Small Business Management in the 21st Century

Reviewed by LaDawn Pieczonka, Instructor, Rio Salado College on 4/19/25

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

Small Business Management in the 21st century covers a good variety of topics that can be applied to how modern-day small businesses. The book covers many relevant topics like online marketing, business planning, supply chain management, and customer service. It think this book could improve in it's coverage of advanced topics and needs more specific case studies to provide a more balanced perspective.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

The content of this book is very well-researched and explains many of the common business theories and principles at work in today's small business environment. The examples and references come from experienced business experts, but the research relies on a limited group of people, so it lacks diversity and more international perspectives. 

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

The content feels very timely and closely aligned with what's happening in the world of small businesses today. I liked the thorough coverage of online presence, marketing strategies, and customer service. There are a few other sections that could benefit from a little more relevance. Given how quickly digital marketing trends evolve, the parts focused on that topic will probably need regular updates to stay current with the ever-changing online landscape.

Clarity rating: 5

The book is easy to read and does an excellent job of familiarizing readers with new terms as they come up. Its structure is easy to understand, andt the layout is straightforward, so you can easily find your way around and focus on the material without getting lost.

Consistency rating: 5

The writing maintains a consistent tone and style throughout, creating a enjoyable reading experience. The business principles are clearly connected and thoughtfully build upon one another as you move through each chapter.

Modularity rating: 5

The book is broken down into short, easy-to-digest chapters, which makes the material really accessible. Its format lets readers jump around and focus on the topics that interest them most, without needing to read the whole thing from start to finish. This makes it both a handy reference and a great way to dive deep into the material whenever you want.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The sequence of this book makes a lot of logical sense, with each chapter building upon the previous one in a solid and easy-to-understand way. One thing that would be more helpful is that the transitions between some subjects, such as marketing, finance, and operations, would be smoother so that there is a better, more readable flow between each section.

Interface rating: 5

The book’s design is very user-friendly, with no noticeable issues. Navigation is straightforward, so it’s easy to jump between chapters or find specific topics of interest. Images, charts, and other visuals are clear, helping to illustrate key points without causing any confusion or distractions.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

The textbook did an excellent job on this front. The book was polished and free of obvious grammatical errors. This is a professional level of quality writing, which makes it easy to read.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

The book does a nice job of covering global markets and cultural differences. That said, it might have been even more helpful if it included more examples from outside Western markets. Many examples and case studies are from a Western perspective, so some readers might not find them as relatable or useful in global markets.

Comments

The textbook offers a solid foundation for students studying small business management in today's age. The content is accurate and comprehensive. I liked the design because it was user-friendly for students or professionals looking to brush up on their knowledge of small business practices.

Reviewed by Michael Grimshaw, Lecturer/Non-Tenure Track Faculty, California State University, Dominguez Hills on 12/4/22

Comprehensiveness rating: 3 see less

Even though this text is now 10 years old (2012) many of the areas and ideas for small business are still relevant for some small medium enterprises. They are not for the current trend towards non-brick/mortar and on-line methods of doing small business although Chapter 4 is designed to address the areas of E-Business and E-Commerce that were relevant 10 years ago, This book does not contain an index or glossary but does have a table of contents.

Content Accuracy rating: 2

I have used this text for several years and the accuracy and error-free aspects are in need of repair due to age. Most of the links and references are no longer available on the internet but none the less students do learn from the discussions and basics illustrated in the writings.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

This text would be terrific if someone would take the time to update the references and links so the material presented would be better understood by the students and not be frustrating to them. The way were overcame this to some degree was by having the students do research and locate more current links and examples to replace the ones that did not work. My students were able to gain a good level of understanding on how small businesses are built and operated with the materials and use of supplemental information.

Clarity rating: 4

My students felt that there was a minimum of extraneous information and the text even though fairly basic was easy to navigate and complete assignments related to the text. The ability to search and locate information was helpful.

Consistency rating: 4

There were not any issues we could find with consistency and most of the terminology was still relevant with some exceptions due to changes in business over the past 10 years.

Modularity rating: 4

The modularity for students was through a easily navigable table of contents to drill down to the sections within the chapters by simply using the link/headings. Cut and paste was available to take out sections that might be used for focusing and student interactions.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

This headings and structure were very easily understood and quite logical in helping students go from a macro view to focusing on specific topics to gain a better understand and clarity of the subject.

Interface rating: 4

The text was easily navigated through the ever present return to table of contents and hot links for all chapters and sub headings. Images and charts were clear even though not very creative. The main distraction was the links in the chapters to videos, online references, etc. were for the most part not functional or available anymore due to age.

Grammatical Errors rating: 2

When I ran Grammarly over several sections of the text there were numerous basic issues - spelling, periods, spaces, verb forms and article usage. Nothing that made the text unreadable.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

This was a business text and neither my students nor I detected any cultural issues.

Comments

This is more of plea than comment for an update to this text or additional small business management texts be listed OER...small business is the heartbeat of business in America (and around the world) so this subject is taught in many schools and it would be terrific to have the authors update the text!

Reviewed by Joe Messer, Professor of Entrepreneurship, Manchester University on 6/22/22

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

The book covered a lot of topics. However it was too overwhelming, too all encompassing. It was difficult to find a 'flow'

Content Accuracy rating: 5

I had no problem with any of the information I read.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 3

I did not like that it started out with a lot of personal comments.

Clarity rating: 2

Needs more visuals

Consistency rating: 3

The language of the book was consistent all the way through.

Modularity rating: 3

Nothing special

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

The book was organized well. The chapters made sense. There was just so much content too much of it was opinion based.

Interface rating: 2

There needed to be more visuals, graphs, etc.

Grammatical Errors rating: 4

I saw no errors

Cultural Relevance rating: 3

I did not notice any bias

Comments

I could not find instructor material like exams, lecture notes, etc. That would have been nice to see.

Reviewed by Chien-Chi Tseng, Collegiate Associate Professor, Virginia Tech on 12/29/21

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

This book provides comprehensive content on small business management. I especially like the chapter contents of marketing basics, strategy, and plan. The information provided in the book is not new ( 2011 and older). I suggest the authors update the information and provide some new content of new technology-related business management strategy and development.

Content Accuracy rating: 4

The book has accurate content for small business management, however, some contents are for general businesses but not specifically for small management. For example, the chapter on Accounting and Cash Flow.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

Yes, the book provides relevant small business management and development content for sure.

Clarity rating: 3

Overall, the text written is lucid, however, many of the video and web links in the book do not work. I strongly suggest authors update the links in this book.

Consistency rating: 5

The text is internally consistent in terms of terminology and framework. I especially like the content of The Three Threads in each chapter. The three threads which summarize the implications of customer value, cash-flow, and digital technology and E-environment are very helpful for students to highlight their learning objectives.

Modularity rating: 4

The arrangement of the chapters and ideas covered does have a logical flow and the text can easily be divided into smaller sections at different times within the course. The chapters could be rearranged if necessary for a class. I would suggest adding some more figures and tables for better presentation.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The chapter organization and structure are clear and easy to follow.

Interface rating: 3

As I mentioned in the other comment sections, the authors should check and update the video and web clip linkages. More figures and charts added should be helpful for the readers.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I did not notice any grammatical errors in the text.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

This book does not seem to be culturally insensitive or offensive, however, as mentioned earlier the videos and web links are somewhat dated and the points could benefit from more updated and relevant examples.

Comments

After reviewing Small Business Management in the 21st Century by David Cadden and Sandra Lueder, I think the text covered all the main points of traditional small business topics and the steps of a small business, which has to consider. The book makes a great starting point for discussing all the main concepts of small business management and development strategy. Still, the authors could improve the book with newer, more relevant examples/case studies and videos and other new technology management and innovation enhanced materials.

Reviewed by Shouhong Wang, Professor, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth on 5/22/21

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

The book has 15 chapters and covers all important aspects of small business management which small business owners and managers must understand. The materials are comprehensive and understandable.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

The contents are unbiased and correct.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

The book was published in 2012, but the concepts are still valid and relevant today. Although some materials and references could be undated, minor revisions could be done easily to make an updated version as a textbook for small business majors at four-year colleges or universities.

Clarity rating: 5

The 15 chapters provide excellent context of small business management in all major disciplines of business, including accounting, finance, human resources and organization, supply chain, information technology, and business laws.

Consistency rating: 5

The book uses consistent terminology and framework. Each chapter has clear learning objectives and 3-Thread summaries.

Modularity rating: 5

The 15 chapters have excellent modules and are easy to re-organized to meeting individual instructor's needs.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

The organization of the book is fairly clear. A table of contents could be included at the beginning of the book. Sections, especially sub-sections could be numbered clearly to show the hierarchy of structure of the chapter.

Interface rating: 4

The layout and fonts could be improved a bit.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

The text is well written.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

The book is small business friendly, and fits the small business culture.

Comments

1. The lists of references could be aggregated and are placed after each chapter with smaller fonts to reduce the volume of the book.
2. The two chapters for Marketing could be merged into one chapter.
3. The chapter of E-Commerce and E-Business could be expanded into a chapter about IT for small business which could include e-commerce/e-business, use of social media, business analytics, decision support systems for small business.

Reviewed by Wei Chen, Associate Professor, University of Mary Washington on 5/30/20

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

The book covers all traditional topics of entrepreneurship such as value creation, family business, business plan, marketing strategy, accounting, financing, and organization. I found it especially valuable today that the book also has chapters on E-business and international business, which are increasingly common venues for entrepreneurial small businesses. As a result, I think the book provides aspiring entrepreneurs with what they need to know in order to start, operate, expand, or close a business in today's world.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

The content seems unbiased to me. The book includes necessary topics and wisdoms in entrepreneurship that have been in practice in real businesses.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

The content is up-to-date and the ideas and knowledge will not quickly become obsolete. Every chapter begins with a case that is relatively recent. Necessary updates to the cases or replacement of them will be relatively easy to implement.

Clarity rating: 5

The text is written in clear language. Business and entrepreneurship terminologies are highlighted in the text and immediately defined for easy understanding.

Consistency rating: 5

I think the text is internally consistent in terms of terminology and theory framework. Concepts and methods such as breakeven analysis are repeated a few times in different chapters, which actually is good for understanding and for students to practice these methods with some repetition.

Modularity rating: 5

The text is divided into easy-to-read subsections. There are always subheadings and bold-typed emphases of key terms, which made the reading easy to follow. The text summarizes some of the comparisons of key concepts into tables, which makes the content clear and easy to understand at a glance.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The author organizes the topics in a logical manner that follows the natural steps when preparing for a business startup.

Interface rating: 3

The text is smooth to navigate in general. The only problem I encountered was that video clips on the online version do not open after I click on the links. I'm not sure if this is a problem with my computer only.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I did not find grammatical errors in the text.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

I did not find the text culturally insensitive or offensive. It objectively evaluates the benefits of outsourcing and international expansion for small businesses.

Comments

This is a very good cost-free open-source textbook to replace a traditional entrepreneurship textbook with for an undergraduate entrepreneurship class. It not only covers all the topics in entrepreneurship in a clear manner, but it also has great examples and exercises after each chapter. I'm going to adopt this textbook for my entrepreneurship class next semester.