PHELPS N. A., MACKINNON D., STONE I. and BRAIDFORD P. (2003) Embedding the multinationals? Institutions and the development of overseas manufacturing affiliates in Wales and North East England, Reg. Studies 37 , 27-40. The impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) upon host regions is a topic of perennial interest within the fields of regional economics, industrial geography and regional development. Much of the early literature here draws negative conclusions regarding the wider indirect impacts of FDI on host regions, pointing to the branch plant syndrome. In light of significant processes of corporate restructuring and the build-up of host region institutional capacities, however, recent literature has claimed that the plants of multinational enterprises (MNEs) are becoming increasingly "embedded' in regional economies. Against this backdrop, this paper aims to provide a critical assessment of the regional "embeddedness' of FDI in Wales and the North East of England. Based upon an extensive survey of overseas-owned manufacturing affiliates in these regions, the paper examines key indicators of MNE embeddedness, and assesses the influence of regional agencies on the embedding process. In general, we find little evidence of increasing embeddedness while the effects of regional differences in institutional capacity on the embedding process appear to be somewhat limited. As such, we suggest that the idea of " extended enclaves' encapsulates some key dimensions of the relationships between MNEs and the economies of peripheral UK regions. PHELPS N. A., MACKINNON D., STONE I. et BRAIDFORD P. (2003) Ancrer les multinationales?: les institutions et le developpement des filiales industrielles etrangeres au pays de Galles et dans le nord-est d'Angleterre, Reg. Studies 37 , 27-40. Les retombees de l'investissement direct etranger (IDE) sur les zones d'accueil est un sujet d'inte ret perpetuel dans les domaines de l'economie re gionale, de la geographie industrielle et de l'amenagement du territoire. Dans une large mesure, la premiere documentation a ce sujet tire des conclusions negatives quant aux retombees indirectes importantes de l'IDE sur les zones d'accueil, faisant allusion au syndrome des etablissements. Cependant, a la lumiere de la restructuration d'entreprise et du developpement des capacites institutionnelles de la zone d'accueil, la documentation recente affirme que les etablissements des multinationales deviennent de plus en plus " ancrees' dans des economies regionales. Sur ce fond, cet article cherche a faire une critique de "l'ancrage' regional de l'IDE au pays de Galles et dans le nord-est d' Angleterre. A partir d'une enquete detaillee aupre s des filiales industrielles a capital etranger situees dans ces regions-la, cet article cherche egalement a examiner les indicateurs cle de l'ancrage des multinationales et a e valuer l'influence des assemblees regionales sur le processus d'ancrage. En regle generale, une augmentation du degre "d'ancrage' s'avere peu evidente alors que les effets des divergences re...

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 aim of this paper is to analyse support measures in the USA, Canada and Sweden aimed at encouraging women to start their own business and/or promote growth in women-owned businesses, and in particular the role of women's business centres. It examines whether existing initiatives of this kind have proven successful in their stated and unstated aims; and if elements of practice are transferable to other countries and contexts. The paper also contributes to the gender mainstreaming debate. Design/methodology/approach -Through in-depth interviews across four countries with managers of such centres and other business support personnel, policy-makers and practitioners, the paper constructs a view of how women's business centres fit into the overall policy context, and how they have aided the development of women's enterprise. Findings -The use of international comparisons permits the identification of common approaches to enterprise policy for women. Policy-makers and practitioners will appreciate the nuanced view of the elements that make up several lauded initiatives aimed at supporting women's entrepreneurship, how (and to what degree) these elements work together and how these elements may be used elsewhere.Research limitations/implications -The paper suggests the need for more nuanced understanding of client needs, whether male or female, and the role this might play in the delivery of business support. Practical implications -Policymakers should be clear regarding the objectives of women's centres, as between support principally directed at unemployed/low income groups and increasing the business start-up rate per se among women (leading to economic growth), and even whether support should be differentiated by gender. Social implications -Women's centres are working mainly for the more disadvantaged women, rather than those with real potential as entrepreneurs. Such centres may also reinforce stereotypes of "women's businesses". Originality/value -The key contribution of this paper is that, compared to previous work, it provides a more critical perspective on the specifics of women's business centre initiatives, exploring both the processes and outcomes that lie be...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide an empirical evidence in support of widespread calls for new approaches to understanding small business growth, by exploring the use of non-positivist methods (e.g. critical realism) to analyse how owners’ innate dispositions shape growth in practice. Design/methodology/approach In 2014, a telephone survey was used to inform two focus groups and 29 in-depth interviews with small business owners throughout England, covering attitudes towards growth, the use of particular strategies and perceived barriers. Discourse analysis was used to develop a multi-layered explanatory model incorporating key ideas from critical realism and the work of Bourdieu. Findings Bourdieusian analysis reveals the existence of orientations among small business owners towards or against business growth. Such attitudes tend to impact upon their response to perceived barriers. Growth-inclined owners were willing to strategise for long-term benefit, in return for lower returns in the short term. Growth-resistant owners were more likely to view obstacles as absolute, stating that they cannot grow their firms as a result. Practical implications Removing or reducing obstacles may not encourage growth if motivations and attitudes of owners do not change to embrace more growth-oriented positions. Banks’ lending practices, for example, were seen by many as problematic, but growth-oriented owners were more willing to seek and use alternatives to raise funds for growth. Originality/value The authors suggest that entrepreneurship researchers should look beyond positivist research to epistemologies that provide more multi-layered modes of explanation.

Providing business support to SMEshow to encourage firms' engagement Objectives. While most governments operate a support system for SMEs aiming to encourage improved business performance, there is a widespread problem of having such firms engage with schemes of this kind. This policy issue is tackled here through work to develop a better understanding of SMEs' attitudes towards the accessing and use of support programmes with a view to their business objectives being achieved. A typology of SMEs based on past interactions with the support system is identified, and consideration given to the way in which this influences their attitude to public (and private) support; as well as the way in which the recession has affected use and attitudes. Prior Work. Prior work has concentrated on models relating the propensity to use support to business and owner characteristics (Han and Benson, 2009), growth strategies (Johnson & Webber, 2007) or delivery mechanisms (Mole, Hart and Roper, 2014); or simply to a desire to solve a problem (Mole and Keogh, 2009). Targeting support on this basis is difficult. Approach. 100 in-depth, semi-structured face-to-face interviews were conducted across England with users of schemes delivered by one or more of four publicly-funded support services (UKTI, MAS, GrowthAccelerator and TSB). Questions were based around progression of usage on a customer journey (rationale for using support, awareness of schemes, investigation, application, use of the service) and attitude formation through contact with support schemes, network contacts, etc. Results. Four different types of user were identified by reference to experience with and use of support, reasons for use and attitude towards future use. These were: (i) experienced and sophisticated consumers of support; (ii) experienced users, but with a more narrow, transactional-focused outlook; (iii) returning/lapsed users, who had often not used support since before the recession or since their establishment; and (iv) inexperienced users, many of whom were accessing support for the first time. Common across all types were (i) the identification of a lack of a common entry point for support or diagnostic advice; (ii) a low level of investigation into support available before the service was approached; and (iii) a low level of cross-referral between services during or after support. Implications. The use of evidence based on attitudes and rationales, rather than owner/business characteristics, allows for a more nuanced analysis of the behaviour of businesses in seeking and using business support. In particular, it facilitates an understanding of how businesses see support schemes working together to cover potential needs. Value. Achievement of an optimal use of support through engagement of firms entails a recognition that the process involved is of importance. The identification of different types of user, and of differences and similarities in the use they make of support, allows for better targeting of support and design of delivery, thereby facilita...

Many of the programmes and initiatives to regenerate deprived neighbourhoods appear to have had limited lasting impact. It has been argued that one reason for this is that we still have little real understanding of the nature and scale of the problems some communities face (Bernt, 2009). This paper attempts to add to our knowledge through close study of an area with multiple problems and a history of failed regeneration attempts. An in-depth case study undertaken to explore the current situation and future prospects of South Bank, a small neighbourhood in the North East of England, highlights transferable knowledge which may be applied to other regeneration areas.The analysis considers the nature and consequences of industrial decline; entrenched deprivation; the stigmatization of communities; the value of community consultation and the potential impact of retail-led regeneration. We question whether negative stigma attached to places can be changed and we ask what the future may hold for deprived communities now that public sector funding has largely dried up, and we consider an alternative approach: the potential impacts of private sector retail-led regeneration in the absence of public sector funding.