TY - JOUR

T1 - Does Training Improve the Business Performance of Small-Scale Entrepreneurs?

T2 - An Evaluative Study

AU - Friedrich, Christian

AU - Glaub, Matthias

AU - Gramberg, Kristina

AU - Frese, Michael

N1 - Funding Information: This work was financially supported by the Nature Science Foundation of China (No. 41671481 ), National Science and Technology Major Project (No. 2016YFC0400706 ) and the Science & Technology Plan Project of Guangdong (No. 2014A020216039 ; 2015A3FC0023 ; 2016A020221034 ; 2016A020221036 ; 2016B020240003 ). Publisher Copyright: © 2006, © 2006 SAGE Publications.

PY - 2006/4/1

Y1 - 2006/4/1

N2 - In surveys conducted in different countries over four years, the authors investigated why entrepreneurs in the same sector and during the same period were not equally successful. From the findings of this research they developed a new three-day training programme to address primarily skills and techniques relating to personal initiative, planning, goal setting and innovation. The training programme follows the ‘action learning’ approach, which links learning to activity, and is based on the assumption that competencies and behavioural patterns can be learned. A sample of 84 entrepreneurs was selected in South Africa. In the first stage (T1), before the start of the training, a standardized interview was conducted. The sample was then split into two groups: the ‘experimental’ group, which participated in the training (T2) and the ‘control’ group (no training). After six months (T3) the results of the training group were compared with those of the control group through the use of behavioural measures. The results at this stage showed that members of the training group had made significantly better progress in their business performance than members of the control group.

AB - In surveys conducted in different countries over four years, the authors investigated why entrepreneurs in the same sector and during the same period were not equally successful. From the findings of this research they developed a new three-day training programme to address primarily skills and techniques relating to personal initiative, planning, goal setting and innovation. The training programme follows the ‘action learning’ approach, which links learning to activity, and is based on the assumption that competencies and behavioural patterns can be learned. A sample of 84 entrepreneurs was selected in South Africa. In the first stage (T1), before the start of the training, a standardized interview was conducted. The sample was then split into two groups: the ‘experimental’ group, which participated in the training (T2) and the ‘control’ group (no training). After six months (T3) the results of the training group were compared with those of the control group through the use of behavioural measures. The results at this stage showed that members of the training group had made significantly better progress in their business performance than members of the control group.

KW - action learning

KW - business owners

KW - entrepreneurial training

KW - evaluating business success

KW - Business psychology

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85016364824&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.5367/000000006777699847

DO - 10.5367/000000006777699847

M3 - Journal articles

AN - SCOPUS:85016364824

VL - 20

SP - 75

EP - 84

JO - Industry and Higher Education

JF - Industry and Higher Education

SN - 0950-4222

IS - 2

ER -