Analysis of tech-diversification strategies adopted by technopreneurs: a case study on internationally oriented coconut toddy tech-based small and medium enterprises

Abstract

The coconut industry is an important source of foreign exchange and employment generation for Sri Lanka. This internationally recognized ‘Coconut tree’ or ‘Kapruka’ provides substantial contribution to the wellbeing of domestic people as well as the country’s economy through its foreign earning generation. Pathiraja (2017) stated that in the global arena, export demand function widens its spectrum for more coconut related other products as a function. The main purpose of this research is to evaluate the performance of the TSMEs with the usage of different tech-diversification strategies adopted by the internationally oriented coconut toddy TSMEs. Secondary objectives of this research are identification of the impact and relationship of tech-diversification strategies on the TSMEs performance and determination of the optimum level of crop tech-diversification which maximizes performance of TSMEs. The ratio measures and aggregate measures from financial and physical measures are concerned for the methodology. For the sampling frame, a 58 sample of internationally oriented coconut toddy TSME technopreneurs in Madampe, Dummalasooriya, Kuliyapitiya and Narammala areas in Puttalam and Kurunegala districts in Sri Lanka considered for data collection with the usage of Simple Random Sampling technique. Findings of this research study revealed, overall tech-diversification strategy of the internationalized coconut toddy TSMEs is at a moderate tech-diversification level when considering aggregate financial measures. The level of tech-diversification should maintain at a moderate to high level where continuous and reasonable financial performance should be identified and adequately measured against the tech-diversification levels continuously.