Board Entrepreneurial Orientation, Board Guanxi and Firm Growth of Small Medium Enterprises in Malaysia

Abstract

This conceptual paper is based on a study that predicts the overall Small Medium Enterprises firm growth based on board entrepreneurial orientation and board guanxi in Malaysia context. Previous studies on board of directors’ attributes’ tend to consider financial performance in its analysis only. The inclusion of the growth indicators including sales figures, employee number, introduction of new product and new market broaden the research scope to fill the previous research gap.This study also aims to examine the relationship between board entrepreneurial and guanxi in relations with SMEs firm growth. One of the most significant theoretical implications is the introduction of a conceptual model on SMEs firm growth, board entrepreneurial orientation and board guanxi based on Malaysia context. From the practitioners’ perspectives, this paper suggests improvement of existing approaches to the governance and growth of SMEs. There is a dearth of exploratory endeavors in the context of SMEs firm growth and board of directors’ attributes for developing nations. Thus, empirical study in this area merits critical attention

Keywords: Board entrepreneurial orientation, board guanxi, SMEs firm growth