How founder-entrepreneurs from Chinese high-tech SMEs assess market risks and explore new opportunities for growth and survival during COVID-19
Open Access
- 28 September 2022
- journal article
- Published by Asociacion Espanola de Contabilidad y Administracion de Empresas (AECA) in Small Business International Review
- Vol. 6 (2), e504
- https://doi.org/10.26784/sbir.v6i2.504
Abstract
Founder-entrepreneurs in SMEs tend to have an active role in shaping the business and the direction and management of their innovation strategies. During COVID-19, their understanding of risks and approach towards decision making has become very crucial as the market sensitivity changed drastically with various levels of challenges such as travel restrictions, national lockdown, reduced market demand and operational uncertainty. So far, there are very limited studies on the role of the founder-entrepreneurs from Chinese high-tech software SMEs in managing the business risks from the pandemic. This paper will address some of these gaps by presenting case studies of 9 successful high-tech software SMEs in China and discuss how their founder-entrepreneurs have engaged with the market, identified COVID-19 related risks and how they have made critical decisions to survive and explore new market opportunities for growth. As part of a longitudinal study, in-depth interviews were conducted with the founder-entrepreneurs at various stages of the pandemic to explore their progress with the business operation and management. The paper will discuss the role of the founder-entrepreneurs from SMEs in risk analysis and decision-making. It makes an important contribution to the growing literature on Chinese SMEs, and COVID-19.Keywords
This publication has 24 references indexed in Scilit:
- The intervention of organizational sustainability in the effect of organizational culture on open innovation performance: A case of thai and chinese SMEsCogent Business & Management, 2020
- Performance evaluation of China's high-tech innovation process: Analysis based on the innovation value chainTechnovation, 2018
- Resource scarcity in SMEs: effects on incremental and radical innovationsManagement Research Review, 2017
- Founder Expertise, Strategic Choices, Formation, and Survival of High-Tech SMEs in China: A Resource-Substitution ApproachJournal of Small Business Management, 2016
- Institution-based barriers to innovation in SMEs in ChinaAsia Pacific Journal of Management, 2011
- Transformational leadership, creativity, and organizational innovationJournal of Business Research, 2009
- Five Misunderstandings About Case-Study ResearchQualitative Inquiry, 2006
- Explaining innovative efforts of SMEs.Technovation, 2001
- External linkages and innovation in small and medium‐sized enterprisesR&D Management, 1991
- Multisite Qualitative Policy Research: Optimizing Description and GeneralizabilityEducational Researcher, 1983