Asia. The deeply embedded nature of
social enterprises and the development potential they hold are important reasons for
addressing this research gap.
Keywords: Asia, Literature review, Not-for-profit organization, Social entrepreneurship.

JEL: L31,M14, N85, O35.
Introduction
In recent times, “social entrepreneurship” has become a widely used term.
Broadly, the term denotes the application of business techniques to address social
problems. While activities that are similar to social entrepreneurship have existed
for a very long time, it is estimated that the term was used for the first time in
academic literature in 1954 (Sassmannshausen and Volkmann, 2013). It is widely
acknowledged that the term became popular in the early 1980s, as a result of its
156
usage by Bill Drayton, the founder of Ashoka, a not for profit organization that
supports a global network of social entrepreneurs1. Since then, there has been
rapid growth in the number of social enterprises as well as initiatives to support,
finance and develop social enterprises. As a result, “social entrepreneurship” has
very quickly progressed into a distinct and popular field of study in universities
(Kickul and Lyons, 2012). Moreover, a number of centers focusing on social
entrepreneurship have been set up within major universities. Chairs and
professorships have also been institutionalized. Some Governments, notably those
of United Kingdom and Canada, have articulated policies with respect to social
enterprises, reflecting the important role envisaged by them for these entities.
Development financial institutions such as the Asian Development Bank and
World Bank support the growth of social enterprises.
As a consequence of increasing interest in the topic, literature on
social entrepreneurship has proliferated. Sassmannshausen and Volkmann
(2013) use bibliometrics to measure the maturity of social entrepreneurship
research and find that that the growth in literature on the subject from 1999
onwards has been exponential. According to “Google Scholar”, the number of new
publications per year containing the word “social entrepreneurship” numbered
approximately 2370 by 2011, more than double the number for 2009. Similarly,
peer reviewed articles on the subject made an appearance in 1999, but numbered
more than 50 per year by 2011. These trends are indicative of a significant growth
in the body of literature on the subject.
1 https://www.ashoka.org/.
157
Major contributions to the social entrepreneurship literature
however have come from Western sources. Hackett (2010) points out that most of
the debates in the current literature on social enterprises are focused on Western
countries as most of the “expert voices” on the subject are from these countries.
She gives examples of important political and economic debates about social
enterprises and shows that these are relevant mainly in developed country
contexts.
However, social entrepreneurship is important for Asia, where sixty
per cent of the world’s population lives. The commonly cited reasons for the need
for social enterprises such as pressing unaddressed social problems, market
failure, Government failure and inadequacy of public budgets are very relevant in
the case of most Asian countries. While the developing countries in Asia have
challenges of poverty, unemployment and health to address, in developed
countries, social enterprises have a role to play to address other social problems
such as long-term care for the aged.
Method
This paper proposes to review the academic literature to ascertain the
state of knowledge about the social enterprise sector in Asia. Granovetter (1985)
argued that economic environments are embedded in social and structural
relationships that alter neoclassical predictions of economic behavior. While this
is true of entrepreneurship in general, as compared to business enterprises, social
enterprises are even more embedded in the local context (Guo and Bielefeld,
158
2014). It is therefore useful to analyze the literature that is relevant to the specific
context.
The scope of the literature review is articles in peer-reviewed journals on
social enterprises in South, East and Southeast Asia. The articles can be grouped
into two categories. The first category highlights Asian case studies in their
discussion on general issues relating to social entrepreneurship. Another category
studies in-depth a particular Asian country or set of countries and focuses mainly
on the themes of evolution of the social enterprise sector and the typologies of
social enterprises commonly observed. The next section entitled “Review of the
literature” will attempt to summarize the existing literature. The following section
on “Discussion about the existing literature” will assess why certain aspects
relating to social enterprises in Asia have been researched while other aspects are
yet to be studied. The “Conclusions” section will highlight the gaps in the literature
that need to be addressed by future research.
Review of the Literature
Social entrepreneurship cases from Asia quoted in the literature
The case of Grameen Bank of Bangladesh is often quoted as one of the
pioneering social enterprises in the world. The bank, promoted by Professor
Muhammad Yunus in 1976, is a striking example of an organization that addressed
a pressing social need (small value loans for low income Bangladeshi women) in
an innovative manner. In many ways, the Grameen Bank case exemplifies the
nature of social enterprise. Most popular books on social entrepreneurship start
with the Grameen Bank example (e.g. Bornstein and Davis, 2010).
159
The Grameen Bank example is also used by Mair and Marti (2006) who aim
to elucidate the meaning of social entrepreneurship by clarifying key concepts and
constructs relating to it in their article “Social entrepreneurship research: A
source of explanation, prediction and delight”. In order to explain the “social”
nature of social enterprises, they use three examples of successful social
enterprises. Two out of these are examples from South Asia: Grameen Bank from
Bangladesh and Aravind Eye Hospital from India. While Grameen Bank provides
financial services to low income women, Aravind Eye Hospital established in 1976
by Dr.Venkataswamy, provides eye care services and cataract surgery at a fraction
of the cost in developed countries. Mair and Marti (ibid) explain how these
organizations innovatively combine resources to address a social problem and
thereby change the existing social structures. The objective is to create both social
and economic value, though the emphasis is on the former. The creation of
economic value is primarily for ensuring the sustainability of the venture.
The Grameen Bank example is also quoted by Defourny and Nyssens
(2010) when they trace the origins of the debate on social entrepreneurship in the
United States. They mention that part of the debate was fueled by the activities of
Bill Drayton and Ashoka whose approach was exemplified by Muhammad Yunus
and the Grameen Bank.
Hackett (2010) discusses the cases of Grameen Bank and Grameen Energy
(also known as Grameen Shakti) to show that the debates in the social
entrepreneurship literature are often more relevant to developed country
contexts. Grameen Shakti, a not for profit company of the Grameen Bank group
provides renewable energy products to rural households and businesses. Hackett

160
(ibid) mentions how in developed countries social enterprises are credited with
addressing social problems caused by market failures. In the United Kingdom for
instance, social enterprises have been acclaimed for helping with social exclusion
while in Australia, they are praised for providing employment opportunities to
marginalized individuals. However, there is debate in these countries on whether
the Government, business or social enterprises are best placed to address these
market failures. In developing country contexts however, there are often multiple
market failures that make the analysis more complicated. Social enterprises in
developing countries such as the Grameen Bank often traverse formal and
informal sectors and hence are often well placed to fill in gaps in the services.
Similarly, the political debates in Western countries regarding whether the
Government is using social enterprises in order to shirk its welfare
responsibilities are irrelevant in developing countries with minimal welfare
policies. The funding for social enterprises in developing countries often comes
from foreign sources, which changes the political equations considerably. Another
stark difference in the two contexts is that while in Western countries there is
debate about whether social enterprises can balance their social and financial
goals, in developing countries the more important question is about the extent to
which market based approaches can be used to address the large development
challenges. Using all these examples, Hackett (ibid) makes the point that the
circumstances in which social enterprises operate in developed and developing
country contexts are very different and hence the debates surrounding them need
to necessarily vary.
161
Evolution of the social enterprise sector in the Asian context
Defourny and Develtere (1999) point out that social enterprises emerge
when two conditions prevail – there is a “condition of necessity” and a “condition
of shared destiny”. By “condition of necessity” they refer to an urgent problem or
issue. However this by itself could merely lead to individual survival strategies or
top down public policies. However if individuals realize the shared nature of their
destiny in facing the problem and develop an appreciation of the power of
collective potential, social enterprises to address the issue are likely to emerge. In
Western countries, even though there is prosperity, there are pressing issues such
as that of environmental degradation or the need for good quality food products.
Western societies may not display collective dynamics but the high level of
education and the awareness of specific challenges have resulted in the formation
of social enterprises to address challenges.
Both conditions for emergence of social enterprises have existed on
numerous occasions in Asian countries and hence social enterprises have emerged
in most of them. However, literature in peer-reviewed journals on the evolution of
social enterprises is restricted to only a few countries in Asia. This literature is
summarized below.
The forerunners of social enterprises in Bangladesh are not for profit
organizations, which have a long history in the country, starting in the aftermath
of its war of independence in 1971. Grameen Bank, widely acknowledged as one of
the pioneering social enterprises in the world (Bornstein and Davis, 2010) was set
up in Bangladesh in the year 1976. Since then, numerous social enterprises have
162
been set up. However, Hackett (2010) points out that there is not much scrutiny or
debate about them.
In Indonesia on the other hand, a relationship between the growth of social
enterprises and the social movement for independence has been observed (Idris
and Hati, 2013). The modern concept of social entrepreneurship was however
introduced by the Ashoka Foundation in 1983 when it launched its program to
identify, train and fund local entrepreneurs. Three factors were identified by Idris
and Hati (2013) as the main drivers of social entrepreneurship in pre-
independence Indonesia: quest for educational and economic empowerment, the
influence of Islam and the presence of aristocratic leaders. Based on the study,
they identify three factors that could positively influence the development of the
social entrepreneurship in Indonesia: the perception regarding economic
empowerment due to social enterprises, the Islamic identity of social enterprises
and the spread of social activism in the country.
In Hong Kong, numerous social enterprises emerged subsequent to the
Asian financial crisis in 1997 when unemployment increased. In the early 2000s,
the Hong Kong Government introduced schemes to encourage the growth of social
enterprises and units to oversee their growth. The objective was to make subsidy
expenses more productive (Chan et al., 2011).
In Taiwan, during the period 1990 to 2010, a number of social issues led to
the creation of numerous not for profit organizations, leading to intense
competition for resources among them. This prompted some not for profit
organizations to pursue sustainability and adopt a social enterprise kind of model.
The Government also started partnering with social enterprises to address issues
163
such as unemployment and this gave a further boost to the sector (Chan et al.,
2011).
In China, since the late 1970s when market reforms were introduced, the
Government was increasingly expected to replace state owned enterprises and
rural communes both as a provider of public services such as health and education
and as a provider of social protection. This posed both a financial and a managerial
challenge to the Government. To address this, local authorities were empowered
to mobilize resources from and partner with the market economy as well as the
emerging civil society. This contributed to the emergence of social enterprises in
the country. The other driving forces were the growing interest of private sector
entities in corporate social responsibility and the promotional activities of
international players aiming to foster social entrepreneurship in China (Yu, 2011).
In South Korea, the concept of social entrepreneurship had its roots in civil
society and citizens’ movements before finding a place in the Government agenda.
The particular features of the labor market in the country placed a number of
individuals at risk of social exclusion and this led the Government to enact the
Social Enterprise Promotion Act in 2006, which gave recognition to these entities.
The policy discourse on social enterprises in South Korea was very much
influenced by the experiences in Europe and USA (Bidet and Eum, 2011).
In Japan, three generations of social enterprises have been identified
(Kaneko, 2013). The first generation enterprises were started during the period
1900 to 1975 and consist of neighborhood organizations typically with limited
geographic scope but strong social orientation. The second generation of
enterprises commenced during the period 1975 to 2000 and consists of not-for-
164
profit organizations and community businesses that like the first generation ones
have a strong social mission but are wider in scope. Many of these organizations
came into existence after the Great Kobe earthquake that struck in 1975.
Subsequently, a legal framework for not profit organizations was enacted,
spurring the growth in their numbers. The third generation is distinct from the
first two due to its greater market orientation and higher degree of innovation,
even while adhering to a strong social mission.
Evolution of social enterprises in a country seems to be closely related to
historical events in the country that create favorable conditions.
Typologies of social enterprise observed in Asia
Before proceeding to the Asian case, it is useful to note that Defourny and
Nyssens (2010) have identified two distinct growth trajectories of social
enterprises in Europe and the United States. In Europe, social enterprises were
characterized by participatory involvement of stakeholders in the tradition of
cooperatives and constraints on the distribution of profits. These safety features
helped them access Government support which came through legal frameworks
and at times through subsidies and fiscal exemptions. In the United States on the
other hand, the aforementioned safety features did not always exist and hence
foundations played a key role in providing finance to social enterprises. However,
in both Europe and the States, the concept of social entrepreneurship was actively
promoted by research networks such as EMES European research network and
academic institutions such as Harvard business school (Defourny and Nyssens,
2010).
165
Yu (2011) points out that the absence of any specific legislation on
social enterprises in China makes it difficult to elaborate a working definition.
Nevertheless, social enterprises have emerged in a wide range of sectors. Yu
(ibid) further elaborates on the important differences observed between social
enterprises in China and their Western counterparts. First, the institutional
context in China is less developed with respect to financial, technical, intellectual
and human resources for social enterprises. Second, the ownership structure
commonly observed is either private or quasi-government. Multi stakeholder
ownership structures are not common. A unique aspect in China is that not for
profit organizations do not receive favorable tax statuses. This makes it harder for
such organizations to raise funds. The governance model that is most popular in
China is the stewardship model which places the management in the most
powerful position (Yu, 2013). Participatory governance structures are not
common. Yu (ibid) therefore opines that the ownership patterns, governance
structures and governance models of Chinese social enterprises cannot be
explained by the social enterprise governance theories developed on the basis of
practices of Western social enterprises.
In Japan, social enterprises follow the European tradition in the sense that
they are community based and receive institutional support from the Government
(Kaneko, 2013). However, the extent of support they receive is not as much as
that received by European enterprises. The only support they currently receive is
with regard to tax incentives for grass roots donations to not for profit
organizations. Laratta et al. (2011) identify three different conceptual approaches
to explain the emergence of social enterprise in Japan – the earned income not for
166
profit approach, the not for profit cooperative approach and the social business
approach. These approaches have in turn led to the emergence of three common
types of social enterprises in the country – the Takurojos or innovative elderly
care institutions, work integration social enterprises and social businesses. While
the former two are usually specified not for profit organizations, the latter are
typically incorporated as for profit stock companies. Laratta (ibid) identifies three
major constraints that bind social enterprises based on the organizational form
they adopt when incorporated. These are the legal requirements that are imposed,
the level of trust they enjoy from the general public and the sources of funding
available to them. Ironically, unlike in Western countries, traditionally not for
profit organizations in Japan do not enjoy much trust from the general public as
they are considered less professional than private or Government entities.
Japanese not for profit organizations also faced another disadvantage until 2011
as donations to them did not receive tax exemptions. In recent years, special
banks (known as cooperative banks) have been set up to lend to not for profit
organizations though these are few in number. Until then, such organizations
could mainly borrow only from individuals due to lack of understanding about
their ways of operation.
In South Korea, the Government follows the European terminology in
distinguishing between social enterprises providing social services and work
integration social enterprises. The latter employ disadvantaged individuals (such
as physically challenged people) and try to integrate them into the work force.
After 2006, when the Social Enterprise Promotion Act was passed, organizations
that want to be called “social enterprises” need to apply for certification to the
167
Ministry of Labor with proof of the connection between their activities and a social
mission. Four types of social enterprises can received certification, those that
provide social services, the work integration enterprises in which at least 50
percent of the employees are disadvantaged, the “mixed” type which shows
characteristics of both the first two types and finally the “others” category in
which social enterprises that don't fit into any of the other categories (such as
those that focus on environmental issues) are accommodated. Certified social
enterprises can receive various types of subsidies. Private companies are
encouraged to support social enterprises in various ways, for which they can
receive tax rebates. Another kind of social enterprise in South Korea is the “self
sufficiency enterprise” which is an economically sustainable enterprise with
collective ownership where at least one third of the employees are beneficiaries of
the National Basic Livelihood Scheme (NBLS). NBLS is a scheme under which
persons having resources below a certain threshold and meeting certain
conditions receive public aid. Besides these two forms, there are “de facto” social
enterprises which function as social enterprises as generally defined in the
academic community but are not labeled such as per South Korean regulations.
Overall, the South Korean model follows the European model but is more “top
down” with the Government controlling the use of the term “social enterprise”
(Bidet and Eum, 2011).
A study on governance of South Korean social enterprises by Bertotti et al.
(2014) found that the governance models commonly discussed in the literature on
social enterprises in the United States and Europe did not fit the South Korean
context. The authors found that 70 per cent of the social enterprises studied fall
168
into a category they call “the interdependent model” where a range of stakeholder
interests are represented, there is strong control over the chief executive and the
mission is more likely to be social rather than commercial. This seems to indicate
that “mission drift” is not as big a concern in the case of South Korean enterprises
as in the case of their U.K. counterparts (Bertotti et al., 2014, Spear et al., 2007).
Contrasting the social enterprises in Hong Kong and Taiwan, Chan et al.
point out that the former are more market oriented compared to the latter. While
both countries have broadly three kinds of social enterprises: employment
oriented enterprises (similar to work integration enterprises), empowerment
oriented enterprises (that focus on community development) and business
oriented enterprises, business oriented ones are dominant in Hong Kong primarily
due to the capitalistic nature of the society. In Taiwan on the other hand, due to
the strong civil society in the country, community development oriented
enterprises are also substantial in number. The study also found that more
number of social enterprises in Hong Kong obtained their revenues from sale of
products and services than in Taiwan. Government grants and fees was a bigger
source of revenue in the case of Taiwanese social enterprises, as Government
entities are required to prioritize purchase from such enterprises and hence
represent a big market for them. It was found that Hong Kong enterprises were
more focused on financial independence than their Taiwanese counterparts. In
Taiwan, profits from a social enterprise set up by a not for profit organization
were often used for the overall financial management of the not for profit
organization.
169
Defourny and Kim (2011) attempt a cross-country analysis of social
enterprises in Eastern Asia and find that the diversity among social enterprises
makes it impossible to isolate a single typical model per country or region. The
authors also argue that the social enterprise landscape in East Asia is marked by
the strong influence of state policy. While in Western Europe, social enterprises
can be said to be located “at the crossroads of market, public policies and civil
society” (Nyssens, 2006) in East Asia, they are currently located mainly at the
intersection of state and the market though the influence of civil society is
increasing steadily over time.
Typologies of social enterprises that develop in a country appear to be a
result of its socio-economic circumstances, cultural factors and regulatory
environment.
Discussion about the Existing Literature
As can be seen from the earlier section, the literature in peer-reviewed
journals about social enterprises in Asia is very limited at present. While the
Grameen Bank case is often used as an example in papers dealing with conceptual
issues in social entrepreneurship, the literature on specific aspects of the social
entrepreneurship process or the impacts of social enterprises is absent. Five of the
papers on evolution of social entrepreneurship and the commonly observed
typologies of social enterprises in East Asia were the result of research conducted
in collaboration with EMES European Research Network.
This limited nature of the literature is a surprising finding if one were to
consider the level of social enterprise activity in Asia. For example, in India,
170
reports such as the Asian Development Bank’s India Social Enterprise Landscape
Report (2012) 2indicate that the sector is growing rapidly. The report further
mentions that India is one of the most advanced impact investing markets 3in
terms of number and size of investments even though the impact investment
space is still nascent. Yet, there is a lack of peer-reviewed articles on social
enterprises in the country.
Various factors have contributed to the limited nature of the social
enterprise literature relating to Asia.
The first factor is the prevailing state of research in the field. Social
entrepreneurship as a field has a relatively short history. Short, Todd and
Lumpkin (2009) review the literature on social entrepreneurship and argue that
research on the subject is still in an embryonic state. Their literature review found
that there was very little scholarly output in mainstream journals on the subject
and that conceptual papers greatly outnumbered the empirical studies. The
empirical studies that were published also often lacked formal hypothesis and
rigorous methods. While there has been an increase in the number of journal
articles since 2009, the number of empirical studies till date still remains low. As a
result, papers specifically relating to Asia are few in number.
The second factor has to do with the lack of legislative mention of social
enterprises in most countries in Asia. Rigorous research on social enterprises
requires a working definition of a social enterprise as a starting point. As has been
pointed out by Short, Todd and Lumpkin (2009), despite increased interest in
2 http://adb.org/sites/default/files/pub/2012/india-social-enterprise-landscape-report.pdf.
3 Impact investment refers to investments made into companies, organizations and funds with the objective of
generating measurable social and environmental impact along side a financial return (www.thegiin.org).
171
social entrepreneurship, scholarly research has been challenging because
definitions of the concept have been developed in different domains and a unifying
definition is yet to emerge. In countries where Governments have provided
definitions of a social enterprise, researchers have a basis for their research. For
example, the U.K. Government defines a social enterprise as “a business with
primarily social objectives whose surpluses are principally reinvested for that
purpose in the business or in the community, rather than being driven by the need
to maximize profit for shareholders and owners" 4.
In Asia, except in South Korea, no legislative definitions of social
enterprises exist, which means delineating the various types of social enterprises
that exist in a country is in itself a challenging task. While awareness about social
enterprises is increasing, not all organizations with social missions call themselves
social enterprises. For example, even though Grameen Bank is often quoted as an
example of a social enterprise, Hackett (2010) points out that microfinance
practitioners in developing countries often do not identify themselves as social
entrepreneurs. The only exception is Grameen Bank itself as Yunus (2007) defines
the enterprises that are part of the Grameen group as social businesses. This
makes the task of identifying social enterprises in these countries difficult, as
some may be “de jure” social enterprises while others might be “de facto” social
enterprises. The lack of definition of the boundaries of social enterprises makes
rigorous research on the topic in Asian countries particularly challenging.
4https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/31677/11-1400-guide-
legal-forms-for-social-enterprise.pdf.
172
A third factor is the nature of the debates in the social entrepreneurship
literature. As pointed out by Hackett (2010), these have so far been framed in
Western terms and some of the debates are irrelevant to Asian contexts. As a
result of this, a contribution to the existing literature based on research in an
Asian context is challenging without first redefining some of the theoretical
concepts, restating the underlying assumptions and modifying the basic research
questions.
Conclusions
Though there has been a volumetric increase in the literature on social
entrepreneurship, the discourse on social entrepreneurship is still in an early
stage of development. The literature review on social entrepreneurship in Asia
indicates that there is indeed a large gap in the research relating to Asian contexts.
Peer reviewed journal articles relating to Asian social enterprises usually confine
themselves to well known case studies or country studies on evolution and
typologies of social enterprises.
The studies on social entrepreneurship in Asian countries that are available
underline how social enterprises are deeply embedded in the local context. For
example, the studies on Hong Kong and Taiwan show how though the countries
are geographically close to each other but on account of their different socio-
economic contexts, social enterprises have shown different growth trajectories. It
is therefore important to conduct empirical studies on social entrepreneurship in
various contexts to more fully understand the concept and make the discussion on
the subject more global in nature.
173
In the case of developing countries in Asia, social enterprises can play an
important role in addressing the large development challenges. It is therefore
important to study the conditions that favor their growth and the constraints that
they commonly face that need to be addressed. Another important area that needs
to be researched is the impact that these organizations have on development
indicators and how their impact can be enhanced.
Currently, most of the social entrepreneurship literature is from the
business and entrepreneurship perspective. In developing countries, development
issues need to necessarily play a central role in the social enterprise debate.
Including sociological and public policy perspectives into the debate on social
entrepreneurship will result in a richer understanding of Asian social enterprises
and their potential role in society and the economy.
174
References
Bertotti, M, Han,Y, Gopalakrishnan, N, Sheridan, K. and A. Renton (2014), "Governance in

South Korean social enterprises: Are there alternative models?", Social Enterprise
Journal, 10(1):38-52.
Bidet,E. and H. Eum (2011), “Social Enterprise in South Korea: History and Diversity”,
Social Enterprise Journal, 7(1):69-85.
Bornstein, D. and S. Davis (2010), Social Entrepreneurship: What everyone needs to know,
Oxford University Press, New York.
Chan, K., Kuan,Y. and S.Wang (2011), “Similarities and Divergences: Comparison of social
enterprises in Hong Kong and Taiwan”, Social Enterprise Journal, 7(1):33-49.
Defourny, J. and P. Develtere (1999), “Origines et contours de l’economie sociale au Nord

et au Sud”, in Defourny, J., Develtere, P. and Fonteneau, B. (eds.), L’economie sociale
au Nord et au Sud, De Boeck, Brussels and Paris, 25-56.
Defourny, J. and S.Kim (2011), “Emerging models of social enterprise in Eastern Asia: A
cross country analysis”, Social Enterprise Journal, 7(1):86-111.
Defourny, J. and M. Nyssens (2010), “Conceptions of social enterprise and social

entrepreneurship in Europe and the United States: Convergences and Divergences”,
Journal of Social Entrepreneurship, 1(1):32-53.
Granovetter, M. (1985), “Economic action and social structure: The problem of

embeddedness”, American Journal of Sociology, 91 (3):481–510.
Guo,C. and W. Bielefeld (2014) Social Entrepreneurship: An evidence based approach to

creating social value, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco.
Hackett, M. (2010), “Challenging social enterprise debates in Bangladesh”, Social

Enterprise Journal, 6(3): 210-224.
Idris, A. and R.H. Hati (2013), “Social Entrepreneurship in Indonesia: Lessons from the
Past”, Journal of Social Entrepreneurship, 4(3):277-301.
Kaneko, I. (2013), “Social Entrepreneurship in Indonesia: Lessons from the Past”, Journal
of Social Entrepreneurship, 4(3):256-276.
Laratta, R, Nakagawa,S. and M.Sakurai (2011) “Japanese social enterprises: Major

contemporary issues and key challenges”, Social Enterprise Journal, 7(1):50-68.
175
Mair,J. and I.Marti (2006), “Social entrepreneurship research: A source of explanation,
prediction and delight”, Journal of World Business, 41:36–44.
Nyssens,M. (ed.)(2006), Social Enterprise- At the cross section of market, public policies and
civil society, Routledge Books, New York.
Sassmannshausen, S.P. and C. Volkmann (2013), “A Bibliometric based review on social

entrepreneurship and its establishment as a field of research”, Schumpeter
Discussion Paper 2013, Schumpeter School of Business and Economics, Wuppertal
University, Germany.
Short, J.C., Todd, W.M. and G.T. Lumpkin (2009), “Research in Social Entrepreneurship:
Past Contributions and Future Opportunities”, Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal
3:161-194.
Spear,R., Cornforth, C. and M. Aitken (2007), "For love & money", Governance and Social
Enterprise commissioned by Social Enterprise Coalition, London.
Yu, X. (2011), “Social Enterprise in China: driving forces, development patterns and legal
framework”, Social Enterprise Journal, 7(1):9-32.
Yu, X. (2013), “The Governance of Social Enterprises in China”, Social Enterprise Journal,
9(3):225-246.
Yunus (2007), Creating a world without poverty: Social Business and the Future of
Capitalism, Public Affairs, New York.
176
About The Authors
Tulus T.H. Tambunan is a lecturer in the Faculty of Economics, University
of Trisakti in Jakarta (Indonesia). Currently he is also the head and the main
researcher of the Center for Industry, Small and Medium Enterprises, and
Business Competition Studies in the same university. He was graduated and holds
a PhD in economics from the Erasmus University in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
Since 1995 he has been the country researcher representing Indonesia for the
World Economic Forum (WEF) in Geneva, which publishes, annually, The Global
Competitiveness Report. He has done many studies on various issues related to
micro, small and medium enterprises, economic crises, regional trade, and
inclusive development.
Anna Bąkiewicz is a researcher and an academic teacher with almost
thirty years of experience. Before she was a former associate professor
at University of Warsaw, Poland, and now she professor at the University of Social
Sciences. Her professional background includes both international research
programs and teaching courses. With a particular focus on the study of
entrepreneurship and intercultural communication, she leads teaching courses
and seminars related to SMEs management and development.
Menaka Arudchelvan was a project consultant at the Asian Development
Bank Institute (ADBI). Her research interests in applied economics are in trade,
regional integration, SME and inclusive growth. Prior to joining ADBI, she worked
International Journal of Small and Medium Enterprises and Business Sustainability,Vol.1, No.1 (July 2015),
177
as an economist at the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and as a
statistical analyst at Statistics New Zealand. She completed her academic
qualification at the Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, with majors in
Economics, Econometrics and Money and Finance.
Ganeshan Wignaraja is Advisor, Office of the Chief Economist of the Asian
Development Bank (ADB). During 2012-2015, he was the Director of Research of
the ADB Institute in Tokyo. Previously, he has held positions at the ADB, the
Commonwealth Secretariat, the OECD, Oxford University, Overseas Development
Institute, the UN University Institute for New Technologies and a major UK
consulting firm. He has published widely on international economics, regional
integration, small and medium enterprises, development economics and
development finance. He holds a DPhil in economics from Oxford University and a
BSc in economics from the London School of Economics.
Savita Shankar is an Associate Professor at the Graduate School of
Management, Keio University, Japan. She has earlier taught at the Asian institute of
Management, Philippines and the Institute for Financial Management and
Research, India. She did her Ph.D. at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy,
Singapore. Prior to her academic career, Savita has ten years of work experience
in corporate banking with ICICI Bank, India’s largest private sector bank and
Export-Import Bank of India, a development financial institution in India. Savita’s
research interests are in the areas of financial inclusion, microfinance and issues
relating to micro, small and medium enterprises. She has led research studies
178
involving primary data collection in India, Philippines, Cambodia and Pakistan.
She has consulted for the Asian Development Bank, Habitat for Humanity
Philippines and Habitat for Humanity Cambodia.
Colin C Williams is Professor of Public Policy in the Management School at
the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom. His research interests include
the informal economy, entrepreneurship and the future of work. His books include
Confronting the Shadow Economy: evaluating tax compliance and behaviour policies
(2014, Edward Elgar), The Shadow Economy (2013, Institute of Economic Affairs)
and The Role of Informal Economies in the Post-Soviet World: the end of transition?
(2013, Routledge).
Tomoko Oikawa is researcher for Euro-Asia Centre in Kemmy Business
School, University of Limerick in Ireland. Her main research interest is in small
and medium enterprises (SMEs) in both Europe and Asia, in terms of innovation,
organization and cultural values. She has done many studies on rural SMEs in
Eastern Europe and South-east Asian countries. Currently, she is conducting a
research on the concept of collectivism, which is merely categorized into
‘collectivism’.
Maciej Debski is currently deputy director of Institute of Economics,
University of Social Sciences, and he was former Dean of the Faculty of Economy
and Rector of Warsaw School of Social and Economic Studies, Head of Department
of Economy and Economic Policy at the Maria Skłodowska-Curie Warsaw

179
Academy. His is a marketing specialist, with particular interest in tourism
marketing. He is also a lecturer at bachelor, master, doctoral, post-graduate and
MBA programs. He is the author of the book: Creating a strong brand, coauthor of
Tourism policy. The creation - development - main areas, and the author of over 50
scientific publications and participant in over 20 national and international
conferences.
Michał Szaniawski graduated from the Catholic University of Leuven
(Belgium); and a PhD student at the Department of Management, University of
Warsaw (Poland). Since 2005 he has been working at Consulting Plus Ltd., and
became partner and board member in 2009. The company specializes in
management consulting, in particular, in the tourism sector. He gives marketing
and strategy development advices to many family tourism companies. He is
Interested in crowd funding, and a co-founder and board member of the Polish
Crowd Funding Association. He is also a co-founder of fundujesz.pl, i.e. the first
Polish crowd funding platform focusing in social projects.
180

Sheilla R Ardhani - 1953031 - Jurnal 1 Uts

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Sheilla R Ardhani - 1953031 - Jurnal 1 Uts

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

International Journal of Small and Medium Enterprises and Business Sustainability,Vol.1, No.1 (July 2015), pp.

Editorial Board Members

Ganeshan Wignaraja (Asian Development Bank Institute, Philippines)

Bogdan Piasecki (University of Social Sciences, Poland)

Thoby Mutis (University of Trisakti, Indonesia)

Editor International Journal of Small and Medium Enterprises

1 - 23 The Likely Impact of the Implementation of ASEAN Economic Community

51 - 82 Entrepreneurship in the Shadow Economy: A Review of the Alternative Policy

83 - 101 ‘Collectivism’ and Innovation: Small and medium-sized enterprises as

102 - 130 Relationship Management in Tourism Microenterprises as an Element in

131 - 155 Exploring characteristics of FTA use among SMEs in Malaysia

156 - 176 Social entrepreneurship in Asia: a literature review

177 About The Authors

Tulus T.H. Tambunan

Center for Industry, SME and Business Competition Studies

Keywords: SMEs, AEC 2015, trade liberalization, export performance, ASEAN-trade

In 2003, ASEAN leaders agreed to establish, by 2020, an ASEAN Community,

comprised of three pillars: the ASEAN Political-Security Community (APSC), ASEAN

Economic Community (AEC) and ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC). In 2007,

of an ASEAN Community to 2015. In particular, they agreed to hasten the process of

will be fully integrated into the global economy (ASEAN, 2011).

The theoretical expectation is that the implementation of AEC 2015 will

travel (air transport), automotive, e-ASEAN, electronics, fisheries, healthcare, rubber-

member states (ASEAN, 2011, 2013).

SME and Business Competition Studies, University of Trisakti (Indonesia), aims to

through what channels it will affect local SME?

The main objective of forming an economic union, a regional economic

cooperation, an economic integration, or a regional free trade area (FTA) in a region

as intra-trade. In other words, a successful FTA, or an economic integration, should

be reflected by more intra-trade volumes among member states than extra-trade

volume between them and the rest of the world.

Intra-and Extra-ASEAN Trade, November 2012 (US$ million)

Member states Intra-ASEAN trade Extra-ASEAN trade Total Trade

ASEAN Trade by Most Important Partner Country/Region, November 2012

Partner Value Share to total ASEAN trade

exports, as of November 2012, was around US $27.53 billion or only approximately

Indonesia with almost US $161.40 billion.

Intra-and Extra-ASEAN Export, November 2012 (US$ million)

Member states Intra-ASEAN export Extra-ASEAN export Total

countries beyond ASEAN), it is generally expected that the implementation of a single

question is especially important for ASEAN SMEs, because if exports of commodities,

in which many SMEs are engaged as producers/suppliers/exporters either directly

Secretariat. Further, of those commodities, the top 10 ASEAN trade commodity

groups are given in Table 5.

(1) electronic machinery, equipment and parts, sound equipment, television

Further, the WTO database (www.wto.org) shows leading exporters within

electronic equipments: Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand; (f)

With respect to SMEs, it is stated in the Roadmap for ASEAN Community

mechanisms and measures to strengthen the implementation of its existing economic

initiative; accelerating regional integration in the priority sectors; facilitating

institutional mechanisms of ASEAN” (page 133). In short, as generally expected, the

opportunities as well as threats directly, while others indirectly. Direct opportunity,

goods/services in local market from similar goods/services produced by SMEs from

components or half-finished products for a local assembling company gets more

Whether the implementation of AEC 2015 will provide more opportunities or

readiness of local SMEs and the seriousness of governments in individual member

states in supporting/promoting capacity building in them. Unfortunately, there are

Intra-and Extra-ASEAN Trade by Commodity Group, November 2012 (US$ million)

Two Commodity Intra-ASEAN Trade Extra-ASEAN Trade Total ASEAN

Does Liberalization in Trade Matter for Local SMEs? A Theoretical

across the development spectrum, an unprecedented level of activity in the process

of trade and investment liberalization. Today, the conduct of international trade in

compared to three decade ago, flows of investment (both short-term or portfolio