The Influence of Entrepreneurial Alertness on Small to Medium Enterprise Performances

Master's Thesis from the year 2023 in the subject Business economics - Business Management, Corporate Governance, University of Zambia, language: English, abstract: This study explores and examines the influence of Entrepreneurial Alertness (EA) on Small to Medium Enterprises (SME) performance within the Central Business District (CBD) of Lusaka. The study participants included 152 entrepreneurs who own SMEs represented by 44.7% females and 55.3% males. The purpose of the study was to investigate the influence that the EA construct has on SME performance, the association between the first order latent constructs, and to determine which roles of EA in venture performance were appropriate to the participants. A cross-sectional survey was created using Qualtrics online survey software and sent through email and what’s app to SME’s whose contact details were provided by the Zambia Development Agency. The construct of EA was examined using a 13-point scale. Descriptive statistics were conducted in Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was performed in Amos SPSS to verify the factor structure of the observed variables and to ascertain the validity, and reliability of the measuring instrument. The influence of EA on SME performance and association between the first-order latent variables with performance were tested using multivariate Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The study found that the construct of EA has a positive and significant influence on SME performance. As regards the association between the first-order latent constructs (i.e., dimensions) and performance, this study demonstrated that only the evaluation and judgment latent construct (dimension) had a significant and positive association. Finally, the study determined that EA appears to be important when a company considers entering a foreign market as a strategy for market development, and EA has a direct impact on strategic change decisions and organizational performance. The study has implications for education, commerce, and industrial policymakers. Policy initiatives could influence training curriculum and capacity-building programs that promote EA to increase entrepreneurial opportunity identifications for increased national performance and contribution.