Strategy formulation amongst small and medium manufacturing enterprises: An emerging market case study

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Abstract

Strategy formulation has traditionally been associated with large corporates (Damke, Gimenez, & Damke, 2018). The literature on strategy formulation is rich, but this literature does not capture the intricacies of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in emerging markets (Ahmed & Mukhongo, 2017). The study aims to gain an understanding of strategy formulation practices among the SMEs in emerging markets, particularly Zimbabwe. The philosophy of interpretivism guided the study. The study adopted a qualitative case study strategy in which data collection was conducted through semi-structured interviews with 15 manufacturing SME owners/managers in Harare, Zimbabwe. The results of the study revealed that the majority of participants understand strategy formulation and are greatly involved in strategy formulation. However, the study revealed that strategy formulation is not logically and systematically done thus does not resemble the conventional textbook strategic formulation models. Theoretically, the findings revealed that strategy formulation in SMEs is both an externally (market-based) and internally (resource-based) guided practice. The study advises SMEs to balance professionalism and responsiveness when strategising, that is balancing the process perspective with the learning perspective. The study was conducted in one city; similar studies could be conducted in other parts of the world to find similarities and differences.

Keywords: Business Strategy, Small and Medium Enterprises, Strategy Formulation, SWOT Analysis, Zimbabwe

Authors’ individual contribution: Conceptualization – M.M.; Methodology – M.M.; Investigation – M.M.; Resources –M.M. and M.A.P.; Data Curation – M.B. and M.A.P.; Writing – Original Draft – M.M., M.B., and M.A.P.; Writing – Revision & Editing – M.M., M.B., and M.A.P.

Declaration of conflicting interests: The Authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

Acknowledgements: We would like to thank all the participating manufacturing SMEs in the survey. We also acknowledge the role of the Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises.

JEL Classification: M19, C12, L21, L25, L26, M10

Received: 24.11.2020
Accepted: 15.03.2021
Published online: 17.03.2021

How to cite this paper: Mashingaidze, M., Phiri, M. A., & Bomani, M. (2021). Strategy formulation amongst small and medium manufacturing enterprises: An emerging market case study. Journal of Governance & Regulation, 10(1), 158-166. https://doi.org/10.22495/jgrv10i1art15