Do innovation and proactiveness impact the business performance of women-owned small and medium-scale enterprises in Vietnam? A study using the PLS-SEM approach

Abstract

Purpose: This study aims to identify and evaluate the relationship between factors and the business performance of women-owned small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Vietnam focusing on the dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation factors such as innovation, risk-taking and proactiveness. Design/Methodology/Approach: Data were obtained from 350 female entrepreneurs of SMEs in Vietnam using a structured questionnaire. The partial least squares structural equation modeling method (PLS-SEM) was applied to find the cause-and-effect relationship between exogenous and endogenous variables. Findings: The results show that the business capacity of business owners, the quality of human resources, access to finance, social capital, entrepreneurial orientation and government policies positively impact the enterprise's business performance. The relationship between the three dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation and business performance is examined. In detail, proactiveness and innovation have a positive relationship while risk-taking negatively affects the business performance of women-owned SMEs. Conclusion: The study has shown the factors affecting the business performance of women-owned small and medium-sized enterprises in Vietnam and at the same time proved that EO is a multidimensional concept when the dimensions of EO tend to have different effects on business performance.