Public Business Services in a Sparsely Populated Area: Case Study

Martti Saarela, Eija-Riitta Niinikoski and Matti Muhos
Additional contact information
Martti Saarela: University of Oulu, Finland
Eija-Riitta Niinikoski: University of Oulu, Finland
Matti Muhos: University of Oulu, Finland

from ToKnowPress

Abstract: Purpose: In Finland, customers often view public business services as being a multifaceted, complex and scattered system. Service providers in sparsely populated areas are facing context-specific challenges as they provide services for their customers. The aim of this study is to describe what kinds of business services are provided for early-stage companies in the sparsely populated case region and to investigate how customers evaluate the importance and success of provided services. Design/methodology/approach: This is a retrospective single case study focusing on a sparsely populated subregion in Northern Finland. The case study devises a four-stage configuration framework to describe the current state of public business services and to reflect the customer experiences related to these services. The study uses semi-structured interviews and surveys for data collection. Multiple perspectives were analysed in the interviews for triangulation. Findings: This study describes public business services, especially for early-stage SMEs, in a sparsely populated region. As a result of this case study, key characteristics of organising public business services in sparsely populated area context are described. The success and importance of the public business services from the service customers’ perspective are clarified. Research limitations/implications: This descriptive case study is limited to a single sub-region of a sparsely populated Northern Finland to get an in-depth understanding of the phenomenon. Originality/value: Current literature provides limited information about how to effectively and successfully organize public business services in sparsely populated areas. This study evaluates how services correspond to the needs of the customers and how customers evaluate the importance and success of the business services in the sparsely populated case area.

Keywords: public business services; sparsely populated area; SME; stage models; growth (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.toknowpress.net/ISBN/978-961-6914-07-9/papers/S4_245-258.pdf full text (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:tkp:tiim13:s4_245-258

Access Statistics for this chapter

More chapters in Diversity, Technology, and Innovation for Operational Competitiveness: Proceedings of the 2013 International Conference on Technology Innovation and Industrial Management from ToKnowPress
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Maks Jezovnik ().