The influence of entrepreneur’s personal characteristics on MSEs growth through innovation

Research in the separate areas of innovation and growth has considerably intensified in recent years. However, little scholarly attention has been paid to the entrepreneurs’ personal characteristics that might explain the growth of micro and small enterprises (MSEs) through innovation. This study examines the key entrepreneurs’ personal characteristics affecting micro and small enterprises (MSEs) upgrading, defined here as substantial growth through innovation. Six major determining types of entrepreneurs’ characteristics were identified from the innovation and the growth literature: education, work experience, gender, motivations, nationality and age. The empirical results which are based on t-tests of the differences between upgraders and non-upgraders, the linear probability model and the logit model, all suggest that work experience and motivations are cornerstones in the likelihood that an MSE will upgrade. The policy implications of this study on promoting MSEs upgrading are also discussed.     

Transmission of CSR requirements in supply chains: investigating the multiple mediating effects of CSR activities in SMEs

In recent years, scholars have increasingly turned their attention to the separate areas of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and supply chain management (SCM). However, little scholarly attention has been paid to the transmission of CSR requirements from a small to medium-sized enterprises (SME) perspective. Drawing on institutional and innovation diffusion theories, this paper investigates to what extent the CSR requirements of customers influence the CSR activities of SMEs and their CSR requirements toward their own suppliers. Multiple mediation analysis was performed on data from a sample of 146,060 French SMEs. The findings indicate that the CSR requirements of customers have a direct negative effect on SMEs’ CSR requirements toward suppliers. However, the relationship becomes positive when we take into account the mediating role of the SMEs’ own CSR activities (i.e. economic, social and environmental activities). Furthermore, the study reveals that the indirect effect through economic CSR activities is the greatest, followed by social and then environmental CSR activities. Our main contribution is that implementing CSR activities within SMEs is a necessary step so that SMEs can be brokers in the transmission of CSR requirements in the supply chain.     

The share of the global energy mix: Signs of convergence?

This paper investigates the convergence behaviour regarding the share of global energy mix, as measured by primary energy consumption. Recent studies that employ stationary tests of panel data suggest that such data support the convergence hypothesis; however, some drawbacks exist, as these studies rely on methods that do not necessarily imply a sufficient condition for convergence. This paper adopts the concept of relative convergence as proposed by Phillips and Sul (2007), which employs a time‐varying, idiosyncratic component. We choose to focus on various sources’ global primary energy consumption and investigate the long‐ run dynamic behaviour by source. The key finding of this paper is that two distinct clubs of convergence of energy can be determined: renewable and non‐renewable energy clubs of convergence.     

Why Larger Lenders Obtain Higher Returns: Evidence from Sovereign Syndicated Loans

Lenders who make large funding commitments earn higher rates of return than those who make smaller commitments. We analyze a data set of sovereign syndicated loan contracts to document study and this phenomenon. We show that the “large lenders” in the lending syndicates earn a “return premium,” which is positively affected by the likelihood of future liquidity problems of the borrower. This finding suggests that the onus would be on the large lenders in particular to provide services, such as liquidity insurance and coordinating the workout. The return premium also increases in the fraction of banks among the larger syndicate members, suggesting that banks are special lenders in terms of addressing idiosyncratic liquidity problems.     

Getting into the energy efficiency scene: does corporate social responsibility matter for energy efficiency in SMEs?

A growing body of literature argues that improving energy efficiency is an essential step that firms must take to mitigate climate change issues. It is assumed that corporate social responsibility (CSR) in general plays a prominent role in firms’ policies, and this paper specifically investigates the effects of the individual CSR dimensions on SMEs’ energy efficiency improvement. Based on data from a sample of 146 thousand SMEs, and using logit model, and fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis, the study reveals that high activities in social, environmental and economic CSR dimensions are associated with high energy efficiency. Specifically, the environmental CSR dimension has the highest contribution to improving energy efficiency. Furthermore, this study indicates that energy efficiency improvement can be achieved by large SMEs provided they have developed simultaneously the environmental, social, and economic CSR dimensions. In doing so, this study answers to recent calls for more research on CSR-energy efficiency relationship and addresses with greater precision why it matters to relate the role of the CSR dimensions and energy efficiency. Furthermore, this study can be of value to policymakers who are called to promote CSR practices of SMEs in order to foster their energy efficiency.     

CSR disclosure and sustainable supplier management: a small to medium-sized enterprises perspective

The respective literatures on corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure and sustainable supplier management have grown in recent years, but little scholarly attention has been paid to the link between the two. Within a framework that incorporates legitimacy and neo-institutional theories, this study investigates how CSR disclosure in small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) influences CSR requirements and capacity building with suppliers. Based on an empirical data set of 146 000 SMEs, we test our hypotheses using multiple mediation analysis. Our results indicate that SME CSR disclosure has a positive direct effect on capacity building. When the mediating role of CSR requirements is taken into account, the study reveals that the more SMEs disclose their CSR activities, the more they require CSR from their suppliers, which in turn leads to an increase in capacity building with them. The study also suggests that the SMEs that limit their CSR requirements to the application step are more likely to build capacity with their suppliers than the SMEs that impose CSR verification. Overall, this article provides unique insights for practitioners seeking to determine the circumstances in which the SME practices of sustainable supplier management unfold in practice.     

Long-term investment sensitivity to cash flow and financial crisis

This study examined investment–cash flow sensitivity in unconstrained and constrained firms from 1980 to 2010 in a sample of Italian manufacturing firms. Investment sensitivity to cash flow decreased over time, and financially constrained firms showed little difference in the decline compared with unconstrained firms. Last, investment sensitivity to cash flow increased during the financial crisis of 2008.     

Microfinance and Household Poverty Reduction: Empirical Evidence from Rural Pakistan

This study examines whether household access to microfinance reduces poverty in Pakistan and, if so, how and to what extent. It draws on primary empirical data gathered by interviewing 1132 households, including both borrower and non-borrower households, in 2008–2009. Sample selection biases have been partially controlled for by using propensity score matching. The study reveals that microfinance programmes had a positive impact on the participating households. Poverty-reducing effects were observed on a number of indicators, including expenditure on healthcare, clothing and household income, and on certain dwelling characteristics, such as water supply and the quality of roofing and walls.     

Renegotiation and the pricing structure of sovereign bank loans: Empirical evidence

It is generally accepted that banks offer renegotiation services to sovereign borrowers facing short-term liquidity shortages. However, the literature has yet to find evidence of such services from the pricing of sovereign bank loans. The research on the pricing of sovereign bank loans has focused on interest spreads alone, while the pricing structure typically includes an up-front fee, as well. In this paper, I explore empirically the economic motivations for such a pricing structure. I find that up-front fees are explained by the probability of renegotiation and by proxies for informational problems. My findings provide evidence that the unique pricing structure of bank loans helps banks provide sovereign borrowers with renegotiation services.