An examination of the management challenges faced by growing SCEs in South Wales

Entrepreneurship and small business development has been subject to a considerable amount of academic speculation. Previous studies contend that small fast growth firms are more likely to have developed or acquired managerial practices in areas such as human resource management, finance and marketing. Despite this evidence there is little known as to why growing construction firms adopt key management practices. This paper examines how small growth oriented construction firms have adopted management practices to sustain growth. A group interview technique was utilized to examine the management development process within small construction firms in the South Wales area. The research revealed that while management practices such as marketing, financial management and planning had been implemented to facilitate growth, the importance of these practices often varied across firms. Nevertheless, firms that continued to be growth oriented were more inclined to consider the strategic benefits that certain practices provide. Based on these findings the paper concludes that management training initiatives aimed at improving firm development in the construction industry must be tailored to fit the strategic goals of the firm if they are to engender sustainable growth.