Entrepreneurship Skills and Performance of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) In South-East, Nigeria

This study examined the effect of entrepreneurship skills on the performance of SMEs in South-East, Nigeria. The study aimed to investigate; the effect of personality skills on product performance of SMEs and the effect of communication skills on sales performance of SMEs in South-East, Nigeria. Relevant literature were reviewed and the study was anchored on the Schumpeter’s theory of innovation and opportunity-based theory. Descriptive survey research design was adopted. The survey instrument used in this study was structured questionnaire with 5 Likert scale response. The population of the study comprised 7061 registered SMES in South-East. The statistical formula by Borg and Gall was employed to determine the sample size of 1377. The instruments were subjected to face and content validity. The reliability of the questionnaire was established through the testretest and Cronbach Alpha. Simple percentage analysis was used in analyzing the research question. Hypotheses for the study were tested using Liner regression analysis. The result from the findings revealed that personality skills had a positive significant effect on product performance of Small and medium enterprises. Communication skills has a significant effect on sales performance of Small and medium enterprises. The study concluded that entrepreneurship skills had a positive significant effect on the performance of small and medium enterprises in in South-East, Nigeria. The study recommended that managements of organizations need to ensure that recruitment of the right job candidates should be based on s personality skills and experience. Business owners should be given some training and retraining of the skills involved in the use of these information technology facilities for effective business performance. The contributed to the theory and practice of entrepreneurship skills on the performance of small and medium enterprises as it relates to management and employees’ behavioral outcomes in the small and medium enterprises sector.