期刊名称：International Journal of Research in Business and Social Science
印刷版ISSN：2147-4478
出版年度：2018
卷号：7
期号：2
页码：1-13
DOI：10.20525/ijrbs.v7i2.861
语种：English
出版社：Society for the Study of Business & Finance
摘要：Manufacturing small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the breeding ground for human capital competencies, creativity and innovation, which are important inputs for manufacturing competitiveness. In Kenya, manufacturing SMEs contribute 14% of gross domestic product (GDP), and train and employ 30% of the workforce. However, their growth and competitiveness are undermined by challenges in the firms’ operations management. Consequently, the firms struggle to survive as competitive enterprises, both domestically and globally. The purpose of this study was to establish how entrepreneurial orientation (EO) enhances the relationship between operations management and firm performance. Quantitative primary data were collected from managers of 83 firms registered by the Kenya Association of Manufacturers in the food and beverage sub-sector using a self-administered questionnaire. Structural equation modelling was used to analyse the data for relationships between the study variables. The study found a positive relationship between operations management and EO, and between EO and firm performance. The study also found that EO is a mediator of the relationship between operations management and performance of manufacturing SMEs in Kenya. The study recommends that for manufacturing SMEs to effectively deploy operations management competencies and gain global competitiveness, they must engage EO as a strategy to foment organisational experimentation and exploration and commercialize the resultant innovations. At the macroeconomic level, the government should support manufacturing SMEs through enactment and promotion of policies that enable operations managers to exploit their firm’s EO stock.
其他摘要：Manufacturing small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the breeding ground for human capital competencies, creativity and innovation, which are important inputs for manufacturing competitiveness. In Kenya, manufacturing SMEs contribute 14% of gross domestic product (GDP), and train and employ 30% of the workforce. However, their growth and competitiveness are undermined by challenges in the firms’ operations management. Consequently, the firms struggle to survive as competitive enterprises, both domestically and globally. The purpose of this study was to establish how entrepreneurial orientation (EO) enhances the relationship between operations management and firm performance. Quantitative primary data were collected from managers of 83 firms registered by the Kenya Association of Manufacturers in the food and beverage sub-sector using a self-administered questionnaire. Structural equation modelling was used to analyse the data for relationships between the study variables. The study found a positive relationship between operations management and EO, and between EO and firm performance. The study also found that EO is a mediator of the relationship between operations management and performance of manufacturing SMEs in Kenya. The study recommends that for manufacturing SMEs to effectively deploy operations management competencies and gain global competitiveness, they must engage EO as a strategy to foment organisational experimentation and exploration and commercialize the resultant innovations. At the macroeconomic level, the government should support manufacturing SMEs through enactment and promotion of policies that enable operations managers to exploit their firm’s EO stock.
