An Ounce of Prevention: What Promotes Crisis Readiness and How Does It Drive Firm Performance?

Organizations develop crisis readiness to avoid and mitigate crises. This study investigates several factors that influence crisis readiness, including market dynamism, perceived likelihood of a crisis (PLC), and firm size. It also evaluates the impact of crisis readiness on firm performance. Results from a PLS-SEM assessment of 301 managers in the United States suggest that market dynamism drives firm performance while heightening both PLC and crisis readiness. When compared to large organizations, managers in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) reported higher PLC but lower crisis readiness, underscoring the challenges faced by small firms regarding crisis preparation. Crisis readiness was also positively linked to both financial and non-financial performance. The model tested in this study supports the influence of external and organizational factors on crisis preparation, as well as subsequent links with firm performance.

Exploring the Nexus Among the Business Coping Strategy

The recession due to COVID- 19 causes uncertainties in the industry's immediate operating landscape as well as other unprecedented impacts. Due to the immense magnitude of impacts posed by recessionary events, this present study proposes the significance of understanding the phenomena while examining the subject of crisis readiness of SMEs during COVID-19 era. The main objective of the study is to examine the impact of business coping strategy and entrepreneurial orientation on the crisis readiness of Pakistani-based SMEs. The study emphasized the necessity of delineating the effects of extremely disastrous and unforeseen events. This is because the understanding of the effects of such cataclysmic event is more important than the prediction of the event's occurrence. The study has employed a Suraya-based method, and data is collected with the aid of a questionnaire. The response rate was 78%, which qualifies the minimum response rate criteria. The SEM-PLS is used to analyse the data. The results of the study have provided support to hypothesized results.