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Full-Text Articles in Business

Leadership Strategies Of Successful Women-Owned Businesses In Cameroon, Henry Ntoko Ajieh Jan 2021

Leadership Strategies Of Successful Women-Owned Businesses In Cameroon, Henry Ntoko Ajieh

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Lack of leadership skills in women-led businesses can result in high business failure rates. Women business owners who do not know how to improve their leadership skills could face difficulties succeeding in business. Grounded in the transformational leadership theory, the purpose of this multiple case study was to explore strategies that women business owners in the events planning business use to improve leadership skills to succeed in business beyond 5 years. The participants included five women in the events planning business in Cameroon, Central Africa, who successfully developed strategies to improve leadership skills to succeed in business beyond 5 years. …


Strategies Small Business Owners Use To Remain Sustainable, Desire Luamba Jan 2019

Strategies Small Business Owners Use To Remain Sustainable, Desire Luamba

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In the United States, 41% of small retail businesses fail to succeed for longer than 5 years. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore strategies small retail business owners used to remain sustainable for more than 5 years. The conceptual framework that grounded this study was Schumpeter's innovation theory. The sample size of this research included 4 successful retail business owners located in the southeastern region of the United States who have successfully started and managed their business activities for more than 5 years. Data were collected using semistructured face-to-face interviews with successful owners of small retail …


Sustainability Strategies Of Barber Salons, Kouassi Gilles Mevo Jan 2019

Sustainability Strategies Of Barber Salons, Kouassi Gilles Mevo

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Many barber salons and other small businesses in the United States fail to succeed beyond the first 5 years. The factors responsible for the low survival rate of salons may include the limited training and education levels mandated by state certification requirements. The purpose of this multiple case study was to identify business strategies successful barber salon owners use to overcome the business management and staffing challenges associated with a small pool of skilled barbers and the high turnover in a low wage profession. The theory of transformational leadership served as the conceptual framework. The data collection included interviews of …


Sustainability Strategies For Successful Small Businesses, Barbara Stovall Jan 2018

Sustainability Strategies For Successful Small Businesses, Barbara Stovall

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Small businesses struggle to survive for longer than 5 years because owners lack knowledge of strategies to sustain financial capital. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore strategies small business owners used to maintain financial capital to ensure survivability for longer than 5 years. The sample included 3 successful service- related small business owners located in the southeastern United States. Systems theory and the theory of entrepreneurship provided the conceptual framework for the study. Data collection involved face-to-face, semistructured interviews and a review of company websites and organizational documents. Member checking enhanced the credibility of the findings. …


The Role Of Motivation In Financing Women-Owned Businesses, Severine C. Bryan Jan 2018

The Role Of Motivation In Financing Women-Owned Businesses, Severine C. Bryan

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Women-owned small businesses contribute significantly to the U.S. economy, accounting for 55% of all new ventures; however, women entrepreneurs receive only 2% in external financing. The growth of small businesses is contingent on business owners receiving adequate financing. Business leaders should consider how obstacles, such as lack of motivation, impede the pursuit of external financing. Grounded in Vroom's expectancy theory of motivation, the purpose of this correlational study was to analyze the relationships among valence, instrumentality, expectancy, and the desire to seek business financing. The study included women small business owners in the United States. Data were collected from a …


Strategic Working Capital Sourcing Strategies For The Survival Of Small Businesses, Gregory Smith Jan 2018

Strategic Working Capital Sourcing Strategies For The Survival Of Small Businesses, Gregory Smith

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Fifty percent of small businesses fail before attaining their 5-year anniversary. The lack of sufficient working capital is one of the major reasons for small business failure. Pecking order theory was employed as the conceptual framework for this multiple case study to explore the working capital sourcing strategies of 6 purposely selected successful small business owners in the Southeast region of the United States used to sustain their businesses beyond 5 years. Data sources included semistructured interviews and company documents. Data analysis included thematic coding of the material using statistical software. The modified Van Kaam method was used to analyze …


Leadership Strategies And Employee Performance Within Small Business, Letica Carla Sellers Jan 2017

Leadership Strategies And Employee Performance Within Small Business, Letica Carla Sellers

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The survival of the small business industry is important to the United Sates workforce and economy. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore leadership strategies of 2 small business managers in a manufacturing setting who had a demonstrable record of improving employee performance to meet organizational goals. The conceptual framework for this study was Burns and Bass's transformational leadership theory. The small business managers were from 2 small manufacturing plants in the coastal plains region of South Carolina. Data were collected from semistructured interviews, archival documents, and observations of the managers during their daily activities. Data analysis …


Budget Planning, Budget Control, Business Age, And Financial Performance In Small Businesses, Tracy A. Foster Jan 2017

Budget Planning, Budget Control, Business Age, And Financial Performance In Small Businesses, Tracy A. Foster

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Over 390,000 businesses failed in the United States in 2014. The primary cause for most business failures is poor planning, and budgets are a primary means of planning. The purpose of this correlational study was to examine to what extent, if any, budget planning, budget control, and the age of the business significantly predict financial performance in small businesses. The target population consisted of small business leaders in the Midwest. Churchill and Lewis's theory on the relative importance of selected management factors of small businesses through 5 stages of development formed the theoretical framework for this study. Data were collected …


Relationship Between Emotional Intelligence And Servant Leadership In Banking, Curtis J. Gregory Jan 2016

Relationship Between Emotional Intelligence And Servant Leadership In Banking, Curtis J. Gregory

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

U.S.-based financial institutions have experienced significant failure rates since the mid-1980s. The problem within the U.S.-based banking industry is that the focus of leadership development has been primarily on cognitive abilities, whereas interpersonal skills, such as emotional intelligence, have been neglected. Research has focused on U.S. bank failures from a risk mitigation, economic, or legislative perspective, creating a gap in research on leadership behavior. The purpose of this correlation study was to determine whether a significant relationship exists between emotional intelligence and servant leadership among leaders in the U.S. small business banking industry. The theoretical framework compared intelligence types to …


Marketing Strategies Of Small Traditional Travel Agencies In A Technology-Driven World, Charice Hayes Jan 2016

Marketing Strategies Of Small Traditional Travel Agencies In A Technology-Driven World, Charice Hayes

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In 2012, there was a 70% increase in online travel booking, resulting in small traditional brick-and-mortar travel agencies having serious difficulties with obtaining and retaining customers. The purpose of this case study was to explore online marketing strategies that leaders of small traditional travel agencies have used to successfully obtain and retain customers. Technology disruption theory was the conceptual framework of this study. Using criterion sampling, the population for this study consisted of 3 leaders of small traditional travel agencies located in the state of Maryland. Data collection consisted of interviews, observations, and review of documentation, such as displays, websites, …


Strategies Independent Coffee Shop Owners Require To Survive Beyond Five Years, Bruce Higdon Jan 2016

Strategies Independent Coffee Shop Owners Require To Survive Beyond Five Years, Bruce Higdon

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Successful independent coffee shop owners in Washington struggle to compete with the larger coffee shop chains. The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to investigate what strategies owners of independent coffee shops in Washington use to survive beyond the first 5 years. Five independent coffee shop owners in Washington participated in the study and shared their practices and observations. Systems theory directed the study exploring the perspectives of successful independent coffee shop owners in Washington. Using communication skills and personal availability to answer questions and remain in contact throughout the research process built a rapport with participants. Data …


Market Orientation In Government Markets And Veteran-Owned Small Businesses, Ashley Moye Jan 2016

Market Orientation In Government Markets And Veteran-Owned Small Businesses, Ashley Moye

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Inadequate resources, poor market strategy, competition, contract regulation, and disparate performance outcomes are issues small business owners face while competing for government contracts. The purpose of this correlational study was to examine the market orientation-business performance relationship and the influence of market factors among veteran-owned small businesses competing for government contracts in the United States. A survey with adapted MARKOR and Government Regulation Lassez-Faire scales was administered to 203 veteran-owned small business owners. Resource-advantage theory served as the theoretical foundation for this study. The results of the multiple linear regression were significant, suggesting that market orientation relates to firm performance …


Perceived Best Practices Of Small Business Executives In War Zones, Eric Wayne Barton Jan 2016

Perceived Best Practices Of Small Business Executives In War Zones, Eric Wayne Barton

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The ability to sustain small businesses operating in war-torn areas is important not only to the business owners, but also to foreign communities receiving United States contract services for recovery from widespread decimation. While all small businesses address a wide range of issues, businesses operating in war-torn areas also face cultural diversity, local regulations, and potential threats to employee safety. The conceptual framework for this exploratory multiple case study was transformational-transactional leadership theory, guiding the research to discover traits and strategies of successful leaders in the population of small businesses that were profitable beyond 5 years while operating in the …


The First 4 Years: A Small Business Sustainability Study, Iris Ann Cooper Jan 2016

The First 4 Years: A Small Business Sustainability Study, Iris Ann Cooper

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Small businesses create most of the new jobs in the world, yet more than half fail before the 5th year. Small businesses contribute to the economy by originating new products and services, yet they often lack the strategies to overcome the challenges of the beginning years. When businesses fail, the community wanes from unemployment, poverty, crime, and other social dilemmas. The purpose of this single case study was to explore small business strategies for sustainability beyond Year 4, specifically in a single independent operating Ohio restaurant owner with less than 500 employees. The conceptual framework was Schumpeter's theory of the …


A Qualitative Study Of The Growth Strategies Of Mature Small Businesses, Racquel Thompson-Elliott Jan 2016

A Qualitative Study Of The Growth Strategies Of Mature Small Businesses, Racquel Thompson-Elliott

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Some small businesses have slower growth as they age and have limited strategies to maximize profit, productivity, and job creation. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the strategies small business managers use to capitalize on growth opportunities. Area small business managers and support program stakeholders could gain new knowledge to develop effective support for mature small businesses. Twenty managers participated in this case study. These managers were from small businesses operating in the state of Florida for more than 5 years with less than 500 employees. The data collection approach included purposeful sampling and semistructured interviews with …


Brazilian Women Entrepreneurs: Exploring Strategies For Building Sustainable Business Organizations, Maria Ana Church Jan 2015

Brazilian Women Entrepreneurs: Exploring Strategies For Building Sustainable Business Organizations, Maria Ana Church

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Brazilians create an average of 1.2 million new registered enterprises annually, but some struggle to keep their business in operation. Thirty percent of the new ventures are unable to survive the first year, and 58% go out of business after the first 5 years. The goal of this phenomenological study was to explore the perceptions of Brazilian women entrepreneurs concerning the strategies needed to build sustainable business organizations in Brazil. The individual concepts of sustainable development, sustainability, business strategies, and business models served as the theoretical foundations for the study. Data were collected via in-depth interviews with 20 women entrepreneurs …


Small Ethnic Restaurant Business Owner Strategies To Remain Operable Beyond 7 Years, Nam Phuong Le Jan 2015

Small Ethnic Restaurant Business Owner Strategies To Remain Operable Beyond 7 Years, Nam Phuong Le

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The failure rate among small businesses is high. More than half of all small businesses fail within the first 7 years of operation. The purpose of this multi-case study was to explore the strategies that successful small ethnic restaurant owners employed to remain operable beyond 7 years. Three successful ethnic restaurant owners who have been operating their restaurant for at least 7 years in Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada were selected. Data were gathered from participant interviews and from an examination of available physical artifacts such as the locations, premises, websites, and social media pages. The resource-based view by Edith …