Small Business Management Capability Development in the Home Furnishings Industry

Authors:
Pieter Nel, Unitec Institute of Technology
Ken Simpson, Unitec Institute of Technology

Abstract: This research examines the role of a public-sector industry training organisation in the development of generic management capability for small and medium enterprises in New Zealand. Small and medium enterprises’ importance and value is first reviewed, followed by an analysis of key concepts that may be applied to collectively assess the effectiveness of generic business enterprise management. The review, conducted within the context of one particular industry training organisation (under a fictitious name to protect identity), revealed the presence of major data gaps, namely insufficient clarity in defining what is meant by a successful firm; and variation in the extent to which human resource management skills are rated as important to firm success. The main conclusion is that inadequate current answers exist to the important question of business management capability enhancement in the small and medium enterprise sector, and a new agenda for further research by the researchers is proposed.