The relationship between Entrepreneurial Orientation (EO) and SME growth and what variables moderate this relationship has been the topic of a significant number of empirical studies. Many attempt to build comprehensive models that include a wide range of variables. Conclusions from these different empirical studies differ quite a lot. Saeed et al. (2014) explained these different conclusions based on a meta-analysis of 177 studies from 41 countries, where they found that national level factors define what
variables moderate the relationship between EO and SME growth.

Since also not many studies on how this plays out in developing countries are published in leading journals, this research has been conducted in Kazakhstan. For Kazakhstan, growing the SME sector is key to reach its goals to further develop a more robust and
sustainable economic model by decreasing its dependency on the commodity sectors, diversifying the economy, and decreasing the dominant role of the state and State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs). Currently, the SME sector and its contribution to the GDP and
employment is underdeveloped when comparing Kazakhstan to developed and other developing countries.

Additionally, not much research has been done on the inter-related effects between the different business barriers or indirect effects that some constructs might have on the relationship between EO and SME growth. Therefore, the main research question is
“What variables in the external environment of SMEs in Kazakhstan directly or indirectly moderate the relationship between EO and SME growth and how?”.

Several studies identified that qualitative studies are under-represented in quality journals, also on the topic of EO and SME growth, and especially in developing countries. A similar conclusion was made on the under-representation of longitudinal studies. Both methodological research gaps have been addressed in this research by using a mixedmethod and longitudinal research strategy, consisting of four components. First, a literature review has been conducted applying meta-analysis. Second, a first round of interviews of experts and successful entrepreneurs and qualitative analysis has been done in 2018 to identify what variables in the external environment impact SME growth in Kazakhstan and how, and to select the variables most in play as input for the next
research component. Third, a survey among SME owners and directors has been used for the quantitative component of the research to identify the extend of the impact of the different variables on the relationship between EO and SME growth. Finally, a
second round of interviews of experts and successful entrepreneurs and qualitative analysis has been done in 2022 to capture the dynamics of the external environment for SMEs in Kazakhstan.

The first finding of the research is that access to finance, access to human capital, corruption, macro-economic stability, the market structure, and the market size have the strongest impact on SME growth in Kazakhstan – answering the question what variables impact SME growth the most. The second finding is that these variables have both a direct impact on SME growth and an indirect impact. An example is the indirect impact of different variables on market size. The dominance of SOEs, quasi-sovereign
enterprises and oligarch conglomerates (market structure), the practice that affiliated parties of decision makers in the government entities and SOEs often win tenders (corruption), combined with a considerable number of enterprises that are part of the
informal economy, leaves a relatively small market for SMEs to compete in and grow. This is one explanation for the relatively underdeveloped SME sector in Kazakhstan compared to both developed and developing countries, and especially the very limited
number of medium-sized enterprises.

The findings of this mixed-method and longitudinal research provide a comprehensive insight on what variables in the external environment directly and indirectly impact SME growth, to what extend and how. These outcomes provide a valuable starting point for
further research on this in Kazakhstan. In specific quantitative research using statistical analysis methods such as Partial Least Squares could provide further insights on identifying the impact of the most important (based on this research) variables
impacting SME growth and the impact these variables have on each other.

The research strategy, applying a mixed-method and longitudinal design, and the findings can also be a starting point for similar research in other countries, especially developing countries. This can potentially provide a picture closer to the complexities on the ground, and therefore can be better used by governments as policy input to facilitate the growth of the SME sector in Kazakhstan and other countries.