Understanding small-scale apparel firms’ performance in Tanzania: Structure-conduct-performance paradigm survey results

This study used Structure-Conduct-Performance paradigm and New Institutional Economics analytical frameworks to examine how firms conduct in small-scale apparel making enterprises relate to performance. This is because enterprises are neither passively responding to macro environment, nor are they fully subservient to the influence of external competition. Instead, enterprises adopt conducts, which could explain differences in performance given that they operate under the same market structure. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) has been shown that the conduct of firms in organizational functions results in significant mean performance differences. The conclusion was that far from disregarding the importance of macro environmental factors, firm conduct is quite important in determining performance. Policy makers and development partners could improve performance in small apparel making firms by promoting sub-sector specific training programs that will help entrepreneurs in adopting appropriate conducts.