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This paper aims to draw on the Dynamic Capabilities View to discuss how small and medium enterprises (SMEs) use digital technologies to develop digital capabilities that will enable them to change their current business model and trajectory, that is, to pivot-within turbulent environments, and subsequently to survive and grow.

The authors collected and analysed qualitative data from 26 SMEs in South-East England that have used digital technologies to pivot during the pandemic. The data was collected via in-depth semi-structured interviews. The authors analysed the data by creating first-order concepts, second-order themes, and aggregating dimensions.

The findings suggest that (1) digital technologies enable pivoting by facilitating the creation of the following digital capability types: “digital sensing”, “digital seizing” and “digital transforming”; (2) Each of these digital capability types is underpinned by micro-foundations (sub-capabilities) and shaped by the digital culture of the organisation. (3) these capabilities are triggered by the turbulent environment and the existing digital technologies, and are shaped by the digital culture.

The authors contribute to the literature of digital entrepreneurship as the authors illustrate (1) how the micro-foundations of digital capabilities, as facilitated by digital technologies, assist pivoting; and (2) the process from key activities during pivoting to second-order themes that represent micro-foundations to digital (dynamic) capabilities for pivoting in turbulent environments. The study highlights the importance of digital pivoting for businesses in the UK Southeast that have many aspirations for growth and innovation, whilst striving to address multiple challenges including digital divide and literacy, inflation and cost of living crisis, as well as supply chain issues.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the Summer performance, comfort, and heat stress in structural timber buildings. The research utilises building simulation as a tool to investigate the performance of the case study buildings under non-extreme weather conditions.

The research explores three UK sites using the test reference year (TRY) weather files for the current and future weather conditions. The study focuses on the Summer performance and heat stress in non-extreme weather conditions; therefore, the Design Summer Year (DSY) weather files are not used for the simulations. The simulation data are calibrated and validated using the measured data from the field study.

The results revealed the mean predicted temperatures varied from 20.2–20.8°C for the 2000s. The mean temperatures for the 2030s ranged from 23.1 to 24.2°C. Higher temperatures are predicted at the buildings in the Southeast site than the Midlands and the Northwest sites. The results revealed that there is no significant improvement in the thermal environment when the floor area and the floor-to-ceiling height are increased. However, the study showed that the integration of different design interventions can improve the future performance and resilience of the buildings in various weather conditions.

By applying the wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) and the Universal Thermal Comfort Index (UTCI) mathematical models to calculate the heat stress at the buildings, the study proposes the WBGT of 20.0°C and the UTCI of 24.1°C as possible heat stress indicators for occupants of the buildings in the 2030s.

On the one hand, the results revealed the maximum temperatures in some of the case study buildings exceed the comfort threshold (28°C). On the other hand, the study showed that occupants of the buildings are not prone to extreme Summertime overheating and heat stress under moderate weather conditions. However, different outcomes may be predicted if DSY weather files for the selected sites are considered.

This study is the first reported work to explore building simulation and mathematical equations to investigate Summer performance, comfort and heat stress indexes in timber buildings under moderate weather conditions in different regional sites in the UK.

The question as to whether it is better to diversify a real estate portfolio within a property type across the regions or within a region across the property types is one of continuing interest for academics and practitioners alike. However, this study is somewhat different from the usual sector/regional analysis in that this study is designed to investigate whether a real estate fund manager can obtain a statistically significant improvement in risk/return performance from extending out of a London based portfolio into firstly the rest of the South East of England and then into the remainder of the UK, or whether the manger would be better off staying within London and diversifying across the various property types.

In order to examine these issues we form a number of portfolios that can be directly compared to a number of benchmark portfolios, as well as to each other. Then using the statistical tests developed by Gibbons et al. and Jobson and Korkie, we investigate whether the benefits that accrue from the differing diversification strategies are statistically significant or not.

The results show that staying within only one sector and one region (London) is undesirable in terms of risk and return compared with all three benchmark portfolios considered here. Secondly diversification on a naïve basis, or in an optimal fashion, leads to significant improvements in performance, irrespective of whether it is across different property types within London or within the same sector across the regions. Finally the results indicate that staying within London and diversifying across the various property types may offer performance comparable with regional diversification, although this conclusion largely depends on the time period and the fund manager's ability to diversify efficiently.

The results suggest that diversification almost always offers increased performance. Indeed a little diversification can quickly lead to levels of performance that is superior to number of benchmarks as well as performance insignificantly different from that of the most diversified portfolio that could be constructed! Consequently fund managers should be encouraged to diversify, be it across the regions or across the sectors of the UK.

The case for the Pacific Economic Fraternity (Chapter 7) adds Australia and New Zealand to the discourse. Given the fact that data on all 27-member countries of the EU are not available, we limit our analysis to the data of two key economies of Europe: the UK, as it has historically had extensive economic engagements with Asia, and Germany, the largest economy of the EU-27. In the post-WWII decades, the USA has been a leading economic actor in Asia and so the data for the USA is all too relevant.

Limited attention has been paid to the issue of status consumption in cross‐national context. The purpose of this paper is to address the issue of status consumption among British and Indian consumers, using the industry context of alcoholic beverages, focusing on three antecedents namely, the socio‐psychological, brand and situational antecedents.

The paper employed a cross‐sectional, survey‐based methodology. The British sample included 271 respondents residing in the Southeast of the UK. The Indian sample included 273 respondents residing in the North and Northwest regions of India.

The findings reveal that socio‐psychological, brand and situational antecedents significantly influence status consumption.

The findings support the notion that some key status consumption characteristics may be common among all cultures and countries however, their degree of influence may differ dramatically. Furthermore, others key variables may be single culture or country specific and therefore must be adjusted for national or regional variations. The results will help managers dealing with status consumption to better understand and manage their marketing strategy in a cross‐national context.

The paper is first of its kind to investigate the impact of socio‐psychological, brand and situational antecedents in a cross‐national context for status consumption products. The findings of the paper are likely to enhance our grasp of the status consumption process in a individualistic and mature developed market (the UK) in comparison to collectivist and rapidly growing emerging market (India) by shedding light on the issues affecting status consumption and how that relates to country‐specific marketing strategies.

The aim of administrative reform— a special public policy instrument of governments— is to improve the capacity of public service delivery systems. This study examines the reform-led service delivery situation of public institutions at the local level in South Asia. The study offers an in-depth qualitative study with gleaned data, focusing on primary education in the country in relation to MDGs basic education. Local administration in the country has been a ‘low modicum of self-governance to provide public services. Institutional capacity dealing with educational management has called into question. Primary education in the country is quantitatively discussed while qualitatively is in a state of disarray. As a thorough academic qualitative study with a country-specific case has by far not been explored yet, it fills the information gap. Little is known about the public service delivery capacity with primary education at the local level. This study implicates governments and development partners such as the UN SDGs for effective partnership in development in an era of post-CVID-19 crisis.

This paper aims to examine the UK’s small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) policies under Margaret Thatcher’s era in the 1980s, with a view to understand the success stories, historical development and the structures of Chinese family business through a case study of See Woo Holdings Ltd.

The authors have achieved the objective on the study of the SMEs policies under Margaret Thatcher through critical evaluation of the historical literatures, books, journals and newspapers. The study on overseas Chinese business and the case of See Woo Holdings Ltd. is mainly through the research of the Chinese overseas in the UK and Southeast Asia, and the companies report from the Companies House in the UK. The authors have used the latest 2011 UK Census statistics and academic reports to locate the most current demographic changes and Chinese business characteristics in the UK and the Northeast of England.

First, the UK’s SMEs policies under Margaret Thatcher were quite receptive towards the ethnic business. Second, the case of See Woo Holdings Ltd. indicates that family business networks are still one of the characteristics of Chinese business. Finally, the broader UK’s SMEs policies play an important role in this case study.

The authors provide a tentative linkage between the UK’s SMEs policies under Margaret Thatcher and Chinese family business. In addition, the case study of See Woo Holdings Ltd. improves the current understanding of Chinese family business with a clearer picture about their structure, practice, characteristics and development.

The research aimed to reveal real behavioural preferences in fashion and clothing consumption, and analyses the similarities and differences between British, Brazilian and Chinese consumers. This approach was selected to consider the distinctions between a mature market, and emerging western and eastern markets.

The investigation was based around a research methodology using quantitative analysis with appropriate statistical techniques on three random surveys of consumers from the southeast of England (N=265), the northeast of Brazil (N=310) and mainland China (N=226) older than 15 years.

A new conceptual framework is proposed – the physical, identity and lifestyle (PIL) model, providing a tool for effective and more focused decision‐making techniques for developing better fashion products. British, Brazilian and Chinese consumers have different requirements for fashion and clothing products based upon age and gender. The evidence suggests that the fashion industry needs to be more aware of consumer indicators when targeting mature consumers.

The research was based on samples and not the entire population of target consumers, providing limitations. As an inferential statistical method was chosen, the results were susceptible to inaccuracy.

The survey came from three different continents, thereby providing rich perspectives into global consumption. Companies who own domestic market share and want to enter new global markets could use this data to improve their product design development decisions.

The authors of this chapter investigate internationalisation strategies of small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) in China. We highlight the specific challenges that Chinese SMEs encounter when selecting international country markets in terms of distance and entry speed. The authors adopt an ambidexterity perspective that differs from traditional explanations of internationalisation behaviour by highlighting the need to balance seemingly disparate options for international expansion. Three cases provide an illustration of how Chinese companies combine distant with proximate market entries and slow with accelerated entry speed. The authors highlight how these strategies can drive and enhance international aspirations of Chinese SMEs.