Abstract
Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are main generators of employment and economic development in European Union. In Croatia and Slovenia, SMEs in wood processing (C16) and furniture manufacturing (C31) also play an important role in social cohesion and development of rural areas. The aim of this research was to investigate the current situation in SMEs in wood processing and furniture manufacturing regarding driving parameters of business and production management system in the time of a disturbed market situation caused by the COVID-19 global pandemic. Two different questionnaires in an e-mail survey were used to collect data for this research from companies and from experts in the field of management, production and marketing. Various statistical tests were used using seven driving parameters on data collected from 212 SMEs. Also, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was used on the data collected from 20 experts. Results showed that companies in the time of pandemic crisis and during the time of major disturbances in supply chain pay the most attention to their production program and quality of their products, and then to marketing activities and situation on the market. According to the results presented in this research, the management model can help SMEs managers, micro and small enterprises in particular, to improve their decision-making process, make the necessary innovations easier and faster, and maintain the sustainable business and production management system of their companies.
Highlights
As the first aim of this research, we investigate the current situation in small and medium enterprises in wood processing (C16) and furniture manufacturing (C31), focusing on driving parameters of business and production management systems in the time of the disturbed market situation caused by the COVID-19 global pandemic
For the purposes of the investigation of the current situation and perception of the driving parameters of business and production management among the small and medium enterprises in in wood processing (C16) and furniture manufacturing (C31) in Croatia and Slovenia, a total of 867 questionnaires were sent to enterprises, of which 246 were in Croatia and 621 in Slovenia
In this part of the questionnaire were the questions about the production program (16 groups of products from the wooden boards to final products such as furniture or joinery), the size of the enterprise, type of the production process, production management model and type of the technology used in the production process
Summary
Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) play a key role in the economy of the European Union as the main generators of employment and economic development [1]. They represent a significant part of the economy and industrial system of every country [2,3]. There were more than 25 million SMEs in EU-28 in 2018, which accounted for 99.8% of all enterprises in non-financial business sector [4]. They generated 56.4% of value added, and two out of three jobs were generated by SMEs [5]. SMEs play an important role in confronting sustainability issues such as green production, products and services, increasing consumption of natural resources and social cohesion. [4,5]
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