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This paper aims to propose and test a corporate entrepreneurship strategy (CES) model in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with international activity located in Andalusia (Spain) – a peripheral region with high levels of inequality in the European Union (EU).

A quantitative analysis has been carried out with data from 101 SMEs to contrast and analyze the proposed CES model. The sample data were obtained through questionnaire-guided interviews with chief executive officers. Data processing has been done using partial least squares-path modeling, a variance-based technique for structural equation modeling.

The results of this study show the positive effect of environmental conditions on the development of CES actions in Andalusian SMEs (Spain) and the positive influence of CES on the results of SMEs’ international activity. In turn, environmental conditions do not directly affect the international activity.

Although previous works address the relationship between corporate entrepreneurship (CE) and international enterprise activity, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this work is original in testing a CES model (including CE and the entrepreneurial strategic vision) in SMEs in a region that has one of the lowest levels of development in the EU. The results have important implications for SMEs and policymakers and could be extrapolated to other emerging economies.

The aim of this paper is to characterise the association between business network and the balanced scorecard used by Malaysian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as a method for assessing firm efficiency. The business network takes into account both the dimensions of stability and efficiency. The business network can help SMEs, with fewer resources to remain competitive. By having a secure business network, the performance of SMEs in Malaysia can be further improved. A business network can facilitate swift coordination amongst distant geographies to create new competitive advantages by accessing market segments, resources as well as building strategic business alliances.

A total of 404 sets of data collected by using stratified random sampling and structured questionnaire as an instrument. The list of SMEs collected from the Malaysia Foreign Trade Growth Corporate Directory (MATRADE) directories. Structural equation modelling (SEM) was utilised to analyse the data.

The findings show that the business network plays a role in the balanced scorecard (BSC) outcomes of Malaysian SMEs.

This article provides the owners and managers with an awareness to rapidly achieve the company's efficiency. Finally, the new article often has some consequences for decision-makers and regulators.

This article investigates how strategic flexibility (SF) is achieved in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), exploring whether SF contributes to firm growth and the associated enablers and barriers of SF.

To offer a more nuanced view of SF in SMEs, a qualitative approach is applied. Researchers conducted and analyzed 91 interviews with owners and chief executive officers (CEOs) of SMEs exhibiting high growth and explored whether SF contributes to firm growth and the associated enablers and barriers of SF.

The results show a connection between SF and firm growth and confirm the importance of strategic orientation for SF in SMEs. Contrary to the existing literature, this study found a neutral impact of external networks and a positive impact of slack resources on SF. The lack of competent employees emerged as a considerable barrier to SF in SMEs.

More research focusing on the relationship between SF and firm growth is suggested, as well as further research about the relevance of slack resources and external networks as enablers of SF in SMEs.

Motivating and developing valuable employee competence are the key managerial implications. Additionally, business consultants and business developers in the public sector must find ways to increase business consultants and business developers' relevance to SMEs.

This article explores SF in SMEs, a context of disagreement in previous literature, and finds that SF contributes to SME growth. A qualitative approach is used, enrichening a field dominated by quantitative methodological choices.

This paper aims to investigate the direct and combined impacts of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) and conservative orientation (CO) on perceived business performance (PBP) of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) under strategic-hybrid orientation (SHO) theory.

The data collected from the SABI NEO international database has 90 companies in 13 medium-to-high and high-tech activity sectors. The authors used partial least squares structural equation modelling to test the research model.

Business strategies match a SHO that includes both orientations, i.e. EO and CO. Moreover, as expected, the authors found evidence that each orientation produces performance-related sign-opposite significant impacts. Finally, the hypothesis regarding the positive synergistic effect of both orientations (EO and CO) on PBP was also supported.

One stems from the study’s cross-sectional nature, requiring a longitudinal approach. Another one resides in the absence of further examinations concerning multigroup analysis. Another restraint is the limitedness of data, focused on firms with med/high-tech intensity. For last, while the use of results in the initial stages of theory development can be beneficial, it is important to note that such results cannot be simply extrapolated or generalized to other industrial sectors without careful consideration of the contextual factors at play.

This study humbly endeavours to contribute to the finality of SMEs’ more steady and prosperous existence concerning the consciousness of the need to improve labour stability and wage fairness, conditions such as requiring a continuous commitment.

In this study, the authors aimed to investigate the impact of SHO on SMEs’ PBP. To this end, the authors simultaneously used two different strategic orientations (SOs): EO, which is widely studied in the literature, and CO, which has been less researched. The authors also examined their synergistic effects on PBP. The authors’ approach is based on Venkatraman’s strategic orientation of business enterprises model and the comparative paradigm of SOs.

The paper aims to illuminate the platform created by a cluster organization to facilitate its internationalization and thereby enhance its regional innovation system partners' competitiveness by providing access to global value chains and boosting innovativeness.

The study draws upon the interaction approach, focusing on the interaction process, interaction partners, relationship atmosphere, and relationship environment. A qualitative study was conducted at Future Position X, a Swedish cluster organization. A total of 58 interviews were conducted, including 48 face-to-face in-depth interviews between 2017 and 2019 with six key informants at FPX, representatives from 28 SMEs, ten members of regional innovation systems to which FPX belongs, and four process leaders of regional and local networks, in addition to online interviews with ten members of the regional innovation systems conducted via Microsoft Teams in March 2021. The time span of the study provides a longitudinal perspective.

The FPX cluster collaborates with actors in the quadruple helix, maintaining a mindset that has led to a number of new partner agreements in the global arena to secure the resources and expertise necessary for cluster activities, and thereby ensuring firms in FPX networks access to platforms for international expansion. Internationalization thus expands the cluster's knowledge base beyond the traditional environment of its member firms.

Very few innovations arise from the isolated work of a lone genius. Instead, most innovation is achieved through complex, interactive, iterative and cumulative learning processes in which a variety of actors are involved. The FPX cluster organization's internationalization platform is therefore vital to the internationalization of its partners since cluster actors lack the time, resources, knowledge, experience, and networks required to break into international markets singlehandedly.

This study suggests that, for practitioners and researchers alike, the growing importance and relevance of the regional innovation system cannot be overemphasized. It also holds policy and societal implications in that FPX's global network helps regional SMEs to internationalize, in addition to inspiring international firms to establish operations in the Gävleborg region, thereby helping to strengthen the overall GIS environment. Internationalization also expands the FPX cluster's knowledge base beyond the traditional environment of its firms, an example of this being the construction start of a Microsoft data centre in the region in 2020.

FPX is financed through taxation and grant funding. By initiating projects, creating relationships and building collaborations, FPX thus contributes to collaboration between business, academia and the public sector. FPX also contributes to knowledge development of new technology by creating meeting places and networks around digital issues, such as GIS, AI, the IoT and blockchain technology.

While earlier research has concentrated on endogenous gaps critical to cluster dynamics, comparatively little attention has been paid to exogenous gaps, i.e. linkages between regional clusters and innovation partners elsewhere in the world. This study showcases the richness of interactions in the cluster against the background of wider, global innovation interactions. Future research should examine other vital questions that remain unanswered, e.g. by measuring and exploring the extent to which regional innovation systems can contribute to long-term economic growth for society.

This paper aims to explore the research field of digital transformation in small and medium enterprises (SMEs), considering the importance of SMEs in the economic development of countries.

Considering the contributions of researchers and the challenges of SMEs to transform their business models, in this paper, the authors conducted a scientometric analysis using CiteSpace that included 448 documents indexed in Scopus.

The authors appreciated the growth in the number of publications that have studied the digital transformation process in SMEs, showing a niche of researchers interested in the flourishing research topic. Likewise, the authors identified the intention of SMEs to adopt digital technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data, cloud computing, data analytics, electronic commerce and the Internet of Things.

This paper is a valuable resource for academics and researchers in information systems, decision-makers in digital transformation in SMEs and governmental organisations concerned with digital technologies adoption in SMEs to achieve digital transformation and increase competitiveness and productivity.

This study used CiteSpace to conduct a scientometric analysis to explore how researchers have focused on frameworks and maturity models for measuring SME readiness, the impact of Industry 4.0 on SMEs, guides for helping managers evaluate their Industry 4.0 positioning, the development and implementation of digital business strategies for SMEs, the presentation of cases of SMEs that have driven digital transformation and future research opportunities.

This study explores the mediating role of marketing management in the relationship between online presence and product innovation among Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

The sample comprises 205 Costa Rican SMEs collected by the Global Competitiveness Project during the first half of 2019. The data were analyzed using a two-stage modeling strategy for ordinary regression models to analyze mediation effects.

Marketing management as a strategic resource or capability accounts for the relationship between online presence and product innovation performance in SMEs, meaning that online presence resources require complementary organizational capabilities in marketing management to enhance product innovation.

This study, grounded in the resource-based view theory, contributes to the innovation field by identifying marketing management capabilities as an intermediate strategic interaction between online presence and product innovation performance in SMEs. Thus, managers should recognize the advantages of integrating marketing management principles and tactics into online presence tools to realize the value of their products by tailoring them to their client’s needs.

The rise of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has enabled researchers and industry professionals to reinvent their strategies for basic economic understanding. Two years after the outbreak of the pandemic, businesses are now trying to adapt to the impact it has brought, hoping to receive support as it did in the past. However, before this feat can be accomplished, it is imperative to understand the recovery hurdles created by the pandemic. This research aims to fill the literature gaps by examining the challenges during recovery within the creative small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) industry, as there are few relevant studies that focus on this field.

Through a methodical bibliometric literature review and network analysis, the paper intends to critically explore relevant recovery challenges within the field while providing answers to the appropriate research questions. A total of 43 articles were selected for an in-depth review. Using the analysis from the selected articles as a guide, a framework was developed to address the recovery challenges alongside the recommended propositions.

The findings from this paper suggest that a lack of synergy among four major categories (governmental, supply chain, organizational and stakeholders) contributes to recovery challenges within the field of research.

The review also offers clarification in understanding the current and upcoming trends within the creative industry, SMEs and COVID-19. This paper can thus help researchers, industry practitioners and managers discover and analyze the recovery challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The purpose of this article is to develop a configurational approach based on the TOE framework (technology, organization and environment) to understand the degree of implementation of I4.0 technologies in manufacturing small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Specifically, the study considers technological infrastructure and competence, I4.0 integration capabilities, organizational agility and strategic flexibility, environmental dynamism and industry-specific forces as simultaneous pre-conditions for achieving an effective implementation of I4.0 technologies.

This study uses the fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) methodology as it allows for asymmetric and configurational-focused testing of proposition and sound theoretical development. In total, 305 responses were collected through a survey administered to SME managers in Europe and the United Kingdom (UK).

The study examines the influence of technology, organizational and environmental aspects on I4.0 technologies implementation in SMEs. High I4.0 degree of implementation is structured around 5 configurations, while other 4 configurations are related to low levels of I4.0 implementation.

This study proposes a configurational approach for SMEs to become I4.0 ready and how they may successfully implement I4.0 technologies. Such findings represent an original and novel contribution to existing research, offering a broad view on the I4.0 implementation by manufacturing SMEs.

For Bangladeshi small and medium enterprises (SMEs), the COVID-19 economic shock is remarkable in both its complexity and intensity. SMEs need systemic inspiration to solve the crisis, aligned with a moral and authentic approach that serves both the leader and the follower’s interests. This study aims to conceptualize the innovation-focused success method of SMEs before and after the pandemic to manage the crisis by establishing spiritual leadership based on Islamic perspectives.

To discuss the impact of spiritual leadership on innovation-focused SME performance configuration through the lens of a crisis, a comprehensive literature study has been carried out in which over 360 articles are read and reviewed by the authors. It has also established the reliability and validity of literature analysis. Also, a qualitative investigation has been used to support the direction of the study.

For a subsequent process of scientific deployment and evaluation of its execution, a new applied strategic innovation-focused SME success configuration through spiritual leadership development is made available. The primary value of this paradigm is the potential to calculate and treat the aspects of spiritual leadership obtained from Islamic ideas.

Prior analytical or empirical attempts from multiple viewpoints are subsequently needed to inquire about the proposed conceptualization.

Among the realistic consequences of this analysis is that while a number of leadership paradigms have been embraced by a broad body of leadership studies, the findings indicate that this paper should pay heed to the influential spiritual style of leadership, taking into account Islamic perspectives on the context of crisis. Therefore, Bangladeshi SMEs need to develop and run leadership training programs focused on the Islamic viewpoint of spirituality to encourage the actions of leaders during and after crises.

The legal and moral values of the society would ultimately be upgraded from this conceptualization. Moreover, less corruption in corporate activities would improve the economic prosperity of a nation. It would also contribute to the cross-cultural portrayal of the positive picture of Islam.

This holistic conceptualization describes the mediating role of strategic innovation practices based on theoretical foundations, which have seldom been done in previous research, between the Islamic model of spiritual leadership and SME success during and after a crisis.