Issues in Small business Management in Australia

Issues in Small business Management in Australia

Introduction

Since the advent of computers back in the 60's, management and work has not been the same. Every day new innovations are made which are able to solve simple yet unsolvable problems in no time. The disclosure of the internet in the 90's and the boost in computer literacy and its adoption in the business world showed what the information age was going to be like in the form of a mobile office. One of the most important and efficient use of the compute is seen in the form of databases and database management systems (DBMS) which greatly reduces if not completely removes the repetition of tasks such as data entry, and provides information on the fingertips of users (Scales, 1991). This study is designed to shed light and study how such database management systems can help the SME IT staff to get done with a project. For such a research, it is important to understand what Database management systems are in detail, how they can affect businesses and what are the factors that contribute to better go about the research?

Discussion

Efforts to improve local organizational productivity that began at the turn of the 20th century are still present today. Instead of reformers voicing complaints against an unresponsive government filled with political patronage and corruption, citizen customers and political leaders now call for bureaucrats to focus on performance and results (Mazzarol et al. 1999). In reference to Australia, this proves challenging for public servants as they attempt to balance limited resources and social responsiveness. Similarly government organizations face problems and challenges while implementing performance management system. To facilitate a delicate balance, managers often rely on performance measurement systems which are increasing in importance and becoming a necessity.

According to Anupindi and Akella (1993, pp. 944-63), unfortunately, many performance measurement systems in Australia are adaptations from the private sector and are not only ill suited for public management but lack empirical testing. Under pressure to improve results, managers can easily be swayed by the latest fads for improving performance. This dissertation seeks to understand the critical success factors in the implementation of performance management systems in governmental organization by reviewing similar literature, and by evaluating information presented by management, employees, designers, and other sources which are directly and indirectly involved in the implementation of the program. To elicit primary information, open ended questions are circulated among people involved in the implementation of these programs through an examination of its applicability to the government (Latimer, 2001).

One of the most important factors that hinder the success of SMEs in Australia in term of being investment ready is the lack of effective ERP and related systems. According to Bensaou (1997, pp. 107-24), the concept of ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) is a software package comprising various modules using a single repository (a single database) and provides organizational coherence between the functions of the organization and management levels. ERP can be defined as an ...