Identification and analysis of factors affecting the development of small and medium businesses in Iraq

Abstract

The main goal of this research is to identify and analyze the factors affecting the development of small and medium businesses in Iraq. This research is placed in the mixed group (qualitative-quantitative) in terms of practical purpose and in terms of paradigm. In order to analyze the data in the qualitative part, the inductive content analysis method was used, and in the quantitative part, pairwise (binary) comparisons with the AHP technique were used to rank the categories. The study population of this research includes faculty members, entrepreneurship experts and small and medium business owners in Iraq, who were selected through theoretical and targeted sampling. According to the knowledge of the researcher and considering the objectives of the research, interviews were conducted with 32 academic staff members, experts and experts of entrepreneurship and business development in Iraq. Collecting research data in the qualitative part with two documentary-library methods, field observation and interview, and in the quantitative part through the pairwise comparison questionnaire. The results showed that after analyzing and coding the information obtained from the interview, 14 main categories were extracted, which were classified from the most important to the least important categories after ranking. These categories in order of importance are as follows: human capital management, market and marketing, technology and innovation, policies and laws, support, organizational culture, networking and social capital, risk management, research and development, access to resources, access to infrastructure, environmental sustainability, security and establishment and positive economic status.