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SMEs are unable to achieve their goals by themselves, they need support and
resources from external factors such as other firms, supporting institutions and
relatives and friends. thus, studies have argued that the success of small firms depend
on the supporting networks(Donckels and lambrecht, 1995)
Realizing this, the researcher decided to assess the impact of networking on the
performance of SMEs in Tanzania as the case of Arusha city. Specifically the study
assessed the contribution of networking on productivity of SMEs, the role of
networking on market accessibility of SMEs, and determined the contribution of
networking on profitability of SMEs.
The study used survey research design and it involved 40 SMEs from Arusha city.
The structured questionnaires were distributed by the researcher to these 40
respondents (SMEs) for data collection. Convenience sampling technique was used to
select 40 SMEs involved in this study. Data collected from survey questionnaire were
analyzed by using the statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS).
From the study, it was found that networking through ICT was used by SMEs in their
daily activities and was helpful in productivity, market accessibility and profitability
of their businesses which included increase of their businesses functionality, increase
in profit margin and enabled them to advertise their products and services.
The study concluded that, networking through the usage of ICT usage is vital in SMEs
and therefore, there is a need for SMEs support in knowledge management to achieve
their business goals. The study hence recommended for ICT trainings and a wellarticulated
policy which will focus on ICT usage in SMEs specifically on the costs
reduction of ICT related equipments. |
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