MEASUREMENT OF SUCCESS AND FAILURE IN SMALL BUSINESS: A TWO-FACTOR APPROACH

1994 ◽  
Vol 01 (03n04) ◽  
pp. 421-436
Author(s):  
JOHN H KELMAR
Keyword(s):  
Small Business ◽  
Business Performance ◽  
Business Failure ◽  
Business Research ◽  
True Nature ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Measurement Of Success ◽  
Small Business Failure ◽  
Small Business Performance

This paper proposes that the measurement of success and failure in small business does not present itself as a continuum, as implied by many of the papers published in the area of small business research. In addressing the criteria which has been expressed as indicative of small business failure it has often been assumed that the elimination of these aspects will henceforth create a successful small business. Similarly, if a small business fails to address those issues which are indicative of success, then it is often purported to be heading toward failure. This implied success-failure continuum often does not appear to exist, and the preferred approach is that a “Two-Factor Theory of Small Business Performance” tends to be more indicative of the true nature of the research findings. This concept presupposes that the opposite of success is non-success, and the opposite of failure is non-failure, as shown by comparing the results of published material in the field of small business.

Stress and The Entrepreneurial Role

1985 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 11-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan Williams
Keyword(s):  
Small Business ◽  
Business Performance ◽  
Business Failure ◽  
Business Context ◽  
Active Involvement ◽  
Small Business Management ◽  
Stress Levels ◽  
Small Business Failure ◽  
The Many ◽  
The University

Alan J. Williams, Professor of Management and foundation Head of the Department of Management at the University of Newcastle, N.S.W., Australia, has a background of 15 years active involvement in small business management development. The paper is based on a study of the relationship between perceived stress and business performance of samples of failed small firm owner/managers and of owners of operating firms which were approaching failure. The research addresses two questions: 1) is the quality of an individual's entrepreneurial performance (in a small business context) related to his capacity to cope with stress emanating from the many and varied stressors in that role? (Results indicate a statistically significant relationship); and, 2) what relationship exists between stress level and the temporal proximity of business failure? In essence, the focal issue is: is stress a potential cause of small business failure, or a consequence of that failure? (Results showed that stress levels prior to small business failure were significantly higher than after failure; stress levels tended to increase significantly with increasing proximity and probability of failure, and they decreased significantly after failure.) Stress generated by a mix of factors inherent in the small business ownership role can seriously inhibit effective management and entrepreneurship. It is widely associated with business failure; its specific causes and consequences are worthy of further research.

scholarly journals The Assessment of Dimension Absorptive Capacity on Innovation Performance and Small Business Performance

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 127-140
Author(s):  
Gunarso Wiwoho
Keyword(s):  
Small Business ◽  
Absorptive Capacity ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Business Performance ◽  
Positive Influence ◽  
Innovation Performance ◽  
Capacity Dimension ◽  
Spss Software ◽  
Small Business Performance

This study aims to examine the role of the absorptive capacity dimension in improving innovation performance and small business performance. The sample used as many as 35 businesses in the business sector of handy crafts. The collected data were analyzed using path analysis and processed with SPSS software version 24.0. The results showed that all hypotheses were accepted. The absorptive capacity dimension consists of potential absorptive capacity and absorptive capacity, both of which are able to have a positive influence on the performance of innovation and the performance of small businesses. But realized absorptive capacity can have a greater influence on innovation and small business performance than potential absorptive capacity.

The Impact of Quality Standards on the Business Performance of Small, Medium and Micro-Sized Enterprises in Kwazulu-Natal: Selected Cases in the Durban Metropolitan Area

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Phindile B. Chili ◽  
Noluthando S. Matsiliza
Keyword(s):  
Quality Management ◽  
Small Business ◽  
South African ◽  
Business Performance ◽  
Quality Standards ◽  
National Standards ◽  
Management Systems ◽  
The South ◽  
Quality Management Systems ◽  
Small Business Performance

In the last decade, scholars showed an interest in alluding to compliance as a necessity to support small business performance in the last decades. Over the years, organisations have been frequently criticised for failing to comply with the quality standards such as the South African National Standards (SANS) 9001/ISO 9001 require effective implementation of Quality Management Systems and SANS 342, which provides specifications for diesel fuel products. Quality standards matrix adopted by the South African Bureau of Standards (SABS) is frequently used as a set of detailed specifications, requirements, various guidelines and characteristics to assure that the product, service or process is fit for purpose. Even though public and semi-autonomous institutions understand the value of subscribing and complying with quality standards, there is still a gap in the literature regarding the enforcement and compliance of quality standards in small business practices. There is a relationship between the adoption of quality standards and business excellence. Government can tap on the competitiveness of small, medium and micro-sized enterprises (SMMEs) and address their challenges and barriers that limit SMMEs to acquisition and compliance of statutory quality management systems.

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