Crisis challenges of small firms in Macao during the COVID-19 pandemic

This research develops a framework that combines crisis stages,stakeholder engagement and crisis challenges.The framework is applied to small firms in Macao during the 2019 novel coronavirus disease(COVID-19)pandemic crisis.We conduct a qualitative study based on semi-structured interviews with the leaders of six small firms in Macao.The findings suggest that the COVID-19 pandemic has turned into a"normal"context,which blurs the traditional crisis termination stage.We also find that participating firms engage more with internal stakeholders than external ones.The strategies adopted by small firms include flexible human resource(HR)practices,cost reduction,enhancing customer relations,and using government support schemes.These strategies are effective in the short term;firms need to pay attention to diversity and learning for the long term.

Do Small Family Firms Outperform Non-family Firms？ A Research Agenda Based on Agency and Stewardship Theories＊

The aim of this study is to examine the effects of family involvement and altruism on agency costs of equity and debt, as well on the performance of small family businesses. To achieve this objective, the authors reviewed the literature on family business. Drawing from agency theory and stewardship theory, the authors also proposed a research model that highlights the links among the variables. In so doing, this paper makes some contributions to the literature in three ways. Firstly, it takes an integrative framework that may help to explain behaviors oriented towards maximizing potential performance within a context in which pro-organizational attitudes co-exist with self-serving motivations. Secondly, it advances the understanding of corporate governance mechanisms in small family businesses, and finally, it deepens the discussion of prior research by advancing a set of propositions based on two theoretical approaches. Thus, the authors believe that a systematic comparison of different contexts provides new insights into small family business governance. The implications and directions for future research are in the last section.

Government Intervention and Support on SMEs Firm Performance

The small and medium enterprise firms are renowned for improving the na­tion’s economy through the provision of job opportunities for its populace,improving the financial and investment status of the countries and provi­sion of innovative products that meets the need of the people.SMEs are key players in the economy,through sustainable development goals(SDGs)enabling them to thrive in the open business environment and actively applying the digital transformation,promoting inclusive and sustainable in­dustrialization should be the core of any country government.This research is designed to explore the influence of government intervention and support on enterprise performance and growth in five business sectors-Hospitality,Education,Health care,Bottled Water Production and Transport and Logis­tics organizations.The research paper had a descriptive research design with a randomly selected sample size of one hundred and ninety-seven respondents.The research hypotheses were tested using(Factor Analysis and Ordinal Logistic Regression Analysis)with Statistical Packages for Social Science(SPSS)version 25.The results of the study reveal that gov­ernment intervention policies and intervention programmes when instituted will promote the growth of business firms in Nigeria.Also identified are relevant recommendations that serve as motivation for policy administra­tors,entrepreneurs,and business managers to ensure that relevant interven­tion programme is adopted to boost performance and growth of the SME sector in Nigeria.