An exploratory study of the leadership development path of Moroccan SMEs entrepreneurs

Abstract

Leadership is considered a critical success a critical success factor for small and medium-sized businesses. The objective of this paper is to examine entrepreneurial leadership. Our work attempts to shed light on the role of influences and opinions in the development of entrepreneurial leadership among Moroccan SME owner-managers. Drawing on the literature on entrepreneurial leadership, this study uses the historical narrative qualitative approach to explore the leadership development journey of 12 Moroccan SME founder-leaders over their lifetimes. The results of this study serve to highlight the different themes that reflect a contextual social process and its influence on the leadership qualities and behaviors of the SME owner-managers. Six major interconnected themes emerge that begin in childhood, namely the dominant influence of parents on leadership qualities and behaviors, the influence of school on leadership perspectives, styles, and abilities. The importance of sports activities in shaping leadership qualities and identities the dominant influence of role models on leadership perceptions and behaviors, the importance of self-learning, experimentation, and self-reflection in developing entrepreneurial capabilities, and the importance of community social networks in gaining support for the development of a business venture. The main contribution of this study resides in the broader understanding of the leadership development pathway of Moroccan SME owner-managers and its different impacts with a qualitative historical and narrative method for developing data for analysis.

Keywords: Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), Leadership Development, innovation climate, Moroccan owner-managers, entrepreneurial leadership.

classification JEL: M10, O15

Paper type: Empirical research.