Intrapreneurial orientation in small and medium-sized enterprises: An exploration at the employee level

Intrapreneurial orientation in small and medium-sized enterprises: An exploration at the employee level

Blog Article

Orientation: The South African economy and, in particular, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have shown uninspiring performance, reflected in low levels of alphaville clothing job creation, worryingly low levels of total early-stage entrepreneurial activity and entrepreneurial employee activity (EEA).As SMEs are the innovation and growth engine of an economy, the poor EEA levels (0.7%) indicate lacklustre levels of innovation and intrapreneurial activity.

Research purpose: This study aims to fill the void by assessing the effect of intrapreneurial orientation (IO) at the employee level on internal SME growth.Motivation for the study: Despite this bleak outlook, to date no study has attempted to determine the influence of an IO on SME growth metrics.Research design, approach and method: The study is quantitative in nature, using an adapted questionnaire and employing a random sampling approach.

Data were analysed by means of factor, correlation and regression analyses.A total of 290 responses were received from SME employees across South Africa.Main findings: nacrack.com The empirical study showed that only risk-taking, innovativeness, personal control, self-esteem and certain managerial factors positively relate to the growth of an SME.

Practical/managerial implications: The findings provide insights for managers within SMEs on improving employee entrepreneurial activity and growth rates, by means of focusing on growth-supportive IO interventions.Contribution/value-add: The findings of this research are beneficial to academia and industry as the framework and measuring instrument offer additional insights into IO within SMEs.