Who Works for Startups? The Relation between Firm Age, Employee Age and Growth

Previous studies in both developed and developing economies have reported that firm growth declines with firm age and size. However, review of literature showed that there are limited studies to empirically assess the validity of this fact on firm growth in developing countries. As such, this paper assesses the role of firm size and age on firm growth in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa. The study employed a unique balanced three-year panel dataset of 191 manufacturing Small Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs) in the province. As expected, the results showed a negative relationship between firm growth and size especially in the short term. However, contrary to the wider body of literature, the study established a positive relationship between firm age and growth. The study also established that older firms grow faster than their younger counterparts despite their size. On the other hand, small sized firms despite their age grow faster than large firms when employment and total assets were used as measures of firm size. It was recommended that the government should be cognisant of the complexity of SMMEs when crafting various sector policies.

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Pengaruh Profitabilitas, Umur Perusahaan, Ukuran Perusahaan, Kualitas Audit, Dan Struktur Modal Terhadap Kualitas Laba

Jurnal ULTIMA Accounting ◽

10.31937/akuntansi.v6i1.145 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

pp. 27-42

Author(s):

Keshia Anjelica ◽

Albertus Fani Prasetyawan

Keyword(s):

Firm Size ◽

Stock Prices ◽

Audit Quality ◽

Earnings Quality ◽

Secondary Data ◽

Financial Statements ◽

Firm Age ◽

Construction Companies ◽

Auditor Switching ◽

Testing Method

The objective of this research is to examine the effect of profitability, firm age, firm size, audit quality, and leverage both partially and simultaneously towards earnings quality. The testing method used in this research is multiple regressions. The objects of this study are property, real estate and construction companies which were listed at Kompas 100 for the period 2010-2012. The samples are 15 companies determined based on purposive sampling. The data used in this study are secondary data such as financial statements and historical stock prices. The results of this study are (1) firm age has a negative significant effect on earnings quality, meanwhile firm size has a positive significant effect on earnings quality (2) profitability, audit quality, and leverage partially have an insignificant effect towards earnings quality (3) profitability, firm age, firm size, audit quality, and leverage simultaneously have a significant effect towards voluntary auditor switching. Keywords: ERC, earnings quality, profitability, firm age, firm size, audit quality, leverage.

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