INVESTIGATION OF THE ROLE OF PERSONNEL IN MANAGAMENT OF SMALL ENTERPRISES IN LATGALE REGION

Personnel is the main resource in a business company. The main prerequisite in strategic management is involving the personnel in this process. Strategic management has largely an influence upon the development and survival of enterprises against the backdrop of crisis in small businesses. The findings have clarified the correlation of duration of companies’ action and work experience of employers on the attitude to personnel and on involving it in a management process in Latgale region. The research results allowed developing proposals to improve the implementation of strategic management by taking into account the role of personnel in this process.


Introduction
The research impact on small business companies in this article is explained by the fact that the number of small business companies in the particular region exceeds 90% of all companies.The unemployment level in Latgale region is the highest in Latvia.The survival of small companies in crisis conditions is very important for the economy of Latgale.
Findings of the previous research (4, 5, 6, and 7) showed that using Strategic management in small business companies in Latgale region largely helped them to survive.Awareness of a dynamic business environment and rapid response to its opportunities and threats is very significant for businesses surviving.Personnel is a key factor to any organizational process.
The aim of this article is to explore the personnel role in small business management processes in Latgale region.
To achieve this aim several objectives were defined:  to interpret the role of personnel factor in small business management;  to identify the role of managers' working duration experience in involving personnel in their businesses management processes in Latgale region;  to identify the role of companies' operation time in involving personnel in their businesses management processes in Latgale region;  to find out the correlations between the following management factors: managers' working duration experience, companies' operation time, personnel involving in management process, attitude to personnel;  to develop proposals for management improvement in small businesses by using the personnel support.To achieve the aim of this investigation the following research methods were used: content analysis, analysis and synthesis, logical and abstract constructive methods, graphic, reference methods, questionnaire method, Express inquiry method and SPSS programme.
The research was supported and financed by ESF project "Lingvo-Cultural and Social-Economic Aspects of Territorial Identity in the Development of the Region of Latgale".

Results and discussions
Business develops faster whenever the strategic management is used.Business success largely depends on the strategic leader, his/her values, culture and management style in implementing business goals.The management of small business companies is provided by the strategic leader.Managers have to make decisions which deal not only with business survival opportunities but also with business development in a changing environment under dynamic competitive conditions where each competitor tries to do impossible things to survive.The main role of the company's strategy is to ensure that everyone in the organization pulls in the same direction that may have to be specified as precise as possible.

The role of Personnel in Strategic Management process
According to Thompson J., Martin F. (9) Strategic management does not provide the detailed description of the internal environment in the external environment, but it is a qualitative set of intentions for future situations in organization of its market position and business culture.The main factor in strategic management is the personnel factor, which is focused on market demand, at the same time flexibly responding to a changing environment with the aim of getting competitive advantages and providing survival opportunities for the organization in the long term.According to Evans, N. (2) Strategic thinking and strategic management are the most important activities undertaken by any business.How skilfully these activities are carried out will determine the eventual long-term success or failure or the organization.
Strategic management foresees involving the all personnel in looking for the best ways to reach the goals of the organization.According to Mintzberg (3) strategic leaders must encourage strategic thinking throughout the organization trying to get others to think about the future in a creative way.Organizations must understand the strategic value of the resources and how they can be used to satisfy the needs and expectations of customers and other stakeholders.
Personnel as one of the key internal resource is closely linked to the organization's culture.According to Evans, N (2: 79), culture is the organizational equivalent to human's personality.From a strategic point of view the important point is that all organizations have culture and that it can have a significant effect upon the organizational performance.Managers may subsequently find it necessary to take steps to implement a programme that attempts to change the prevailing culture in order to improve the performance.
Training of the personnel is necessary for the success of most businesses.In accordance with Borrington K., Stimpson P. (1:228) it is a form of investment, but investment in the human capital not in the physical capital.Investment usually leads to greater output in the future and this is true regarding the employees as well as machinery.There are the following advantages of training: greater motivation and commitment of the employees, increased productivity, improved quality of the output, improved customer service, ability to use new technologies, greater flexibility of the labour force.Each training course is related to the following disadvantages: loss of output whilst training, cost of training, employees may leave once they are trained and then another business will benefit from that particular training, the course may raise employee's expectations for promotion.

Involvement of personnel in small business management in Latgale
Within the framework of this study 170 respondents from small companies in Latgale region were surveyed.Total number of small enterprises in Latgale region does not exceed 1,300 in year 2010.According to Sonders, M. (8:231) the number of the representative selection was determined with a permissible error of about 5%.This investigation mostly involved managers, and only a few of them had knowledge in strategic management.In this connection the relevant instrument of the survey was the express inquiry.Other data were collected using a questionnaire method.
The aim of the opinion survey was to explore relationships between the length of managers' working experience, operation time of small businesses and attitude to personnel, which was characterized by the following research factors:  involving the personnel in a management process,  assessment of the personnel as a resource of an enterprise with the main function to discharge the duties,  providing training,  assessment of the personnel as the main value of company.
Investigation area: Latgale region.The respondents represented the following fields: wood processing, metal working, food production, trade, transport, consultation services, catering, and tourism.

Results of the opinion survey
The number of employees, where the respondents work, does not exceed 10 in 130 companies, from 11 to 50 employees -40 companies.
The data (Table 1) show the statistics of the following indicators: duration -time of companies' operation; work experience -respondents' work experience as managers; personnel-resource -attitude to personnel which is assessed as a resource of an enterprise with the main function to discharge the duties; personnel-value -attitude to personnel as the main value; provision of training -number of companies, which provide personnel training.

Role of managers' working duration experience
The respondents' answers to the question -Is personnel in your company involved in the management process?-were divided as following: yes -90 (52.9%); no -80 (47.1%).Figure 3 shows that relationship between the managers' working duration experience and the personnel involvement in management processes does not exist.

Question: Is personnel in your company assessed as a resource of an enterprise with the main function to discharge the duties?
The respondents' answers were divided as following: yes -78 (45.9%); no -92 (54.1%).Figure 4 shows that relationship between the managers' work experience and assessment of personnel as a resource of an enterprise with the main function to discharge the duties does not exist.
Figure 5 shows the lack of uniformity between managers' work experience and provision of training.

Question -Is personnel in your company assessed as the main value?
The respondents' answers were divided as following: yes -115 (67.6%); no -55 (32.41%).Figure 6 shows the lack of uniformity between the managers' work experience and assessment of personnel as the main value.

Role of the time of company's operation
Question -Is personnel in your company involved in the management process?
Figure 7 shows the lack of uniformity between the time of company's operation and personnel involvement in the management process.Question -Is personnel in your company assessed as a resource of an enterprise with the main function to discharge the duties? Figure 8 shows that the relationship between the time of company's operation and assessment of personnel as a resource of an enterprise does not exist.Question -Is personnel in your company assessed as a main value?
Figure 10 shows the lack of uniformity between the duration of company's operation and assessment of the personnel as the main value.
Data (Table 2) reflect the Pearson Correlations between research factors.There are significant correlations between work experience and duration.
There are no correlations between the length of the managers' working experience and personnel involvement in the management process, the attitude to personnel as a resource, the attitude to personnel as a value and provision of training.
There are no correlations between the duration of companies' operation and personnel involvement in the management process, the attitude to personnel as a resource, the attitude to personnel as a value and provision of training.
This fact is explained by findings of the previous research (Silineviča, 2010): the lack of implementation of strategic management in small businesses in Latgale region is explained by the absence of knowledge in Strategic management in regard to managers of these companies.

Conclusions and proposals
There are no correlations between the length of the managers' working experience and the personnel involvement in the management processes, the attitude to personnel as a resource, the attitude to personnel as a value, and provision of training.
There are no correlations between the duration of companies' operation and the personnel involvement in the management processes, the attitude to personnel as a resource, the attitude to personnel as a value, and provision of training.
The opportunities of the personnel potential in small businesses' management processes are not used enough in Latgale region.
There is lack of awareness of strategic management and particularly lack of role of the personnel factor in development of small businesses.
Taking into account the importance of small business development from the regional aspect it is necessary to include the complex of particular measures in regional development

Figure 2 .
Figure 2. Length of managers' working experience

Figure 3 .
Figure 3. Personnel involvement in management process depending on managers' working duration experience

Figure 4 .
Figure 4. Attitude to personnel as a resource depending on managers' working experience

Figure 5 .
Figure 5. Providing of training depending on the managers' working duration

Figure 6 .
Figure 6.Attitude to personnel as the main value depending on the managers' working duration experience

Figure 7 .
Figure 7. Personnel involvement in the management process depending on the duration of company's operation

Figure 8 .
Figure 8. Assessment of the personnel as a resource depending on the duration of company's operation

Figure 9 .
Figure 9. Provision of training depending on the duration of company's operation

Figure 10 .
Figure 10.Attitude to personnel as a value depending on the duration of company's operation

Table 2 . Correlations between research factors Correlations
plans, providing various training programmes in Human Resources in Strategic Management for development of small business activities.