Association between entrepreneurial orientation and the performance of small and medium enterprises in Ghana: the role of network ties

Figures & data

Table 1. Characteristics of the sample.

Variable	Mean (SD) or %
Sex: Male	69.2%
Female	30.8%
Education: No formal education	14.4%
Junior high school	11.4%
Senior high education	17.9%
Bachelor’s degree	56.2%
Sector: Manufacturing	32.3%
Services	67.7%
Experience: 1 – 15 years	90.0%
16 – 30 years	10.0%
Number of employees: 6 – 30 employees	96.0%
31–100 employees	4.0%
Innovativeness	5.22 (1.99)
Proactiveness	3.30 (1.81)
Risk-taking	5.19 (1.68)
Competitive aggressiveness	3.52 (2.12)
Autonomy	4.39 (1.83)
Social network ties	5.37 (1.84)
Business network ties	4.74 (2.09)
Sales performance	3.62 (2.25)
Profitability	5.27 (1.97)

Table 2. Correlation analysis of variables.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Firm performance (1)	1
Innovativeness (2)	.364**	1
Proactiveness (3)	.382**	.453**	1
Risk-taking propensity (4)	.763**	.201**	.161*	1
Competitive Aggressiveness (5)	.619**	−.213**	−.017	.567**	1
Autonomy (6)	.343**	.554**	.441**	.119	.098	1
Network ties (7)	.582**	.564**	.410**	.484**	.204**	.359**	1

** p < .01.

* p < .05.

Table 3. Regression analysis on the moderating role of network ties on EO-firm performance relationship.

Variable	Model 1		Model 2		Model 3
	B	p-value	β	p-value	β	p-value
Control variables
Industry category	.049	.512	−.000	.498	.033	.232
Number of employees	2.166	.000***	.448	.004**	−.022	.903
Years of operation	−.005	.939	.003	.917	.009	.742
Main Effect
INN	–	–	.248	.000***	.463	.000***
PR	–	–	.055	.003**	.005	.963
RT	–	–	.348	.000***	.062	.673
CA	–	–	.343	.000***	.492	.000***
A	–	–	.041	.101	.400	.002**
NT	–	–	.100	.000***	.548	.003**
Interaction effect
INN*NT	–	–	–	–	.060	.013**
PR*NT	–	–	–	–	.009	.649
RT*NT	–	–	–	–	.066	.020**
CA*NT	–	–	–	–	.034	.149
A*NT	–	–	–	–	.064	.006**
Constant	2.167	.000***	−1.207	.000***	−2.744	.000***
	p < .001, R^2 = .134		p < .001, R^2 = .899		p < .001, R^2 = .913

Dependent variable: SME performance; INN = Innovativeness; PR = Proactiveness; RT = Risk-Taking; CA = Competitive Advantage; A = Autonomy; NT = Network Ties.

** p < 0.05.

*** p < 0.001.

Table 4. Construct measurement and reliability.

Constructs/Indicators	Measurements	Cronbach Alpha
Entrepreneurial orientation (Jambulingam et al., 2005; Lumpkin & Dess, 1996; Covin & Slevin, 1989)		α = 0.777
Innovativeness	My business place strong emphasis on the marketing of tried-and-true products or services
	My business place strong emphasis on new delivery processes that create value for customers
	My business has drastically introduced new lines of products that, hitherto, were not on the market
	My business is known for being innovative
Proactiveness	I typically initiate actions, which competitors then respond to
	My business is usually the first to introduce new products and services, administrative techniques, operating technologies, etc.
	My business typically seeks to avoid competitive clashes, preferring a “live-and-let’s-live” posture**
	Overall, my business is proactive.
Risk Taking	I have a strong proclivity for high-risk business projects with chances of very high returns
	Due to the nature of the business environment, I believe it is best to explore it gradually through timid, incremental behaviours**
	I typically adopt a cautious, “wait-and-see” posture to minimise the probability of making costly decisions**
	Overall, business decisions are characterised by high risk
Competitive aggressiveness	In doing business, we typically adopt an “undo-the-competitor” posture in our target markets
	We take hostile steps to achieve competitive goals in our target markets
	We face our competitors “head-on” in all areas of strategy
	Overall, our actions towards competitors can be termed aggressive
Autonomy	We encourage employees to behave autonomously in our business operations
	We encourage employees to act independently to carry out business ideas through to completion
	We encourage employees to be self-directed in pursuit of target market opportunities
	Overall, our firm promotes independent and autonomous initiatives. Network tie dimensions

Nb. 1 = Strongly disagree; 2 = Disagree, 3 = Somewhat disagree; 4 = Neither agree nor disagree; 5 = Somewhat agree; 6 = Agree; 7 = Strongly agree.

** Indicates reverse coded reverse coded indicators.

Table 5. Construct measurement and reliability.

	Network tie dimensions (Lau & Bruton, 2011; Shane & Cable, 2002; Yiu et al., 2007)		α = 0.833
10.	Social network ties	I can obtain information about my industry from my network of contacts faster than competitors can obtain the same information
		I have a professional relationship with someone influential in my industry
		I have engaged with someone influential in my industry in informal social activities
		Overall, I have a strong social network
11.	Business network ties	I have a good relationship with key clients
		We have a cordial relationship with suppliers
		We undertake joint projects with competitors
		Overall, our business network ties are strong and positive
	Business performance (Cadogan et al., 2002; Li & Atuahene-Gima, 2001; Menguc & Auh, 2008)		α = 0.709
12.	Profitability	Evaluation of the business’s overall profitability
		Evaluation of the business’s return on investment
		Evaluation of the business’s return on assets
		Overall profitability of the business
13.	Sales Performance	Evaluation of overall market share relative to the target market objective
		Evaluation of sales volumes relative to the target market objective
		Evaluation of sales growth relative to the target market objective
		Overall sales performance of the firm

1 = Strongly disagree; 2= Disagree, 3 = Somewhat disagree; 4 = Neither agree nor disagree; 5 = Somewhat agree; 6 = Agree; 7 = Strongly agree.

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Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are reported in this manuscript.