Purpose: The increasing pace of technological progress, hyper-competitiveness, volatility of markets, dominant in the contemporary society all cause signifcant changes in the approach to innovation and lead to the emergence of a new generation of models of innovation processes. An open innovation model is based on a systematic search for as well as research and use of various sources of opportunities for innovations that offer commercial potential. The main objective of this article is to analyse the possibilities of application of models of open innovation in management of micro, small, and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Poland. This article intends to explore the essence of open innovation by values, its inception, and conditions for its implementation in the management process specifc to the SME sector.

Methodology: The study has been based on in-depth semi-structured interviews conducted among business managers/owners responsible for innovation development of SMEs in Poland (16 interviews in total).

Findings: SMEs usually do not have their own research and development (R&D) departments, but need external support and R&D solutions tailored to their needs. SMEs need innovations and skills, which requires close cooperation with different partners. In order for SMEs to beneft from innovation processes, a structured cooperation not only with scientists and researchers, but also with other market partners needs to be established and intensifed. It changes both the creation of intellectual capital and the ways to manage it.

Originality: The new approach in the context of management of innovation is now one of the key challenges faced by smaller businesses. It is necessary to make changes in the approach to integration of external sources of innovation with the potential and resources at the disposal of a given company.

Purpose: This paper aims to explore the topic of knowledge safety, defned as the state of knowledge being safe from loss, leakage, attrition, oblivion, waste or theft. The paper frst presents a theoretical background and review of previous studies on knowledge loss and ways of overcoming it, and then illustrates the topic of knowledge safety with ten case studies from the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) sector.

Methodology: The paper is based on an analysis of Knowledge Management (KM) literature devoted to knowledge loss and its potential types in companies, and on the results of case study research. Knowledge safety was frst defned and contrasted with other terms, and then examined in 10 selected SMEs. The research resulted in a clarifcation of what SMEs understand by the term of “knowledge safety” and what kind of measures they take to ensure it.

Findings: As the analysis shows, the examined SMEs attribute diversifed signifcance to the issue of knowledge safety. For some of them, such problem does not exist at all and they state that they can ensure knowledge safety in all aspects of their operations. Some companies perceive it mainly through the safety of the knowledge stored in electronic databases, while others link it with the human factor only.

Research limitations: Research results are limited to ten companies operating in Poland. As such, they cannot illustrate the whole picture of the existing small or medium-sized companies.

Research implications: The fndings of both literature review and case study analysis indicate that there is a need to further examine the issue of knowledge safety by analysing the potential factors which may endanger knowledge safety and the methods to eliminate such risks.

Practical implications: The paper examines important aspects of knowledge safety and provides guidelines on how it can be ensured by managers or owners of SMEs.

Originality/value: The term of knowledge safety has been absent from the related literature so far. The paper defnes it and explores both the theoretical and the practical aspects thereof. The paper also suggests further research possibilities in this area.

Purpose: The paper investigates whether employees’ strategic awareness influences the shape of
management control systems (MCSs) in Polish micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (mSMEs).

Methodology: The study is based on data obtained from 223 companies between November 2010
and January 2012. The quantitative analysis used a set of variables which depicted MCSs: ‘goalsetting
process’, ‘control framework’ and ‘organisation of control’. Strategic awareness was considered
an independent variable.

Findings: The results showed positive correlations between strategic awareness and considered
variables. Regression models developed by the authors proved statistically valid. The study evidences,
that increasing employees’ strategic awareness stimulates their participation in goal-setting,
contributes to the development of more comprehensive MCSs, or may even imply formalisation of
management control.

Research limitations: The study does not include an analysis of the extent to which employees
find MCSs useful in their work. This will be considered in future research. Another possible extension
of the project is to identify factors which enable the capturing of the dynamic character of
MCSs and their changes over time.

Practical implications: The knowledge of MCSs does not explain whether or not the strategic orientation
of a company stimulates a need for MCS. Such knowledge may be important to managers
who have to face Polish employees’ general aversion to control.

Originality: The study contributes to the limited body of knowledge in a scope of relations between
employees’ strategic awareness and control mechanisms in Polish mSMEs.