Study on prospects and challenges of small and medium enterprises in sultanate of Oman

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timer Asked: Mar 10th, 2018

Question Description

* i have one project just i want to paraphrase the projects its 15000 words but i wanna 10000 words only and there is some additions to the project i will tell you about the additions.

* i will send the document of the my project what should to paraphrase.

1- Interdiction , first paragraph , second paragraph , conclusion.

2- Refrains.

3- when you finish from my assignment i have to submit in turnitin and that website its looking or searching in my assignment words if i taken from any resource of ( internet, students , books, newspaper ...) so you have be careful in that to not become higher then 10%.

please i wanna get good mark in this assignment i will send all the document for my assignment its mention every things also it mention how i get good marketeers of my assignment .

not: the the document which i will send i would like my project be some in the presses.

links of the subject

https://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/abs/10.1108/175...

https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1CAFA_enOM664O...


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BUSUMD8 2331984 Chapter 1 Introduction 1.1 Introduction "In Oman, SMEs used to be defined solely based on the number of employees but recently, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry introduced new criteria that provided more nuanced definitions that differentiate between micro, small and medium sized enterprises (Oman Daily Observer, June 20, 2012). The two key criteria are the number of employees and sales turnover. Micro-enterprises in Oman are now defined as establishments that employ less than 5 workers and having annual sales of less than RO 25,000 while firms with 5 to 9 workers with annual sales ranging between RO 25,000 and RO 250,000 are considered small. Medium enterprises consist of 10 to 99 workers with annual sales ranging between RO 250,000 to RO 1.5 million. The revised definitions in Oman are more in tune with the evolving characteristics of the sector in the country in that most these firms are limited in terms of assets (Central Bank of Oman, 2014)". "There is great interest in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as major tool of improvement of economy in Oman. Omani government formulated a comprehensive Industrial Policy-2015 by putting special emphasis for developing Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) as a thrust sector for balanced and sustainable industrial development in the country to help deal with the challenges of free market economy and globalization. With multilateral trade negotiations is often leading to improving market access and with developing countries also being a lot more willing than before to participate in globalization, rich country government and the aid agencies have apparently decided to focus on the SMEs as one important ingredient of private-sector development (MoCI, 2015). Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) have been playing a pivotal role in terms of economic growth, employment generation, poverty reduction and industrialization (e.g. through entrepreneurship development) in Oman. Industrialization's link to poverty reduction is through - charging-up the growth rate of the country, enhancement of the productivity of the worker(s) in employment, providing employment to the unemployed, expanding consumer spending and thus the confidence level by sharing lower costs from scale economies via lower prices. As a result SME in Oman takes several strategies to grow itself & economy of this country. Such as Market development strategy, product development strategy, diversification strategy etc. The Government of Oman constituted the taskforce to monitor and 1 BUSUMD8 2331984 operate Small & Medium Scale Industries late in 2003. Present era is totally technology based; there is no any scope to operate business vigorously without technology. So each and every business sector in developed countries is using modern technology whereas our business mainly SME is using ancient methods which are not consistent with present up rising competition. Most of the small businesses in Oman are not able to export goods to other countries after meeting the demand of own country. But it is also true that our SME sectors are developing day by day and it is contributing more in economics in Oman than previous time (Central Bank of Oman, 2014)". 1.2 Research Problem "There is no chance to deny the fact that Oman needs a sustained level of development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in order to increase the development of the locals as well as the country. Having predominance of oil-based economic activities, low level of technological development, lack of availability of highly skilled laborers, small scale businesses have been suitably developed in the country. Considering the country's level of economic growth, composition of resources or natural resources, level of international integration, and growing urbanization, industrialization there is huge scope for developing diversified and new SMEs in agriculture, manufacturing, service sectors etc. This project will be of great use not only to Oman but also to other GCC countries since it is aimed at finding ways to enhance the development of SMEs. Secondly, theories by other SMEs who have succeeded will be analyzed and will be proposed for application to benefit the SMEs in Oman. The policies and the procedures are the major problem for the SMEs in the recent situations. The growth of SMEs also an important factor to analyze the economic conditions of the SMEs as well as the nation’s economical position. Hence the study attempt to know the challenges faced by SMEs in Oman and how the SMEs promote their spread and enable them to develop further". 1.3 Value of the research "In Oman, latest data indicate that 40 percent of the workforce is employed in SME firms with less than 5 percent consisting of Omanis while the contribution to the GDP ranges between 15 percent and 20 percent. Given the two key statistics cited above, namely contribution to employment and value addition to the economy, besides the proven critical role played by SMEs in emerging and developed economies, it is clear that while this sector is still at its infancy in the 2 BUSUMD8 2331984 Sultanate of Oman, it holds significant potential for growth and more so if supported by relevant infrastructure and accessibility to financing in addition to the development of required skills and promotion of entrepreneurship culture to name a few. Accordingly, the government of Oman along with the Central Bank of Oman have recently introduced a number of initiatives, all aimed at supporting and promoting the SME sector in the country. To that effect, this study provides a comprehensive picture of the current state of the SME sector in Oman through questionnaire surveys that targeted key issues (Hamood CBO, 2014). The face of the importance of SME prospectus and challenges in providing the local market products, which reduces import also save hard currency through compensation imports and contribute to the export. This sector has emerged as a dynamic and vibrant force holds the key to economic prosperity in an economy like create jobs, foster entrepreneurship, utilize the skills and resources and provide depth to the industrial base. Similarly, this unit also faces problems like finance, marketing, recruitment and etc. Hence this study will be the eye opener for the SMEs who are operating themselves in Oman". 1.4 Objectives and aim of study "The major issues are explored throughout the study is the social, economic and growth trend of the Small medium enterprises (SMEs) and the solution to develop further. Therefore the following objectives are proposed": • To know the growth and the performances of Small Medium Enterprises in Oman. • To study the socio-economic background of small and medium level entrepreneurs in Oman. • To analyze the prospectus and problems faced by the selected enterprises in the study area. • To suggest suitable solutions to enhance the performance of the selected sector in Oman 1.5 Scope of study "The research design consists of the proper sketch for the collection, measurement and analysis and interpretation of data gathered. The research design mentioned both the structure of the research problem and the plan for exploration used to obtain empirical evidence in relation to the 3 BUSUMD8 2331984 problem. For this research the conclusive research design approach has been employed. In the first place, a descriptive research design approach is used, where conceptual model is developed, comprising of the broad dimensions of the study. Surveys were carried out using a questionnaire as research tool to collect the primary data". 1.6 Research Hypothesis "The hypotheses for this research study are as the follows: H0- Attributes are uncorrelated with influencing future expansion of SME’s H1- Attributes are correlated with influencing future expansion of SME’ H0- There is a significant relationship between age, gender, volume of business, generation, education, nature of business and selected variables. H1- There is no significant relationship between age, gender, volume of business, generation, education, nature of business and selected variables". "[Selected Variables: E1: Easy Start up loan, E3: Tax Incentives, E4: More Funding Scheme, E5: Availability of low cost and skilled manpower, E6: Others Economic factors, F2: No tax incentives and concessions, F3: High rate of Interest, F4: More documentation and paper work, F5: Delay in disbursement, F6: Others Finance factors, G2: Favorable Rules and Regulations, G3: Encourage greater R&D expenditure, G4: Support growth and Job opportunities, G5: Chamber of commerce, L1: Skilled labour, L3: Cost of Labour, Perquisites and Retaining, L4: Stringent Laws and Regulations, L5: Health, Safety and welfare issues, L6: Others Labour factors, M1: Increase of competition, M2: Managing Business tycoons challenges , M3: Global Competition, M7: Others Marketing factors, P1: Availability of Raw material, P3: Duty and Charges, P4: Capacity Utilization, P5: Others Production factors, Po1: Capacity expansion, PO2: Adding new product lines, Po3: Renovation of production process, Po5: Mergers and Takeovers, S1: Effective management of people and resources, S2: Capability to adopt the changes, S3: Customer needs are increasing, T1: Advances in production technology.]" 4 BUSUMD8 2331984 1.7 Limitations of the study "Although it has been tried on the level best to make this report based on facts and complete information available, there are some limitations that are inevitable. They are following": • This study is limited to only the prospectus and challenges of SME in Oman; • Primary data is collected from different SMEs' owners by questionnaires. So without trust on owners' answers there is no way to justify these answers. • Most of the units do not have proper and uniform records of their business. • Moreover, the sector is unorganized and disclosure of accurate information by entrepreneurs left doubt. However the researcher well managed to collect the ample amount of information as much as possible for the purpose of data analysis with a huge effort. 1.8 Chapter Layout "There are five chapters in this research and each chapter state different issues that are showing as follow": "This chapter one provides an introduction related to the research topic that the impact of SMEs contributions towards the growth in general. The researcher presents the industry profile, background to the problem, the value of this research, the objectives and hypotheses of this investigation, as well as the limitation of this study". "The second chapter discusses the literature review which concern Small medium enterprises prospects and problems". "The third chapter provides the information about research methodology and procedures in this investigation that includes designing questionnaire, method of collecting data such as questionnaire and interviews. It also highlights the sampling method and statistical tools used in this study". "Chapter four discussed the data analysis by statistical tools. It includes the detail analysis about the collected information. Statistical tools ensure the findings are reliable and valid. The fifth chapter presents the findings and conclusions of this research study, also provides recommendations to SMEs and future studies". 5 BUSUMD8 2331984 Chapter 2 Literature Review 2.1 Introduction "A review of existing literature was performed to support the study undertaken in this thesis. A general survey was first performed to chronicle past research efforts in Prospects and Challenges of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Oman. Small and medium enterprises SMEs are considered the backbone of economic growth in all countries. They play an important role in Oman economic growth, as they constitute 90% of the companies in Oman. They also contribute to national development by positively influencing the distribution of income in both functional and nominal terms". "In the business world, small and medium businesses form an absolute majority worldwide. Oman as a developing country has started refocusing its attention on SME to enhance its economic stability. Though there is no any standard definition of SME in the world, we can say that small business is a business which starts its activities with small amount of capital, small amount of land, few numbers of employees & to serve small numbers of customers it is known as small business. The terms "growth", "success" are often very closely linked and are sometimes even used as synonyms. Traditionally they are all measured by hard financial measures, such as turnover, or by increased numbers of Employees". 2.2 Literature Review "The challenges faced by SMEs include limited access to manufactured inputs, especially highquality imported goods and lack of skilled human capital to exploit and improve ICTs within the business (Mutula and Brakel, 2006, p. 403) United Nations Development Programme (UNDP 2006, p. 1). In addition, lack of managerial skills, finance, market information and commercial intelligence gathering have been identified in the continuum of challenges. SMEs are also faced with problems of small markets, inadequate regional integration, poor infrastructure, bad governance, legal and administrative hindrances and failure to access credit (Ongori, 2008)". "This report tries to show the roles of SMEs for overall development of Oman. Such as economic growth, poverty alleviation, employment generation, and the growth dimensions in three major 6 BUSUMD8 2331984 sectors - agriculture, industry, and service. The study also shows the bottlenecks of SMEs and the effect of globalization on its development in Oman to the success of SMEs in exploiting, surviving, rapid globalization of markets. In this paper the final pursuit is to develop a framework to illustrate a sustainable business solution that simultaneously develop economy and accelerate economic growth through SMEs.SME takes several strategies to grow itself & as well as economic development of Oman. Such as Market development strategy, product development strategy, diversification strategy etc. Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) are playing a pivotal role in terms of economic growth, employment generation, and industrialization (Qiang et al., 2006; Hanqin and Allison, 2007, p. 277).Many authors expressed their opinion about SME growth in developing country like Oman. These are given below": "Beck, et all (2015) in "SMEs, Growth, and Development states that Cross-Country Evidence" have found a strong association between SMEs development and Gross Domestic Product in per Capita. Actually SME helps poor people to develop their position. This report tries to shows that the SMEs' activities & its impact on our economic growth. For developing the sense about SME & its impact this report is based on field survey" "Harvie (2014) in "Gulf SME capacity Building, competitiveness and Market Opportunities in a Global Economy" postulates that developing economies are especially seeing small business as potential instruments for the alleviation of unemployment. "The percentage of job growth coming from enterprise expansion in rural areas is significantly higher than that of urban areas in developing country."Above mentioned opinions of different authors show the growth trend of SME in developing country like Oman. In our country majority percent of entrepreneurs take decisions by their own sense. Small business brings great opportunity for small capital owners. They can easily use this small capital & can remove unemployment". "From Deming, W. (1999) the time government realized the need of entrepreneurship development for economic growth. Government started to privatize it's seek industries and introduced deregulation policies in industrial sector. New private entrepreneurs were created with new enthusiasm. These governments introduced mixed economic system. Privatization and deregulation policies started in some specific sectors. Selling the seek industries to private sector 7 BUSUMD8 2331984 got momentous. Entrepreneurship was encouraged by formulating appropriate fiscal policies. Governments of these periods introduced market economy to a significant extent. Initiated policies to liberalize the trade policies. Privatization board was constituted to explore the environmental opportunities". "Juran, J. ( 2000) SME segment is the backbone for any developing economy. They are the blue chips of tomorrow and are the second largest provider of employment in Oman. Despite this SME sector faces various obstacles. Main concern for this sector is timely availability of credit. In today's time SME sector is facing pressures in debt servicing requirements. In the wake of realization of debtors, in the light of deteriorating financials, weakening balance sheet particularly in the present scenario, there is a need to take proactive immediate measures to support these vibrant segments. SME sector requires proper access to capital market, adequate availability to funds. Main concern for this sector is timely availability of credit. Though financial institutions like Bank Sohar and others have been able to meet their demand to some extent but still there is a wide gap. This gap is satisfied by unorganized sector i.e. money lenders etc. But lending from this unorganized sector comes with high servicing costs. This lays big opportunity for the banking sector to tap this opportunity and an attractive new sector. The banks provide SME sector with proper access, affordability and efficiency. Banks have a huge package of products and services for SME sector. SME Banking brings accessibility, affordability and efficiency for all the business banking requirement of Small and Medium Enterprises through its complete package of products and services". "Sibylle Heibrunn (2007) studied fifty-six Israel Small and Medium enterprises, to delineate the type of assistance needed by the entrepreneurs; to explore which factor will influence the type of assistance needed; and to investigate the actual impact of the assistance on the entrepreneurs. Business needs of entrepreneurs were ranked in respect of their Mean and Standard Deviation values, and identified that entrepreneurs need more assistance concerning external factors and less assistance concerning the running of the business itself. The study reveals that level of future intentions of the entrepreneurs influence the amount of assistance required from the Business Development Programme. He concludes that Business Development Programmes must fit the needs of the entrepreneurs and the development potential of the business". 8 BUSUMD8 2331984 "Naveen Nicolas E. (2006) in his descriptive study brings out that creating customers is the main purpose of SMEs and marketing is the means to achieving it. He highlights that web based marketing has the power to expand any product or service of any SSI beyond the local market and gives them a competitive advantage in the global market. His study concludes that web based marketing gives the business a new strategy to conduct market research, product planning, promotion, marketing mix, pricing and so on. Finally he states that web based marketing allows SMEs to get closer to customer through Customer Relationship Management". "Sahdeo Pande (1990) observed that the SMEs suffer from innumerable problems that scuttle their growth. Unhealthy competition with large-scale industries coupled with poor financial support further aggravates their problem. To ensure quick development of these industries their problems are to be sorted out urgently. The new industrial policy will go a long way in salvaging these industries from decay. In addition, SMEs face a number of other problems like nonavailability of cheap power, unchanging and irresponsive production parties, burden of local taxes and interference by local politicians. He suggests that SSI need a comprehensive change in the policy of Government to make them more efficient and productive. Malgavkar P.D. (1991) in his study analysed the reservation, segmentation, sick units and the changed structure of small industry and its needs, emphasized that these industries have to be encouraged. On the whole, the small industry development should fit into the overall industrial development needs a fresh look to revitalize it. Sandesare J.C. (2001) in his study analysed the new small enterprise policy. The primary objective of the NSEP is to import, more vitality and growth impetus. The definition of SSI is changed and a separate package for promotion of SSI sector is introduced. The third majors change relates to equity participation and the introduction of a new legal form of organization of business. Michael H. Morris, John W. Altman and Leyland F. Pitt (2005) studied a sample of twenty-one Lebanon entrepreneurs of businesses founded within the recent five years. Entrepreneurs were first asked to estimate the amount of changes that had been made by them in each of the seven areas i.e. product or service offered, target customer profile, distribution method, facility or space requirements, marketing approach, personnel resources and financial requirements. They found that Mean and Standard Deviation value for the highest degree of adaptation was in respect of product and services, personnel requirements, marketing and facility requirements respectively". 9 BUSUMD8 2331984 "Keith D Brothers and George Nakos (2005) studied the relevance of transaction mode choice of a sample of two hundred and seven Dutch and Greek SMEs having business interest in Central and Eastern Europe. They found that transaction cost theory could successfully explain the SMEs entry mode choice and concluded that SMEs using transaction costs were able to predict their mode choices and performed better than SMEs using other entry mode choices. The Logistic Regression Analysis found that transaction costs variables to be significantly related to the entry mode choice. The study showed that Dutch firms preferred more of non-equity investment, as compared to Greek firms. They conclude that the managers, for making international business decisions, could use entry mode choice as an effective tool kit.William R. Pendergast (2006) through a literature review describes the early stage of entrepreneurial experience arising from opportunity, uncertainty, lack of structure, resource scarcity and fluid or dynamic quality. According to the study, certain beliefs, attitudes and behaviours are functional within the context of the entrepreneurial processes. He concludes that the traits form a cluster in which the ability to deal with uncertainty and a sense of personal efficacy leads to an attenuated perception of risk and a pro-active disposition". "Goldar (1985), in his study, estimates a frontier production function (of Cobb-Douglas form) using firm level data from CSSI for the small scale Washing Soap industry to obtain measures of technical efficiency. Measures of partial and total factor productivity and an analysis of technical efficiency reveal that tiny units are inefficient compared to relatively bigger units within the small scale Washing Soap industry. The positive relationship between unit size and efficiency, and high capital intensity of relatively larger units suggest a trade off between output gain and employment loss. William R Pendergast (2006) adopts a Neo-Darwinian perspective that the entrepreneurial process includes distinctive features which “select” individuals with certain characteristics for participation and success. According to the author these individuals are attracted to entrepreneurial situations and their compatible traits enable them to navigate the challenges of entrepreneurial contexts. In this paper the author identifies the traits of entrepreneurs through a literature review. In examining these traits the author concludes that certain beliefs, attitudes and behaviors are functional within the context of the entrepreneurial process". 10 BUSUMD8 2331984 "Ozgulbas et al, (2006) Despite that the SMEs are playing a positive role in the developing countries through creating job opportunities for all the social classes in the community specially the entrepreneur persons which will contribute in increasing the personal income level and a achieving the self satisfaction partially for some goods and service necessary for the community, in addition contribution in solving the poverty and who are looking for work problem. Also these projects distinguished from the large firms by the low investment size which reduce its risk, beside that it consider as a good sphere to develop the managerial, technical, productivity, and marketing skills, and open a fertile scope for entrepreneurial individual initiatives, and enhance the self depending culture, to the extent that reduce pressure on the public sector at creating new job opportunities. OCCI, (2006), “SMEs are vital in developing countries, for the economic growth and development. SMEs, through entrepreneurship help the process of economic development, fosters economic growth, generate employment, and reduces rural unemployment and migration”". "Kalyani, Brinda, P. Al Yahyaee, L (2012), “According the government statistics, the number of active enterprises stood at 118,386 in 2009. Of this, 117,914 enterprises were SMEs, and accounts for more than 95% of the economic activity. The number of employees in these enterprises represents about 70% of the total labour force in the country. Though a definite estimate is not available, a rough estimate of the contribution of the SME sector to the Sultanate’s GDP is around 20 to 25 percent. In reality, there is a meagre lack of database on the SMEs in Oman. They work under the ministry of Commerce and Industry which introduce Omani nationals the investment opportunities, awareness about the importance of SMEs, motivate investors to invest in this sector, and also activate financial institutions to aid the industry”". "According to ‘Business Today’ magazine published from Oman, a recent World Bank report states that there are about 15,000 to 20,000 active SMEs in Oman with a growth rate of 1.5 per cent per annum. “The development of SMEs has always been on the priority list of the government of Oman”, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, notes that of the 833 industrial units with a capital investment of RO 5,000 or more, 48% are considered small. The medium sector accounted for 43% of the industrial units while 9% were considered to be large. However, the number of employees and the value added in these sectors, the large industrial units account for 11 BUSUMD8 2331984 59% of the employment generation activities and 63% of the value added, while the medium sector accounts for 35% of the employment and value added. The small sector accounts for only 6% of employment and 2% of the value added. Though the SME sector provides a very dull picture yet the government has been on a constant move to provide financial support to the SMEs in Oman through the Development Bank”. (Al-Mandhary,Z, 2002)". "According to OCCI there is a considerable small enterprise population in Oman and the major portion of enterprise belongs to SMEs. Around 132,000 members of OCCI are small scale enterprises (OER, November 2007). By the assessment made by the HSBC suggests that there are approximately around 15,000-20,000 of SMEs in Oman generating 10-20 per cent of total employment (OER, December 2007). The HSBC estimate reflects those entities which are in the actual business and those who approach the financial institutions. It is to be noted that there exists no accurate data on the size of small scale industries in Oman". "The Royal Decree No. 19/2007, establishing of the Directorate General for Development of SMEs, in Ministry of Commerce and Industry embodies the continuous efforts exerted by the government to develop this sector, which represents a fundamental pillar of the Omani economy. The role of SMEs is not limited only in providing job opportunities and contributing to the development of economic performance, but also extends to include their ability to keep pace with the economic development and deal with the market changes or any sudden global economic shocks. Small and medium enterprises are easy to establish and do not need large capital or sophisticated technology. They can be established in industrial and various service fields and are capable to adapt with local situations which sometimes suffer from the absence of developed facilities for the infrastructure". "Also SMEs can take advantage of the available raw material and products of other industries. SMEs and their development is the main concern for those involved in enhancing the economic development in all countries This interest in SMEs may be emerged as they are the appropriate mean to achieve development in developing countries and according to a recent study issued by the UNIDO, the small and medium enterprises are able to be pioneer investment engines in the development march and there is a need to enormous potential of SMEs to stimulate growth and 12 BUSUMD8 2331984 development, through investment and specific policies that reduce their obstacles, and finding the initiatives to promote and develop them to become an integral part of the local economy. Over the past period, specifically the last years of this decade, most countries with different economy levels believed that small and medium enterprises play a crucial role in the economic development and in achieving the main development goals. This sector has increasing role in creating job opportunities, increasing the exports and accepting modern technologies". "The SMEs role and contribution in the economy is generally measured by three main standards: contribution in employment, production, and its share of the overall number of the firms in the economy. The SMEs providing an actual and possible competition resource for the large firms and reduce its ability to domain prices. These firms consider as the primary resources for procuring job opportunities for developed and developing countries as it is the basic seeds for the large companies". "They are also differentiated in providing a fit work environment where the owner and the employees work together to achieve their common interests. SMEs are helping in developing the less developed regions of low income levels and high rates of persons who are looking for work. These firms are considered as a fertile field to develop innovation and serious ideas. Nevertheless, SMEs in Oman, as in other countries, are still facing a number of difficulties and obstacles that are impeding and complicating their operations and growth". "The entrepreneur is the key factor in the private enterprise sector and it can be defined as a person who is able to look at the environment, identified opportunities for improvement, gather resource, and implement action for those opportunities. Norton E,(1991) found that SMEs often relied on short term loans for both industrial and banking out that the small and medium enterprises often resorted to short-term loans, for both commercial and banking purposes". "Cook, P. and Nixon, F(2000) posits that the interest in the role of SMEs in the development process continues to be in the forefront of policy debates in developing countries. OCCI, (2006), SMEs are vital in developing countries, for the economic growth and development. SMEs, through entrepreneurship help the process of economic development, foster economic growth, generate employment, and reduce rural unemployment and migration. Women, all over the 13 BUSUMD8 2331984 world, have established success in handling small scale projects. Simultaneously, taking care of some large-scale industries and boosting innovation, the small-scale enterprises help the business community for the upliftment of women". "V. van de Vrande et al.(2009)The study focuses on the perceived challenges and motives of the open innovation methods adopted in SMEs. It was found that SMEs adopting the innovative practices in the areas of marketing and technology had a good impact on meeting the customer demands and overcoming the competition. Furthermore the most important challenges were related to organizational and cultural issues since they were dealing with the external contacts". "John Ackah & Sylvester Vuvor (2011) highlights the issue related to SMEs in obtaining the credit loans for the general business and do undertake the expansion of the projects. It was recommended to liberalize the loan facilities and to encourage the financial institutions to establish factoring services, tax incentives for those lending to SMEs". "Aziz, et al (2012) the study addresses the various issues and challenges encountered by hospitality and tourism business under MSM. It was found that the MSM enterprises face obstacles like lack of financial assistance, high taxes, and government support". "Bowen, M et al (2009) Study reveals the challenged faced by SMEs in different economic situations. It was found that the challenges are competition among the large firms, financial constraints, lack of imports, non-security, lack of training and development. Entrepreneurship Development programmes and education is a major thrust to business success. Further the SMEs need to follow certain policies to overcome the barriers like; reasonable price, liberalized loan facilities, incentives and subsidized interest rates. It was recommended that strategies should be adopted by the government of Nairobi to achieve the business success". 2.2.1 Financial Problems "About 80% of Small and medium enterprises are stifled because of poor financing and other associated problems. The problem of financing SMEs is not so much the sources of funds but its accessibility. Factors identified inhibiting funds accessibility are the stringent conditions set by 14 BUSUMD8 2331984 financial institutions, lack of adequate collateral and credit information and cost of accessing funds (Harper, 2010). Harper believes that the capital shortage problem i the small firm sector is partly one, which stems for the uneconomic deployment of available resources by the ownermanagers. Bruch and Hiemenz (2011) in a study of SMEs in Asia observed that financing working capital needs was the most frequently mentioned problem. Binks and Ennew (2009) expressed the view that the funding problem of SMEs is primarily due to the behavior of banks and imperfection of the capital markets". 2.2.2 Management Problems "Lack of trained manpower and management skills also constitute a major challenge to the survival of SMEs in Oman. Rogers (2012) also added that inefficiency in overall business management and poor record keeping is also a major feature of most SMEs; technical problems/competence and lack of essential and required expertise in production, procurement, maintenance, marketing and finances have always led to funds misapplication, wrong and costly decision making". 2.2.3 Socio-Cultural Problems "Most Entrepreneurs do not have the investment culture of plugging back profits. Bala (2008) stressed that the attitude of a typical Omanis entrepreneur is to invest today and reap tomorrow. Also, the socio-political ambitions of some entrepreneurs may lead to the diversion of valuable funds and energy from business to social waste. The problem of bias against made in Oman goods is significant. Most Oman have developed a high propensity for the consumption of foreign goods as against their locally made substitutes". 2.2.4 Strategic Planning Problems "SMEs often do not carry out proper strategic planning in their operations. Ojiako (2009), stated that one problem of SMEs is lack of strategic planning. Sound planning is a necessary input to a sound decision-making". 15 BUSUMD8 2331984 2.3 Conceptual Framework "The following figure presents the conceptual model and attempts to depict the Prospects and Challenges of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Oman". Figure 1: SMEs Performance framework (Organization for Authority for SME Development) 2.4 Ethics "The research conducted should not only be diligent and expertise, but also has to be conducted in honesty and integrity. To make the study ethical, the rights to self-determination, anonymity, confidentiality and informed consent were observed. Respondents’ consent was obtained before they completed the questionnaires. A written consent was provided to the subjects informing on their rights to voluntarily participate or decline without any penalty. Also the respondents were informed about the study and assured that there were no potential risk or cost involved. Anonymity and confidentiality were maintained throughout the study". 2.5 Conclusion "This chapter has presented a practical and theoretical context for this research by outlining the significance of SMEs to international, national and regional economies in Oman, which establishes the need to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the nature and complexities of SMEs. Notably, it was illustrated that the significance of the prospect and challenges to SMEs". 16 BUSUMD8 2331984 Chapter 3 Research Methodology 3.1 Chapter overview "In this chapter the research methodology used in the study is described. Prospects and Challenges of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Oman where the study was conducted. The instrument used to collect the data, including methods implemented to maintain validity and reliability of the instrument". 3.2 Pilot study "The pilot study was conveyed to test the legitimacy and unwavering quality of the study. A pilot study was directed for an example of 15 organizations in three businesses. The poll for the director’s organizations was conveyed with earlier arrangement keeping in mind the end goal to get them allowed to answer the survey. It was found that the inquiries are straightforward and didn't take quite a while to answer them. The rate of reaction for pilot study was 100%. The troughs were exceptionally useful in giving subtle elements identified with profile of the organization. A specimen size of 45 was made arrangements for the last study". 3.3 Questionnaire design: "Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) plays a decisive role in any developing economy. In Oman about 60 percent of the SMEs are the source of employment. Although there is an increase in the SMEs but there is also innumerable challenges associated with the growth, this research paper explores the specific challenges encountered by the SME owners. This adopted with the data sample size of 45 SME owners and the data was collected with the help of structured questionnaire". Table 1 Scale Rate of Questionnaire Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree 1 2 3 4 5 17 BUSUMD8 2331984 Table 2 Scale Rate of Questionnaire Very Low Low Neutral High Very High 1 2 3 4 5 3.4 Research design "The research design consists of the proper sketch for the collection, measurement and analysis and interpretation of data gathered. The research design mentioned both the structure of the research problem and the plan for exploration used to obtain empirical evidence in relation to the problem. For this research the conclusive research design approach has been employed. In the first place, a descriptive research design approach is used, where conceptual model is developed, comprising of the broad dimensions of the study. Surveys were carried out using a questionnaire as research tool to collect the primary data". 3.5 Sampling design "Researchers use convenience sampling not just because it is easy to use, but because it also has other research advantages. In studies, convenience sample is usually used because it allows the researcher to obtain basic data and trends regarding his study without the complications of using a randomized sample. This sampling technique is also useful in documenting that a particular quality of a substance or phenomenon occurs within a given sample. Such studies are also very useful for detecting relationships among different phenomena. For the purpose of analyzing the research problem, researcher selected the convenience sampling method to gather data. Due to the location factor the researcher will investigate only in three industries such as Manufacturing, Construction and Oil & Gas Industries. In each sector fifteen companies are chosen for the study. In total there are 45 companies are taken into the study". 3.6 Data Analysis "The study employs the non-probability method of sampling technique to select the samples among the total population. Based on the primary data collected through structured questionnaire were theories and models were applied. The convenience sampling method is applied to collect the data from the respondents. The SPSS software will be used to analyze the data collected from the respondents by applying various statistical tools. In analyzing data, percentage analysis 18 BUSUMD8 2331984 and statistical techniques such as Correlation analysis, Factor analysis and One –way ANOVA were used to deduce the association among variables in order to reach conclusions". 3.7 Validity and Reliability "According to Leedy and Ormrod (2005), reliability and validity are essential characteristics of research because they ensure the adequacy of research and the validity of conclusions. The ability to repeat tests over time with the same degree of accuracy and precision is one of the most important parts of research design and instrumentation. Reliability is the internal consistency of the measurement, which is the degree of inter-correlations among the various items in the instruments that constitute the scale (Nunally, 1978). Reliability means ‘repeatability’ or ‘consistency’. Reliability analysis helps in analyzing whether the same set of items would reduce the same responses if the same questions are re-administered to the same respondents. Validity of a measurement is defined as the extent to which the instrument measures what it is supposed to measure. Reliability is defined as the extent to which a score ensures an underlying construct with stability and consistency (Singleton & Strait, 2005)". "One of the most common ways of computing the correlation values among the questions on the instruments is by using the Cronbach's alpha (Cronbach, 1951), which is numerical coefficient of reliability. According to Schuessler, (1971) Cronbach’s Alpha value greater than 0.60 suggests a good reliability. For our research purpose, Cronbach’s Alpha value greater than 0.6 has been considered satisfactory for measurement of the reliability estimates". 3.8 Conclusion "Is all about research methodology and this methodology is a ladder to explore this dissertation. This chapter comprises of Pilot study, Questionnaire design, Research design, Sampling design, Data Analysis and Validity and Reliability". 19 BUSUMD8 2331984 Chapter 4 Data Analysis Interpretations 4.1 Chapter overview In this chapter, the statistical descriptions of quantities and data were analysis and presented. Furthermore, results from hypothesis testing were also provided. 4.2 Frequency "A representation, either in a graphical or even arrangement, which shows the quantity of perceptions inside of a given interim. The interims must be totally unrelated and thorough. Recurrence conveyances are normally utilized inside of a factual setting". 4.2.1 Age Table 3 Frequency Distribution of Respondent by Age: Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid below30 3 6.7 6.7 6.7 30-40 16 35.6 35.6 42.2 40-50 19 42.2 42.2 84.4 above 50 7 15.6 15.6 100.0 Total 45 100.0 100.0 (Source, primary data) Figure 2 – Age In this table 3 shows Frequency Distribution of Respondent by Age, depicts age group of SME in Oman. The larger respondent group was in the age group of 40 to 50 in the rate of 42.2, closely 20 BUSUMD8 2331984 followed by the age group of 30-40 in the rate of 35.6 %. The less age of SME in Oman below30, the reason for this is the questionnaires were distributed randomly to SME willing to participate on the survey unbiased of age. And found the number of Owners SME age group of 40 to 50. 4.2.2 Area Table 4 Frequency Distribution of Respondent by Area: Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid urban 33 73.3 73.3 73.3 semi urban 12 26.7 26.7 100.0 Total 45 100.0 100.0 (Source, primary data) Figure 3 – Area In this table 4 shows Frequency Distribution of Respondent by Area. The maximum Owners SME in Oman area of residence from Urban in the rate of 73.3 %, and compare great come semiurban areas by 26.7%. Owners SME in Oman from area Urban because thinking about the work of small and medium enterprises, increased competition including in the project work and provide a suitable environment. 21 BUSUMD8 2331984 4.2.3 Gender Table 5 Frequency Distribution of Respondent by Gender: Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid Male 37 82.2 82.2 82.2 Female 8 17.8 17.8 100.0 Total 45 100.0 100.0 (Source, primary data) Figure 4 – Gender In the table above 82.2% of male owner SME in Oman and 17.8% of female. The reason for increase the male because Men have more confident in the work of small and medium projects. Also the confidence of the people in the projects more men than women and obligations of life. 4.2.4 Educational qualification: Table 6 Frequency Distribution of Respondent by Educational qualification: Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid School 7 15.6 15.6 15.6 Graduation 19 42.2 42.2 57.8 post-graduation 8 17.8 17.8 75.6 Engineering 6 13.3 13.3 88.9 Others 5 11.1 11.1 100.0 Total 45 100.0 100.0 (Source, primary data) 22 BUSUMD8 2331984 Figure 5 - Educational qualification Educational qualifications for the Owner SME in Oman, There are Educational qualification school, graduation, post-graduation, engineering and others. The higher Educational qualification it graduation by 42.2% because Resort graduates to the work of small-scale projects it cannot provide jobs appropriate. Followed by post-graduation by 17.8% and the school close to the ratio by 15.6%. 4.2.5 Generation of entrepreneurship: Table 7 Frequency Distribution of Respondent by Generation of being entrepreneur: Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid First 23 51.1 51.1 51.1 second 14 31.1 31.1 82.2 Third 6 13.3 13.3 95.6 Fourth 2 4.4 4.4 100.0 Total 45 100.0 100.0 (Source, primary data) Figure 6 - Generation of entrepreneurship 23 BUSUMD8 2331984 The Owner of SME in Oman Varies from any generation. After the poll, the results of the questionnaire the First generation come the top in the rate 51.1% closely followed by Second generation in the rate 31.1%. The reasons of owner SME in Oman for first generating and second because the generation More experienced in the work of small projects and Mature intellectually. 4.2.6 Inducing factor to become entrepreneur: Table 8 Frequency Distribution of Respondent by who induced you to become entrepreneur: Frequency Valid Percent Valid Cumulative Percent Percent Parents 3 6.7 6.7 6.7 Friends 2 4.4 4.4 11.1 Circumstances 13 28.9 28.9 40.0 Own initiative 20 44.4 44.4 84.4 Relatives 7 15.6 15.6 100.0 Total 45 100.0 100.0 (Source, primary data) Figuer 7 - Inducing factor to become entrepreneur In this Table 8 shows who induced you to become entrepreneur and the choices Parents, Friends, Circumstances, Own initiative and Relatives. The Own Initiatives stands high at the rate of 44.4%. The second position is occupied by Circumstances with 28.9% because the circumstances that call for people to do small projects to earn other income to enhance the Living situation and to improve living standards. 24 BUSUMD8 2331984 4.2.7 Reason for selecting industry: Table 9 Frequency Distribution of Respondent by Reason for selecting industry: Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid Chamber 3 6.7 6.7 6.7 Banks 5 11.1 11.1 17.8 Seminars 7 15.6 15.6 33.3 Experience 2 4.4 4.4 37.8 Profit high 15 33.3 33.3 71.1 less compe 13 28.9 28.9 100.0 Total 45 100.0 100.0 (Source, primary data) Figuer 8 - Reason for selecting industry The multiplicity of factors to choose the type of industry to work SME in Oman. The selection Industrial show higher profit by 33.3% because increasing of demands. Followed by Less competition margin by 28.9 because to Earn a profit, excellence in the industry and Earn Customers because increasing of demands. Followed by Banks/Financial Institutions and Campaign/Conferences/Seminars at the ratio comes close by 15.6% and 11.1%. The less factors Chamber of Commerce/Trade Associations and Previous experience by 6.7% and 4.4%. 25 BUSUMD8 2331984 4.2.8 Years of Business Table 10 Frequency Distribution of Respondent by Years of business: Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid less 5 25 55.6 55.6 55.6 5-10 12 26.7 26.7 82.2 10-15 5 11.1 11.1 93.3 15-20 2 4.4 4.4 97.8 Above 20 1 2.2 2.2 100.0 Total 45 100.0 100.0 (Source, primary data) Figure 9 – Years of business In this table 10 shows The Number of years of doing business, the more enterprises that appeared to less 5 years by 55.6% because it New and spread. Followed by 5-10 years by 26.7%, it less than less 5 years. The less one more than 20 years by 2.2%. 4.2.9 Category of organization Table 11 Frequency Distribution of Respondent by Category of organization: Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid micro 8 17.8 17.8 17.8 small 23 51.1 51.1 68.9 medium 14 31.1 31.1 100.0 Total 45 100.0 100.0 (Source, primary data) 26 BUSUMD8 2331984 Figure 10 - Category of organization In this table 11 shows Category of organization. The more Category of organization is the Small it came by 51.1% because More small businesses in Oman annual sales ranging between RO 25,000 and RO 250,000. Followed by Category of organization medium by 31.1% because need a large capital and annual sales ranging between RO 250,000 to RO 1.5 million. The less Category of organization micro by 17.8% because more that employ less than 5 workers and having annual sales of less than RO 25,000. 4.2.10 Nature of activity Table 12 Frequency Distribution of Respondent by Nature of activity: Frequency Valid Percent Valid Cumulative Percent Percent Manufacturing 15 33.3 33.3 33.3 Construction 15 33.3 33.3 66.7 Oil & gas industries 15 33.3 33.3 100.0 Total 45 100.0 100.0 (Source, primary data) Nature of the activity to the work of small and medium projects in Oman is taken for the study itself equal of 15 from Manufacturing, Construction and Oil & gas industries. 27 BUSUMD8 2331984 4.2.11 Volume of Annual sales (OR): Table 13 Frequency Distribution of Respondent by Volume of Annual sales (OR): Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid below 50000 14 31.1 31.1 31.1 50001-100000 17 37.8 37.8 68.9 100001-150000 6 13.3 13.3 82.2 above 150000 8 17.8 17.8 100.0 Total 45 100.0 100.0 (Source, primary data) Figure 11 - Volume of Annual sales In this table 13 shows Volume of Annual sales (OR) of the selected enterprises. The majority of the enterprises comes under the category of Volume of Annual sales between 50001-100000 O.R by 37.8% More prevalent in Oman. Followed by below 50000 OR by 31.1% and the less institutions of the Volume of Annual sales 100001-150000 O.R by 13.3%. 4.3 Correlations Relationship is a factual measure that demonstrates the degree to which two or more variables change together. A positive relationship shows the degree to which those variables increment or diminishing in parallel; a negative connection demonstrates the degree to which one variable increments as alternate abatements. 28 BUSUMD8 2331984 4.3.1 Correlations between age and selected variables Table 14 Correlations between age and selected variables Age Age Pearson Correlation S4 S4 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N P4 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N L3 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N L4 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N L6 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N M1 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N M2 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N L3 L4 L6 M1 M2 -.277 -.333* .400** .361* .376* .346* -.304* .066 .025 .006 .015 .011 .020 .042 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 -.277 1 .121 -.063 .001 -.275 -.013 .563** .427 .683 .994 .068 .931 .000 1 Sig. (2-tailed) N P4 .066 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 -.333* .121 1 .041 -.272 -.118 -.229 -.121 .025 .427 .791 .070 .439 .129 .428 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 .400** -.063 .041 1 .357* .210 -.061 -.029 .006 .683 .791 .016 .166 .691 .847 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 .361* .001 -.272 .357* 1 .267 .522** .062 .015 .994 .070 .016 .076 .000 .687 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 .376* -.275 -.118 .210 .267 1 .056 -.248 .011 .068 .439 .166 .076 .717 .100 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 .346* -.013 -.229 -.061 .522** .056 1 -.181 .020 .931 .129 .691 .000 .717 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 -.304* .563** -.121 -.029 .062 -.248 -.181 1 .042 .000 .428 .847 .687 .100 .234 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 .234 *Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed). **Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). 29 45 BUSUMD8 2331984 S4: Others Socio-Cultural, P4: Capacity Utilisation, L3: Cost of Labour, Perquisites and Retaining, L4: Stringent Laws and Regulations, L6: Others Labour, M1: Increase of competition, M2: Managing Business tycoons challenges A Pearson correlation coefficient is computed to assess the relationship between the age and the selected variables. Each factor in is taken to find out the relationship with age of the entrepreneur. The following are the findings from a Pearson correlation. There is a positive correlation between age and labour cost (r= .400, n = 45, p = 0.006), law and regulations (r= .365, n = 45, p = 0.015) other labour issues and reasons (r= .376, n = 45, p = 0.011) and Increase of competition (r= 0.346, n = 45, p = 0.020). There was a negative correlation between the age and managing the business competitions (r=-0.304, n = 45, p = 0.042). Overall, there was a positive correlation between age and selected variables. The socio and cultural factor is having p value > is 0.066, which means there is a statistically significant correlation between two variables (i.e. increases or decreases in one variable do significantly relate to increases or decreases in second variable). 30 BUSUMD8 2331984 4.3.2 Correlations between gender and the selected variables Table 15 Correlations between gender and the selected variables Gender Gender E2 .300* .287 .023 .021 .050 .037 .045 .056 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 Pearson Correlation .338* 1 .261 .061 .197 .035 .213 Sig. (2-tailed) .023 .084 .693 .195 .819 .159 1 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 Pearson Correlation .343* .261 1 .005 .251 .110 -.162 Sig. (2-tailed) .021 .084 .973 .096 .472 .287 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 -.294 .061 .005 1 .030 .094 -.139 .050 .693 .973 .845 .538 .362 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 -.311* .197 .251 .030 1 .009 .127 .037 .195 .096 .845 .954 .405 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 Pearson Correlation .300* .035 .110 .094 .009 1 -.207 Sig. (2-tailed) .045 .819 .472 .538 .954 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 Pearson Correlation .287 .213 -.162 -.139 .127 -.207 1 Sig. (2-tailed) .056 .159 .287 .362 .405 .173 45 45 45 45 45 45 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N M5 N po1 po1 -.311* N L5 M5 -.294 N P1 L5 .343* N E4 P1 .338* Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) E2 E4 N .173 45 *. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed). E2: Globalization Environment, E4: More Funding/Lending Scheme, P1: Availability of Raw material, L5: Health, Safety and welfare issues, M5: Customer Satisfaction, PO1: Capacity expansion 31 BUSUMD8 2331984 A Pearson correlation coefficient is computed to assess the relationship between gender and the selected variables. Each factor in is taken to find out the relationship with gender of the entrepreneur. The following are the findings from a Pearson correlation. There is a positive correlation between gender and globalization environment (r= .338, n = 45, p = 0.023), more funding scheme (r= .343, n = 45, p = 0.021) and customer satisfaction in the marketing aspects (r= 0.300, n = 45, p = 0.045). There was a negative correlation between the gender and availability of raw materials (r=-0.294, n = 45, p = 0.050) and health, safety and welfare issues (r=-0.311, n = 45, p = 0.037). Overall, there was a positive correlation between gender and selected variables. The capacity expansion is having p value > is 0.056, which means there is a statistically significant correlation between two variables (i.e. increases or decreases in one variable do significantly relate to increases or decreases in second variable). 32 BUSUMD8 2331984 4.3.3 Correlations between volume of sales and selected variables Table 16 Correlations between volume of sales and selected variables Volum volum E3 -.286 .310* .010 .002 .152 .050 .038 45 45 45 45 45 45 Pearson Correlation .379* 1 .469** .103 -.220 -.068 Sig. (2-tailed) .010 .001 .502 .147 .657 1 45 45 45 45 45 45 .451** .469** 1 .195 -.148 .002 .002 .001 .200 .333 .990 45 45 45 45 45 45 -.217 .103 .195 1 -.083 -.064 .152 .502 .200 .590 .675 45 45 45 45 45 45 -.286 -.220 -.148 -.083 1 .175 .050 .147 .333 .590 45 45 45 45 45 45 Pearson Correlation .310* -.068 .002 -.064 .175 1 Sig. (2-tailed) .038 .657 .990 .675 .251 45 45 45 45 45 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N F2 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N M3 M3 -.217 N E6 F2 .451** N E5 E6 .379* Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) E3 E5 N .251 45 *. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed). **. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). E3: Tax Incentives, E5: Availability of low cost and skilled manpower, E6: Others Economic, F2: No tax incentives and concessions, M3: Global Competition A Pearson correlation coefficient is computed to assess the relationship between volume of sales and the selected variables. Each factor in is taken to find out the relationship with volume of sales. The following are the findings from a Pearson correlation. There is a positive correlation between volume of sales and tax incentives (r= .379, n = 45, p = 0.010), availability of low cost 33 BUSUMD8 2331984 and skilled manpower (r= .451, n = 45, p = 0.002) and global competition (r= 0.310, n = 45, p = 0.038). There was a negative correlation between the volume of sales and no tax incentives and concessions (r=-0.286, n = 45, p = 0.050). Overall, there was a positive correlation between gender and selected variables. The other economic factors is having p value > is 0.152, which means there is a statistically significant correlation between two variables (i.e. increases or decreases in one variable do significantly relate to increases or decreases in second variable). 4.3.4 Correlations between Generation of business and selected variables Table 17 Correlations between Generation of business and selected variables Gen Gen Pearson Correlation E1 E1 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N F2 -.329* -.276 .379* .317* .071 .027 .066 .010 .034 45 45 45 45 45 45 -.271 1 .122 .162 .043 -.021 .426 .288 .781 .889 .071 45 45 45 45 -.329* .122 1 .184 .122 -.124 .027 .426 .227 .426 .416 45 45 45 45 45 45 -.276 .162 .184 1 .162 -.195 .066 .288 .227 .288 .199 45 45 45 45 45 45 Pearson Correlation .379* .043 .122 .162 1 -.046 Sig. (2-tailed) .010 .781 .426 .288 45 45 45 45 45 45 Pearson Correlation .317* -.021 -.124 -.195 -.046 1 Sig. (2-tailed) .034 .889 .416 .199 .767 45 45 45 45 45 Pearson Correlation Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N N po2 po2 45 N M7 M7 45 Sig. (2-tailed) L5 L5 -.271 1 Sig. (2-tailed) N F2 N .767 45 *. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed). E1: Easy Start up loan, F2: No tax incentives and concessions, L5: Health, Safety and welfare issues, M7: Others Marketing, PO2: Adding new product lines 34 BUSUMD8 2331984 A Pearson correlation coefficient is computed to assess the relationship between generation of business and the selected variables. Each factor in is taken to find out the relationship with generation of business. The following are the findings from a Pearson correlation. There is a positive correlation between generation of business and marketing factors (r= .379, n = 45, p = 0.010), adding new product lines (r= .317, n = 45, p = 0.034). There was a negative correlation between the generation of business and no tax incentives and concessions (r=-0.329, n = 45, p = 0.027). Overall, there was a positive correlation between generation of business and selected variables. The factors like easy start up loan and health, safety and welfare issues is having p value > is 0.071 and 0.66, which means there is a statistically significant correlation between two variables (i.e. increases or decreases in one variable do significantly relate to increases or decreases in second variable). 35 BUSUMD8 4.3.5 Correlations between level of education and selected variables 2331984 Table 18 Correlations between level of education and selected variables Educ Educ Pearson Correlation G1 1 Sig. (2-tailed) N G1 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N E6 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N S1 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N P3 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N F4 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N L1 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N L3 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N E6 S1 P3 F4 L1 L3 L4 .383** -.389** .316* L5 -.299* -.355* .291 -.359* .046 .017 .050 .016 .009 .008 .035 45 45 45 45 .018 -.262 .909 .082 .115 .064 45 45 45 45 45 45 .437** -.242 -.022 45 45 45 -.299* 1 .520** .046 45 .156 .000 .305 45 .238 -.279 45 45 -.355* .520** 1 .131 .067 -.195 .017 .000 .390 .660 .198 .003 .110 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 .291 -.156 .131 1 -.052 .277 .050 .305 .390 .734 .065 .979 .771 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 -.359* .018 .067 1 -.114 .234 .016 .909 .660 .734 .454 45 45 .383** 45 45 .052 45 45 45 -.262 -.195 .277 -.114 1 .009 .082 .198 .065 .454 45 45 45 -.389** .238 .437** .008 .115 45 45 45 .316* -.279 -.242 .035 .064 45 45 45 .004 .003 .979 45 .045 .110 .771 45 45 -.004 -.045 .280 L6 - .277 .063 .066 45 .513** .000 45 45 -.209 .184 -.363* .168 .227 .014 45 .529 ** .886 .000 45 45 -.221 .144 45 45 .017 .142 .264 .912 .353 .080 45 45 .008 -.248 .065 -.255 .122 .960 .101 .669 .091 45 45 45 .000 .369* .091 1.000 .013 45 45 45 45 .113 .550 .461 45 45 45 .234 .000 .122 1.000 45 45 45 45 45 .008 .369* -.010 1 .357* .960 .013 .950 45 45 45 45 .245 .104 45 45 1 -.010 .115 .292 -.216 .950 .453 .051 .155 45 .090 .016 .558 45 45 45 45 .210 .166 45 36 BUSUMD8 L4 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N L5 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N L6 Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed) N 2331984 .280 -.209 -.022 .017 -.248 .091 .115 .357* .063 .168 .886 .912 .101 .550 .453 .016 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 -.277 .184 .529** .142 .065 -.113 .066 .227 .000 .353 .669 45 45 45 .513** -.363* .000 .014 45 45 1 .203 .267 .181 .076 45 45 45 .292 -.090 .203 1 -.190 .461 .051 .558 .181 45 45 45 45 45 -.221 .264 -.255 .245 -.216 .210 .267 .144 .080 .091 .104 .155 .166 .076 .211 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 .211 45 .190 45 45 1 45 Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2tailed). Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2tailed). G1: Access to the Overseas/export Market, E6: Others Economic, S1: Effective management of people and resources, P3: Duty and Charges, F4: More documentation and paper work, L1: Skilled labour, L3: Cost of Labour, Perquisites and Retaining, L4: Stringent Laws and Regulations, L5: Health, Safety and welfare issues, L6: Others Labour A Pearson correlation coefficient is computed to assess the relationship between education of the entrepreneur and the selected variables. Each factor in is taken to find out the relationship with education of the entrepreneur. The following are the findings from a Pearson correlation. There is a positive correlation between education of the entrepreneur and management of people and resources (r= .291, n = 45, p = 0.050), documentation and paperwork (r= .383, n = 45, p = 0.008), cost of labour (r= .316, n = 45, p = 0.035) and other labour issues (r= .513, n = 45, p = 0.000). There was a negative correlation between the generation of business and access to the overseas market (r=-0. 299, n = 45, p = 0.040), other economic factors (r= -.355, n = 45, p = 0.017)duty and charges (r= -.359, n = 45, p = 0.016) and skilled labour (r= -.389, n = 45, p = 0.008). Overall, there was a positive correlation between education of the entrepreneur and selected variables. The factors like laws and regulations and health, safety and welfare issues is having p value > is 0.063 and 0.66, which means there is a statistically significant correlation 37 BUSUMD8 2331984 between two variables (i.e. increases or decreases in one variable do significantly relate to increases or decreases in second variable). 4.4 ANOVA Statistical technique for deciding the level of distinction or closeness between two or more gatherings of information. It depends on the examination of the normal estimation of a typical segment. 4.4.1 ANOVA between age and selected variables Table 19 ANOVA between age and selected variables Sum of Squares E1 E3 S1 P1 P3 P4 Between Groups Df Mean Square 8.852 3 2.951 Within Groups 32.926 41 .803 Total 41.778 44 4.787 3 1.596 Within Groups 34.191 41 .834 Total 38.978 44 3.856 3 1.285 Within Groups 11.122 41 .271 Total 14.978 44 6.890 3 2.297 Within Groups 38.310 41 .934 Total 45.200 44 7.465 3 2.488 Within Groups 39.113 41 .954 Total 46.578 44 7.426 3 2.475 Within Groups 31.152 41 .760 Total 38.578 44 Between Groups Between Groups Between Groups Between Groups Between Groups F Sig. 3.674 .020 1.914 .142 4.738 .006 2.458 .076 2.608 .064 3.258 .031 38 BUSUMD8 F4 L3 L6 M1 Between Groups 2331984 3.682 3 1.227 Within Groups 13.118 41 .320 Total 16.800 44 8.631 3 2.877 Within Groups 16.569 41 .404 Total 25.200 44 Between Groups 12.319 3 4.106 Within Groups 36.126 41 .881 Total 48.444 44 6.432 3 2.144 Within Groups 23.346 41 .569 Total 29.778 44 Between Groups Between Groups 3.836 .016 7.119 .001 4.660 .007 3.765 .018 E1: Easy Start up loan, E3: Tax Incentives, S1: Effective management of people and resources, P1: Availability of Raw material, P3: Duty and Charges, P4: Capacity Utilisation, F4: More Funding/Lending Scheme , L3: Cost of Labour, Perquisites and Retaining, L6: Others Labour, M1: Increase of competition From the above table that the probability value (p) from the ANOVA has emerged from the data analysis by using SPSS is lower than 0.05 (level of significance) in the factors like easy start up loan, effective management of resources, capacity utilization, more documentation and paperwork, cost of labour, other labour issues and increase of competition. Therefore the null hypothesis, which was formulated (at 95% confidence level), is rejected and alternative hypothesis may be accepted. This further shows that the probability-value from the ANOVA table (p) is 0.142,0.076 and 0.064 > 0.05 at the significance level of 5%, (indicated as alpha=5%). Therefore, it can be concluded that there is no significant difference among respondents for the Factors like tax incentives, availability of raw material and duty and charges. The test is not significant at the confidence level of 5%. 39 BUSUMD8 2331984 4.4.2 ANOVA between nature of business and selected variables Table 20 ANOVA between nature of business and selected variables Sum of Squares G3 G4 G5 G6 S2 S4 T1 P5 F6 L4 Between Groups Df Mean Square 5.200 2 2.600 Within Groups 34.000 42 .810 Total 39.200 44 4.311 2 2.156 Within Groups 25.467 42 .606 Total 29.778 44 8.578 2 4.289 Within Groups 33.200 42 .790 Total 41.778 44 5.911 2 2.956 Within Groups 40.667 42 .968 Total 46.578 44 3.333 2 1.667 Within Groups 22.667 42 .540 Total 26.000 44 6.711 2 3.356 Within Groups 31.200 42 .743 Total 37.911 44 5.911 2 2.956 Within Groups 38.667 42 .921 Total 44.578 44 8.400 2 4.200 Within Groups 28.400 42 .676 Total 36.800 44 6.533 2 3.267 Within Groups 34.667 42 .825 Total 41.200 44 5.644 2 Between Groups Between Groups Between Groups Between Groups Between Groups Between Groups Between Groups Between Groups Between Groups 2.822 F Sig. 3.212 .050 3.555 .037 5.426 .008 3.052 .058 3.088 .056 4.517 .017 3.210 .050 6.211 .004 3.958 .027 3.355 .045 40 BUSUMD8 po1 po5 po6 2331984 Within Groups 35.333 42 Total 40.978 44 Between Groups 10.711 2 5.356 Within Groups 32.267 42 .768 Total 42.978 44 Between Groups 12.578 2 6.289 Within Groups 37.067 42 .883 Total 49.644 44 8.578 2 4.289 Within Groups 55.067 42 1.311 Total 63.644 44 Between Groups .841 6.971 .002 7.126 .002 3.271 .048 G3: Encourage greater R&D expenditure, G4: Support growth and Job opportunities, G5: Chamber of commerce / Trade association Support, G6: Others Government / Political, S2: Capability to adopt the changes, S4: Others Socio-Cultural, T1: Advances in production technology, P5: Others Production, F6: Others Finance, L4: Stringent Laws and Regulations, Po1: Capacity expansion, Po5: Mergers and Takeovers, Po6: Others Possibility of implementing the following strategy in future From the above table that the probability value (p) from the ANOVA has emerged from the data analysis by using SPSS is lower than 0.05 (level of significance) in the factors like tax incentives, support growth and job opportunities, association support, other socio cultural, advances in production technology, other production challenges, financial challenges, laws and regulations, capacity expansion, mergers and takeovers and future strategies. Therefore the null hypothesis, which was formulated (at 95% confidence level), is rejected and alternative hypothesis may be accepted. This further shows that the probability-value from the ANOVA table (p) is 0.056 and 0.056 > 0.05 at the significance level of 5%, (indicated as alpha=5%). Therefore, it can be concluded that there is no significant difference among respondents for the Factors like government and political factors and the capability to adopt the changes. The test is not significant at the confidence level of 5%. 41 BUSUMD8 2331984 4.4.3 ANOVA between generations and selected variables Table 21 ANOVA between generations and selected variables Sum of Squares G2 G3 G5 E5 S3 P3 M2 M7 Between Groups Df Mean Square 7.242 3 2.414 Within Groups 29.335 41 .715 Total 36.578 44 7.286 3 2.429 Within Groups 31.914 41 .778 Total 39.200 44 Between Groups 11.085 3 3.695 Within Groups 30.693 41 .749 Total 41.778 44 9.998 3 3.333 Within Groups 35.913 41 .876 Total 45.911 44 2.521 3 .840 Within Groups 11.479 41 .280 Total 14.000 44 8.018 3 2.673 Within Groups 38.560 41 .940 Total 46.578 44 5.500 3 1.833 Within Groups 23.700 41 .578 Total 29.200 44 Between Groups 13.792 3 4.597 Within Groups 27.986 41 .683 Total 41.778 44 Between Groups Between Groups Between Groups Between Groups Between Groups F Sig. 3.374 .027 3.120 .036 4.936 .005 3.805 .017 3.001 .041 2.842 .049 3.172 .034 6.735 .001 G2: Favorable Rules and Regulations, G3: Encourage greater R&D expenditure, G5: Chamber of commerce / Trade association Support, E5: Availability of low cost and skilled manpower, S3: Customer needs are increasing, P3: Duty and Charges, M2: Managing Business tycoons challenges, M7: Others Marketing 42 BUSUMD8 2331984 From the above table that the probability value (p) from the ANOVA has emerged from the data analysis by using SPSS is lower than 0.05 (level of significance) in the factors like favorable rules and regulations, encourage greater R&D expenditure, association support, availability of manpower, customer needs increased, duty and charges, managing competition and other marketing factors. Therefore the null hypothesis, which was formulated (at 95% confidence level), is rejected and alternative hypothesis may be accepted. 43 BUSUMD8 2331984 4.4.4 ANOVA between influences and selected variables Table 22 ANOVA between influences and selected variables Sum of Squares G4 P3 F3 F5 L1 M1 po1 po3 po5 Between Groups Df Mean Square 8.390 5 1.678 Within Groups 21.388 39 .548 Total 29.778 44 Between Groups 10.893 5 2.179 Within Groups 35.685 39 .915 Total 46.578 44 3.501 5 .700 Within Groups 11.077 39 .284 Total 14.578 44 8.531 5 1.706 Within Groups 23.380 39 .599 Total 31.911 44 Between Groups 11.710 5 2.342 Within Groups 36.734 39 .942 Total 48.444 44 Between Groups 12.090 5 2.418 Within Groups 17.688 39 .454 Total 29.778 44 Between Groups 11.933 5 2.387 Within Groups 31.045 39 .796 Total 42.978 44 4.418 5 .884 Within Groups 14.693 39 .377 Total 19.111 44 Between Groups 13.799 5 2.760 Within Groups 35.845 39 .919 Total 49.644 44 Between Groups Between Groups Between Groups F Sig. 3.060 .020 2.381 .056 2.465 .049 2.846 .028 2.487 .048 5.331 .001 2.998 .022 2.345 .059 3.003 .022 44 BUSUMD8 L4 2331984 Between Groups 12.644 5 2.529 Within Groups 28.334 39 .727 Total 40.978 44 3.481 .011 G4: Support growth and Job opportunities, P3: Duty and Charges, F3: High rate of Interest, F5: Delay in disbursement, L1: Skilled labour, M1: Increase of competition, Po1: Capacity expansion, Po3: Renovation of production process, Po5: Mergers and Takeovers, L4: Stringent Laws and Regulations From the above table that the probability value (p) from the ANOVA has emerged from the data analysis by using SPSS is lower than 0.05 (level of significance) in the factors like support growth and job opportunities, high rate of interest, delay in disbursement, skilled labour, increase of competition, capacity expansion and mergers and takeovers and documentation and paperwork. Therefore the null hypothesis, which was formulated (at 95% confidence level), is rejected and alternative hypothesis may be accepted. This further shows that the probabilityvalue from the ANOVA table (p) is 0.056 and 0.059 > 0.05 at the significance level of 5%, (indicated as alpha=5%). Therefore, it can be concluded that there is no significant difference among respondents for the Factors like duty and charges and renovation of production process. The test is not significant at the confidence level of 5%. 45 BUSUMD8 2331984 4.4.5 ANOVA between education and selected variables Table 23 ANOVA between education and selected variables Sum of Squares E3 S1 P3 L1 L3 L4 L6 M1 Between Groups Df Mean Square 8.115 4 2.029 Within Groups 30.863 40 .772 Total 38.978 44 3.584 4 .896 Within Groups 11.393 40 .285 Total 14.978 44 Between Groups 10.823 4 2.706 Within Groups 35.754 40 .894 Total 46.578 44 Between Groups 14.295 4 3.574 Within Groups 34.150 40 .854 Total 48.444 44 5.932 4 1.483 Within Groups 19.268 40 .482 Total 25.200 44 Between Groups 11.560 4 2.890 Within Groups 29.418 40 .735 Total 40.978 44 Between Groups 15.949 4 3.987 Within Groups 32.496 40 .812 Total 48.444 44 8.226 4 2.057 Within Groups 21.551 40 .539 Total 29.778 44 Between Groups Between Groups Between Groups F Sig. 2.629 .048 3.146 .024 3.027 .029 4.186 .006 3.078 .027 3.929 .009 4.908 .003 3.817 .010 E3: Tax Incentives, S1: Effective management of people and resources, P3: Duty and Charges, L1: Skilled labour, L3: Cost of Labour, Perquisites and Retaining, L4: Stringent Laws and Regulations, L6: Others Labour, M1: Increase of competition 46 BUSUMD8 2331984 From the above table that the probability value (p) from the ANOVA has emerged from the data analysis by using SPSS is lower than 0.05 (level of significance) in the factors like tax incentives, effective management of people and resources, duty and charges, skilled labour, cost of labour, laws and regulations, other labour factors and increasing the competition. Therefore the null hypothesis, which was formulated (at 95% confidence level), is rejected and alternative hypothesis may be accepted. 4.5 Factor Analysis on Variables influencing future expansion of SME’s Testing of Hypothesis H0 - Attributes are uncorrelated with influencing future expansion of SME’s H1 - Attributes are correlated with influencing future expansion of SME’s In order to identify the key factors which influence exporter’s (H1), exploratory factor analysis was performed and the results are shown in Table 1 Kaiser-Mayer-Olkin (KMO) Measure of Sampling Adequacy "The KMO measures of sampling adequacy is an index used to examine the appropriateness of factor analysis. High values (between 0.5 and 1.0) indicated factor analysis is appropriate. Values below 0.5 imply that factor analysis may not be appropriate". Table 24 - KMO and Bartlett’s test for variables influencing future expansion of SME’s Kaiser-Mayer-Olkin (KMO) Measure of Sampling Adequacy 0.513 Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity Approx. Chi-square 40.659 Df. 15 Sig. 0.000 47 BUSUMD8 2331984 "For our factor analysis, the KMO measure of sampling adequacy is 0.513, which is greater than the permissible value of 0.5. This also signifies that the scales of all the variables of the questionnaire were properly understood by all respondents and they have correctly answered to the scale. Additionally, the Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity has a high chi-square value and the significance is 0.000, which is less than 0.5. Hence the null hypothesis is rejected and H1is accepted, as the factors are correlated with each other". "In order to identify the understanding dimensions in the influencing factors of future expansion of SME’s, an exploratory factor analysis was employed. The respondents were asked to rate 14 variables using a 5 point Likert scale, which ranged from “Highly influenced” to “Highly not influenced”. The inter-item consistency reliability of these 14 variables was tested before factor analysis was carried out. The result of both the KMO and Bartlett’s test of Sphericity, i.e., significance value 0.000, also indicate that it was appropriate to apply the exploratory factor analysis techniques to this dataset". Table 2 shows the factor analysis of the 6 variables which shows increasing future expansion of SME’s. 48 BUSUMD8 2331984 Table 25 Factor analysis on variables influence future expansion of SME’s S.No. Variables 1 Market expansion 2 Adding new product lines 3 Renovation of production process 4 Change of customer culture 5 Mergers and Takeovers 6 Government support 1 Components 2 3 .643 .291 -.463 .720 .194 -.219 .800 -.167 .226 .288 .878 .870 .868 -.154 Note: Extraction method: Principal component Analysis; Rotation method: Varimax with Kaiser Normalization; Rotation converged in five iteration Table 26 Rotated component matrix on variables influencing future expansion of SME’s Factors loadings Factor Factor Factor 3 1 2 Factors 1 – Expansion Market expansion F1 Communality 0.762 .713 F2 Adding new product lines 0.713 .561 F6 Government support 0,811 .778 Factors 2 – innovation Renovation of production F3 process F5 Mergers and Takeovers 0.844 .717 0.860 .766 Factors 3 – culture F4 Change of customer culture 0.942 .905 Note: Extraction method: Principal component Analysis; Rotation method: Vari max with Kaiser Normalization; Rotation converged in five iteration 49 BUSUMD8 2331984 4.6 Interpretation "Factor 1 loaded on first three variables. This factor can be labeled as “expansion factors” as these three variables revealed the SME’s performance that is, market expansion, adding new product lines, government support. All these elements were considered as the predominant predictors of increasing performance of SME’s performance in business activities". Factor 2 correlated most highly with variables 3 and 5 i.e., renovation of production and merger and takeover. This might be labeled as “innovation”. Factor 3 might be labeled culture. It indicated that customer cultural changes increase SMEs exports growth. 4.7 Conclusion "This chapter shall discuss the findings obtained from the primary instrument used in the study Prospects and Challenges of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). The researcher provided tables and graphs that summarize the information for SME in Oman 45 company" 50 BUSUMD8 2331984 Chapter 5 Findings, Recommendations and Conclusions 5.1 Findings of study "The larger respondent group was in the age group of 40 to 50 in the rate of 42.2, the less age of SME in Oman below30. The maximum Owners SME in Oman area of residence from Urban in the rate of 73.3 %. 82.2% of male owner SME in Oman and 17.8% of female. The higher Educational qualification it graduation by 42.2% because Resort graduates to the work of smallscale projects it cannot provide jobs appropriate. The results of the questionnaire the First generation come the top in the rate 51.1%, the less generation fourth generation in the rate 4.4%. Came the Own Initiatives the high one in the rite 44.4%. The selection Industrial show higher profit by 33.3% because increasing of demands. The more institutions that appeared to me less 5 years by 55.6% because it New and spread. The more Category of organization the Small it came by 51.1% because More small businesses in Oman annual sales ranging between RO 25,000 and RO 250,000. Most institutions of Distributed a questionnaire it Volume of Annual sales between 50001-100000 O.R by 37.8% More prevalent in Oman. The socio and cultural factor is having p value > is 0.066, which means there is a statistically significant correlation between two variables (i.e. increases or decreases in one variable do significantly relate to increases or decreases in second variable). The capacity expansion is having p value > is 0.056, which means there is a statistically significant correlation between two variables (i.e. increases or decreases in one variable do significantly relate to increases or decreases in second variable). The other economic factors is having p value > is 0.152, which means there is a statistically significant correlation between two variables (i.e. increases or decreases in one variable do significantly relate to increases or decreases in second variable). The factors like easy start up loan and health, safety and welfare issues is having p value > is 0.071 and 0.66, which means there is a statistically significant correlation between two variables (i.e. increases or decreases in one variable do significantly relate to increases or decreases in second variable). The factors like laws and regulations and health, safety and welfare issues is having p value > is 0.063 and 0.66, which means there is a statistically significant correlation between two variables (i.e. increases or decreases in one variable do significantly relate to increases or decreases in second variable). it can be concluded that there is no significant difference among respondents for the Factors like tax incentives, availability of raw material and duty and charges. The test is not significant at the 51 BUSUMD8 2331984 confidence level of 5%., it can be concluded that there is no significant difference among respondents for the Factors like government and political factors and the capability to adopt the changes. The test is not significant at the confidence level of 5%. from the ANOVA has emerged from the data analysis by using SPSS is lower than 0.05 (level of significance) in the factors like favorable rules and regulations, encourage greater R&D expenditure, association support, availability of manpower, customer needs increased, duty and charges, managing competition and other marketing factors. the factors like tax incentives, effective management of people and resources, duty and charges, skilled labour, cost of labour, laws and regulations, other labour factors and increasing the competition. Therefore the null hypothesis, which was formulated (at 95% confidence level), is rejected and alternative hypothesis may be accepted". 5.2 Recommendations "Periodical training course should be arranged for technical staff of SMEs. Moreover, training in management of small enterprise and efficient marketing should also be provided. Training or workshop should be organized for the development of SMEs capabilities to acquire enhanced knowledge about how to choose, use modern technology. This training must help entrepreneur to gather experience in every step of SMEs' development. There is no lack of entrepreneurs in Oman but lack of experienced entrepreneurs. To attract experienced entrepreneurs training and others brainstorming program should be organized". "Educated people are engaging with SME not for better position of SME in Oman but for managing the unemployment situation. To attract the educated people, the structure, policy, facilities of SME should be well organized and updated". "Entrepreneurs in Oman face many problems in every footstep. Here legality problems play vital role as barriers of SME development. So, legal power should be used to develop this sector not to destroy or not to get facilities unethically". "More capital in SME are provided by own source of entrepreneurs in Oman. Majority percent of small business' owners don't get any financial facilities from bank and others financial institutions. So, many SMEs fall down and don't see the light of success. Government and others non government financial institutions should be more enthusiasm to help the SMEs sector". 52 BUSUMD8 2331984 "Majority percent of SMEs in Oman are product oriented. Others sectors like-service, technology don't get priority as like as product. So government should make some polices to encourage entrepreneurs to choose service sectors, technology sectors". "All most 80% entrepreneurs are struggling in making optimal business plan in Oman. The poorest part of the planning is done in small firms is the setting of overall goals. Most of the entrepreneurs don't prepare business plan and don't estimate future. So they are not familiar to business plan. It is not good sign for SME development in this country. Workshop, seminar should be organized to encourage entrepreneurs to use business plan". "Most of the entrepreneurs don't know the entry strategy mode like-franchising, licensing, joint ventures etc. they should be more enthusiasm to do business in foreign market by using any mode. By implementing above mentioned suggestion SMEs sectors can develop its self significantly". "The lack of a policy framework on entrepreneurship is noted and this should be addressed as a matter of urgency. An effective entrepreneurial development strategy must comprise a long-term policy agenda explicitly aimed at continuously strengthening young firms, with evidence of implementation demonstrated by achieved time-bound targets. The business community needs to have clarity on legislative changes and this needs to be communicated in a clear, effective and timely fashion. As noted, many of the policy challenges outlined in this report overlap". "Intergovernmental co-ordination is essential to an effective sustainable response. Ideally, this type of co-ordination should be led by a single institution with effective mechanisms for policy coordination, involving key ministries, agencies and relevant local administrations. Effective implementation of any policy framework will require ownership, commitment and monitoring at the highest levels of Government in consultation with the private sector and its representative organizations". "The OCCI, as the main private sector representative organization has a key role in keeping the pressure on Government to actually apply the policies that have been agreed. This may require a changing relationship between OCCI and its government partners". "With appreciation for the initiative (bank guarantee) being launched by the Directorate General for Development of Small and Medium Enterprises, Appeal to funders to cooperate in the 53 BUSUMD8 2331984 success of this initiative and to create more awareness among the business owners in this initiative" "Allocation of government institutions and large companies proportion of its contracts for small and medium-sized enterprises. Reconsider bringing in foreign labor in order to serve the interests of SMEs procedures" "Taking into account the government institutions and large companies to the need of SMEs to the existence of continuity in the cash flows and the development of mechanisms to reduce the length of time for payment. Review of commercial banks with the procedures relating to open the account for small enterprises and medium-sized" 5.3 Future research "There are more than 20,000 SMEs operating across the Sultanate, each boasting a workforce of not more than 15 to 20 per cent of the total workforce. SME in Oman sector that contributes nearer 60 per cent of GDP and employ 70 per cent of the available workforce. Oman’s SME sector not only has considerable growth potential, it offers a very real opportunity for investors and entrepreneurs. It is significant to indicate that His Majesty the Sultan has given great importance to encouraging business initiatives and SMEs, which are the main component of the economic diversification strategy, helping to create job opportunities for Omani youth and enhancing the growth of the economy". "The future study may be to know the growth and development of SME in Oman, in addition may be to know the constrains faced by SME in Oman and creating opportunities for SMEs in Oman". 5.4 Conclusions "The small sized business plays an important role in the economic development of a country. Like big enterprises small enterprises tries to contribute a lot in GDP (gross domestic product) and in social and community development of Oman. SME provides major share of employment in the total employment of Oman. But small business is less hierarchical, systemized, and compartmentalized than the large company so it can't contribute more like big business in GDP. So the recommendation should be implemented as soon as possible to overcome all problems 54 BUSUMD8 2331984 and to develop SME sector like such a way that it can contribute in economic development of Oman". "Small and Medium Scale Enterprises constitute essential ingredients in the lubrication and development of any economy. In Oman, the story makes no remarkable difference as Small and Medium Scale Enterprises dominate the economy. Government over the years has formulated a number of policies aimed at developing Small and Medium Scale Enterprises. SMEs throughout the world have been considered as the silent drives of a nation's economy. Their enterprise is laudable and their ability to generate pools of growth and employment, invaluable. This is true for most developed, as well as developing economies". "In the emerging economic order SMEs are the leading edge when it comes to innovation and entering new global markets. The SME story in the Sultanate is not different. SMEs form the backbone of Oman's economy. The studies show that SMEs' contributions towards GDP and employment creation in Oman is far below when compared to other developed and developing countries. Many failures in SME sectors reported in the past few years were due to the absence of efficient management systems especially the effective market entry strategies in the enterprises. A study of the marketing strategies of SMEs of Oman particularly the market entry strategies will give light to the real issues of this sector and thereby strengthen the very base of the SMEs in Oman". 55 BUSUMD8 2331984 5.5 References ➢ "Anthony, A.N. (2011), Management Control Systems, Chicago, IL: Irwin. BasuSudipRanjan 2007 “SME and life Cirka, C.C., (2007), A piece of the Puzzle: Employee Responses to Control Practices and Effects on Firm Control Strategy, Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press". ➢ "Adepoju B.A. (2003). An appraisal of the factors inhibiting entrepreneurial undertaking in contemporary Oman: a case study of SMEs. Journal of Business Administration, Dept. of Bus Admin, UNIBEN.Vol.5, No.2, July". ➢ "Al-Mandhary,Z, 2002. International Case Studies: To what extent is ICT infused into the Operations of SMEs?”, Journal of Enterprise Information Management, Vol. 19, No. 6, pp 608-624". ➢ "Aziz, et al (2012). SMEs and Barriers to skills development: A Scottish Perspective”, Journal of European Industrial Training, Vol. 24, No. 1, pp. 5-11". ➢ "Bowen, M et al (2009) “Barriers Adopting challenges and prospect with SMEs in Developing Countries: An Exploratory Study in Sri Lanka”, CollECTeR ’06, 9 December, 2006, Adelaide, [online], http://www.collecter.org/archives/2006_December/07.pdf [13 March 2009]". ➢ "Bruch, M. R. and Hiemenze, U. (1984). Small- and Medium-Scale Industries in the ASEAN Countries: Agents or Victims of Economic Development? West View Press, Boulder". ➢ "Binks, M .R. and Ennew, C.T. (1996). Growing Firm and Credit Constraint, SmallScaleBusiness Economics, 17-25". ➢ "Beck, et all (2015). New Directions for Research on SME: Insights from an Analysis of Journal Articles from 2003 to 2006", Journal of Small Business, Vol. 1, No. 1/2, pp. 2140,". ➢ "Crosby, P (2012) "Management, quality and competitiveness"4th Ed. McGraw-Hill , Newyork". ➢ "Cletus, C.M. (2014), Small and medium Scale Enterprises in Oman. Vol. 30. J.G" ➢ "(Cronbach, 1951), Factors influencing adoption and use by small and medium businesses” , Vol. 15, No.4, pp. 438-453". 56 BUSUMD8 2331984 ➢ "Deming, W. (2009). "SME management" 4th Ed. Prentice Hall , London" ➢ "Feigenbaum, A. (2012). "Control: principles, practice, and administration for SME’s" 8th McGraw -Hill , Newyork" ➢ "Fatai, A. (2011). “Small and Medium Scale Enterprises in Oman: The Problems and Prospects”.RetrievedJanuary15fromwww.thecje.com/journal/index.php/economicsjournal /article/.../8". ➢ "George, G.,(2015),"Slack Resources and the Performance of Privately Held Firms", Academy of Management Journal, 48(4): 661-676". ➢ "Goodale, J.C., Karatko, D.F., Hornsby, J.S.,andCovin, J.G. 2011. "Operations Management and Corporate Entrepreneurship: The Moderating Effect of Operations Control on the Antecedents of Corporate Entrepreneurial Activity in Relation to Innovation Performance," Journal of Operations Management, 29(2): in-press". ➢ Govindarajan, V. (2010), "A Contingency Approach to Strategy Implementation at the Business-Unit Level: Integrating Administrative Mechanisms with Strategy", Academy of Management Journal 31(4): 828-853. ➢ Haper, M. (1984). Small Business in the Third World, John Wiley & Sons. ➢ Hamood CBO, (2014). "Toward Strategic Use of IT in SMEs: A Developing Country Perspective", Information Management & Computer Security Vol. 11, No. 5, pp. 230-237 ➢ Harvie (2014). "Toward Strategic Use in SMEs: A Developing Country Perspective", SME Security Vol. 11, No. 5, pp. 230-237. ➢ Joshi, Vijay, 2014, “SME world Boom,” Financial Times, November 16. ➢ Juran, J. ( 2010), "SME planning and analysis", 4th Ed. McGraw-Hill , Newyork. ➢ Kelkar, Vijay, 2014, “Growth of SME,” K.R. Narayanan Oration, Australian National University ➢ Lenz R.T., Lyles Marjorie A., (2015), "Paralysis by Analysis : Is Your Planning System Becoming Too Rational ?" Long Range Planning, Vol. 18, No. 4 pp. 64-72 ➢ Marginson, D.E.,(2012), "Management Control Systems and Their Effects on Strategy Formulation at Middle Management Levels: Evidence for a U.K. Organization.", Strategic Management Journal 23(11): 1019-1031. ➢ Maja Kone_nik Ruzzier،Mitja Ruzzier،Robert D. Hisrich (2013), Marketing for Entrepreneurs and SMEs: A Global Perspective. 57 BUSUMD8 2331984 ➢ Mutula and Brakel, 2006, p. 403. SMEs: An Inter-Regional Comparison”, Exploring the Frontiers of Small Business (Hinckley, Leicestershire: ISBA), pp. 289-308. ➢ Morris and D. Kuratko, (2012), "Corporate Entrepreneurship", Dallas, TX: Harcourt Press. ➢ Naveen Nicolas E. (2006). “Insights from SMEs”, Logistics Information Management, Vol.16, No. 5, pp. 312-326. ➢ Norton E,(1991). Importance Small and Medium-Sized Companies”, Electronic Markets, Vol. 17, No. 1, pp. 38-55. ➢ (Nunally, 1978). Journal of Information Systems and Small Business, Vol. 1, No. 1/2, pp. 21-40,. ➢ Sanyal, R. and T. Guvenli, (2011), "Introducing Modern Management Control Techniques in an Economy in Transition.", Mid-Atlantic Journal of Business 36(4): 1-16. ➢ Selladurai, R (2012). "A look at SME development 7th Ed San Antonio, TX, USA ➢ Shih, M.S. and L.C. Yong, (2012), "Relationship of Planning and Control Systems with Strategic Choices: A Closer Look.", Asia Pacific Journal of Management 18(4): 481-494. ➢ Simons, R.,(2009), "Control in an Age of Empowerment", Harvard Business Review 63(2): 80-88. ➢ Sibylle Heibrunn (2007). Evidence from an Italian Survey", Small Business Economics Vol. 23, No. 2, pp.151-168. ➢ Sahdeo Pande (1990). SMEs and Barriers to skills development: A Scottish Perspective”, Journal of European Industrial Training, Vol. 24, No. 1, pp. 5-11. ➢ Rogers, B.A. (2002). Funding of SMEs: Sourcing of Funds and Problems LimitingAccess, Omna Accountant Vol. 35 No. 1 January/March ➢ -Bala, J.J. (2002). The Riyada SME oman, by Small Scale Enterprises with the new democratic dispensation presented at the seminar on the Strategies and Policies for the support of Small Scale Industries in Oman held at Muscat in May. ➢ OCC (2015), Challenges of SMEs in Oman. The Business Administrator, Muscat Vol.20. ➢ Ojiako,O.F.(2000) Problems of Small-scale Enterprises in OMAN. The Business Administrator, Muscat, Vol. 15. ➢ Qiang et al., 2006; Hanqin and Allison, 2007, p. 277. SMEs and Their Export Intermediaries”, International Small Business Journal,...
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