Johannes A. Wiid

The importance of human resources management for small businesses in South Africa

The majority of SMEs fail in the first five years of operation (Cant and Ligthelm, 2003). Human resource management (HRM) has been identified as a crucial key success factor for SMEs in today’s world. This research study investigates small business owners’ perception of the importance of HRM. The objective of this paper is to determine the perceived importance of human resources (HR) among South African SMEs and the management of it. A questionnaire was constructed and judgement sampling was used to gather the responses of 88 small business owners. The research revealed that the majority of SMEs have HR practices of some sort in place, as well as areas to improve on HR practices. The challenge now is to further increase the adoption of HR management and practices among small businesses in South Africa to ensure their success, as they play a vital role in the South African economy.

PRODUCT STRATEGIES OF SME’S: FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE SME’S IN DECIDING WHAT PRODUCTS TO SELL

Deciding on the right products to offer to the market is a demanding and crucial task that requires understanding and insight into the customer’s needs and wants. This task is even more important and crucial for SME’s who in many instances have to rely on the knowledge and feeling of the owner/manager only to make these decisions. It is therefore important for SME’s to have a well thought out strategy when deciding on what products to sell. This study aimed to identify aspects related to products that SMEs consider when selecting products to sell. Surveys were sent out to SME’s around South Africa. The results indicated that SME’s selected products based on the quality of the product and customer demand.