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This article aims to examine academic literature and the taxation regulatory environment in Estonia in relation to small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The objective of the paper is to identify key areas of the taxation regulatory environment which affects SMEs and assess and link important academic literature in relation to those areas with the empirical research. In effect to explore that business reality including Estonia's Soviet historical background and compliance with her EU membership taxation obligations.

This exploratory paper makes use of World Bank Surveys and primary tax law sources, together with qualitative empirical research from an SME manager and a taxation law firm, both from within the country assessed.

It confirms the correlation between economic growth and taxation and identifies the “key” aspects of the taxation regulatory environment for an SME through academic literature reviewed which is linked with the empirical research. This qualitative research provides in‐depth information and fills gaps from previous quantitative research. It emphasises a very positive progression including significant electronic development and compliance with EU directives and regulations has been made by Estonia encouraging SME activity.

This research demonstrates the business reality of the Estonian taxation regulatory environment. Unofficial costs, a legacy from the Soviet period, are virtually non‐existent within the Estonian taxation system. Gaps within World Bank Surveys are filled by the interviews, which give a grass‐roots perspective on taxation regulation affecting an SME.

The research highlights the importance of the taxation regulatory environment and the reality of the regulation and compliance work for SMEs within a relatively new EU member state. Estonia is an important country within Europe's “Northern Dimension” and a former member of the Soviet Union. Consequently, any assessment of its taxation environment can be used as a guideline/model for others from similar backgrounds with similar aspirations.

The article analyzes the ‘Europeanization’ of public administration in Estonia with a specific focus on the development of coordination structures. The decentralized approach to European Union-related matters increases the need for well-functioning coordination practices. The authors conclude that the coordination mechanism established for the accession as well as its impact on the broader coordination culture have been successful and can serve as the role model for the rest of public administration. The broader administrative problems yet to be solved include democratic deficit, insufficient engagement of civil society organizations, potential implementation gap between formal regulations and their practice, as well as poor policy analysis which may become particularly problematic after joining the EU.

The aim of the paper is to identify key areas of criminality that affects SMEs and assess and link academic literature on criminality in relation to those areas with the empirical research. In effect to explore the business reality of the criminality environment and its significant aspects that have an impact on SME organisations and their managers and assist their decision making. Additionally, to consider the impact of Estonia's Soviet historical background and her EU membership criminal law obligations within such an evaluation.

This exploratory paper makes use of World, European and domestic surveys and primary criminal and business law sources as well as interviews from a business within the country assessed and a former Estonian police inspector. Together this gives an academic and grass-roots perspective for an assessment of the criminality reality for SMEs.

The investigation reaffirms the importance of SMEs within former economies from a Soviet background such as Estonia. It also emphasises the correlation between economic growth, business regulation and criminality and identifies the significance and “key” aspects of criminality for an SME. Furthermore, that Estonia's criminal law that affects SMEs is generally as it is written and that Estonia has a positive compliance with EU directives and regulations. It emphasises that overall a very positive progression has been made by Estonia within its criminal law environment which is considered stable and encouraging for SME activity. The recording of crime is relatively low by EU standards and has an effect, albeit small, on the reality for SMEs.

This research demonstrates the reality of the extent of criminality in Estonia and its positive progression in dealing with it. Corruption, a legacy from the Soviet period, is relatively small within the Estonian system as well as protection costs for an SME. There is, however, an acceptance of the existence of organized crime in Estonia although it is an under researched area. Some of the gaps within the World, European and domestic surveys are filled by the interviews although further evaluation is needed from other academics.

The research highlights the importance of the criminal law environment for SMEs within a relatively new EU member state. It provides an original grass-roots perspective on top of an academic assessment providing fuller information on the reality for SME activity. This is helpful for SME's operating or thinking of doing business in Estonia as well as providing indicators for countries from similar Soviet backgrounds as to their criminality reality.

The purpose of this paper is to find out whether the leadership expectations in independent Estonia differ from leadership expectations in other East European countries (EEC) and from other neighbouring countries and also to investigate actual leadership perception in Estonia.

To find answers to the research questions stated above, two leadership surveys were carried out in Estonia in 2001 and 2003. The research carried out in 2001 concentrated on actual leader behaviour and the next wave of research, carried out in 2003, was devoted to desirable leader behaviour. The methodology of the surveys was based on the cross‐cultural Global Leadership and Organizational Behaviour Effectiveness (GLOBE) research program with its initial headquarters in the USA. The GLOBE research program is a world‐wide, multi‐phase and method project.

The crucial thing in the Estonian working environment during the transformation period was team spirit and team reinforcement. Unless Estonians are usually considered to be lonely spirits, the team in the working environment is considered to be very important. As opposed to other EEC countries, Estonia is more like other European countries when considering team orientation. The comparison of actual leadership patterns and desired leadership in Estonia showed that Estonians expect their leaders to be charismatic – value‐based, team‐oriented and participative. The leaders are not expected to be humane, self‐protective and autonomous – these styles are considered to inhibit outstanding leadership.

Knowledge of current research about the Estonian leadership style can be used in the training of future leaders in colleges and universities. With Estonia being a new member of the European Union, lots of companies will open their subsidiaries in this region if they have not done so already and information about culturally endorsed leadership profiles can be used while selecting and training people who will work with representatives of other cultures.

The leaders during the research period were considered to be charismatic – value‐based and team‐oriented, but not participative and too autonomous.

There are strong similarities and striking differences in Estonia's and South Korea's entrepreneurial ecosystems. The purpose of this paper is to seek to compare and contrast these two economies in terms of key indicators related to impacts, performance measures and determinants of entrepreneurship.

The approach of this study can be described as theory building from multiple case studies. The analysis is based on secondary data from a number of sources related to impacts, performance measures and determinants of entrepreneurship.

Among the major findings is that in order to shift to a higher gear, South Korea's entrepreneurial weakness must be addressed through broad institutional reforms that include the corporate governance, and policies and attitudes toward immigrants and immigration. In Estonia's case, while continuing attention must be paid to institutional reforms, immediate action is needed to improve policies that affect basic economic, technological and infrastructural conditions.

A crucial lesson from a comparison of these two economies is that multiple paths of entrepreneurial success exist.

The lessons each can learn from the other to improve the entrepreneurial ecosystem are suggested. Other emerging, developing and less developed economies also have much to learn from the success paths of these two economies.

This paper provides unique insights into alternative ways that emerging economies can follow to develop successful entrepreneurial ecosystems and achieve entrepreneurial success as well as advantages and limitations of the alternatives.

This chapter offers a survey of education development in the Baltic region and the dynamics of global forces in the three Baltic states’ contexts. First, a brief overview of the incoming new-liberal global trend that impacted the education in the Post-Socialist European region will be provided, followed by a discussion of similarities and differences in the development of education in Baltic states as co-shaped by contextual contours of the post-socialist region at whole. It shows that the contextual social and cultural realities of Estonia-Latvia-Lithuania not only have a powerful mediating role on the impact of global forces but are in their own right an agency in shaping the education response of Post-socialist societies of this region. Second, the knowledge of the interrelationship between education and societal cultural contexts in the Baltic region will be explained, stressing the lack of research on informal settlements or the informal economy and its intersection with education. The International Comparative Education research agenda will not only be of significance for the Baltic states but to the entire world. Many aspects of the contextual architecture of the region are becoming increasingly evident world-wide tending the neo-liberalism in education as distinct from liberalism insofar as it does not advocate market-economic policy but instead is highly constructivist and approve a strong state to bring reforms in every aspect of society transforming the education and teaching labor market.

This study examines diaspora engagement and return migration programs aimed at providing diaspora youth with an opportunity to obtain higher education in Estonia and Kazakhstan. In particular, the authors sought to identify the main motivations, benefits and challenges of the programs, as well as understand how the programs contribute to the ethnic identity formation of diaspora students.

The paper employed a qualitative multiple-case study research design. In both countries, data were collected by means of 26 semi-structured interviews with return migrant students and experts involved in implementing the programs.

The study findings suggest that the primary motivations for diaspora youth to return to their homelands are tuition-free higher education, financial support and repatriation prospects in both countries. In Estonia, the scholarship holders struggled with language requirements for university admissions, the cost of living insufficiently covered by the monthly stipend and limited integration opportunities. In Kazakhstan, the students had to face the Russian language barrier and socio-cultural marginalization in their everyday life. It was also found that the return migrant students in Estonia and Kazakhstan develop hybrid identities to integrate into their domestic society. They reinforce their ethnic identities and negotiate their diasporic identities to make sense of their own background and cultural heritage and acclimatize to life in the new context.

The study provides practical implications for policy implementers and policymakers in Estonia and Kazakhstan. It can also be useful for the worldwide research community interested in exploring education-oriented diaspora engagement and return migration programs and their influence on the ethnic identity of diaspora students.

Based on consecutive labor force surveys, this study examines labor market dynamics during the first decade of the Estonian transition to market. The results show that, similar to other transition economies: Estonia’s employment and labor force was reduced; patterns of mobility profoundly changed – labor market flows intensified and previously nonexistent transitions emerged; and some groups of workers were disproportionally affected, chief among them the less educated and ethnic minorities. But Estonian fundamental free market reforms also produced labor market outcomes that differ significantly from those in other transition economies – above all, the intensity of worker and job flows in Estonia’s transition have surpassed those in most other transition economies. This was achieved by deliberate policies aimed at stimulating job creation and employment, above all by low employment protection and other policies geared toward increasing employability and strengthening the incentives of workers. Moreover, under the dynamic Estonian labor market adjustment, marginal groups have fared better than those in more protective labor markets of other transition economies.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how a country's national culture and institutional framework influence employees' reactions to changes in organizations and the process of implementation of changes.

The authors conducted interviews with members of top management teams in 160 companies in several large cities in the northern part of China: Beijing, Tianjin, Jinan and Zibo, and in 137 Estonian companies. In both countries, the companies involved represented various industries and sectors, ranging from manufacturing and technology, banking and insurance organizations, to those in energy and education industries. The interviews included open‐ended questions about the process of implementing organizational change and reactions to changes.

Results of interviews with managers indicate the similarities in employees' reactions to changes and in management of change process between the two countries stem from their socialist past. The different approaches to implementing change can be attributed to the differences in democracy and different cultural values.

Future research could involve the employees to provide more insights to the resistance to changes. Other scholars' cultural dimensions could be referred to, such as Trompenaars and Hofstede, in future studies. In order to draw broader conclusions it is necessary to explore alternative explanations and conduct further empirical research in other countries.

The results of this comparison obtained from studying Estonian and Chinese organizations could be useful for foreign investors, managers and owners of companies in two countries in transition: China and Estonia.

Scholars of organizational change have tended to have their focus restricted to the normal socio‐economic context. Studying and comparing organizational changes in transition economies increases knowledge base about change management.

This paper aims to present the baseline results of a research and development project targeted to improve the occupational well‐being of school staff and maintain their ability to work, in Finland and Estonia. It reveals the most problematic factors in the various aspects of the school community and professional competence and outlines development needs in the school communities.

The overall project design is action research, conducted during 2009‐2013 in the SHE (Schools for Health in Europe) network in Finland and Estonia. The baseline survey data were collected in 2009‐2010 with a web‐based Well‐being at your work index questionnaire and analysed statistically using descriptive statistics, sum variables of factors and Mann‐Whitney tests.

The general opinions of the Finnish school staffs were more affirmative than those of Estonian school staffs regarding their own personal occupational well‐being in comparison with the best in the profession (p=0.000). However, the Finns were more critical than the Estonians when estimating the general well‐being of the staff in their working community, maintenance of their ability to work, the aspects of the school community and professional competence and development needs in the school communities.

The results cannot be widely generalised due to the geographically defined samples, but they can be suggestive in comparable situations in Finland and Estonia.

There is a need to develop the occupational well‐being of school staff and maintenance of their ability to work in the school communities: specific interventions will be developed on the basis of the results obtained from the project schools.