Small Business and Entrepreneurship Research (SBER) Group

Our group aims to bridge the theory-practice gap in small business in order to create a positive impact on businesses, society and the economy. It conducts research to identify and address the needs of micro, small, medium and entrepreneurial firms. Researchers focus on capacity building of these businesses to enhance the social and economic development at the local, regional, national and international levels. Members are highly skilled and experienced scholars with a broad range of knowledge, industry experience and strong links to industry and professional bodies.

Our expertise includes:

• Cultural entrepreneurship
• Creativity and innovation
• Investigating the causes and factors that lead to enterprise and business failure
• Exploring how social, cultural, political and economic identities shape entrepreneurship in the city/region, UK and globally
• Small business management and growth
• Examining management and strategy challenges faced by smaller businesses and how they can be addressed to enhance survival and growth.

Our activities

To achieve our aim we embark on the following activities:

• Organise seminars to tap into the knowledge and expertise of experienced scholars and visiting research fellows to enhance research activities of members and postgraduate students
• Collaborate with entrepreneurs and industry experts to enhance research activities of members and postgraduate students
• Collaborate with local, regional, national and international businesses to enhance capacity building for social and economic development
• Work closely with the Centre for Entrepreneurship to enhance entrepreneurship education and research

Currently members of the Group are working on a number of research projects that have local, regional, national and international focus.

Some of the projects are:

• Liverpool, Music City - a placemaking approach to cultural policy
• Competitive dynamics of entrepreneurial family firms in North-West region
• Investigating the sustainability of the UK Coffee Shops and Cafés;
• Accessing capital for social enterprise led renewable energy
• A Systematic Multidisciplinary Review of Crowdfunding for Entrepreneurs
• Institutions, Trust and Managing Entrepreneurial Relationships in Africa
• Strategic Management and Growth of Medium Size Enterprises (MSEs) in Africa
• Trust in Trade Credit Relationships in Africa

Our publications

Search publications from the academics within this research group:

Our people

Other full members

• Emma Robinson (Centre for Entrepreneurship)
• Amy Gerrard (Centre for Entrepreneurship)
• Jonathon Clark (Manager, LCR Activate)

Associate Research Group Members

Patrick Hurley (Inclusive Economy, Liverpool)

Ted Rowlands (Evaluator of European Social and Regional Development Fund Programmes in Greater Manchester)

DBA Candidates

• Zayed Alremeithi - Knowledge management and organisational learning contribution to organisational agility in the UAE
• Timothy Whitehill - Getting organisational resilience through procurement
• Chris Taylor - The manifestation of Entrepreneurial Orientation within local government during a period of change and uncertainty.
• Gido Englisch - Decision-making regarding the use of social media in the case of German 'Mittelstand'

PhD candidates

• Nelka Sudarshani Fonseka Hewa Fonsekage - "Institutional Influences on Female Entrepreneurship in Sri Lanka"
• Andrew Wilson - "From the perspective of the successful entrepreneur: An investigation towards the most effective entrepreneurial traits that contribute towards SME success"
• Nikolaos Sakellarios - "Resilience and Coping behaviour among micro, small, and medium sized enterprises in times of economic crisis: An exploratory case study of Greek and Cypriot firms"
• Iwe Ojei - "An investigation of internal CSR practices within the oil sector in Nigeria"
• Tom Ajobo - "Developing a Framework for Analysing the Effects of ICT Adoption and Use on Knowledge Creation by SMEs: A Case Study of SMEs in Nigeria"
• Zafar Ali - "An Evaluation of the impact of University Entrepreneurial Offerings on the Students' Entrepreneurial Intentions: Evidence from KP, Pakistan"
• Farisa Mohd Idris - "Enhancing Small and Medium Enterprises' (SMEs) access to financing by Development Financial Institutions (DFIs): A case study of Malaysia"

Affiliates 

• Professor Kim Lehman (University of Tasmania)
• Associate Professor Ozge Gokbulut Izdemir, (Yildirim Beyazit University, Ankara)
• Dr Kingsley Omeihi Obinna (Napier University, Edinburgh)
• Stephen Okoro (Leeds College of Building)
• Patrick Hurley (CEO, Inclusive Economy, Liverpool)
• Ted Rowlands (Evaluator of European Social and Regional Development Fund Programmes in Greater Manchester)

Programmes

Some of our members manage and teach on the MSc Entrepreneurship Programme at Liverpool Business School.

Contact us

The research group is led by Professor Ian Fillis. Please contact us with regards to:

• Invitations for keynote speeches, presentations or workshops
• PhD applications in the area of entrepreneurship, small business management and social enterprise
• Research collaborations
• Capacity building for businesses

Please contact us via: I.R.Fillis@ljmu.ac.uk