From Entrepreneurial Capacity to Financial Performance: The Mediating Role of Competitiveness among MSMEs in South Sulawesi, Indonesia

Abstract

This study examines how distinct entrepreneurial capacities are associated with owner-reported financial performance among micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), with competitiveness considered as a market-level intervening mechanism. A cross-sectional survey of 240 MSME owners and managers in South Sulawesi, Indonesia, was conducted during November–December 2025 using proportionate regional quotas and non-probability respondent selection. Entrepreneurial knowledge, skills, attitude and behavior, technological mastery, competitiveness, and financial performance were measured using five-point Likert scales. Two multiple-regression models were estimated, and indirect associations were assessed using product-of-coefficients and Sobel tests. Entrepreneurial knowledge and technological mastery were positively associated with competitiveness. Entrepreneurial skills, technological mastery, and competitiveness were positively associated with financial performance, while knowledge showed no significant direct association. Entrepreneurial attitude and behavior showed a small negative conditional association. The indirect association of knowledge through competitiveness was positive but statistically marginal, whereas technological mastery showed significant direct and indirect associations. Skills and attitude/behavior showed no significant indirect associations. The findings support capacity heterogeneity and selective resource conversion, indicating that entrepreneurial capacities operate through different pathways to financial outcomes.