Booysen, KarenMotlhaudi, Galaletsang Gail2016-12-132016-12-132016http://hdl.handle.net/11660/5239Dissertation (M.Com.(Business Management))--University of the Free State, 2016English: With the current bleak state of the economy, both in South Africa and globally, resulting in high unemployment and poverty levels, citizens of countries have had to resort to entrepreneurship as a means to generate an income and in turn create jobs. As a result of the quest of financial freedom stemming from entrepreneurship, many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are established. However, SMEs are faced with high failure rates. This is witnessed in the number of SMEs that rarely make it past the second year of trading, with failure rates as high as 63 percent. As a means to cope with these challenges, scholars have often looked to business practices as an initiative to enhance SME growth. It is as a result that this study purposed to determine which business practices can enhance SME growth. The population used to examine this primary objective consisted of SMEs in the Kimberley, Northern Cape area. There is an increasing consensus that SME owners and managers should play a pivotal role in nurturing entrepreneurial activity in SMEs so as to compete successfully. Subsequently, corporate entrepreneurship (CE) - a concept that describes the entrepreneurial behaviour inside an established organisation- has received much attention in literature as a means to curb the challenge of SME failure and enhance SME growth. As such, the secondary objectives aimed to evaluate prior studies on business practices, assess theoretical studies on SME growth in South Africa, review theoretical studies on CE, determine which business practices SMEs engage in, empirically identify the determinants of SME growth, determine which dimensions of CE SMEs engage in, determine which key business practices can enhance CE and establish a conceptual framework identifying the relationship between business practices and CE as initiatives to enhance SME growth. The population of the study consisted of SMEs in the Kimberley, Northern Cape area and a statistical methodology was implemented to address the primary objective and the secondary objectives. The findings revealed that a positive and significant relationship exists between all of the selected business practices selected for the purpose of this study (Human Resource Management practices, Performance Management practices, Change Management practices, Risk Management practices, Marketing practices and Networking practices) and SME growth. Furthermore, the findings reiterated scholars’ argument that the implementation of business practices in SMEs can help increase the level of innovation, creativity and entrepreneurial behaviour, which in essence refers to CE. A number of recommendations were made at the end of this study that could serve as a guide to formulating and implementing strategies to address the challenges in the study. The emphasis is placed primarily on educational institutions to incorporate the collective implementation of business practices and CE as a means to enhance SME growth in their curriculum; and SME owners and managers to invest in acquiring the right skills set necessary to operate their businesses successfully.Afrikaans: Suid Afrika se huidige swak toestand van die ekonomie het hoë werkloosheidskoerse en armoede-vlakke tot gevolg. Gevolglik het individue tot entrepreneurskap gekeer as ‘n metode om inkomste te genereer en indiensnemingsgeleenthede te skep. As ‘n resultaat van hierdie soeke na finansiële vryheid in die vorm van entrepreneurskap is verskeie klein-en medium grootte ondernemings (SMEs) gestig. Nieteenstaande is die mislukkingskoers van SMEs hoog wat meebring dat die voordele van entrepreneurskap nie verkry kan word nie. Dit word gesien in die feit dat SMEs dit selde verby die tweede jaar van handel maak met mislukkingskoerse so hoog as 63 persent. Ten einde die uitdagings wat entrepreneurs in die gesig staar beter the identifiseer en bestuur het akademici dikwels na ondernemingspraktyke gekyk as ‘n inisiatief om SME groei te verbeter. Dit spruit hieruit dat hierdie studie poog om ondernemingspraktyke wat SME groei kan verbeter te bepaal. Daar is ‘n toenemende konsensus dat ondernemingspraktyke ‘n kritiese rol moet speel in die koestering van entrepreneuriese aktiwiteite in SMEs ten einde hul in staat te stel om suksesvol te kompeteer. Gevolglik het korporatiewe entrepreneurskap (KE) – ‘n konsep wat die entrepreneuriese gedrag binne ‘n onderneming beskryf – baie aandag in die literatuur ontvang as ‘n metode om die uitdaging van SME mislukking te beperk en SME groei te bevorder. As sulks het die sekondêre doelwitte van hierdie studie gepoog om vorige studies aangaande ondernemingspraktyke te evalueer, teoretiese studies oor SME groei in Suid Afrika te assesseer, teoretiese studies op KE te hersien, te bepaal in watter ondernemingspraktyke SME betrokke raak, empiries die determinante van SME groei te identifiseer, die dimensies van KE waarmee SMEs betrokke is te bepaal, te bepaal watter sleutel ondernemingspraktyke KE kan verbeter en ‘n konsepsuele raamwerk te ontwikkel wat die verhouding tussen ondernemingspraktyke en KE identifiseer as inisiatiewe om SME groei te verbeter. Die populasie van hierdie studie het bestaan uit SMEs in die Kimberley, Noord Kaap area en ‘n statistiese metodologie is geïmplementeer om die primêre en sekondêre doelwtiite te bereik. Die bevindinge het getoon dat daar ‘n positiewe, en beduidende, verhouding bestaan tussen die ondernemingspraktyke wat vir die doeleindes van hierdie studie geïdentifiseer is (Menslike Hulpbron Bestuur-, Die bestuur van verandering-, Prestasie bestuur-, Risiko bestuur-, Bemarkings- en Netwerkpraktyke) en SME groei. Verder het die bevindinge akademici se argument bewys dat die implementering van ondernemingspraktyke in SMEs kan help met die vlak van innovasie, kreatiwiteit en entrepreneuriese gedrag – wat in wese na KE verwys. Verskeie aanbevelings is aan die einde van hierdie studie gemaak wat kan dien as ‘n riglyn tot die formulering en implementering van strategieë om die uitdagings wat in die studie identifiseer is aan te spreek. Die klem word primêr op die onderrigsinstellings geplaas om die kollektiewe implementering van ondernemingspraktyke en KE as ‘n metode om SME groei te verbeter in hul kurrikulum aan te bied; en SME eienaars en bestuurders om te investeer daarin om die regte stel vaardighede te bekom wat nodig is om hul onderneming suksesvol te bestuur.enBusiness practicesCorporate entrepreneurship (CE)Small medium-sized enterprise (SME) growthSmall medium-sized enterprise (SME)DissertationUniversity of the Free State