Abstract
This paper is based on an ongoing exploratory study based in a UK regional context aiming to better understand the nature of Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) leadership and management capability investigating how firms approach digital adoption, skills development, market diversification, innovation, and investment planning. The study aims to understand what helps business owners and managers develop the skills and strategic approaches needed to grow and adapt to technological and market changes.
Existing studies show leadership quality as an important explanation for differences in the productivity performance between so-called ‘frontier’ and ‘laggard’ firms. In this vein, it is argued that performance gaps amongst SMEs have provoked substantial policy interest in the funding and provision of leadership development programmes (Henley, 2022). The study has been developed with local and regional policy makers and business support communities trying to improve business support for SMEs and design better support for the future, by better understanding a variety of roles of local business advisors in supporting SME capability and productivity including the use and adoption of technologies.
The study asks the following questions:
- Does leadership and management capability associate with SME performance?
- What strategic decisions do SMEs need to make to navigate rapid technological change in the AI era along with broader economic turbulence?
- How do small firms build their strategic leadership and management capability and navigate technological disruptions?
- How can the regional business support ecosystem help develop strategic leadership to thrive to achieve inclusive growth?
We take a mixed-methods approach, drawing on both quantitative data and qualitative evidence, including survey data and qualitative semi-structured interviews with SME owners and managers. As an early phase of research output, this developmental paper sketches out different parameters of leadership and management capabilities and discusses implications for policies and practices.