Jou nal o Resea ch and De elopmen
Pee Re iewed In e na ional, Open Access Jou nal.
ISSN : 2230-9578 | Websi e: h ps://j d b.o g Volume-17, Issue-9(I) | Sep - 2025
127
Manage ial Challenges and Pe o mance o Small and Medium En e p ises in Y
emen
D . Mangesh K. Shi sa h1, Ha oon Mohamed Sallam Fa ee2
1Resea ch Guide & Assis an P o esso , Ad . B. D. Hamba de Maha idyalaya, Ash i, Beed
2Resea ch S uden ,
Email: Ha oon24moh[email p o ec ed]
Manusc ip ID:
JRD -2025(I)-170930
ISSN: 2230-9578
Volume 17
Issue 9(I)|
Pp. 127-131
Sep . 2025
Submi ed: 9 Aug. 2025
Re ised: 20 Aug. 2025
Accep ed: 20 Sep . 2025
Published: 30 Sep . 2025
Abs ac :
Small and Medium En e p ises (SMEs) ep esen a i al componen o Yemen’s economic
landscape, ye hei g ow h and sus ainabili y a e se e ely hinde ed by manage ial challenges. This s udy
in es iga es he in luence o manage ial obs acles on SME pe o mance, d awing on su ey da a om 394
en e p ises in Sana’a and o he ci ies. Using a desc ip i e-analy ical me hod, managemen challenge
scales om OECD and Wo ld Bank sou ces we e applied, wi h da a analyzed h ough SPSS. The indings
e eal ha de iciencies in skilled wo k o ce (β = -0.317), adminis a i e managemen p ac ices (β = -
0.235), eco d-keeping sys ems (β = -0.199), and limi ed business ne wo ks (β = -0.120) signi ican ly
unde mine SME pe o mance. Con e sely, employee aining exhibi ed a posi i e e ec (β = 0.159),
unde sco ing he alue o capaci y de elopmen . Su p isingly, ac o s such as inno a ion, ma ke
knowledge, and ope a ional expe ience showed no signi ican impac . The esul s highligh he u gen need
o a ge ed in e en ions, including s uc u ed aining p og ams, imp o ed adminis a i e amewo ks,
and suppo i e ins i u ional mechanisms. Es ablishing a supe iso y au ho i y dedica ed o SME
de elopmen is ecommended o add ess hese cons ain s and s eng hen Yemen’s economic esilience.
Keywo ds: SMEs, Yemen, Manage ial obs acles, Pe o mance, Wo k o ce skills, T aining
In oduc ion:
Yemen has his o ically aced unde de elopmen , esou ce sca ci y, and poli ical
ins abili y. The coun y's p olonged occupa ions and subsequen di ision, ollowed by
uni ica ion in 1990, ha e con ibu ed o minimal de elopmen al p og ess. This is e lec ed in
Yemen's low ankings on in e na ional indices (Saleh and K R Manjuna h, 2020c). o e looked
managemen can lead o decline, s a egic app oaches and p ope a en ion can d i e subs an ial
g ow h. Resea ch by P o esso Ga y Hamel highligh s how e ec i e manage ial p ac ices
imp o e pe o mance (Hamel and B een, 2007).This esea ch aims o examine how manage ial
challenges a ec he pe o mance o small and medium en e p ises in Yemen.
Backg ound and b ie e iew:
Yemeni SMEs ope a e in an uns able en i onmen due o poli ical and
economic issues, exace ba ed by he COVID-19 pandemic. Despi e hei i al ole in job
c ea ion and economic g ow h, hey encoun e nume ous hu dles, including inancial and
ma ke ing di icul ies, poli ical ins abili y, egula o y p oblems, and managemen - ela ed issues
(Saleh and K R Manjuna h, 2020b; Saleh and K Rajappa Manjuna h, 2020). Digi al
ans o ma ion e o s a e also hinde ed by he need o signi ican in es men .
Quick Response Code:
Websi e:
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DOI:
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C ea i e Commons (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
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Add ess o co espondence:
D . Mangesh K. Shi sa h, Resea ch Guide & Assis an P o esso , Ad . B. D. Hamba de
Maha idyalaya, Ash i, Beed
How o ci e his a icle:
M. K. Shi sa h, H.M.Sallam Fa ee. (2025). Manage ial Challenges and Pe o mance o Small
and Medium En e p ises in Yemen , 17(9(I)), 127-131
O iginal A icle
Jou nal o Resea ch and De elopmen
Pee Re iewed In e na ional, Open Access Jou nal.
ISSN : 2230-9578 | Websi e: h ps://j d b.o g Volume-17, Issue-9(I) | Sep - 2025
128
Howe e , add essing managemen challenges equi es ewe ex e nal esou ces and can imp o e SME pe o mance by
os e ing en ep eneu ial skills and es ablishing aining and guidance bodies (Saleh and K R Manjuna h, 2020a). The
cen al p oblem is he unde pe o mance o Yemen's SME sec o . While a ious ac o s a ec business pe o mance,
managemen issues pa icula ly es ic g ow h. This s udy, he e o e, aims o examine how manage ial ac o s
in luence SME pe o mance, leading o he ollowing esea ch posi ions (RP):
• RP1: Business p ocess inno a ion capabili ies signi ican ly in luence SME pe o mance.
• RP2: Wo k o ce skill de iciencies signi ican ly a ec SME pe o mance.
• RP3: Adminis a i e managemen p ac ices signi ican ly impac SME pe o mance.
• RP 4 Insu icien ma ke unde s anding signi ican ly in luences SME pe o mance.
• RP 5: Employee aining ini ia i es signi ican ly a ec SME pe o mance.
• RP 6: Limi ed ope a ional expe ise signi ican ly impac s SME pe o mance.
• RP 7: Inadequa e business ne wo ks signi ican ly in luence SME pe o mance.
• RP 8: Reco d-keeping sys ems signi ican ly a ec SME pe o mance.
Me hodology:
Resea ch Me hod: This s udy used a desc ip i e-analy ical app oach wi h andom sampling om wo ci ies, selec ing
businesses andomly om each s ee . Following Rao so calcula o guidelines, 394 esponses we e collec ed
(exceeding he ecommended 382 o a 100,000 popula ion).
Measu emen and Analysis: Managemen challenge scales we e adap ed om (Ba ie s, 2009; G oup, 2016), while
pe o mance measu es came om (Yu, Xiao and Bo, 2018). Responses we e sco ed om -2 (s ongly disag ee) o 3
(s ongly ag ee). Reliabili y es s showed s ong in e nal consis ency (α = 0.861 o challenges, α = 0.883 o
pe o mance). Da a was cleaned using Cook's dis ance and analyzed wi h SPSS 26.
Key Resul s: Mos en e p ises a e owne -managed wi h skilled wo k o ce equi emen s. Howe e , 63.1% ha en'
implemen ed p oduc /se ice inno a ions, only 34.3% p o ide employee aining, and women ep esen less han hal
he wo k o ce. Managemen esponses o p oblems a y: 30.7% imp o e condi ions p e en i ely, 26.9% implemen
p e en i e p ocedu es, 17.3% ix issues wi hou ollow-up, and 25.1% ake no ac ion.
Resul s and indings:
Sample Cha ac e is ics: The s udy included en e p ises p ima ily om Sanaa (55.3%), wi h equal ep esen a ion om
se ice (36.5%) and manu ac u ing (35%) sec o s. Mos companies employed 5-19 wo ke s (58.9% combined) and
we e 5-10 yea s old (54.8% combined), wi h sole owne ship being p edominan (68.5%). Rega ding s a ing, 75.6% o
businesses lacked adminis a i e pe sonnel, while 24.4% had mos ly adminis a i e employees.
Managemen Challenge Assessmen : Su ey esponses e ealed mode a e consensus on se e al managemen issues.
The highes conce n was insu icien ope a ional expe ience (M=1.75), ollowed by inadequa e wo ke aining
(M=1.59) and wo k o ce skill gaps (M=1.55). Responden s showed less ag eemen ega ding adminis a i e
managemen p oblems (M=0.61), limi ed business ne wo ks (M=1.05), and ma ke knowledge de iciencies (M=1.07).
Inno a ion capaci y ecei ed mode a e a ings (M=1.32), while eco d-keeping sco ed simila ly (M=1.38).
Tables p esen he s a is ical indings ega ding managemen challenges and pe o mance me ics. Pa icipan s
exp essed mode a e consensus on h ee p ima y conce ns: insu icien ope a ional expe ience (M=1.75), inadequa e
employee aining (M=1.59), and wo k o ce skill de iciencies (M=1.55). Con e sely, esponden s showed minimal
ag eemen ega ding adminis a i e managemen issues (M=0.61), business ne wo king limi a ions (M=1.05), and
ma ke knowledge gaps (M=1.07).
Jou nal o Resea ch and De elopmen
Pee Re iewed In e na ional, Open Access Jou nal.
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129
Table 1: Sample Demog aphic
Cha ac e is ic
Ca ego y
Pe cen age
Coun
(N=394)
Loca ion
Sanaa
55.30%
218
O he Ci ies
44.70%
176
Sec o
Se ice
36.50%
144
Manu ac u ing
35.00%
138
Employee Size
10-19 wo ke s
30.50%
120
5-9 wo ke s
28.40%
112
Business Age
5 yea s
29.90%
118
10 yea s
24.90%
98
Owne ship
Sole Owne ship
68.50%
270
Adminis a i e S a
Mos ly Adminis a i e
24.40%
96
No Adminis a i e S a
76%
300
Table 2: Managemen challenges Analysis
Rank
Managemen Challenge
Mean Sco e
S d. De ia ion
Se e i y Le el
Key Finding
1
Lack o Ope a ional Expe ience
1.75
1.552
High Conce n
Mos c i ical
challenge
2
T aining Wo ke s and
Employees
1.59
1.528
High Conce n
Signi ican aining
gaps
3
Lacking Skilled Wo k o ce
1.55
1.41
High Conce n
Skills sho age
p e alen
4
Reco ds Con ol
1.38
1.631
Mode a e
Documen a ion
issues
5
Abili y o Inno a e in Business
P ocess
1.32
1.461
Mode a e
Inno a ion capaci y
limi ed
6
Lack o Ma ke Knowledge
1.07
1.658
Lowe P io i y
Ma ke awa eness
adequa e
7
Lack o Ne wo ks
1.05
1.544
Lowe P io i y
Ne wo king less
p oblema ic
8
Adminis a i e Managemen
0.61
1.694
Leas Conce n
Adminis a ion
unc ioning
Table 3: Key Findings Summa y
Ca ego y
Top Issue
Sco e
Implica ion
Demog aphics
75.6% lack admin s a
0.86
S uc u al managemen gaps
Managemen
Ope a ional expe ience
de ici
1.75
C i ical skills de elopmen
needed
Pe o mance
All indica o s below
neu al
0.12-0.29
Widesp ead business
s uggles
Reliabili y
Bo h scales highly
eliable
0.86
Resul s s a is ically obus
Reg ession Analysis Resul s:
Mul iple eg ession analysis was conduc ed wi h SME pe o mance as he dependen a iable and manage ial
challenges as independen a iables. The model explained 36% o pe o mance a iance (R² = 0.363, R = 0.603, p <
0.001), indica ing mode a e p edic i e powe .
Non-Signi ican Fac o s:
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Th ee manage ial challenges showed no signi ican impac on SME pe o mance: inno a ion capaci y (β = 0.015, p =
0.80), ma ke knowledge de iciency (β = 0.066, p = 0.19), and ope a ional expe ience gaps (β = -0.038, p = 0.58).
These indings con adic expec a ions abou hei impo ance.
Signi ican P edic o s:
Fi e challenges signi ican ly in luenced pe o mance. The s onges nega i e p edic o s we e skilled wo k o ce
sho age (β = -0.317, p < 0.01) and adminis a i e managemen p oblems (β = -0.235, p < 0.01). Mode a e e ec s we e
ound o inadequa e eco d con ol (β = -0.199, p < 0.01) and limi ed business ne wo ks (β = -0.120, p = 0.02).
In e es ingly, wo ke aining showed a posi i e e ec (β = 0.159, p = 0.02), sugges ing aining in es men s imp o e
pe o mance.
Resea ch Posi ion Tes ing:
The analysis suppo ed i e Resea ch Posi ion (RP2: skilled wo k o ce, RP3: adminis a i e managemen , RP5:
aining wo ke s, RP7: ne wo ks, RP8: eco ds con ol) while ejec ing h ee (RP1: inno a ion, RP4: ma ke
knowledge, RP6: ope a ional expe ience). This indica es ha wo k o ce- ela ed and adminis a i e ac o s a e mo e
c i ical o SME pe o mance han expec ed s a egic capabili ies
Table 4: Mul iple Reg ession Analysis Resul s
Consis ency: The indings align wi h p e ious esea ch demons a ing ha skill de iciencies and manage ial challenges
a e p ima y obs acles o SMEs (Tem ime and Pansi i, 2006). Resul s pa ially suppo (Aliyu, 2015) ega ding
manage ial ac o s' signi icance, while con i ming ha human esou ce managemen p ac ices subs an ially in luence
SME pe o mance (Sha eek, 2016). The s udy ein o ces ha s a egic managemen app oaches a e c ucial o SME
de elopmen (A es e al., 2013) and ha in es ing in HR p ac ices like aining yields measu able pe o mance
imp o emen s (Fo h and B yson, 2018; Saleh and K R Manjuna h, 2020c).
Key Empi ical Findings: The s udy e ealed c i ical ope a ional gaps: only 24.4% o en e p ises in ol e employees in
decision-making, 53% equi e skilled wo ke s, 46% employ women, and me ely 34.3% p o ide employee aining. Jus
30.7% o companies p oac i ely add ess ope a ional p oblems. Reg ession analysis con i med i e signi ican
p edic o s o pe o mance: skilled wo k o ce de iciency (β = -0.317), adminis a i e managemen issues (β = -0.235),
poo eco d con ol (β = -0.199), limi ed ne wo ks (β = -0.120), and aining p o ision (β = 0.159, posi i e e ec ).
Con e sely, inno a ion capabili y, ma ke knowledge, and ope a ional expe ience showed no signi ican impac .
Conclusions and Recommenda ions: Yemeni SMEs ace subs an ial manage ial capaci y cons ain s equi ing
a ge ed in e en ion. The s udy ecommends es ablishing a dedica ed SME supe iso y au ho i y o p o ide guidance,
consul ancy, and s a egic suppo . This ins i u ion could add ess aining de iciencies, imp o e adminis a i e
p ac ices, and enhance o ganiza ional pe o mance h ough s uc u ed capaci y-building p og ams, ul ima ely helping
SMEs o e come hei mos c i ical manage ial challenges.
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p- alue
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Adminis a i e Managemen
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0
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Reco ds Con ol
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T aining Wo ke s
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Signi ican
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Jou nal o Resea ch and De elopmen
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ISSN : 2230-9578 | Websi e: h ps://j d b.o g Volume-17, Issue-9(I) | Sep - 2025
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