Agribusiness Firms’ Resources and Performance: The Mediation Role of Strategic Management Practices

Abstract

This study investigated the relationship between firms’ resources, strategic management practices and performance of small agribusiness firms. The objective was to demonstrate the role of strategic management practices in facilitating effective use of firms’ resources to achieve their agribusiness performance. Results from a structural equation model using a sample of 229 agribusiness firms from Tanzania indicated that the investigated resources alone do not directly contribute to a firm’s performance unless there is application of strategic management as a potential mediator. Further investigation based on multi-group analysis showed three groups of firms, which differed in their resourcesperformance relationship. The results imply that managers ought to identify a fit between their resources and strategic actions in order to enhance firms’ performance. The study provides manifold managerial implications for small firms that seek to improve their performance. [EconLit citations: J24, M31, Q13, Q18].