Narrow Results

Social capital and access to finance have been identified as key resources that influence the growth of small firms however, these variables have rarely been studied. This paper, therefore, examines the relationship between social capital and firm growth with access to finance as a moderating role. 250 small firms in the Kumasi Metropolis in Ghana were used for the study. Structural Equation Modelling using Partial Least Square (PLS) was used to analyze the data collected using area sampling. The results indicated that social capital does not directly influence firm growth. In addition, access to finance does not moderate the relationship between social capital and firm growth. However, a positive relationship was found between social capital and access to finance. Access to finance and firm growth, though significant, had a negative relationship. It is recommended that since social capital influences the capability to access finance, entrepreneurs should be encouraged to build more relationships within their networks. Moreover, government agencies and financial institutions should devise strategies that will reduce the interest rates so that though these small firms in Ghana can access finance, the high interest rates will not erode the gains they may achieve in the long run.

This study combines the concept of trigger points, events preceding bursts of growth, with a linguistic approach to show how firm growth unfolds through a process of translation. By marrying theories and methods rooted in the linguistic turn with firm growth theories, this study brings new insights on growth contributing to both the advancement of the trigger point concept and the wider understanding of entrepreneurial activities as complex and contextually bound processes dependent on human interaction. In doing so, the study also adheres to the current demand for advancing firm growth theory by relaxing the outcome-focussed approach and static life-cycle paradigm, and complementing it with alternative theoretical and methodological perspectives.

This study examines the effect of digital capability on firm performance and firm growth. We apply the resource-based view and especially its expansion of the dynamic capabilities perspective to illustrate how digital capability is positively related to firm performance and firm growth, and how firm size is a relevant factor in explaining digital capability in incumbent SMEs. The context of this study is Finnish SMEs. The data were gathered from 242 SME owner-managers and analysed with structural equation modelling. The results show that smaller firms have less digital capability than larger SMEs and that smaller firms struggle with performance indicators. Digital capability is positively related to firm performance and firm growth. Our results indicate that although several factors explain and alter the course of firm growth, digital capability can boost the opportunity creation process, and aid survival in the face of competition. Digital capability is an important resource in SMEs and allows firms to safeguard the sustainability of their business model. We argue that digital capability is strongly related to SME’s management practices and SME owner/manager’s commitment to responding to digital transformation. This research sheds light on the importance of strategic leaders’ perceptions of digital capability on incumbent SMEs’ competitive advantage, and contributes both entrepreneurship theory and practice.