Toward the development of entrepreneurial career competencies in South Africa

Abstract

In South Africa, entrepreneurship as a possible career choice is promoted through the development of Entrepreneurial career competencies (ECCs). Yet, competency assessment approaches have been principally developed in a Global North context and hence may be less applicable to entrepreneurship in the Global South, including South Africa. This study aims to validate an entrepreneurial career competencies instrument by measuring 14 uniquely identified ECCs on a heterogeneous sample of 1,305 South African entrepreneurs. Item analysis, principal component analysis (PCA), exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM) were conducted. The findings suggest a reliable 57-item instrument; a second-order four-factor model was confirmed as appropriate for the 14 ECCs. The South African instrument differs from other entrepreneurial competency instruments, as it includes key psychological competencies that contribute to the development of an entrepreneurial mindset. From a practical perspective, the instrument includes social and managerial dimensions that can be used to identify low-performing ECCs and provide specific training and development to enhance the identified ECCs.