ASSESSING SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS STRATEGIES OF SMALL AND MEDIUM SCALE ENTERPRISES IN SERVICE DELIVERY: A CASE STUDY IN THE WA MUNICIPALITY

Abstract

Small and Medium Scale Enterprises have appeared in the development scene because of their ability to respond to the needs and problems by making good use of the local resources that large scale enterprises have been unable to solve in a satisfactory manner. The study of assessing sustainable business strategy in Small and Medium Scale Enterprises therefore sought to discover the institutions that give support, the strategies employed by Small and Medium Scale Enterprises in their business preparation, sustainability of the support given to the enterprises and the challenges faced by Small and Medium Scale Enterprises and mechanisms put in place to address these challenges. A sample of 91 respondents consisting of entrepreneurs of SMEs was selected for investigation. Basically, descriptive statistics, SWOT analysis and the Kendall’s coefficient of concordance were used in data analysis. The findings indicated that ASONGTABA, BAC, Banks, Credit Union, LESDEP, Microfinance Institutions, MTN, PARED and REP were the institutions supporting SMEs. Strategies used include response to client taste, speed to market, product quality and technological innovation. There was growth and expansion of business by those who adopted the major strategies as well as the other strategies to have their objectives realised. As to whether there were challenges faced by Small and Medium Scale Enterprises, almost all the respondents said they were faced by financial challenge ranking it first; technical challenge and administrative challenge had been ranked second and third respectively. The study therefore, recommends that growth and expansion of these enterprises can occur by adopting major service delivery strategies. Any effort to improve upon the performance of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises should consider financial, technical and administrative challenges.