Does the curriculum of a Bachelor program in International Business meet the competency requirements of internationalizing SMEs?

This paper contributes to the research on discrepancy between employers´ needs and graduates’ competencies acquired at bachelor education. Given the fact that internationalizing SMEs have considered international relation competency (IRC) to be the key competency for starting export professionals, this qualitative study examines whether this key competency with its selected knowledge, skills and attitudes has been integrated into the curriculum of a bachelor program in International Business at a Dutch University of Applied Sciences. Based on a document analysis of this bachelor program and interviews with lecturers and alumni of this program, we found that the training of international relationship competency is almost absent in the curriculum. Both lecturers and alumni envision skills and attitude development to be incorporated into the curriculum of this internationally oriented bachelor program. The findings offer some suggestions for further research concerning developing cooperation between business and education and the assessment of international relation competency within the context of IB education.

Entrepreneurs’ Competencies and Competitive Advantages: A Study on Malaysian Microenterprises

Considering the significance of relevant competencies towards business success and the dependency of socio-economical vulnerable micro-entrepreneurs on their enterprise income, this study examined the effect of entrepreneurs’ competencies (i.e., opportunity recognizing competency, strategic competency, organizing competency, relationship competency, conceptual competency and commitment competency) on the competitive advantage of microenterprises in Malaysia. This study adopted a cross-sectional research design and collected quantitative data from 300 randomly selected respondents from Peninsular Malaysia. The findings revealed significant positive effects of organizing and commitment competency on the competitive advantage with a significantly negative effect of relationship competency on the competitive advantage. Apart from enriching the current literature, this study offers significant policy implications for the government and socio-developmental organizations in Malaysia for improving the micro-entrepreneurship and uplifting large low-income groups from poverty.

INFLUENCE OF ENTREPRENEURIAL COMPETENCIES OF WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS ON THE PERFORMANCE OF SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES IN THUA THIEN HUE PROVINCE

<p><strong>Abstract</strong>: This study investigates the influence of entrepreneurial competencies of women entrepreneurs on the performance of small and medium enterprises (SME’s) in Thua Thien Hue province. Using data obtained from 200 female owners, we have found statistically significant support for nine proposed hypotheses. The results indicate that entrepreneurial competencies, namely Opportunity competency, Relationship competency, Strategic competency, Personal competency, Commitment competency, Learning competency, Organizing-leading competency, Conceptual competency, and Ethical competency, have a direct effect on firm performance. More specifically, Personal competency is the strongest predictor of firm performance with the highest regression weight of 0.209. This study is intended for use by business practitioners, educators, and policymakers in an attempt to develop the right mix competencies in generating more SMEs performance.</p><p><strong>Keywords</strong><strong>:</strong> women entrepreneur, entrepreneurial competencies, SME, performance</p>

The Mediating Effect of Innovation on Entrepreneurial Competencies and Business Success in Malaysian SMEs

The purpose of this paper is to explore the extent of entrepreneurial competencies and innovation on business success in SMEs in Malaysia. Specifically, this study tested the mediating role of product innovation and process innovation between the relationship of entrepreneurial competencies and business success. The statical sample population of this research includes 407 owner and manager involved in SMEs, both manufacturing and services &amp; other sectors. For data collection, a standard questionnaire using seven-point Likert scale and 72 items was used to evaluate 12 entrepreneurial competencies (strategic competency, commitment competency, conceptual competency, opportunity competency, organising and leading competency, relationship competency, learning competency, personal competency, technical competency, familism competency, ethical competency &amp; social responsibility competency), seven items for innovation (product &amp; process innovation) and, ten items for business success (financial &amp; non-financial). Four hypotheses were developed in this study. The SPSS version 21.0 and Structural equation model (SEM)-AMOS version 21.0 techniques were used. The findings indicate that there is a positive and significant relationship between the entrepreneurial competencies and innovation on business success in SMEs. Moreover, there is a positive and significant relationship between all dimension of competencies and business success. The product innovation and process innovation served as partial mediator between entrepreneurial competencies and business success. Limitations and implications for future studies are discussed.

KOMPETENSI MAHASISWA JURUSAN AKUNTANSI DAN KESIAPANNYA DALAM MENGHADAPI DUNIA KERJA ERA MASYARAKAT EKONOMI ASEAN (MEA )

The objective of this research is to know accounting student’s competency andtheir readiness to enter working environment in ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) era. Accounting student’s competency measured by ethical competency, knowledge competency, capability competency, relationship competency, and analysis competency. This research used primary data from questionnaires given to Tarumanagara University accounting students as respondents. The result of this research showed that Tarumanagara University accounting students have adequate ethical, capability, relationship, and analysis competency, but still not adequate for knowledge competency. Ethical, knowledge, and capability competency have significant influences to accounting student’s readiness, while relationship and analysis competency have insignificant influences to accounting student’s readiness to enter working environment in AEC era.