If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact that entrepreneurship education can have on entrepreneurial outcomes. The author aims to investigate the perceived influence that various entrepreneurship education courses have had on a cohort of 64 graduate entrepreneurs from eight HEIs in the UK. Design/methodology/approach -Semi-structured, in-depth telephone interviews were conducted annually over a ten year period (1997 to 2006) to document, measure and analyse respondent progression from graduation and into entrepreneurship. Findings -Results indicate that graduate needs for entrepreneurship education do not match actual outcomes in terms of entrepreneurial skills, knowledge and attitudes. This mismatch influences an entrepreneur's perceptions of actual and future educational needs. Most of the graduate entrepreneurs, however, seem to be satisfied with the outcomes of their entrepreneurship education, both in relative and in absolute terms. Practical implications -The findings provide valuable insights for educators, policy makers and graduate entrepreneurs. Stakeholders could use this study to make better choices in relation to the education of future graduate entrepreneurs. Originality/value -This study provides an empirically rigorous insight into a relatively neglected area of entrepreneurship education research. It provides valuable longitudinal data for stakeholders involved in both the supply and the demand side of the entrepreneurship education process.

The current push for small firms to be “wired up to the digital marketplace” is evidenced by the number of initiatives targeting small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) to promote this activity. Like other governments worldwide, UK Online’s SME targets (together with the supporting DTI adoption ladder) exemplify the “conventional wisdom” view of a homogeneous small business sector, within which firms take an ordered, sequential progression on the route to Internet technology adoption. This approach is questioned by grounding the official rhetoric in the reality of organisational and operational complexity of this important sector of the UK economy. These initiatives are compared and contrasted with similar models of small firm development, most of which neglected to address the diverse nature of small firm needs. The authors recommend a more discriminant approach, focused upon factors such as firm size, age, managerial structure and information and communications technology adoption stages.

If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -This paper sets out to critically evaluate contemporary entrepreneurship education initiatives in the UK. The authors seek to compare and contrast various entrepreneurship education methods, approaches and curricula as well as relevant outcomes, in the UK context. Design/methodology/approach -Longitudinal case studies were used, over a ten-year period (1995)(1996)(1997)(1998)(1999)(2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004), to analyse in-depth qualitative data relating to the development and implementation of various approaches to entrepreneurship education, in a sample of 40 new and established universities in the UK. Findings -A number of interesting findings have emerged from this longitudinal study. It appears that conceptual and contextual as well as design and delivery factors can impact significantly upon entrepreneurship education courses developed in UK HEIs. Furthermore, a number of actual and perceived barriers needed to be overcome or mitigated in order to facilitate a better understanding of stakeholder needs and contributions. Practical implications -Measuring the outcomes of entrepreneurship education in the UK is still proving ellusive. This study provides a longitudinal overview of current entrepreneurship education initiatives in order to gain a better understanding of the scope and limitations of this type of educational programme. Originality/value -This paper presents an empirically rigorous, longitudinal case study approach to a rapidly growing aspect of higher education in the UK. The richness of the emergent data offers a valuable insight into pertinent aspects of entrepreneurship education and stakeholder needs and contributions.

Purpose -This paper aims to explore whether an integrated conceptual model (ICM) relating to factors drawn from entrepreneurial event theory (EET) (i.e. perceived desirability and perceived feasibility) and the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) (i.e. attitudes toward the behaviour, subjective norm and perceived behavioural control) explains more of the variance relating to the intention to become an entrepreneur than individual EET or TPB models. Design/methodology/approach -Survey information from 192 students from three universities in the Ukraine was hand collected. Structural equation modelling was used to test the hypotheses presented. Findings -Models relating to EET, the TPB and the ICM explained 40 per cent, 55 per cent and 60 per cent of the variance in the entrepreneurial intention dependent variable, respectively. Students reporting higher levels of perceived desirability, perceived feasibility, attitude toward the behaviour (i.e. enterprise) and perceived behavioural control were more likely to report the formation of entrepreneurial intentions. No significant negative interaction effect between perceived desirability and perceived feasibility was detected.Research limitations/implications -The study does not evaluate the benefits of enterprise modules. The results can be generalised to the Ukraine and comparable transition economy contexts. Practical implications -The formation of entrepreneurial intentions in more students could be increased if enterprise teaching seeks to nurture higher levels of attitude toward the behaviour (i.e. enterprise), and higher levels of perceived behavioural control. Originality/value -Structural equation modelling was used to test the predictive accuracy of EET, TPB and ICM perspectives. Direct and indirect effects between factors and the intention to become an entrepreneur were considered.

In this article, three established small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises provide qualitative case study evidence of the extent to which information communications technology can be embedded within a firm’s marketing strategy, from the earliest adoption stages to the integration of the Internet with key business functions. These case studies also provide insights into the innovative ways that can be used to reposition a firm, its marketing strategy, services and products, both within the national and the global marketplace. Established firms, in addition to new businesses and industries, could gain considerable competitive advantage from Internet usage, if they can achieve the right mix of managerial capacity and marketing focus in terms of image, brand and customer needs. Their human resource base could allow such firms to “reinvent” themselves, mainly by effectively accessing and embedding new knowledge. It emerged that organisational culture facilitates and supports the wider access and application of new knowledge through organisational learning mechanisms.