How innovativeness of family-owned SMEs differ depending on their characteristics?

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24136/eq.2021.015

Keywords:

innovation, SMEs, succession, family-owned businesses, manufacturing-service sectors

Abstract

Research background: SMEs encounter more survival impediments than larger businesses. Innovativeness is a crucial attribute for smaller firms to overcome these barriers since it positively influences their performance, competitiveness, and capability to operate in the long term. However, depending on firm characteristics, the innovativeness of SMEs might differ.

Purpose of the article: This research investigates whether the innovativeness of family-owned SMEs differs depending on their size, sector, area of activity, and succession on the sample of 350 family-owned SMEs that operate in Czechia.

Methods: The data collected in the Czech Republic in 2020 through the structured self-administered questionnaire were analyzed using Skewness-Kurtosis and Levene's normality tests and Independent Sample T-test to find the differences in SMEs innovativeness depending on their selected characteristics.

Findings & value added: According to the results, SMEs' innovativeness differs depending on their size, industry, and area activity. On the other hand, the analyses confirmed the nonexistence of the differences in SMEs' innovative-ness concerning succession involvement. The region of SMEs' operation, the scope of their activities, and firms' executives' age might be crucial arguments to explain the differences and similarities in these enterprises' innovativeness. Even though the research focuses only on the SMEs located in Czechia, the similarity of the issues all SMEs face when competing with the larger firms worldwide, especially if we take into consideration the countries with a similar level of development and overall institutional business conditions, allows for generalizing our results and might draw readers' attention to this paper. Policymakers, universities, international institutions, and financial institutions might cooperate to create industrial zones, encourage research centers, and provide education and financial support to stimulate SMEs' innovative activities.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Agbim, K. C. (2020). Government policy, financial inclusion and performance of SMEs in South Eastern Nigeria. International Entrepreneurship Review (previously published as International Entrepreneurship | Przedsiębiorczość Międzynarodowa), 6(2), 69?82. doi: 10.15678/IER.2020.060 2.05.

Asim, S., Li, C., Makhdoom, H. U. R. & Zafar, Z. (2019). Entrepreneurial technology opportunism and its impact on business sustainability with the moderation of government regulations. Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review, 7(3), 161?185. doi: 10.15678/EBER.2019.07030.

Aslesen, H. W. & Harirchi, G. (2015). The effect of local and global linkages on the innovativeness in ICT SMEs: does location-specific context matter? Entrepreneurship & Regional Development, 27(9-10), 644?669. doi: 10.1080/08985 626.2015.1059897.

Audretsch, D. B., Belitski, M., & Desai, S. (2015). Entrepreneurship and economic development in cities. Annals of Regional Science, 55(1), 33?60. doi: 10.1007/s 00168-015-0685-x.

Belas, J., Amoah, J., Petráková, Z., Kliuchnikava, Y., & Bilan, Y. (2020).Selected factors of SMEs management in the service sector. Journal of Tourism and Services, 21(11), 129?146. doi:10.29036/jots.v11i21.215.

Bigos, K., & Michalik, A. (2020). The influence of innovation on international new ventures? exporting in Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia countries. Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review, 8(3), 47?63. doi: 10.15678/ EBER.2020.080303.

Bilan, Y., Mishchuk, H., Roshchyk, I. & Joshi, O. (2020). Hiring and retaining skilled employees in SMEs: problems in human resource practices and links with organizational success. Business: Theory and Practice, 21(2), 780?791. doi: 10.3846/btp.2020.12750.

Civelek, M., & Dursun, I. (2018). Sectoral differences in the credit access impediments of Turkish SMEs. In 14th annual international Bata conference for Ph. D. students and young researchers, 25 April, 2018. Zlín: Tomas Bata University in Zlín. 30?43. doi: 10.7441/dokbat.2018.03.

Civelek, M., & Ključnikov, A., (2018). Sectoral and international diversities in the perception of bank financing: evidence from Slovak and Czech SMEs. Journal Scientific Papers of the University of Pardubice ? Series D, 44(3/2018), 53?64.

Civelek, M., Gajdka, K., Světlík, J., & Vavrečka, V. (2020). Differences in the usage of online marketing and social media tools: evidence from Czech, Slovakian and Hungarian SMEs. Equilibrium. Quarterly Journal of Economics and Economic Policy, 15(3), 537?563. doi: 10.24136/eq.2020.024.

Coen Rigtering, J. P., Kraus, S., Eggers, F., & Jensen, S. H. (2014). A comparative analysis of the entrepreneurial orientation/growth relationship in service firms and manufacturing firms. Service Industries Journal, 34(4), 275?294. doi: 10.1080/02642069.2013.778978.

Dankiewicz, R., Ostrowska-Dankiewicz, A., & Bulut, C. (2020). The attitudes of entrepreneurs of the small and medium-sized enterprises sector in Poland to key business risks. Equilibrium. Quarterly Journal of Economics and Economic Policy, 15(3), 511?536. doi: 10.24136/eq.2020.023.

Dvorský, J., Petráková, Z., Ajaz Khan, K., Formánek, I., & Mikoláš, Z. (2020). Selected aspects of strategic management in the service sector. Journal of Tourism and Services, 20(11), 109?123. doi: 10.29036/jots.v11i20.146.

European Commission (2003). Recommendation of 6 May 2003 concerning the definition of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (Text with EEA relevance) (notified under document number C(2003) 1422).

Filser, M., De Massis, A., Gast, J., Kraus, S., & Niemand, T. (2018). Tracing the roots of innovativeness in family SMEs: the effect of family functionality and socioemotional wealth. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 35(4), 609?628. doi: 10.1111/jpim.12433.

George, D., & Mallery, M. (2010). SPSS for windows step by step: a simple guide and reference, 17.0 update (10a ed.) Boston: Pearson.

Grundström, C., Oberg, C., & Ronnback, A. O. (2012). Family-owned manufacturing SMEs and innovativeness: a comparison between within-family successions and external takeovers. Journal of Family Business Strategy, 3(3), 162?173. doi: 10.1016/j.jfbs.2012.07.001.

Kathuria, R., Joshi M. P., & Dellande, S. (2008). International growth strategies of service and manufacturing firms: the case of banking and chemical industries. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 28(10), 968?990. doi: 10.1108/01443570810903113.

Ključnikov, A., Civelek, M., Čech, P., & Kloudová, J. (2019). Entrepreneurial orientation of SMEs' executives in the comparative perspective for Czechia and Turkey. Oeconomia Copernicana, 10(4), 773?795. doi:10.24136/oc.2019.035.

Ključnikov, A., Civelek, M., Cera, G., Mezulanik, J., & Manak, R. (2020). Differences in entrepreneurial orientation (eo) of SMEs in the international context: evidence from the Czech Republic and Turkey. Inzinerine Ekonomika-Engineering Economics, 31(3), 345?357. doi: 10.5755/j01.ee.31.3.23933.

Ključnikov, A., Civelek, M., Fialova, V., & Folvarčná, A. (2021). Organizational, local, and global innovativeness of family-owned SMEs depending on firm-individual level characteristics: evidence from the Czech Republic. Equilibrium. Quarterly Journal of Economics and Economic Policy, 16(1), 169?184. doi: 10.24136/eq.2021.006.

Kotlar, J., De Massis, A., Hanqing, S., & Frattini, F. (2014). Strategic reference points in family firms. Small Business Economics, 43(3), 597?619.

Kowalik, I., Danik, L., Kral, P., & Rezankova, H. (2017). Antecedents of accelerated internationalisation of Polish and Czech small and medium-sized enterprises. Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review, 5(3), 31?48. doi: 10.15678/EBER.2017.050302.

Kozubíková, L., Čepel, M., & Zlámalová, M. (2018). Attitude toward innovativeness based on personality traits in the SME sector. Czech Republic case study, Management & Marketing. Challenges for the Knowledge Society, 13(2), 913?928. doi: 10.2478/mmcks-2018-0013.

Kramoliš, J., & Dobeš, K. (2020). Debt as a financial risk factor in SMEs in the Czech Republic. Equilibrium. Quarterly Journal of Economics and Economic Policy, 15(1), 87?105. doi: 10.24136/eq.2020.005.

Laforet, S. (2013). Organizational innovative outcomes in SMEs: effects of size, age and sector. Journal of World Business, 48, 490?502. doi: 10.1016/j.jwb .2012.09.005.

Lee, C., & Lee, C. G. (2007). SME innovation in Malaysian manufacture sector. Retrieved from https://ro.uow.edu.au/commpapers/3099/ (22.06.2020).

Marjański, A., & Sułkowski, Ł. (2021). Consolidation strategies of small family firms in Poland during Covid-19 crisis. Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review, 9(2), 167?182. doi: 10.15678/EBER.2021.090211.

Nowacki, R., & Staniewski, M. W. (2012). Innovation in the management of SMEs in the service sector in Poland. Amfiteatru Economic Journal, 14(Special No. 6), 755?773.

Pett, T. M., & Wolff, J. A. (2012). SME identity and homogeneity - are there meaningful differences between micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises? Journal of Marketing Development and Competitiveness, 6(2), 48?59.

Piątkowski, M. J. (2020). Implementation of innovations in enterprises using the EU funds: a comparative analysis. Journal of International Studies, 13(2), 109?126. doi: 10.14254/2071-8330.2020/13-2/8.

Smolarek, M., & Sułkowski, Ł. (2020). Job satisfaction among SMEs employees in Fibres & Textiles of the CEE countries. Economics and Sociology, 13(2), 181?209. doi: 10.14254/2071-789X.2020/13-2/13.

Tang, G., Park, K., Agarwal, A., & Liu, F. (2020). Impact of innovation culture, organization size and technological capability on the performance of SMEs: the Case of China. Sustainability 2020, 12, 1355.

Tominc, P. (2019). Perceived innovativeness and competitiveness of early-stage entrepreneurs. Croatian Economic Survey, 21(1), 87?108. doi: 10.15179/ces .21.1.3.

Virglerova, Z., Conte, F., Amoah, J., & Massaro, M. R. (2020). The perception of legal risk and its impact on the business of SMEs. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Knowledge, 8(2), 1?13. doi: 10.37335/ijek.v8i2.115.

Webb, J. W., Ketchen, D. J., & Ireland, R. D. (2010). Strategic entrepreneurship within family-controlled firms: opportunities and challenges. Journal of Family Business Strategy, 1(2), 67?77. doi: 10.1016/j.jfbs.2010.04.002.

Zijdemans, E., & Tanev, S. (2014). Conceptualizing innovation in born-global firms. Technology Innovation Management Review, 4(9), 5?10.

Downloads

Published

2021-06-30

How to Cite

Civelek, M., Ključnikov, A., Fialova, V., Folvarčná, A., & Stoch, M. (2021). How innovativeness of family-owned SMEs differ depending on their characteristics?. Equilibrium. Quarterly Journal of Economics and Economic Policy, 16(2), 413–428. https://doi.org/10.24136/eq.2021.015

Issue

Section

Articles