SMES GROWTH AND HUMAN CAPITAL INVESTMENTS (THE CASE OF POLAND)

Urban PAULI

Authors

Urban PAULI Cracow University of Economics, urban.pauli@uek.krakow.pl https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0196-451X

Keywords:

Human resources, Human Capital, Competitive advantage, Firm Goal, Entrepreneurship.

Abstract

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) face more threats and challenges than their larger counterparts. [It] This situation is caused mostly by the limited access to resources or their unavailability. That is why SMEs have to manage carefully their resources, plan growth and calculate investments in order to achieve the highest possible return. Many authors claim that one of the most valuable resource for any firm is the human capital (HC); it may be the source of competitive advantage. This article touches upon the relationship between SMEs growth and human capital investments. The main question is whether there is any relationship between the stage of SMEs growth and investments in HC. Do investments in HC support SMEs performance on every stage of their growth? The results of the research conducted on 219 Polish SMEs. On the basis of conducted analysis it can be stated that the share of investments in HC vary in subsequent stages. Moreover HC seems to impose SMEs’ performance only in the mature stages, when organisations are well developed and have achieved an appropriate market position.

Author Biography

Urban PAULI, Cracow University of Economics, urban.pauli@uek.krakow.pl

Dr., Cracow University of Economics, urban.pauli@uek.krakow.pl

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