SMES Response Strategies and Performance In Covid-19 Pandemics: Implications For Trade And Industry In Computer Village, Lagos, Nigeria
1 Caroline Aturu-Aghedo – 2 Maurice Aghedo
1Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Management Sciences, National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), Abuja
2Department of Business Administration, Chrisland University, Abeokuta
Correspondence: [email protected]
Received: June 27, 2023, Revised: November 22, 2023, Published: December 1, 2023
Abstract
The global outbreak of COVID-19, commonly referred to as the coronavirus, has profoundly influenced enterprise operations and consumer behaviors. The pandemic’s rapid spread has resulted in immediate socioeconomic repercussions for both industrialized and developing nations. This research explores the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on enterprise performance within the portable electronic devices sector, focusing on businesses in Computer Village at Ikeja, Lagos. The resource-based theory, behavioral and psychological theory, and strategic adaptation perspective served as the study’s conceptual framework. Descriptive survey research design was used in this study. Data was collected through administering close-ended structured questionnaires. 356 MSMES owners, traders and other stakeholders were drawn through multi-stage sampling technique. Exploratory factor analysis using principal component with varimax rotation, with four factors, which account for 52.438% of total variance and the communalities was used to assess the validity of the scales used for this study. Cronbach’s alpha coefficient reliability of the factors were established: enterprise performance of small businesses (.928), access to innovative assets (.819), entrepreneur’s psychological wellbeing (.781), and available resources (-.253) were established. Descriptive statistics and regression analysis were used to analyze the data. The findings revealed that enterprise performance is significantly related to access to innovative assets ( = .406, t = 2.229, p = .027; = .605**), psychological wellbeing ( = .223, t = 2.740, p = .027; = .467**), available resources ( = .004, t = 2.740, p = .027; = .172**) and entrepreneurial eco-system ( = -.030, t = 2.740, p = .027; = .112*) during the Covid-19 pandemic. It is recommended that SME practitioners should consider implementing innovations to enhance their competitiveness, especially innovations with higher novelty that are new to the market, industry, country, and government needs to promote and support research that leads to the creation of new knowledge critical for innovation.
Keywords: Small-scale business, Crisis (Covid-19 pandemics), Enterprise performance, Response strategies, Business resilience, Embeddedness, Livelihood, Nigeria.
Download the PDF Document
DOI: https://doi.org/10.23918/ejmss.V4i2p88
Citation
Caroline Aturu-Aghedo – Maurice Aghedo. (2023). SMES Response Strategies and Performance In Covid-19 Pandemics: Implications For Trade And Industry In Computer Village, Lagos, Nigeria. Eurasian Journal of Management & Social Sciences. doi:10.23918/ejmss.V4i2p88
© Caroline Aturu-Aghedo – Maurice Aghedo, Published by EJMSS. This article is published under the Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 Generic (CC BY-NC 2.0) license. Anyone may copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format, subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this license may be seen at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/
References
Adam, N. A. & Alarifi, G. (2021). Innovation practices for survival of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the COVID-19 times: The role of external support. Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship 10:15 https://doi.org/10.1186/s13731-021-00156-6
Adams, R., Bessant, J. & Phelps R. (2006), Innovation management measurement: A review. International Journal of Management Reviews, 8(1): 21–47.
Allen, S. R. & Helms, M. M. (2006), Linking Strategic Practices and Organizational Performance to Porter’s Generic Strategies. Business Process Management Journal, 12, 433-454. https://doi.org/10.1108/14637150610678069
APEC (2015). SMEs, Competition law and Economic Growth [online] https://www.apec.org/Publications/2015/09/SMEsCompetition-Law-and-Economic-Growth (accessed on 28 June 2020).
Aragón-Correa, J. A., García-Morales, V. J. & Cordón-Pozo, E. (2007), Leadership and organizational learning’s role on innovation and performance: Lessons from Spain. Industrial Marketing Management, 36(3): 349 – 359.
Aragón‐sánchez, A. & Sánchez‐marín, G. (2005), Strategic Orientation, Management Characteristics, and Performance: A Study of Spanish SMEs, Journal of Small Business Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, 43(3), pages 287-308, July.
Arbuthnot, J. J., Sisler, G. & Slama. M. (1993). Perceived store performance and retail purchase decisions of buyers for small specialty stores. Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, 11(2), 21-27.
Babonea, A. & Voicu, M. (2011). Questionnaires pretesting in marketing research. Challenges of the Knowledge Society, 1, 1323-1330.
Bacq, S. & Lumpkin, G. T. (2020). Social Entrepreneurship and COVID-19. Journal of Management Studies, 58 (1), 285-288.
Baker, T. and Welter, F. (2020). Contextualizing entrepreneurship theory. Rout ledge, Taylor and Francis Group, New York and London
Berthon, P., Ewing, M. T., & Napoli, J. (2008). Brand Management in Small to Medium-Sized Enterprises. Journal of Small Business Management, 46(1), 27-45.
Bouchikhi H. A. (1993). Constructivist framework for understanding entrepreneurship performance. Organization Studies.14(4):549–570.
Bryman, A. & Cramer, D. (1997), Quantitative Data Analysis with SPSS for Windows: A Guide for Social Scientists. Routledge, London.
Craig, J. S., Martin, R. & Horridge, P. (1997). Apparel manufacturing business owners: A gender comparison. Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, 15(1), 1-11.
Crossan, M. M & Apaydin, M. A. (2010), multi-dimensional framework of organizational innovation: A systematic review of the literature. Journal of Management Studies. 2010; 47(6): 1154–1191.
Dahles, H. & Susilowati, T. P. (2015). Business resilience in times of growth and crisis. Annals of Tourism Research, 51(3) 34 – 50.
Dash, G., Paul, J. (2021). CB-SEM vs PLS-SEM methods for research in social sciences and technology forecasting. Technol. Forecast. Soc. Change 173, 121092. http: //dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2021.121092.
Durham, D. E. & Littrell, M. A. (2000). Performance factors of Peace Corps Handcraft Enterprises as indicators of income generation and sustainability. Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, 18(4), 260-272.
Dwivedi, D. (2008), Managerial Economics. VIKAS Publishing House PVT Limited, New Delhi.
Ekpe, I. , Norsiah, M., Ahmad, A. & Kura, K. M. (2017), Effect of crowd-funding on entrepreneurial intentions among academic staff of Nigerian universities, International Journal of Management in Education 11(4):367.
Etikan, I., Musa, S. A., & Alkassim, R. S. (2016). Comparison of Convenience Sampling and Purposive Sampling. American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Statistics, 5, 1-4.
https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajtas.20160501.11
European Commission (2014) https://ec.europa.eu/international-partnerships/system/files/final-ad-aap-2014-alinvest-5-0_en.pdf.
Fairlie, R. (2020). The impact of COVID‐19 on small business owners: Evidence from the first 3 months after widespread social‐distancing restrictions. Journal of Economics & Management Strategy 29(9).
Garg, A. K., Mittal, R. K. & Goyal, O. P. (2005). A study of quality management in Indian handicraft units. Global Business Review, 6, 189-205
GEM, (2020). Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2019/2020 Global Report. Global Entrepreneurship Research Association, London Business School, Regents Park, London NW1 4SA, UK
Genoveva, G. (2020), The Sustainability of Women’s SMEs During COVID-19 Pandemic, Jurnal Ekonomi Indonesia, Volume 10, Number 3, 2021: 299–312 p-ISSN: 0854-1507; e-ISSN: 2721-222X
Global Economic Outlook (2020). World Economic Outlook, October 2020: A Long and Difficult Ascent, October 2020,
Goldberg, D. P. & Hillier, V. F. (1979). A scaled version of the General Health Questionnaire. Psychological Medicine, 9(1), 139–145. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291700021644
Goodhue, D. L., Lewis, W. and Thompson, R. (2017), A multicollinearity and measurement error statistical blind spot: Correcting for excessive false positives in regression and PLS, MIS Quarterly . 41 (3).
Gotsch, M. & Hipp, C. (2012), Measurement of Innovation Activities in the Knowledge Intensive Services Industry: A Trademark Approach. The Service Industries Journal,7(3). ·
.
Haber, S. & Reichel, A. (2005). Identifying performance measures of small ventures – The case of the tourism industry. Journal of Small Business Management, 43(3), 257-286.
Hahn, D. (2020), The psychological well-being of student entrepreneurs: A social identity perspective, International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, 16(2), 467- 499.
Harel, R. Schwartz, D. & Kaufmann, D. (2019a). Small businesses are promoting innovation. Do we know this? Small Enterprise Research, 26(1), 18–35.
Harel, R., Schwartz, D. & Kaufmann, D. (2019b). Open innovation in small businesses in the industry and craft sectors. International Journal of Innovation Management, 23(4), 1950038.
Harel, R., Schwartz, D. & Kaufmann, D. (2020a). Sharing knowledge processes for promoting innovation in small businesses. European Journal of Innovation Management. https://doi.org/10.1108/ EJIM-04-2020-0122.
Harel, R., Schwartz, D. & Kaufmann, D. (2020b). Organizational culture processes for promoting innovation in small businesses. EuroMed Journal of Business. https://doi.org/10.1108/EMJB-03-2020-0027
Hassan, U. A. (2021). Impact of women entreprenueurs and the growth of small-scale enterprises in Yobe State. International Journal of Business & Law Research 9(3):112-124, July-Sept. 2021.
Hisrich, R. D., Peters, M. P. & Shepherd, D. A. (2017). Entrepreneurship (10th Edition). McGraw-Hill Ecuation.
Igwe, P. A., Amaugo, A. N., Ogundana, O. M., Egere, O. M. and Anigbo, J. A. (2019). Factors affecting the investment climate, SMEs productivity and entrepreneurship in Nigeria. European Journal of Sustainable Development, 7 (1), pp. 182-200. ISSN 2239-5938
IMF (2020), World Economic Outlook Update, June 2020: A Crisis Like No Other, An Uncertain Recovery, IMF, https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/Issues/2020/06/24/WEOUpdateJune2020?utm_medi um=email&utm_source=govdelivery (accessed on 24 June 2020).
Ionescu-Somers, A. and Tarnawa, A. (2020). Diagnosing COVID-19 impacts on entrepreneurship exploring policy remedies for recovery. Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (2020)08.01.21https://www.gemconsortium.org/file/open?fileId=50521Google Scholar
Iorfa, S. K., Ottu, I. F. A., Oguntayo, R., Ayandele, O., Kolawole, S. O., Gandi, J. C., Dangiwa, A. L & Olapegba, P. O. (2020). COVID-19 Knowledge, Risk Perception, and Precautionary Behavior Among Nigerians: A Moderated Mediation Approach. Front. Psychol. 11:566773. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.566773
Iyiola, O. & Azuh, D. (2014). Women entrepreneurs as small-medium enterprise operators and their roles in socio economic development in Ota, Nigeria. International journal of economics, business, and finance, 2(1), 1-10.
Jha, K. N & Iyer, K. C. (2007) Commitment, coordination, competence, and the iron triangle. International Journal of Project Management 25(5):527-540
Kent, P. (1994). Management advisory services and the financial performance of clients. International Small Business Journal, 12(4), 45-58.
Khayal, H. (2021). The entrepreneurial ecosystem in Egypt: A gendered perspective [Master’s Thesis, the American University in Cairo]. AUC Knowledge Fountain. https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/1590
Kotey, B. (2005). Goals, management practices, and performance of family SMEs. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, 11(1), 3-24.
Kothari, J., & Barone, E. (2006). Financial accounting: An international approach. Prentice Hall
Kraus, S., Claub, T., & Gast, J. (2020). The economics of COVID-19: Initial empirical evidence on how family firms in five European countries cope with the corona crisis. April 2020. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research 26(5):1067-1092
Lee, D. Y., & Tsang, E. W. K. (2001). The Effects of Entrepreneurial Personality, Background and Network Activities on Venture Growth. Journal of Management Studies, 38, 583-602.https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-6486.00250
Lerner, D. A., Hunt, R. A., and Dimov, D. (2018). Action! Moving Beyond the Intendedly Rational Logics of Entrepreneurship. January 2018, Journal of Business Venturing 33(1):52-69.
Li, S., Rao, S. S., Ragu-Nathan, T. S., & Ragu-Nathan, B. (2005). Development and validation of a measurement instrument for studying supply chain management practices. Journal of Operations Management. 23(6), 618–641. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jom.2005.01.002
Linan, F. & Jaen, I. (2020). The Covid-19 pandemic and entrepreneurship: Some reflections. May 2022, International Journal of Emerging Markets 17(5):1165-1174
Lu, W., Wang, H., Lin, Y., & Li, L. (2020). Psychological status of medical workforce during the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study. Psychiatry Research, 288, 112936.
Marshall J. M., Dunstan, D. A., & Bartik, W. (2020), Treating Psychological Trauma in the Midst of COVID-19: The Role of Smartphone Apps. Front Public Health.
Martensen, A, Dahlgaard, J. J., Park‐Dahlgaard, S. M. & Grønholdt, L. (2007), Measuring and diagnosing innovation excellence – simple contra advanced approaches: A Danish study. Measuring Business Excellence. 2007; 11(4): 51–65.
Martínez-Román, J. A., Gamero, J. & Tamayo, J. A. (2011), Analysis of innovation in SMEs using an innovative capability-based non-linear model: A study in the province of Seville (Spain), Technovation, 2011;31(9): 459–475.
Mason, C. & Brown, R. (2014), Creating good public policy to support high-growth firms. Small Business Economics. 2013; 40(2): 211–225.
McKibbin, Warwick and Fernando, Rochen (2020). The Global Macroeconomic Impacts of COVID-19: Seven Scenarios. August 2020, Asian Economic Papers 20(2):1-55.
Miller A., Wilson B. & Adams, M. (1988), financial performance patterns of new corporate ventures: An alternative to traditional measures. Journal of Business Venturing. 3(4):287–300.
Molino, M., Dolce, V., Cortese, C.G. and Ghislieri, C. (2018), Personality and social support as determinants of entrepreneurial intention, Gender differences in Italy, June 2018, PLoS ONE, 13 (5).
Morgan, J. & Sisak, S. (2016). Aspiring to succeed A model of entrepreneurship and fear of failure. November 2015, Journal of Business Venturing 31(1).
NBS (2016). SMEDAN and National Bureau of Statistics Collaborative Survey: Selected Findings. Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria, National Bureau of Statistics.
Neneh, B. N. (2017), Family Support and Performance of Women-owned Enterprises: The Mediating Effect of Family-to-Work Enrichment, The Journal of Entrepreneurship, Volume 26, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1177/09713557177167
O’Farrell P. N. (1986), New firms and regional development in Europe. 1986. Chapter eight the nature of new firms in Ireland: Empirical evidence and policy implications; p. 151.
O’Regan, N. & Ghobadian, A. (2004a). Leadership and strategy: Making it happen. Journal of General Management, . 29(3), Spring 2004.
O’Regan, N. & Ghobadian, A. (2004b). Short-and long-term performance in manufacturing SMEs: Different targets, different drivers. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 53(5), 405.
OECD (2020).Turning hope into reality, OECD Economic Outlook, 8(1).
Ogrean, C. & Herciu, M. (2015). Globalization and the dynamics of competitiveness – A multilevel bibliographical study. Studies in Business and Economics, January 2010.
Ogundana, O. (2020). Factors influencing the business growth of women-owned sewing businesses (WOSBs) in Lagos-State, Nigeria: A gender-aware growth framework,. A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements of Nottingham Trent University for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD).
Oladimeji, M. S., Eze, B. U. & Kaeem, A. A. (2018). Business Eco System and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMES) Performance in Nigeria. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Knowledge /Research, Vol. 6, No. 1 (2018).
Omodara, D., Ikhile, D., Ogundana, O. & Akin-Akinyosoye, K. (2020). Global pandemic and business performance: Impacts and responses. International Journal of Research in Business and Social Science 9 (6) (2020,) 01-11.
Oyewobi, L. O., Windapo, A. O., Cattell, K. S. & Rotimi, J. O. B. (2013). The effects of business environments on corporate strategies and performance of construction organisations. In S. D. Smith & D. D. Ahiaga-Dagbui (Eds.), Procs 29th Annual ARCOM Conference (pp. 691-701), 2-4 September 2013, Reading, UK, Association of Researchers in Construction Management.
Pallant, J. (2007). SPSS survival manual – A step by step guide to data analysis using SPSS for Windows. (3rd edn.). Berkshire: McGraw-Hill Open University Press.
Parnell, D., Widdop, P. Bond, A. & Wilson, R. (2020). COVID-19, networks and sport. Managing sport and leisure, 1–7.
Parveen, K., Phuc, T. Q. B., Shafiq, M. and Wei, T. X. (2021). Identifying the administrative challenges encountered by the principals in low-performing public secondary schools of Faisalabad District, Pakistan. Int. J. Hum. Innov. 4, 5–16.
Ploypailin K. and Pongsutti, P. (2020). Innovation and firm performance: The moderating and mediating roles of firm size and small and medium enterprise finance. J. Risk Financial Manag. 2020, 13, 97.
Ratten, V. (2020). Corona virus (Covid-19) and entrepreneurship: Cultural, lifestyle and societal changes. Journal of Entrepreneurship in Emerging Economies, September 2020.
Rauch, A., & Hatak, I. (2016). A meta-analysis of different HR-enhancing practices and performance of small and medium sized firms. J. Bus. Ventur. 31, 485–504.
Salamzadeha, A. & Dana, L. P. (2021). The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic: Challenges among Iranian start-ups, Journal of Small Business & Entrepreneurship 2021, Vol. 33, No. 5, 489–512 https://doi.org/10.1080/08276331.2020.1821158
Sarwoko, E & Nurfarida, I. N. (2013). Entrepreneurial Characteristics and Competency as Determinants of Business Performance in SMEs. February 2013, IOSR, Journal of Business and Management 7(3):31-38.
Saunila M., Ukko J., Rantanen, H. (2014), Does innovation capability really matter for the profitability of SMEs? Knowledge and Process Management. 21(2): 134–142.
Seetharaman, P. (2020). Business models shifts: Impact of Covid-19. International Journal of Information Management, 54 (3). 102173
Sengupta, S. & Sahay, A. (2018). Social enterprises in the Indian context: conceptualizing through qualitative lens. Journal of Global Entrepreneurship Research, 8(1).
Shafi, M., Junrong L., Wenju, R. (2020). Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on micro, small, and medium-sized Enterprises operating in Pakistan, Research in Globalization, 6(2).
Smith, M., Busi, M., Ball, P., Van der M. R. (2008), Factors influencing an organisation’s ability to manage innovation: A structured literature review and conceptual model. International Journal of Innovation Management. 12(04): 655–676.
Stam, W., Arzianian, S. & Elfring, T. (2014). Social Capital of Entrepreneurs and Small Firm Performance: A Meta-Analysis of Contextual and Methodological Moderators. Journal of Business Venturing 29: 152-173.
Sulistyo, H. & Ayuni, S. (2020). Competitive advantages of SMEs: The roles of innovation capability, entrepreneurial orientation, and social capital. Contaduríay Administración 65 (1) 2020, 1-18.
UNCTAD (2020a). Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises as drivers of post COVID-19 economic recovery in Africa. https://unctad. org/meeting/micro-small-and-medium-enterprises-drivers-post-covid-19-economic-recovery-africa.
UNCTAD (2020b) The International Day of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises – https://unctad.org/en/pages/SGStatementDetails. aspx?Original VersionID=262.
Shafique-ur R. & Rapiah M. & Hazeline A. (2019). The mediating role of organizational capabilities between organizational performance and its determinants, Journal of Global Entrepreneurship Research, 9(1), pages 1-23,
Uy, M. A., Foo, M. D. & Song, Z. (2012), Joint Effects of Prior Start-up Experience and Coping Strategies on Entrepreneurs’ Psychological Well-Being, September 2013, Journal of Business Venturing, 28(5):583–597.
Walker, E. & Brown, A. (2004). What Success Factors are Important to Small Business Owners? International Small Business Journal , 22(6): 577–594.
Wang, C. L. & Altinay, L. (2012). Social embeddedness, entrepreneurial orientation and firm growth in ethnic minority small businesses in the UK., International Small Business Journal 30(1):3-23.
Welsh, D. H., Memili, E., & Kaciak, E. (2016). An empirical analysis of the impact of family moral support on Turkish women entrepreneurs. Journal of Innovation & Knowledge, 1(1), 3-12.
Williams, T. A., Gruber, D. A., Sutcliffe, K. M., and Shephered, D. A. (2017). Organizational Response to Adversity: Fusing Crisis Management and Resilience Research Streams, March 2017, The Academy of Management Annals 11(2)
World Bank (2020). Poverty and shared prosperity 2020: Reversals of fortune, elibrary wordbank.org.
WTO (2020). MSMEs Day 2020 [online] https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/msmesandtra_e/msmesday20_e.htm (accessed on 28 June 2022).
Al-Abri, M. Y., Rahim, A. A. & Hussain, N. H. (2018). Entrepreneurial ecosystem: An Exploration of the entrepreneurship model for SMEs in Sultanate of Oman,
Al-Abri, M. Yahya. Rahim A. A. & Hussain N. H. (2018). Entrepreneurial ecosystem: An exploration of the entrepreneurship model for SMEs in Sultanate of Oman, Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, Sciendo, 9(6), 193-206.
Yamane, T. (1967). Statistics, An Introductory Analysis, 2nd Ed., New York: Harper and Row.
Zahra, S. A., Wright, M. and Abdelgawad, S. G. (2014). Contextualization and the advancement of entrepreneurship research. International Small Business Journal 32(5):479-500.
Zhang, J., Zhu, Q., Wang, Y. (2019). Social capital on consumer knowledge-sharing in virtual brand communities: The mediating effect of pan-family consciousness. Sustainability 11, 339.
Zhao, X., Lynch, J. G. & Chen, Q. (2010). Reconsidering Baron and Kenny: Myths and Truths about Mediation Analysis. Journal of Consumer Research, 37, 197-206.
https://doi.org/10.1086/651257
Visits: 30