The impact of supply chain risks on organisation performance of SMEs in Zimbabwe

Abstract

The study analysed the effect of supply chain risks on performance of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Zimbabwe. The main dependent variable performance was measures as efficiency, effectiveness and profitability whilst the supply chain risks were finance risk, collaboration risk and logistics risk. The study employed a linear regression model to analyse this relationship and concluded that there is a negative relationship between supply chain risks and performance of SMES. For instance, at 1 per cent level of significance, logistic risk was found to have a negatively effect on effectiveness by around 11%. The study revealed that SMEs in Zimbabwe are highly vulnerable to various types of supply chain risks. These risks include but are not limited to transportation disruptions (logistics risk), inventory shortages, supplier reliability (collaboration risk), finance risk, and demand variability. The main recommendation was to train the SMEs on how to counter the risks experienced in the business