Business discontinuity among small and medium enterprises

Abstract

Studies on Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) highlight more on the firms’ success than their failures. Firms’ failures, in particular business discontinuity, have not been well discussed due to sensitivity and confidentiality of data. The entrepreneurial activities of SMEs are vital in supporting nations’ economic development and wealth creation. Despite all the governments’ supports and assistance, SMEs experience business discontinuity at the early stage of their firm development. Research on SMEs business discontinuity is important to understand firms’ learning and survival ability, and improving their current strategy to compete and sustain in the market. The objective of this study is to review the business discontinuity literature within the context of SMEs. This study also proposes a conceptual model to further understand the factors contributing to business discontinuity among Bumiputera SMEs in Malaysia. This model, which enhances understanding of business discontinuity in SMEs, enriches the theories of firms’ failures in entrepreneurship research and their relations to firm learning.