Female entrepreneurial orientation and firm performance: with special reference to Sri Lanka

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine how entrepreneurial orientation influences firm performance of female entrepreneurs in Sri Lanka. The proposed conceptual model delineates the direct relationship between innovativeness, proactiveness, risk-taking, autonomy and competitive aggressiveness - the five dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation - and firm performance of female-owned entrepreneurial firms. This study used a randomly selected sample of 267 female-owned entrepreneurial firms in Sri Lanka to test the hypothesised relationships between the constructs; structural equation modelling was performed. The findings of this study confirmed that entrepreneurial orientation has a positive effect on firm performance of female-owned entrepreneurial firms in Sri Lanka. Particularly, findings confirm that all five dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation (innovativeness, proactiveness, risk-taking, autonomy and competitive aggressiveness) have a positive impact on the performance of these firms. Thus, entrepreneurial orientation is a mechanism and a strategy for the success and the survival of female-owned entrepreneurial firms.