4IpaUJbnm

SUPPORTING ENVIRONMENTAL SENSITIVITY IN SMALL ENTERPRISES
Machteld WEYTS, Geert STOX, Petra VIJNCKE
Artevelde University College, Ghent, Belgium.
Abstract
AS A TRIGGER FOR INNOVATION
The purpose of the ongoing research described in this paper is to gain insights in how to inspire small
enterprises (less than 50 employees) to innovative behaviour triggered by the macro-environment.
In recent years ‘innovation’ has become a buzz word. In Belgium, as in many other countries, governments and
other organisations support enterprises in innovation activities. Despite these efforts, Belgian small and micro
enterprises tend to show less innovative behaviour than larger enterprises. Moreover, previous research done
by Vanhaverbeke and Vanderzande (UHasselt, 2014), revealed that small Belgian enterprises are extremely
focussed on their own, internal processes, denying opportunities offered by open innovation. Picking up on
new definitions, innovation is about ‘connecting the dots’, as described by David Brier (2013). Despite
management tools to unlock and diffuse environmental and societal knowledge, the implementation in SME’s
proves to be non-existing for most of the small enterprises.
Through literature study, case studies and in-depth interviews with SME’s we gain insights in barriers and
leverages to pick up ‘signals’ that can act as innovation impulses in SME’s. The approach is user-centred. These
findings will be checked on a larger scale in a quantitative survey. Eventually, supportive elements or tools that
can help SME in capturing external impulses as innovation triggers will be described.
The final results will function as a basis for the development of genuine, user-friendly and user-adapted
supporting tools or activities.
Keywords: open innovation, behavioural change, macro-environment, monitoring, SME, Flanders, absorptive
capacity, contextual multiple helix innovation model.
Introduction: innovation in Flemish small enterprises
In Europe, SME encounter specific innovation problems. According to the EU, small
enterprises are particular targets for innovation policy. The smaller the company, the more
it faces constraints to innovation or to the commercialisation of its innovations. About 63%
of companies with between 1 and 9 employees declared having introduced at least one
innovation since 2011, compared to 85% of companies with 500 employees or more
(European Commission, 2014).
This paper focuses on small businesses (less than 50 employees) in Belgium, and more
specific in the Northern and Dutch speaking region of Flanders. Though Belgium is an
innovation follower and is thus ranking relatively high in the EU Innovation Scoreboard,
there is a lack of entrepreneurship and dynamics (European Commission, 2014). This
becomes even more obvious in SME, where the term ‘innovation poverty’ adequately
describes the situation. According to the Flemish Regional Indicators, only 56 % of Flemish
enterprises are innovative. Larger companies and industrial enterprises perform better in
innovation scores than SME (VRIND, 2014). Government support for innovation is demanddriven:
only those companies who are actively seeking guidance or partnerships are
supported (Goeman & Rutten, personal communication, December 14, 2015).
37