Towards the Factors affecting Small Firm Growth: Review of Previous Studies

The objective of the paper is to review the previous studies on factors affecting small business growth or performance for the period of 2006-2014. The review of the literature of factors affecting small business growth or performance based on the papers available in online and published in referred journals is focused. 34 papers are considered as the primary research topic. Each of the articles has been used as the unit of analysis. The four broad areas of factors has been focused namely owner-manager characteristics, characteristics of firm, financial factors and external environment. The paper provides some ideas and approaches used in the previous literature to describe small business growth and factors affecting the growth. The literatures suggest that there is no unified theory or model to describe small business growth. Although there are many studies on the issue, still the theory of small business growth is very fragmented and inconsistent. The new theoretical perspectives are highly required for the growth process in small businesses sectors. Considering the approaches used in the previous literature, new research approaches may be adapted for more understanding of small business growth and the growth factors.