Pedagogic Practices Associated with Management Development: A Study of Growing Small Firms

To ascertain whether there are similarities or differences in the nature and extent of pedagogic practices associated with management development in three categories of growing small and mediumsized enterprises (SMEs). The results show managing directors, and managers with formal (tertiary) qualifications, including business management, are positively correlated with business growth. There is also a significant positive association between managers undertaking formal business management training, and business growth. Taken together, these results are consistent with the general training and development literature which notes an increase in formal pedeagogic practices with enterprise size. The results also show managing directors in lower growth SMEs are unlikely to be formally qualified, nor are managers in low growth SMEs. These managers are also unlikely to be engaged in formal business management education, indicating low growth firms are unlikely to sponsor formal management learning and development initiatives or participate in structured, credentialed training. However, analysis also demonstrated the overwhelming majority of moderate and high growth SMEs have formally, tertiary qualified managers, and provide managers with formal business/management training, indicating substantive differences in the pedagogic practices associated with management development between three categories of growing small businesses. A tentative explanation for these findings relating to the existence (or lack thereof) of internal labour markets is presented.