Individual entrepreneurial orientation in higher education and unsettling emerging market conditions: The cases of Malaysia and Thailand

The triggers that guide university students individual entrepreneurial orientation towards new venture creation are an emerging theme. The novel settings of entrepreneurship education the developing country context of South East Asia Malaysia and Thailand are used, while comparing them to key assumptions on general business in Asia and the west. A total of 332 participants were recruited. The items were reduced to five components using principal component analysis, and, using binomial logistic regression, shown to predict some of the variance in perceptions on individual entrepreneurial orientation in Malaysia and Thailand. The study shows that individual entrepreneurial orientation motivators can be separated into the distinct dimensions of which innovation, proactiveness, risk taking, and culture correlate with the the decision to become an entrepreneur in Southeast Asia. In addition, assumptions on business and education in the west and in Asia hold partially in Southeast Asia and entrepreneurial new venture creation particularly regarding risk and autonomy

A validation of web-based surveys for exploratory research in the areas of business and entrepreneurship

In this study, we demonstrate that web-based surveys are suitable for data collection in academic Business-related research. Using one of our datasets from an online study on entrepreneurial orientation, we investigated the construct validity and reliability of the instrument used to collect the data. Our analysis supports that for 28 Likert-scaled questionnaire items, a sample size of 332 people was adequate to conduct principle component analysis (PCA) and load the items into five components that are supported by literature. Cronbach’s alpha was consistently high (α = 0.92), with no evidence that the reliability would increase if any of the survey items were dropped. We therefore conclude that for short web-based surveys ( 300 is suitable for exploratory factor analysis

The effect of autonomy in sustaining social entrepreneurial intention through management education: the cases of Malaysia and Scotland

he study examines what is the role of autonomy on individual social entrepreneurial intention (EI) for students. Furthermore, it examines the differences between the emerging market setting and developed market to gather an understanding of context differences. Using principal component analysis the study finds that the motivators of EI can be divided into 5 components. Following from that the autonomy variable can be divided into 3 sub components. The results present differences in propensity towards EI in the two country settings along with differences in propensity towards social entrepreneurship. The results are unique as they test EI variables from the literature on social entrepreneurship and in an emerging market context. The role of autonomy as a bridge between education and attitude or intention is presented

The commitments of academic staff and career in Malaysian universities

This article reports the study on career commitment of the academic staff of a local public university in Malaysia. The findings indicate that the academic staff of this university has higher level of career identity, low level of career resilient, and slightly high level of career planning. In addition, the results indicate that the respondents’ organizational tenure and annual salary have significant impact on their career resilience commitment. Other demographic variables showed no significant differences on career identity, career resilience, and career planning of the respondents. Implications for management and recommendations for future studies are highlighted

Motivators of SME initial export choice and the European Union regional effect in manufacturing

Purpose – A global reach in exporting has been linked to profitability. The purpose of this paper is to answer the influence of EU regulations on exporting decisions of UK manufacturing small- and medium-sized firms (SMEs) by investigating the home and host country-based motivators behind SMEs’ choice to export, and export regionally, within the EU. Design/methodology/approach – Contrasting the Uppsala and resource-based view perspectives (using a sample of UK independent manufacturing SMEs and utilizing a survey, correlation analysis and factor analysis), the paper finds and describes the effect of the most recurrent motivators from the literature on the SMEs’ decision to export within the EU or not. Findings – The paper finds that SMEs whose latest international market entry was not in the EU scored significantly higher in the factor scorings for the motivators in the external dimension than participants whose latest entry was in the EU. Several motivators show an association with the choice to export per se. The importance of regionalization to export initiation (and EU membership) within the EU is emphasized in the results. Research limitations/implications – The sample size is limited. Practical implications – In the current climate, how can SMEs reduce market research costs for managers by relying solely and proactively on home country and internal advantages and motivators and being more aware of their surroundings? Managers and policymakers can direct their strategy, resources and policy more efficiently according to motivators; internal home country motivators (e.g. strengths of prices of products) direct the SME to overcome inter-regional liability of foreignness, while host country motivators (e.g. legal restrictions in the host country) direct them to regional ventures. Originality/value – The theoretical and empirical work on the topic, until recently, has been fragmented and inconsistent focusing on specific motivators but not necessarily justifying the selection or origin of variables even less on SMEs

Exploring individual entrepreneurial orientation through education in emerging market conditions: the case of Malaysia and Thailand

The motivators that guide university students’ individual entrepreneurial orientation towards new venture creation are an emerging theme. The novel settings of entrepreneurship education the developing country context of South East Asia (Malaysia and Thailand) are used, while comparing them to key assumptions on general business in Asia and the west. A total of 332 participants were recruited. The items were reduced to five components using principal component analysis, and, using binomial logistic regression, shown to predict some of the variance in perceptions on individual entrepreneurial orientation in Malaysia and Thailand. The study shows that individual entrepreneurial orientation motivators can be separated into the distinct dimensions of which innovation, proactiveness, risk taking, and culture correlate with the the decision to become an entrepreneur in Southeast Asia. In addition, assumptions on business and education in the west and in Asia hold partially in Southeast Asia and entrepreneurial new venture creation particularly regarding risk and autonomy

Entrepreneurial perceptions and bias of SME exporting opportunities for manufacturing exporters: a UK study

Purpose – Success in export ventures has been linked to managerial capabilities. The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of exporting motivators on managerial perceptions of UK manufacturing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by investigating the links between export motivators and decision bias (i.e. predictable behavior). Design/methodology/approach – Based on the Uppsala and resource-based view perspectives (using a sample of the UK’s independent manufacturing SMEs and utilizing a survey, correlation analysis, and factor analysis), this study finds and describes the effect of the most recurrent motivators and clusters of motivators from the literature on the SMEs’ decision to export by investigating the dimensions (research, external, reactive). Findings – This study finds that export motivators can be separated into specific dimensions leading to potential selection bias. In addition, the importance of size, knowledge of foreign markets, and unsolicited orders show an association with the perceptions of motivator stimuli toward specific dimensions (research, external, reactive). Practical implications – Government policy and SME export strategy need to understand managerial perceptions and bias better in order to allocate resources efficiently toward stimulating exporting. Originality/value – The literature and empirical work on the topic have been fragmented and conflicting focusing on specific motivators but not necessarily explaining the selection or origin of motivators even less on SMEs. Dimensions have not been taken into account as clusters of motivators

Using the Social Network for Business Sustainability: Examining Start-up SME Firms in Malaysia

The purpose of this paper is to examine social network among SME firms in Malaysia. Specifically, this paper aims to investigate the usage of social network among Malay ethnic entrepreneurs in the start-up phase of SME firms in manufacturing sectors. Secondly, this paper aims to investigate the relationship between social network and business performance of the start-up manufacturing SME firms in Malaysia. The research data were collected through self-administered and mail questionnaire with a stratified random sample of 83 SME firms around Malaysia. The hierarchical regression was used for hypothesis testing. The result shows that Malay entrepreneurs used extensively business contact in their social network. For the hypothesis testing, the hierarchical regression shows that social network has significantly positive relationship with business performance. This paper contributes to the body of knowledge especially to the social network theme in Malaysia which is considered to be in the infant stage still. The discussions of the results, the contribution to the body of knowledge as well as limitations of the study are also discussed