Evaluating the impact of Enterprise and Supplier Development programs - A qualitative study on Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in South Africa

Abstract

Unemployment and poverty are major problems within South Africa, which have resulted in bigger companies working with Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs). Reducing poverty and creating new jobs will positively impact the economic growth in South Africa. This research was conducted at one of South Africa’s biggest retailers Pick n Pay and aims towards investigating and evaluating their Enterprise and Supplier Development (ESD) programs’ impact on the SME’s development and performance. This study shows that the ESD program has a major impact on SMEs, regardless of their size. One important aspect that this study address is that the support and assistance from the ESD program can differ from case to case and that the SMEs gets mentorship that is trailered to their specific needs. The study has also shown that even though the ESD program provides the SMEs with all possible support, is it still the market and buyer that will determine whether a product will reach the market or not. In other words, the ESD program can assist the SMEs and have an extensive impact, it is also important to consider external factors and their impact.