Entrepreneurial Competency, Social Capital, And Entrepreneurial Success in Food Processing SMEs: A Systematic Review and Research Proposition with Environmental Munificence as a Moderating Variable (Published)
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the food processing sector are critical drivers of socio-economic development, employment generation, and GDP growth in emerging economies like Nigeria. However, high failure rates averaging 61% over nine years undermine their potential. While technical production knowledge is common, entrepreneurs frequently lack essential skill-based competencies and fail to convert social relationships into growth opportunities. This paper presents a systematic review of literature guided by the PRISMA protocol to synthesize the relationships between Entrepreneurial Competency, Social Capital, and Entrepreneurial Success, while proposing Environmental dynamism as a moderating variable. Grounded in the Resource-Based View (RBV) and Success Factor (Rock Star) Theory, three core dimensions of Entrepreneurial Competency (Financial Management, Marketing Management, Leadership Competency) and three dimensions of Social Capital (Relational, Structural, Cognitive) are evaluated against financial and non-financial success metrics (Profitability, Sales Growth, Customer Satisfaction, Competitiveness). Following PRISMA screening criteria, relevant studies were extracted, analyzed, and synthesized. Five critical literature gaps were identified, leading to the formulation of a comprehensive conceptual model and ten researchable hypotheses (H1a–H1d, H2a–H2d, H3a–H3b). The synthesized discussion bridges conceptual, theoretical, and empirical domains, highlighting how skill-based competencies and multi-dimensional social capital interact with resource-rich operating environments to foster enterprise performance. Strategic, policy, and managerial implications are provided to guide SMEs, institutional leaders, and policymakers toward sustainable enterprise growth.
Keywords: Entrepreneurial success, Social Capital, entrepreneurial competency, environmental dynamism, food processing SMEs.