Title: Motivation, self-selection and effects of the business advice program in Slovakia

Authors: Vladimír Baláž; Tomáš Jeck; Miroslav Balog

Addresses: Centre of Social and Psychological Sciences, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Institute for Forecasting, Šancová 56, 813 64 Bratislava, Slovak Republic ' Slovak Academy of Sciences, Institute of Economic Research, Šancová 56, 813 64 Bratislava, Slovak Republic ' Centre of Social and Psychological Sciences, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Institute for Forecasting, Šancová 56, 813 64 Bratislava, Slovak Republic

Abstract: This research analyses the effects of the Slovak business advisory scheme upon firm performance. We examined the effects of the scheme upon the business performance of some 900 firms in four different samples. Our research has some novel elements. Data on economic effects rely on the annual accounts of companies, rather than on surveys. We paid attention to self-selection of applicants and constructed counterfactual samples for both supported and unsupported applicants. Firms supported by the business advice performed significantly better than did those in the control samples. The effect, however, disappeared once self-selection of the scheme was taken into account. Evidence from the participant survey indicated significant non-monetary benefits of the scheme, e.g., the acquisition of analytical and managerial skills. Self-selection may help to identify a pool of highly motivated firms. The next phase of the scheme may target these firms with more tailored and higher-intensity support.

Keywords: small and medium enterprises; business advice; motivation; self-selection.

DOI: 10.1504/IJESB.2024.138769

International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 2024 Vol.52 No.3, pp.283 - 311

Received: 25 Sep 2021
Accepted: 28 Dec 2021
Published online: 31 May 2024 *

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