The Influence of Financial Monitoring on Performance of Small and Medium Enterprises in Tanzania: A Case of Arusha City Council (Published)

The study examined the influence of financial monitoring on the performance of SMEs in Tanzania. The study was guided by resource- based theory. Cross-sectional research design and quantitative research approach were used in the study. Structured questionnaire was used to collect data from a sample of 204 SMEs in Arusha City Council. The regression analysis of data established that, financial monitoring in SMEs results in significant increase in sales revenue, profits, product lines and number of customers. The findings provide an indication that, financial monitoring is critical in ensuring positive performance of small and medium enterprises. Hence, owner-managers should capitalize in managing business finances and make close monitoring on all financial matters for the improved performance of their ventures. Similarly, the policy makers and training institutions need to have a well- established framework to assist SMEs on matters related financial monitoring and provide relevant trainings on key features of financial monitoring for improved performance of SMEs.

Keywords: Performance, Small and Medium Enterprises, financial monitoring

An Assessment of the Performance of Small and Medium Textile Enterprises in Ghana (Published)

In the wake of unemployment and economic hardship in Ghana, the study sought to assess the financial, social and environmental performance of Small and Medium Textile Enterprises (SMTEs) as they are a major driver of employment generation and other opportunities in the textile sector in Ghana. The study is quantitative research. A multi-stage sampling procedure involving convenient, purposive and stratified sampling techniques was employed in this study. A sample size of 300 was drawn from the 80 SMTEs. The study established that Ghana’s small and medium textile enterprises have not performed exceptionally well generally over the past five years. However, the study observed a relatively good performance in terms of their financial performance. Similarly, the social and environmental performances of the textile enterprises have also been found to be good. To make the most of using advanced technologies to enhance their performances, SMTEs must follow market dynamics, pay more attention to customer interaction and establish interdependent relationships in the industry.

Citation: Isaac Abraham  and Ebenezer Kofi Howard (2022)  An Assessment of the Performance of Small and Medium Textile Enterprises in Ghana, International Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship Research, Vol.10, No.2, pp.,1-14

Keywords: Economic, Enterprise, Performance, social and environmental

Working Capital Management –Performance Relationship: A Study of Small and Medium Enterprises in Akure, Nigeria (Published)

Despite the available potentials for sustainable growth and development of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) especially in developing economies, poor management of working capital has continued to deny most SMEs the optimum performance needed to annex the inherent potentials in the business. The study therefore seeks to investigate the relationship between management of working capital and Performance of small and medium enterprises; assess various sources of financing working capital; evaluate working capital management and identify problems associated with the management of working capital of SMEs in Akure, Nigeria. The study adopted descriptive survey with primary source of data collection through a well-structured questionnaire, to elicit information from randomly selected respondents. Both the descriptive and inferential statistics were used for the analysis. The study discovered a significant and positive relationship between working capital and performance of SMEs; identified bank loan, loan from family members and friends, and personal savings as major sources of financing working capital. The study also revealed cash as mostly used of all other working capital components while ineffective management of cash appeared to be most worrisome of all the problems associated with working capital management in the study area. The study concluded that effective working capital management ensures that SMEs have enough funds for day to day running of the business, which suggests consideration for other sources of financing working capital such as cooperative societies among others, for optimum performance needed by SMEs to annex the potentials for sustainable growth and development.

Keywords: Akure-Nigeria, Management, Performance, Relationship, SMEs, Working capital.

Analysis of the Influence of Management of Resources on Performance of National Hospital Insurance Fund, Kenya (Published)

This study was about the analysis of the influence of management of resources on performance of National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF), and the objective of the study was to establish the influence of management of resources on performance of NHIF. This study adopted mixed methodology, utilizing descriptive survey research design. This study utilized a sample size of 86 respondents arrived at by use of Slovin’s formula. Regression analysis was carried out to test the relationship between variables. The findings indicated that management of resources influenced performance of NHIF.Management of resources influenced the performance of NHIF according to the findings, with competent human resources having the highest mean score of 3.87, followed by adequate strategic resources at mean score of 3.66; however adequate financial resources had the lowest mean score of 2.40.

Keywords: NHIF, Performance, management of resources

Microfinance and Performance of Micro and Small Enterprises; Does Training Has an Impact (Published)

Access to finance is considered as very important for gaining high performance of Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs). Yet it has been observed that despite the availability of access to finance the performance of several MSEs is poor, which is a major hurdle in the growth rate of MSEs. The purpose of this study was to find the difference in certain performance indicators of MSEs who owners have been given training against those whose owners have never been given any kind of training. In order to conduct study survey research has been conducted and a sample of 384 MSEs was selected on simple random basis. The findings revealed that all the performance indicators including sales increase, income increase, assets increase, employment increase, and meeting household expenses have shown a significant difference among the two groups. The findings of the study are very important for the policy makers and the people who are involved in microfinance industry.

Keywords: Growth, Microfinance, Performance, Training, micro and small enterprises

A Descriptive Analysis of the Influence of Entrepreneurial Orientation Dimensions On the Performance of SMEs in Kenya (Published)

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) play an important role in the world economy. They contribute substantially to income output and employment. Indeed, they dominate the world business. In spite of this, studies have failed to identify and assess the corporate entrepreneurship dimensions that lead to good performance, especially in Kenya. As such, based on a study of SMEs in Kenya, this paper examines the relationships that obtain between Entrepreneurial Orientation (EO) and firm performance among SMEs. Specifically, the study sought to find out the effect of entrepreneurial innovativeness, risk-taking and proactiveness on firm performance. The study was guided by the resource based view (RBV), contingency theory, theories of entrepreneurship and the marketing theory. It adopted explanatory research design using a census sample with the target population being all the top 536 medium sized firms between 2006 and 2013. Data was collected using a questionnaire and analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson’s bivariate correlation, multiple regression and moderated regression analysis. Results revealed that entrepreneurial innovativeness, risk taking and proactiveness have a direct positive relationship with performance of SMEs. From the findings, the study recommended the need to intensify initiatives that encourage a better understanding of EO dimensions in boosting firms’ competitive positions and superior performance; firms should be more entrepreneurial in order to attain superior performance and survive the intensively competitive market environment. They should continuously innovate, especially through new product development, being first to enter the market with new products and in the use of creative new solutions that lead them to be recognized by competitors as leaders in innovation. SME owners/managers also need to enhance their risk-taking behaviour by encouraging staff to take risks with new ideas, make effective changes to their products and be willing to accept at least moderate levels of risk, engage in risky investments and have the courage to seize new opportunities, even if this may involve great financial risks

Keywords: Entrepreneurial Orientation Dimensions, Influence, Kenya, Performance, SMEs

The Influence of Innovativeness on the Performance of Small and Medium Enterprises in Eldoret Town, Kenya (Published)

The study investigated the influence of entrepreneurial intensity on performance of small and medium enterprises in Eldoret town, Kenya. Based on the study this paper examines how innovativeness influences the performance of SMEs in Eldoret town. The study adopted an ex-post facto research design. It targeted all the SMEs in Eldoret town. Systematic sampling technique was adopted to select a sample of 100 SME owners/managers to be involved in the study. The collected data was analysed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. Descriptive statistics was presented in form of percentages, frequencies, pie charts and graphs. Pearson correlation was employed to test the hypotheses of the study. The findings showed that innovativeness as a dimension of entrepreneurial intensity had strong positive correlation with the performance of SMEs in Eldoret town. Therefore, it was recommended that the government should play a role in offering short courses to induct the business owners and expose them to advanced techniques in innovation.

Keywords: Eldoret Town, Innovativeness, Kenya, Medium Enterprises, Performance, Small

La gouvernance des PME familiales au Tchad : une performance améliorée par les caractères familiaux plus que par les facteurs d’altruisme (Published)

La présente recherche s’intéresse aux liens entre la gouvernance et performance des PME familiales au Tchad. L’étude porte sur 182 PME familiales tchadiennes appartenant à des secteurs d’activités variés. L’enquête repose sur une méthode hypothético-déductive. Les résultats de ce travail montrent que l’impact de la gouvernance sur la performance est significatif. Une Analyse en Composantes Principales (ACP) dégage des facteurs spécifiques en trois groupes de variables gouvernance, altruisme et caractères familiaux. La régression factorielle par degré de significativité respectif et d’importance des facteurs montre que les facteurs relations et délégations,  le formalisme de la gouvernance, relations internes (au groupe familial et de management), formations et expériences et conflits professionnels structurent la relation gouvernance-performance de ces PME. Enfin, l’impact de la variable altruisme sur la performance est non significatif, contrairement aux attentes issues de la revue de littérature. La portée de ces résultats est finalement discutée.

 

Keywords: Entreprise familiale, Entreprise informelle, Entreprise non familiale, Gouvernance, Intendance, PME, Performance, Tchad.

Social Innovation Strategies and the Performance of Social Enterprises in Nairobi City County, Kenya (Published)

Current trends have shown that social entrepreneurship is identified as the Key driver of the third sector as well as the public and private sector. Social enterprises play a critical role in social-economic development. Social innovation is one of the most important aspects of social entrepreneurship as it enhances the degree to which an enterprise effectively responds to emerging opportunities and challenges in the market. The field of social innovation turns critical societal problems into opportunities by actively involving the community actors. This paper is an analysis of how social innovations influence social enterprises in Nairobi County of Kenya. Cross -sectional design is used. The target population comprises all the registered social enterprises in Nairobi County. A simple random sampling technique was used to draw a sample of 107 registered social enterprises in the County. A self-administered questionnaire was used as the main data collection instruments. A pilot study was conducted to test validity and reliability of the questionnaire. Data was then analyzed both descriptively and using inferential statistics. One-way analysis of variance was used to test the hypotheses. Both Pearson’s product moment correlation and Chi-square were also used to test for significant associations between social innovations and performance of Social enterprises.

Keywords: Entrepreneurship, Innovation, Performance, Social Enterprise, Social Innovation

ANALYSIS OF IMPACT OF CREDIT ON THE PERFORMANCE OF Smes IN SOKOTO METROPOLIS OF SOKOTO STATE OF NIGERIA (Published)

This paper analyses the impact of credit on the performance of SMEs in Sokoto metropolis the capital city of Sokoto State of Nigeria. This research is important in the sense that it may provide feedback on government programs and policies on SMEs finance. The research uses primary data collected from 294 respondents out of a population of 1710 registered SMEs in Sokoto metropolis using the random sampling technique. Regression analyses were used to analyse the data. The result shows credit is a major determinant of employment generation of SMEs. It is therefore recommended that is that policy makers should continue to formulate policies that will compile banks to increase credit to SMEs and reduce interest rate on the loan.

Keywords: Credit, Performance, Return on Assets, Small and Medium Scale enterprises., employee total assets ratio.