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The purpose of this paper is to develop a robust theoretical framework for exploring the longitudinal impact of social capital on the performance of small business service firms.

This conceptual paper builds on theories of capital, particularly entrepreneurial capital, to develop a theoretically robust framework within which to consider the longitudinal impact of social capital on small business service firms.

Reviewing current literature on entrepreneurial capital demonstrates the difficulty in isolating capital in its various forms due to the convertibility and overlapping nature of different types of capital. Also problematic is the impact of time and the effect which changing amounts and types of capital can have on firm performance. The conceptual model addresses these concerns by exploring social capital in a sector where financial capital presents less of a barrier to entry and where owners' human capital, particularly their educational achievement, is broadly similar. To capture process‐based data, three key stages in the entrepreneurship process are explored: nascent, start‐up, and established.

Understanding the changing structure and relational aspects of social capital over time and its impact on performance will assist small business owners in utilising their relationships more effectively. Although the study focuses on small professional service firms it may also be applicable to other sectors, or be used in replicated studies with other professions.

The conceptual framework proposed recognises the overlapping and convertible nature of different forms of capital. Further, it recognises the fluctuating nature of entrepreneurial capital over time and the different outcomes which can emerge from social capital.

Small professional service firms constitute an important segment of the small business population. Explanations of the emergence, employment potential and economic contribution of such firms have been much debated. Yet, comparatively little is known of the “people dimension” in such enterprises, particularly in firms undergoing some form of organisational transition. This paper aims to examine the interplay of work relations and “growth” in the particular case of WhitCo (an organisation that was attempting the transition from its entrepreneurial beginnings to a more formally configured set‐up). The study, which is based on an ethnographic investigation in the case firm over a year‐long period, addresses three issues: the motivations for growth in the small professional service firm; the manner in which attempts at organisational transition impinge upon “collegial” patterns of work relations typical in these firms; and the importance of interpersonal relations to “growth”. The study provides a rare insight into the management of social relations within a firm typical of many in the business services sector. It highlights the critical role of “people management” to shaping the trajectory of small firm growth.

Information technology (IT) and, in particular, the Internet is dramatically impacting on the services sector. This paper specifically investigates the relative impact of several forms of Internet use on perceived performance for two groups of service organisations – retail service firms and professional health service firms. Using a mailed‐out self‐administered questionnaire, 625 completed questionnaires were obtained, and 43 per cent of respondents reported that they used the Internet. Thus the final usable sample in the study comprised 262 respondents. Results showed that the Internet does significantly influence perceived performance in both types of service firms. However, there are differences in the forms of Internet use between the two service groups and their relative effect on performance. For retail firms, use of transactional function, such as ordering, selling and payment, was found to be positively related to increases in perceived performance. In contrast, for professional health service firms, the ability to search for information on products and/or services was found to be positively associated with perceived performance. Finally, theoretical and managerial implications of the findings of this study are discussed.

Personnel selection and professional satisfaction can be affected by the “goodness of fit” between individual certified public accountants and the size of division in which they work. A US survey of: individual personal characteristics; perceived work environment; and interaction between individual and organisation is reviewed.

Prior research finds evidence that audit quality is positively associated with the joint purchase of tax nonaudit services (NAS) and concludes that jointly provided tax services result in audit-related knowledge spillovers that lead to improved audit quality. We extend this line of research. We examine the relation between auditor-provided tax services and restatements and determine whether this relation differs when the auditor is a small or large accounting firm. We also examine whether the Securities Exchange Commission’s restrictions on certain tax consulting practices (SEC, 2006) altered this relation. Specifically, we measure whether the probability of financial statement restatements varies with (1) variation in accounting firm size (measured as PCAOB annually inspected firms versus PCAOB triennially inspected firms), and (2) the joint provision of audit and tax services. We find a negative relation between auditor-provided tax services and restatements which is consistent with prior research. We also find that this relation is significantly more negative when the auditor is a small accounting firm. Finally, we find that the lower probability of a restatement associated with the joint provision of audit and tax services persists regardless of auditor size after the SEC-imposed restrictions on certain tax consulting services in 2006. Our study provides evidence that accounting firms, and particularly small accounting firms, benefit from knowledge spillovers when jointly providing audit and tax services and these benefits lead to improved audit quality. Prior research concludes that large auditors provide higher audit quality and that the provision of tax services improves audit quality. Our results provide evidence that audit quality improvements are greater for small auditors and their clients. This improvement narrows that audit quality gap between large and small auditors. We do not find evidence that the SEC’s restrictions on certain tax consulting services altered the relation between audit quality and tax services.

The purpose of this paper is to show why developing an enabling performance measurement system (PMS) can be useful to small professional service firms (PSFs) and how small PSFs can develop such an enabling PMS.

The authors used a process‐consultation type of action research design; they developed an enabling PMS in close cooperation with the employees of a small PSF. The effects of this intervention were assessed by means of document analysis, participant observation, and individual/group interviews.

The enabling PMS development process helped the firm deal with three challenges common to small PSFs: it increased employees’ understanding about how to apply the firm's strategy; it led to greater knowledge exchange among employees; and it enabled them to create new knowledge.

The research results suggest the type of intervention used for developing an enabling PMS – that has already been shown to be effective in large firms – may also be useful for small PSFs. Similarities and differences with the intervention in large firms are discussed.

Small PSFs may benefit from the approach described herein: to develop a PMS in a participatory manner. It is especially useful if interested in better alignment of operations with strategy and/or to better explicate tacit and create new firm‐relevant knowledge.

This is the first paper about developing an enabling PMS in a small PSF.

Increasingly, emerging information technologies such as shared software and continuous accounting are offering alternative ways to perform accounting tasks in a supposedly more efficient fashion. Yet, few studies have investigated how they affect the provision of accounting services, especially in the context of small accounting firms, which provide legal and tax services to entrepreneurs and businesses. Drawing on the service perspective, the paper critically examines how technological innovation challenges and reconfigures the co-production of accounting services in these firms.

The paper answers calls issued in prior studies to conduct empirical research on emerging information technologies for accountants. It focuses on the specific context of small accounting firms and draws on interviews with small accounting firms' managers (n = 20).

The study emphasizes five significant challenges that accounting firm managers face when using information technologies to support the provision of their services (ensuring reliability, factoring in their heterogeneous client base, repricing, training clients to use new technologies and promoting advisory services). Information technologies are shown to have a structuring role in the co-production of accounting services, as they lead to reconfigurations of the relationships between accountants and their clients. A range of four configurations is developed to highlight accountants' strategies to maintain collaborative relationships with their clients while integrating new technologies into their work practices.

By conceptualizing accounting services as a co-production process, the paper offers new insights into the implications of emerging information technologies for small accounting firms.

This paper aims to examine whether participation in training and development (T&D) events is associated with employees’ affective commitment and propensity to enact innovative behaviours in small professional services firms. The study also investigates associations between both attitudes towards T&D and policy and practice supportive of T&D and levels of participation in T&D events.

Data from 203 employees in small professional services firms employing 50 or fewer staff were analysed using regression analysis and PROCESS macro.

Only policy and practice supportive of T&D was associated with participation levels. Participation in T&D events was positively related to affective commitment. Furthermore, employees who participated in more T&D events were more likely to enact innovative behaviours, while affective commitment mediated the positive relationship between number of T&D events attended and innovative behaviours. Contrary to expectations, neither participation in just training nor participation in just development was associated with either attitudes or behaviours.

The findings have important implications for small firms which tend to rely on wholly work-based experiences for the development of employees’ knowledge and skills. Such an approach to learning for work may inadvertently shape a workforce that lacks commitment to the organisation and that has a diminished capacity for innovative behaviours.

There is limited research on how T&D affects attitudes and behaviours in small firms. Large and small firms are fundamentally different, thus findings from studies in large firms may not extend to small firms.

The paper offers a positive example of how networking influences the success of small firms and examines an industry sector where it occurs naturally as part of the industry culture. This study has focused upon the advertising agency sector, as it is known to network. The paper examines the opinions of advertising agency owner‐managers, elicited during this research, where the practice and preference for networking was apparent. The issues highlighted by this examination fall into the following broad categories: the perceived identity which the owner‐managers ascribed to their networks; the time which the networks have taken to nurture and develop; the trust engendered by the participants both for the networks as an entity and for the participants; the association of reputation and pride in the network; and the need to reflect in order to make use of network information.