Management Practice for Small Business Survival: A Qualitative Evidence of Rural Micro-Entrepreneur in Sabah, Malaysia

Many previous researchers found that having adequate managerial competencies including planning, organizing, directing and controlling skills in managing a business are significant predictors of firm survival. Arguably, it is assumed that micro-entrepreneurs in rural areas may have little or no managerial competencies than entrepreneur in urban areas due to their remoteness, especially in terms of constraints in formal education, infrastructure, skilled labor and motivation. Notwithstanding, despite of informal management practice among rural entrepreneurs, some of them still managed to run their business successfully through simple management. It is interesting to know how management is practiced by micro-entrepreneurs in rural area. Therefore, this paper aims to explore the management practice of microentrepreneur in Mengkabong Cove, Sabah, by applying the seven business management practice proposed by MacFarlane’s Model, namely planning, marketing, organizing, labor, production and operation, controlling and financial. This study involves qualitative face-to-face interview with an oyster farmer. The findings found that the respondent seemed to demonstrate several elements of management in his farming though in less formal way. In addition, the interview also found that the respondent emphasized on the importance of managing and planning things in order to avoid business loss in the future. It is hoped that this paper contributes to relevant agencies in entrepreneur development especially in rural areas to listen to entrepreneurs on the challenges and problems they face, thus could provide relevant supports or programs for them