Public sector entrepreneurship in South Africa
Journal of Entrepreneurship and Public Policy
ISSN: 2045-2101
Article publication date: 30 September 2019
Issue publication date: 18 November 2019
Abstract
Purpose
Many unanswered questions remain regarding the authors’ understanding of how entrepreneurship can be fostered in the public sector. To fill this knowledge gap, the purpose of this paper is to conduct an empirical investigation to determine the relationship between different organisational factors and entrepreneurial orientation (EO) in the South African public sector.
Design/methodology/approach
Primary data are sourced from middle-level managers at municipalities in the three largest provinces across South Africa. Hypotheses are statistically tested using regression analyses.
Findings
Results reveal that the organisational antecedents of structure and culture explain a significant amount of variation in the EO dimensions of innovativeness, risk taking and proactiveness. Additionally, the findings on organisational rewards converge with an emerging stream of research which highlights that while rewards works well to motivate individuals in the private sector, they are negatively correlated with entrepreneurship in the public sector.
Research limitations/implications
The study implications relate to the efficiency and effectiveness of service delivery of municipalities in South Africa. Due to increases in community protest actions, it is necessary not only to maximise efficiency in the provision of services, but also to innovate and be proactive in order to achieve more with less resources.
Originality/value
By investigating previously unrelated factors in the public sector, the authors create closer conceptual and empirical links between the role of organisational factors and each of the EO dimensions. Furthermore, the study takes place in a relatively under-researched entrepreneurship and public sector context.
Keywords
Citation
Urban, B. and Nkhumishe, M.L. (2019), "Public sector entrepreneurship in South Africa", Journal of Entrepreneurship and Public Policy, Vol. 8 No. 4, pp. 500-512. https://doi.org/10.1108/JEPP-08-2019-112
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited