Brand, Quality, and CSR: Which Management Strategy Achieves High Financial Performance for Agricultural Small-Medium Enterprises?

• Published in: SAGE open Vol. 13; no. 4
• Main Author: Fan, Fan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.10.2023; SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC; SAGE Publishing
• Subjects: Social responsibility; agricultural small-medium enterprises; corporate social responsibility; financial performance; brand; configurational perspective; quality
• ISSN: 2158-2440; 2158-2440
• DOI: 10.1177/21582440231219911

This study aims to investigate the mechanism for the combined influence of brand, quality, and corporate social responsibility management strategy on financial performance. These management concepts are positively used in agricultural small-medium enterprises as three research streams. However, because of resource limitations, the cost of brand management would be a burden or corporate social responsibility activities may lead to harmful performance. There are many conflicting findings in the existing research. This study analyzed data from 371 agricultural small-medium enterprises in China using fsQCA 3.0. The result reveals four solution pathways for achieving high financial performance and highlights the attributes of each solution pathway. The findings suggest that integrating brand, quality, and corporate social responsibility management, or combining brand and quality management are effective options for achieving high financial performance in agricultural small-medium enterprises. These results have significant implications for managers seeking to improve their firm’s financial performance by optimizing their management strategies. JEL Classification: M14, M31, Q13 Plain Language Summary Boosting Financial Performance in Agricultural Small-Medium Enterprises: The Impact of Brand, Quality, and CSR Management Strategies This study explores how the combined use of brand, quality, and corporate social responsibility management strategies affects the financial performance of small to medium-sized agricultural enterprises. These strategies have been seen as beneficial in the agricultural sector, but implementing them all can be costly due to limited resources. It is also uncertain whether corporate social responsibility efforts might negatively impact performance, as previous research has conflicting findings on this topic. To investigate this, we analyzed data from 371 small to medium-sized agricultural enterprises in China using a specific analytical tool. Our analysis unveiled four distinct approaches that lead to strong financial performance, and we provided details about each of these approaches. The findings indicate that integrating brand, quality, and corporate social responsibility management strategies, or combining brand and quality management, are effective ways for these agricultural businesses to achieve strong financial performance. These results are important for managers looking to enhance their company’s financial performance by making smart choices about how they manage their brand, quality, and corporate social responsibility efforts.