Kier, Jessica2024-09-182024-09-182021Kier, Jessica. (2021). Entrepreneurial Orientation and Performance within the South African Minibus Taxi Industry [PhD thesis, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg]. WireDSpace.https://hdl.handle.net/10539/40945https://hdl.handle.net/10539/40945A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Management in Entrepreneurship and New Venture Creation, Johannesburg 2021The primary purpose of this research is to understand the relationship between the three dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation within the South African minibus taxi industry. This industry is pivotal to the South African economic structure and landscape as a whole. The taxi industry serves as the main mode of public transport in South Africa. A survey was used to conduct an empirical research study. A sample size of 120 participants was originally selected; however, of those 120, only 95 surveys were valid and used due to missing values in the data provided in the others. This sample size is representative of the population concerning the taxi industry. The research instrument included a 7-point Likert scale. Further, the instrument included demographic coverage and sections covering the three entrepreneurial orientations’ dimensions. The aim of this study is to understand the extent to which entrepreneurial orientation enables small- to medium-enterprise growth performance within the South African taxi industry. Empirical data to support research suppositions is difficult to access within the public domain, but this research identified and provided an analysis extracted from private enterprise which fills the gap in the current research literature space. The results indicated a weak positive influence between the three dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation and growth performance within the industry. Due to the significance of the findings, the results are not strong enough for generalising the same findings for the entire South African minibus taxi population. This industry is the main source of public transport within the country and needs to increase its literature in order to grow and further improve. Further findings can contribute to the understanding of the complexity that surrounds the industry’s atmosphere. The value of working to formulate constructive information on the taxi industry will allow for further engagement within the fielden© 2021 University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.EntrepreneurshipGrowthInnovationMinibus taxiSMESouth AfricaUCTDSDG-8: Decent work and economic growthThesisUniversity of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg