The COVID-19 lessons learned for business and governance

Due to the vast number of countries that have been affected, the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has brought about a devastating global financial crisis. This commentary considers the ongoing COVID-19 recession, its global economic impact, the responses from governments, future projections, business and governance lessons learned so far, as well as future research prospects. In doing so, two key questions are considered: what can we draw from this unprecedented ongoing crisis so as not to experience the same scale of pandemic and recession in the future? What did we do wrong and what can be changed for good to reshape our businesses and economies? The author aims to provide key takeaways for resilient and sustainable organizations, corporate governance, and compensation systems.

Innovation practices for survival of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the COVID-19 times: the role of external support

Global epidemic crises, such as the coronavirus (COVID-19), usually expose small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to various kinds of challenges and may put their lives at risk. This study aims to develop a theoretical model to provide insights about the association between innovation practices and the SMEs' performance and survival while underlining the auxiliary role of external support in such a relationship. Online questionnaire has been used to collect the data from 259 randomly selected SME managers in Saudi Arabia, and the data was analyzed using the SmartPLS3 software. The structural equation modeling results showed that the innovation practices adopted by SMEs to face the repercussions of COVID-19 had a positive impact on the performance and likelihood of business survival. PLS-SEM bootstrap results indicated that external support aids strengthen the positive impact of SMEs' innovation practices on business survival rather than its performance. The study has several significant practical implications for SME managers, governments, and policy makers that have been stated.

Innovation practices for survival of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the COVID-19 times: the role of external support

Global epidemic crises, such as the coronavirus (COVID-19), usually expose small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to various kinds of challenges and may put their lives at risk. This study aims to develop a theoretical model to provide insights about the association between innovation practices and the SMEs' performance and survival while underlining the auxiliary role of external support in such a relationship. Online questionnaire has been used to collect the data from 259 randomly selected SME managers in Saudi Arabia, and the data was analyzed using the SmartPLS3 software. The structural equation modeling results showed that the innovation practices adopted by SMEs to face the repercussions of COVID-19 had a positive impact on the performance and likelihood of business survival. PLS-SEM bootstrap results indicated that external support aids strengthen the positive impact of SMEs' innovation practices on business survival rather than its performance. The study has several significant practical implications for SME managers, governments, and policy makers that have been stated.