Rural SMEs Research Articles

Survival of Rural SMEs During Covid-19 Lockdown in Southern Region of Kwazulu Natal

Survival of Rural SMEs During Covid-19 Lockdown in Southern Region of Kwazulu Natal

The relationship between digital orientation, organizational ambidexterity, and growth strategies of rural SMEs in time of crisis

The rapidly changing digital landscape presents a new context highlighting growth strategies and organizational ambidexterity. This research explores the interaction between growth strategies of rural SMEs, digital orientation, and organizational ambidexterity during the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey data comprised 204 responses from Finnish SME owner-managers in the rural region of South Ostrobothnia in October 2021. The results from the ordinal regression analysis demonstrate that organizational ambidexterity positively influences the utilization of all growth strategies, serving as a mediator in the relationship between digital orientation and these strategies. Digital orientation is positively associated with applying a product/service development strategy, market development strategy, diversification, and business model development but not with market penetration strategy. These findings suggest that a digital orientation enables SMEs to strike a balance between exploration and exploitation, allowing them to effectively pursue both. Furthermore, digitalization offers rural businesses opportunities to implement more demanding growth strategies. Therefore, to ensure the long-term vitality of rural areas, society and policymakers must collaborate in providing robust digital infrastructure.

Contributions of Investment and Employment to the Agricultural GDP Growth in Egypt: An ARDL Approach

This paper explores the impact of investment and employment on Egypt’s agricultural growth during the period 1991 to 2021 using annual time series data. We use the ARDL approach to examine the long-run and short-run relationships among agricultural investment, agricultural employment and agricultural GDP. The results reveal that the variables of interest are bound together in the long run. The long-run relationship and the error correction model are estimated. The accompanying equilibrium correction proves that long-run linkages exist in a meaningful way. Results show that agricultural investment and agricultural employment are major short- and long-run determinants of the agricultural GDP. In the long run, every 1% increase in agricultural employment (AEMP) results in an increase in the agricultural GDP (AGDP) of 3.73%, while every 1% increase in agricultural investment (AINV) improves the AGDP by 0.43%. In the short run, 26% of all disequilibrium-causing motions are adjusted for in a single session. Therefore, it takes 3.85 years for the Egyptian agricultural GDP to achieve the transition from a short-term disequilibrium situation to a long-term equilibrium. Thus, decision makers should increase the rates of investment in the agricultural sector, in parallel to the development of the agricultural labor force in Egypt. Moreover, the increased allocation of public investments and the injection of private investments are highly recommended. In addition, the Egyptian agricultural sector needs improvements regarding human capital development and agricultural training. Finally, the government must initiate comprehensive farmer support services, bolstered farm/non-farm links and the promotion of rural SMEs to serve as the foundation for agricultural and rural development.

Research on the Factors Influencing the Effect of E-commerce Development in Chinese Rural SMEs

Research on the Factors Influencing the Effect of E-commerce Development in Chinese Rural SMEs

Study of "Green Manufacturing" on Rural Crystal Coconut Sugar SMEs

Crystal coconut sugar production will produce waste which will have an impact on environmental pollution. Waste generated is liquid waste and solid waste. Waste reduction handling can applied to "green manufacturing" principle. Research aims are: (1) identify waste generated, (2) determine green manufacturing opportunities, (3) green manufacturing opportunities analyze feasibility, and (4) green manufacturing implementation determine priority. Research phase includes: (1) quick scan analysis, (2) material, energy and waste flows identification, (3) alternative green manufacturing opportunities, (4) feasibility analysis (financial, technical and environmental), and (5) determination green manufacturing implementing priority. Results showed that ant sugar production produces waste in excrement on sap form, ashes from combustion, energy loss, crystal nuclei, and spilled sugar. Green manufacturing alternatives that are technically, environmentally and financially feasible are ash into inorganic fertilizers utilization, replacing cooking furnace, modifying drying equipment, replacing process materials, repairing and modifying screening, drying and packaging equipment. Implementing green manufacturing priority alternatives indicates that main alternatives to implemented are repairs and screening, drying and packaging equipment modifications which are considered technical and technological capabilities good in criteria, finance, human resources (HR), and environment. These results indicate that "Green Manufacturing" in rural SMEs crystal coconut sugar to increase global competitiveness "Green Economy".

Analysis from a Macro Perspective: Factors Affecting the Effectiveness of E-commerce in Chinese Rural SMEs

Analysis from a Macro Perspective: Factors Affecting the Effectiveness of E-commerce in Chinese Rural SMEs

Influence of Environmental Analysis and Financial Sustainability of NGOs in Kenya

Purpose: Environmental analysis is a useful tool in strategic planning. It is a method for identifying all external and internal factors that can influence an organization’s performance. The analysis comprises determining the amount of threat or opportunity presented by the factors. These assessments are then used in the decision-making process. The analysis aids in the alignment of strategies with the firm’s environment. The purpose of this study is to establish influence of environmental analysis and financial sustainability of NGOs in Kenya.
 Methodology: A desktop literature review was used for this purpose. Relevant seminal references and journal articles for the study were identified using Google Scholar. The inclusion criteria entailed papers that were not over 10 years old.
 Findings: The study concluded that environmental analysis is a useful tool in strategic planning. This is because it is useful in identifying all external and internal factors that can influence an organization’s performance. The analysis comprises determining the amount of threat or opportunity presented by the factors. These assessments are then used in the decision-making process. The analysis aids in the alignment of strategies with the firm’s environment. The study also concluded that, external factors had significant positive and negative effects on performance.
 Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: The study recommended that the government should embrace environmental analysis as it is a useful tool in strategic planning. The government should also establish a favorable business environment for rural SMEs by providing entrepreneurship training and company incubation programs. The findings help define the future of small business reengineering in rural areas by providing information on environmental analysis strategy and innovation management theory. The study recommends that the strategic leaders should do environmental analysis as it will bring an upper hand to the NGO hence be able to assess the threats and opportunity present. The organization can then act on the opportunity at hand and prepare to mitigate the threats present, resulting to financial sustainability of the NGO.

Barriers to the Effective Integration of Developed ICT for SMEs in Rural NIGERIA

This study investigated three key factors (technological-related, organisational-related and environmental-related barriers) affecting the adaptation to or integration of developed ICT. It also examined how SMEs in less developed countries can explore the different stages of developed ICT by moving from one stage to the other. The integration of ICT in SMEs is important as technologies have become competitive tools in contemporary business practices. This study is based on a survey of 322 Nigerian SMEs which was successfully validated using the SmartPLS3 software. The quantitative analysis centred on the three hypothesised barriers to measure the extent to which SMEs’ internal and external variables could limit their competitiveness in relation to business expansion and organisational growth. The analysis helped explain some of the critical challenges faced by rural SMEs in an emerging economy such as Nigeria despite the literature’s previous emphasis on the impacts of ICT on the SMEs’ growth and expansion. A major contribution of the study is the development of a distinct model to help SMEs identify the significance of developed ICT and propose a strategy for SMEs to navigate the stages of developed ICT.

THE ROLE OF SMALL AND MEDIUM MICRO ENTERPRISES (MSMEs) IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN CIREBON DISTRICT

SMEs are in a position strategic for speed up change structural To use increase level life many people, and is a place where producers and consumers operate together . If MSMEs become entity production and competition main in economy nationally , the Indonesian economy will have solid foundation . _ Importance the role of SMEs, goals from study this is for identify the role of MSMEs and the problems they face perpetrator MSME business in development economy . Type study this is studies case with use approach qualitative . Respondent study this are SMEs in Cirebon Regency . Source of data obtained from primary and secondary data through technique data collection with use interviews , observations and documents . Data analysis techniques work with research data with method listen , select data, analyze data, analyze data, and draw conclusion . Finding study this is the role of SMEs is expected could expand opportunity work , give significant contribution _ to growth economy , balance growth income , as well as increase power competitiveness and resilience economy national . difficulty and cost ingredient raw , distribution operation hampered , capitalization and production obstructed . Recommendation from study this is effort micro and small expected could adapt with technology moment this for increase power competitive product and optimize potency institution finance that can Becomes alternative source funding for rural SMEs.

Collaborations in innovation activities of rural SMEs: a configurational analysis

Collaboration and innovation are closely linked in innovation ecosystems (IEs). Yet management research that adopts the IE approach has paid little attention to the combinations of collaborations that foster innovation among rural SMEs. We therefore seek to determine what configurations of collaborations between rural SMEs and actors in their IE most enhance their innovationperformance. The study uses fuzzy set Qualitative Comparative Analysis to explore this question in 64 rural SMEs in Canada. The results confirm that at least one collaboration configuration between SMEs and customers and suppliers is needed to enhance SMEs’ innovation performance. Financial institutions (FIs) are present in configurations where collaborations with education and research institutions (ERIs) are absent. Collaborations with economic development organizations seem less effectual. The main contribution is to expand the current analysis on collaboration configurations in IE to SMEs in rural contexts by using a configurational analysis. The specific contributions are: 1) Balanced collaboration of rural SMEs with their IE actors, stimulates the innovation performance, 2) substitutability and complementarity between horizontal and vertical collaborations facilitate this performance, 3) the conjunction of collaborations with ERIs and FIs can be problematic. Actors of innovation support in rural areas can strengthen their strategies by considering the findings.

Peripherality and university collaboration: Evidence from rural SMEs in the UK

While innovation is viewed as crucial means of promoting competitiveness of rural SMEs, rural areas can be blighted by an ‘underdeveloped innovation environment’. Perhaps due to an urban bias in innovation research, open innovation through university collaboration among rural SMEs has not been extensively examined. Using a dataset of 880 rural SMEs from the UK, the paper suggests that rural SMEs are less likely to collaborate with a university than urban SMEs. Furthermore, higher numbers of employees and export revenues have a positive influence on the propensity to collaborate with a university. In addition, collaborating with organisations such as private laboratories and public sector research institutes increases the propensity to engage in university collaboration.

The impact of entrepreneurs' environmental analysis strategy on organizational performance

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to assess the impact of entrepreneurial innovation strategies in environmental analysis and its impact on the performance of rural SMEs in developing countries, particularly in Kenya. The paper argues that improvements in rural SMEs through sustainable environmental analysis strategies can boost the performance of small firms in rural areas. A sample of 272 rural enterprises in Kenya was used as a framework. Partial least squares regression and correlation models are used for content analysis. The results show a nonsignificant influence of environmental instability on the performance of small firms in rural areas. However, by incorporating entrepreneurial invention strategies into environmental scanning, the results indicate a positive impact on the performance of rural SMEs. Entrepreneurs need to be aware of the importance of environmental innovation strategies to cope with disturbances and dynamism of the environment underpinning the performance of rural SMEs. The study suggests that policymakers need to create a conducive business environment through entrepreneurship training and business incubation programs for rural SMEs. The results provide information on the environmental analysis strategy and innovation management theory in defining the future of small business reengineering in rural areas.

CHALLENGES OF THE INTRODUCTION OF CIRCULAR BUSINESS MODELS WITHIN RURAL SMES OF EU

Recently the circular economy has got a lot of attention within discussions of policy makers, academics and practitioners. The circular economy proposes the treatment of environmental and climate change problems, simultaneously promising benefits for the business. The circular economy promotes the reduction of the consumption and reuse or recycling of the resources that in various aspects contradicts traditional business models that stream to linear growth of sales of their products. Yet the circular economy concept has been more discussed regarding its global scale, but there is a lack of scientific discussions about the approaches of the adoption of circular economy principles on the business level. This paper conceptualises multi-level dimensions of the circular economy and highlights challenges related to the perception of the circular economy principles in the micro business level. The conducted research shows that rural SMEs of six EU countries have rarely heard about the circular economy and even less about circular business models. While rural SMEs are more familiar with the bio and green economies forming good base for developing circular business models, they are reluctant towards introducing new business models. This paper aims to assess the level of the advancement in introduction of the circular business models among rural SMEs of EU countries. This article emphasizes the circular economy as an inseparable part of the business models of rural SMEs and rural economies of EU countries. This study has a policy implication as we suggest that the government should play an important role in promotion of circular business models in rural SMEs. The existing public support system is fragmented, and in most cases just incidentally encourage rural SMEs to adopt new circular business models. Also, the circular economy on a local level, especially in rural areas, has an important role in ensuring social wellbeing of local inhabitants. The methodological approach and research results presented in the paper can be used further developing EU support system and priorities beyond 2020.

CIRCULAR ECONOMY DRIVEN INNOVATIONS WITHIN BUSINESS MODELS OF RURAL SMEs

The competitiveness of rural SMEs is low due to economic inefficiency and the lack of innovations. The main challenges faced by rural SMEs are the limited scale, the distance form larger sales markets, R&D and business support institutions, and the lack of innovative spirit. The circular and bio-economies are shaping the rural SMEs towards the environmentally friendly and eco-efficient production, the minimization of the generation of waste and less use of natural resources. This potential of the adoption of new business models within rural SMEs is not fully observed.The aim of this research is to analyse the opportunities of rural SMEs in introducing the innovative business models driven by the circular economy. This research explores the innovative business models of rural SMEs that transform the environmental challenges in business opportunities and keep a balance with the growing consumption needs. The results of the research are of both theoretical and practical value, providing recommendations for facilitation of innovative business models within rural SMEs. The research methods: desk research, statistical analysis, a grounded theory approach, case study, primary data gathering through seven focus groups with more than 200 stakeholders from six European countries.

Innovation Challenges and Opportunities in European Rural SMEs

Adoption of innovation plays a crucial role in the transformation of the countryside towards a knowledge economy. However, rural SMEs experience various obstacles that hinder the adoption of innovation. The aim of this paper is to identify the main challenges and opportunities for the introduction of innovation in rural SMEs. The evidence is drawn from relevant literature and stakeholder discussions covering six European countries (Bulgaria Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, Latvia and Slovenia). The main challenges in adopting innovation in rural SMEs are shortcomings in the environment for innovation, inappropriate innovation policies and support measures, lack of knowledge and skills within companies, difficulties to hire a new skilled work force and low competitiveness compared to urban counterparts. Consequently, policy recommendations are proposed for promoting innovation in rural SMEs by focusing on cooperation and networking, information and training, innovation support programmes, marketing and sales promotion and availability of workforce. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5755/j01.ppaa.18.1.23134

Barriers to E-Commerce Adoption among SMEs in Sierra Leone: The Moderating Role of Geographical Location

E-commerce implementation by businesses in developing countries are faced with substantially greater challenges than businesses in developed countries due to the unreliability of the internet connection, the poor availability of accessing it due to the poor infrastructure, the high cost of doing so, and also the low level of ICT penetration. This study explored the barriers to e-commerce adoption among SMEs in Sierra Leone and came up with solid policy implications as to how to mitigate those challenges that need to be overcome for the success of e-commerce adoption. The main purpose of the research was to identify the most challenging barriers to e-commerce adoption and in the process investigate their moderating effect of geographical location for SMEs. A survey was done to collect 442 usable questionnaires from registered SMEs owners in the capital city and three major rural districts (Bo, Kenema and Makeni) of Sierra Leone. Persons’ correlation and multiple linear regression models were used to test the hypotheses of the study. The Results of correlation analysis showed that technological, organizational and environmental barriers are statistically significant and negatively correlated with e-commerce adoption. The results further showed that technological barrier is the most challenging barrier to e-commerce adoption. Similarly, the moderating effects of geographical locations were tested using regression analysis. The key finding is that, all the predictors have a more negative effect on e-commerce adoption for rural SMEs compared with urban SMEs. Based on the results, the study concluded with making a call for the Sierra Leone authorities, policy makers, entrepreneurs, and SMEs managers to offer conducive business environment, and focus more attention to rural SMEs for expanding their e-commerce adoption capacity.

Inhibiting Factors Towards Rural Access to Credit Among Small and Medium Enterprises: An Empirical Perspective

This study has discussed the key inhibiting factors towards rural access to credit among small and medium enterprises. This study relied on secondary data which was reviewed and summarized using the desktop approach. Initially, the study identified 58 journal articles which however after conducting a tentative scrutiny, 32 journals were selected using random sampling method and whose discussion and scrutiny gave rise to this research article. Many SMEs were found to experience many challenges ranging from low innovative power, inadequate management training and experience, inability to adapt to technological changes, inadequate education and skills, poor infrastructure, poor communication to lack of credit facilities. The study has established that the age of the small and medium enterprise, size of the small and medium enterprise, location of the small and medium enterprise; collateral and the quality of audited financial statements form the main factors inhibiting rural access to credit among small and medium enterprises. The study recommends that that SMEs embrace preparation of quality audited financial statements to act as evidence of their history and ability to repay debt capital as it is usually the requirement of the credit institutions to avail the same. The study also recommends to policy makers on the need to waive the tough and punitive credit requirements such as age of the SME, SME size, SME location and collateral with a bid of increasing more credit access to rural SMEs.

The Use of Modern Technology for Rural Industrialization and Its Implications on the Rural SMEs Economic Growth

Hence technology delivery is perceived to be an essential catalyst for rural development. This paper intends to present an empirical study on the use of modern technology for rural industrialization and its theoretical and practical implication on the rural SMEs economic growth. The idea of rural industrialization and how it can enhance the rural SMEs economic growth still the issue of concern of many policy-makers. The study seeks to establish understanding, knowledge and awareness about how the use of modern technology would assist in building strong rural industrialization that will have a positive change in the rural SMEs economy. In this research 127 participants consist with business managers/owners running SMEs in the province of KwaZulu-Natal were chosen for empirical data collection from both South and Northern parts of the Province. SPSS (24.0) version was used for the analysis of data. A quantitative questionnaire was used and distributed to the respondents. The findings revealed that in many cases there is no specific rural industrialization policy does not exist or somehow fall short, government attitudes towards rural industrialization as well as rural infrastructure development were also identified by respondents as areas of concern for rural industrialization. The exploratory and quantitative nature limited the survey. Hence, the application of this result should be made with utmost care. Further investigation which may include large and other parts of the country is therefore recommended.

Farm diversification strategies in response to rural policy: a case from rural Italy

Entrepreneurial turns, serendipitous events, entrepreneurial skills and values are critical to the success of rural SMEs. Likewise, ‘Resource Orchestration’ is an important element of strategic, entrepreneurial activities. An analysis of a case study of a rural family farm business in Italy is provided demonstrating an innovative model of ‘rural entrepreneurship’ focused on farm diversification to valorise full employment of family members and increased productivity as a direct response to rural policy. The analysis shows how collective family entrepreneurship can exploit ‘clusters of opportunities’ through updating entrepreneurial skills. ‘Serendipitous acts’ are integrated into localised diversification strategies.

Strategic Management Practices and Barriers in Rural SMEs

The main objective of this study is to provide a model for assessing organizational readiness for accepting social customer relationship management (SCRM). The dilemma, the organizations are faced with is that they go ahead directly toward the preparation and implementation of new technologies, especially the technology without determining their level of readiness and this causes that they fail at the implementation stage or they do not benefit from the investment and spending they have done. In this research, after studying various resources, in particular, resources related to the assessment of organizational readiness in accepting information systems and social networks-based systems for using in organizations businesses and the proposed models by the mentioned resources, components and sub-components affecting the organization''s readiness in accepting SCRM have been identified and extracted. We categorized them in four main categories and dimensions, naming organizational, technological, human and environmental factors. Each of these main components includes sub-components that are mentioned in this research.