Regalías

This research represents the first attempt to replicate and test the universal model of the World Economic Forum’s 16 most problematic factors to doing business. This research also represents another first in examining the impact of a nation’s global competitiveness on small business growth. Of greater significance is that this research provides an insight to Canadian small business challenges compared to the overwhelming studies from other western nations, especially the United States.

As a summary, this research has made six major contributions: 1. dentified the significant barriers faced by small firms

2. Identified the significant barriers faced by small firms by province/region, type of business and employee size.

3. Recommended prioritization of resources to overcome the barriers according to the magnitude of the problem, from most problematic to somewhat problematic. 4. Reviewed and identified trends from Canada’s global competitiveness

performance over a six-year period.

5. Identified the weak pillars and respective indicators that need attention.

6. Proposed recommendations to overcome small business barriers related to tax, access to financing and poor work ethic.

This research has its limitations which form the two key recommendations for future research:

1. Enlarge demographic categories for significance testing. The researcher has to determine the province, type of business, employee size or even new variables such as gender and ethnicity for an in-depth study or comparative studies. . 2. Test model across business sectors. As further research is needed to generalize the

model to broader settings, future studies may examine, for example, the needs of small firms in the oil and gas industry.

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Appendix 1: External and Internal Factors Influencing the 16 Most Problematic