Understanding entrepreneurial vision for growth, innovation and performance in Kenya’s leather industry

Abstract

While entrepreneurial orientation’s role in determining performance of businesses has been empirically established, studies from Africa or an industry-ecosystem perspective have been scarce. Furthermore, the significance of an entrepreneur’s vision is often acknowledged but little studied in relation to entrepreneurial outcomes. This study explored vision for growth as an individual entrepreneurial disposition and its relationship with innovation and performance outcomes among industry actors. The study collected self-reported quantitative data from a mixed sampling of value-system actors as representatives of the Kenyan leather industry. SPSS v.21 was used for descriptive statistics and SMART-PLS3 for exploratory and inferential analysis. Vision for growth was shown to determine both innovation and performance while innovation did not mediate the vision for growth and performance link as hypothesized. This study contributes to a further understanding of psychological perspectives of entrepreneurship, especially the vision for growth construct, and its significance to firms in an industry ecosystem. Recommendations are made for further research, training, policy, and practice interventions aimed at enhancing entrepreneurial vision and innovation from an industry-ecosystem perspective for realization of economic benefits in the wake of globalized competition.