Title: Non-technological innovations from organisational design and change perspectives in VSEs and SMEs: the case of management systems

Authors: Zam-Zam Abdirahman; Loïc Sauvée

Addresses: PICAR-T Research Unit, Institut Polytechnique LaSalle Beauvais, Rue Pierre-Waguet, 60000 Beauvais, France ' PICAR-T Research Unit, Institut Polytechnique LaSalle Beauvais, Rue Pierre-Waguet, 60000 Beauvais, France

Abstract: The aim of this article is threefold. First, it is to clarify the definition of non-technological innovations based upon a survey of literature mainly in management sciences; second, it is to investigate, using this definition, the link between this category of innovation and organisational design and change; and third, it is to outline implications for entrepreneurial development in very small enterprises (VSEs) and small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The case of the management system, seen as a new way of organising and controlling management processes, is chosen to illustrate the findings. The interest of the article is to propose a two-step approach, with the characterisation of non-technological innovations through a typology. This typology allow identifying more clearly the status, roles, and contents which could be considered and fall within this category of 'non-technological innovation', and by doing so, highlight its interests for entrepreneurial development in VSEs and SMEs.

Keywords: managerial innovation; organisational innovation; management systems; non-technological innovations; organisational design; organisational change; very small enterprises; VSEs; SMEs; small and medium-sized enterprises; management science; entrepreneurial development; entrepreneurship; change management.

DOI: 10.1504/IJODE.2016.082339

International Journal of Organisational Design and Engineering, 2016 Vol.4 No.3/4, pp.177 - 194

Received: 04 Jun 2015
Accepted: 15 Feb 2016
Published online: 20 Feb 2017 *

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