New Product Development Practices and Growth of Small and Medium Enterprises in Greater Kampala Metropolitan Area, Uganda

Abstract

Small and medium enterprises play an important role in the economies of developed and developing countries across the globe. SMEs contribute approximately 20% of GDP in most developing countries. Thus, their growth and survival has become of great concern for most developing countries. Previous studies have indicated that new product development practices have been identified as a successful tool for small and medium enterprises towards satisfying the changing needs of the market and to remain competitive. Apparently, due to a weak link between new product development and Growth of SMEs in Uganda, it appears that there is need for a greater emphasis on studies that link new product development and growth of SMEs. In this study mixed methods approach and cross-sectional research designs were used to establish the effect of new product development on growth of small and medium enterprises in greater Kampala metropolitan area on a sample of 226 top administrators of SMEs. Findings revealed approximately a large correlation between new product development practices and growth of SMEs. Linear regression results revealed that 31.92% of growth of SMEs according to this study was explained by variations in new product development practices.