A. 6. Appendices
1. Outlines of the questionnaires used in the case studies
1.3. Outline of company questionnaire used for SMEs around Lake Balaton in Hungary (Case
1.3. Outline of company questionnaire used for SMEs around Lake Balaton in Hungary (Case Study “Balaton")
Questions asked via telephone
1.3.1. Introductory text
„Hello, this is X Y speaking on behalf of Lake Balaton Development Coordination Agency. We are making a sociological survey for the agency about the business climate and about the economic and social relations of enterprises in the region. Please, help our work by answering our questions."
1.3.2. Questions
When was your firm established?
Do you have any companies other than this?
What was the reason of you establishing your firm, and if your firm has undergone a transformation, give the reasons for that, too. (in words)
What is your firm’s most important sphere of activity? (in words) How many full time employees do you have usually? (Estimation)
What is the usual legal status of your employees? (employee – subcontractor – contract of assignment – owner – not official – other)
How large is your annual turnover?
Approximately how much was your profit following taxation (your profit) last year?
How much did you spend on investment last year?
In your opinion, compared to this year’s investments, more or less investment would be needed next year?
(more –less the same)
Do you think it is possible that you will invest more next year? (yes – no)
What was the direction of your investments last year? (expansion – enlargement of profile – increase of productivity – protection of the environment – other)
What do you think: to what extent is your firm innovative? (Graded on a scale between 1 and 5)
In implementing innovations do you primarily rely upon yourself, or do you take advantage of various supports?
(own resources only – also support)
Do you know in your settlement, about a business which has become successful with the help of a good idea?
(there is – does not know of such a business)
Do you know, in your settlement a business which has a good idea with good chances to be successful, waiting to be implemented? (there is – does not know any)
What prevents this idea from being implemented? (in words)
Do you have partners (a) within your settlement (b) outside your settlement but within the Balaton Region (c) in the country outside the Balaton Region (d) foreign partners (e) who are large entrepreneurs/ from large enterprises (f) who are medium entrepreneurs/ from medium size enterprises (g) who are small entrepreneurs/
from small enterprises? (Yes – no)
The interviewers asked the following „sub-questions" in each case of the questions (a)-(g):
1. If you have, what is the character of this relation? (suppliers - customers- both - none)
2. How many percent of the turnover do you make with them? (10% - 20% - 30% - 40% - 50% - 60% - 70% - 80% - 90% - 100%)
3. How many percent of these relations is regular cooperation? (not occasional, not restricted to one occasion)?
( 10% - 20% - 30% - 40% - 50% - 60% - 70% - 80% - 90% - 100%)
4. How many percent of these partners is acquaintance / relative, whom you had known before entering into business connection with him/her (10% - 20% - 30% - 40% - 50% - 60% - 70% - 80% - 90% - 100%)
Has your company any interests in tourism? (yes – no) How many percent of the annual turnover can be related to tourism? (10% - 20% - 30% - 40% - 50% - 60% - 70% - 80% - 90% - 100%)
Now I am going to ask you about your personal business and public tasks. Naturally, these data will be worked up anonymously, separated from your telephone number.
Have you any public role, social obligations, commitments, tasks except managing the company? (If you have more, please speak about the one that you consider to be the most important.) If you have, what is it? (MP – local representative – other post at the local government – leader of an association – member of an association – leader of a foundation – member of a foundation – member of some kind of church organisation – other – there is no such task)
What other public tasks do you have? (in words) (Note: Sports organisation, club membership, membership of a social organisation or cooperation, social tasks within a cultural or church organisation, etc.)
Do you maintain regular non-professional relationship with other entrepreneurs within the region (settlement)?
(yes – no)
Please, say some words about this/these connections. (in words) (Note: any regular sponsoring, support, aid provided for civil organisations, churches, societies belong here regardless of the fact whether it comes directly from you or from the enterprise represented by you)
Do you undertake, as a private person or as the leader or the owner of an enterprise, sponsoring or charity activities? (yes – no)
What is this activity? (in words)
How many members of your family and relatives live in the settlement where your enterprise is operating?
Do they participate in building your business connections? (yes – no)
How many members of your family and relatives live outside the given settlement but within the Balaton region?
Do they participate in building your business connections?(yes – no)
How many members of your family and relatives live somewhere else in the country outside your region?
Do they participate in building your business connections? (yes – no) How many members of your family and relatives live abroad?
Do they participate in building your business connections? (yes – no)
I am going to read out certain statements now. Please say, in each case, to what extent you agree with the statement. Place your agreement on a five grade scale, and mark five will mean that you fully agree with the statement.
1. Family constitutes the most important background to an enterprise.
2. I can be a successful entrepreneur in my fatherland only.
3. Personal connections play a very important role in the success of a business.
4. Entertainment, sports events, provide an outstanding opportunity to build connections important for the enterprise.
5. I prefer to make business with people I personally know.
6. I prefer to make business with people from the Balaton Region.
In your opinion, will your enterprise be more or less successful next year? (more successful – less successful) What is the main reason for that? (in words)
In the following, I am going to read a list of statements. Please rate them as you did before, on a scale with five grades, where grade five means that you fully agree with the statement, and grade one means you do not agree with the statement at all.
1. I know the laws, orders and legal rules connected to my enterprise.
2. It is impossible to run a firm by complying with all laws , orders and decrees.
3. Taxation depends too often on skill and luck.
4. Local orders and decrees serve the interests of the local entrepreneurs.
5. I know and make use of the possibilities provided by the local orders.
6. The orders of the local governments are nothing more than a new burden imposed on entrepreneurs.
Taking everything into consideration, do you regard yourself as a successful businessman? (yes – no)
Has your firm ever applied for some kind of support? (Options: preferential credit – employment support - social support – not-returnable subsidy – energy saving support – regional development support – investment support – other – has never applied for anything)
Does the current system of subsidies, in your opinion, correspond to the needs of the enterprises? (yes – no) (This question must be asked in case of each type of support, for which the interviewed has ever applied.)
Now I am going to read certain statements. Please say, in each case, to what extent you agree with the statement.
Place your agreement on a five grade scale, and the mark five will mean that you fully agree with the statement.
1. Tenders are the most suitable solution for the distribution of supports.
2. Personal connections play an important role in obtaining support.
3. Favourable economic environment (reduction of taxes, incubator house, industrial park, shopping street) are more important than financial support.
4. Those companies obtain subsidies which submit the best applications, not those who need it most.
5. Those who judge the applications do not know anything about the situation of entrepreneurs.
6. The system of the distribution of tenders is good, only the money at disposal is little.
7. Many people do not know how to obtain the necessary support.
8. It is more important than financial support that offices reduced the time of administration.
9. The Lake Balaton Development Council promotes the cooperation of the enterprises of the region.
How much subsidy did your company receive last year? (… Hungarian Forints)
Has the local government supported the entrepreneurs of the settlement in any way and if it did, how?
What kind of resources have you used since you started your venture? (More than one answer is possible.) (Own resources – Bank loan – Loan but other than bank loan – The help of relatives and acquaintances – Support from the local government – State support – Foundation support – EC support).
Do you know of the supporting activity of Lake Balaton Development Council? (does not know - knows only a little about it - has been given support - knows somebody who has been given support)
Have you taken advantage of any other kind of support? If you have, what kind of support was that?
The gender of the person who answered the questions (male – female)
What was your highest school qualification when you established your enterprise? (8 classes of elementary school or under – vocational school – secondary grammar school with a school leaving exam – college - university)
Have you participated in some relevant training in the interest of running your enterprise since the time when you established it? (Professional technical or management trainings) (Yes - no)
What kind of training was that? (in words)
What kind of further professional or managerial trainings do you think, you would need?
Apart from your mother tongue which language(s) do you speak? On which level? (basic, intermediate, advanced)
What was your father’s highest school qualification? (8 classes of elementary school or under – vocational school – secondary school with school leaving exam - college – university)
How many children do you have?
When were you born?
Your family status (single – married – divorced – widow(er) Is your enterprise a family business? (yes – no)
Does your child participate in the tasks of the business? (yes – no) Would you like your child to carry on with your business? (yes – no)
Thank you for having helped our work with your answers. If you want to see the summary of the results of this survey, we shall send it to you by post or via e-mail. We wish you further success in your work.