Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are central to economic development and employment generation, particularly in emerging economies such as Bangladesh. This study investigates the determinants of small business performance using firm-level data from 1,603 enterprises drawn from the World Bank Enterprise Survey. The analysis examines how firm characteristics, business strategies—specifically business planning, record-keeping and customer orientation—and owner attributes influence performance outcomes. Owner education is introduced as a moderating variable to assess its effect on the relationship between strategic planning and firm performance. Employing a multivariate moderation regression framework, the results reveal that owner education significantly strengthens the positive association between business planning and performance. The findings highlight the importance of owner–manager education in effectively implementing business strategies to enhance the resilience and performance of SME in Bangladesh.

SMEs, business strategy, firm performance, owner education

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