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Small Business Training to Improve Management Practices in Developing Countries: Reassessing the Evidence for 'Training Doesn’t Work'

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dc.contributor.authorMcKenzie, David
dc.date.accessioned2020-09-24T20:39:50Z
dc.date.available2020-09-24T20:39:50Z
dc.date.issued2020-09
dc.description.abstractDespite the popularity of business training among policy makers, the use of business training has faced increasing skepticism. This is, in part, fueled by the fact that most of the first wave of randomized experiments in developing countries could not detect statistically significant impacts of training on firms' profits or sales. This paper revisits and reassesses the evidence for whether small business training works, incorporating the results of more recent studies. A meta-analysis of these estimates suggests that training increases profits and sales on average by 5 to 10 percent. The author argues that this is in line with what is optimistic to expect given the relatively short length of most training programs, and the expected return on investment from the cost of such training. However, impacts of this magnitude are too small for most experiments to detect statistically. Emerging evidence is provided on five approaches for improving the effectiveness of traditional training by incorporating gender, kaizen methods, localization and mentoring, heuristics, and psychology. Training programs that incorporate these elements appear to deliver improvements over traditional training programs on average, although with considerable variation. Given that training delivers some benefits for firms, the challenge is then how to deliver a quality program on a cost-effective basis at a much larger scale. Three possible approaches to scaling up training are discussed: using the market, using technology, or targeting and funneling firms.en
dc.identifierhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/593081600709463800/Small-Business-Training-to-Improve-Management-Practices-in-Developing-Countries-Reassessing-the-Evidence-for-Training-Doesn-t-Work
dc.identifier.doi10.1596/1813-9450-9408
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10986/34506
dc.languageEnglish
dc.publisherWorld Bank, Washington, DC
dc.relation.ispartofseriesPolicy Research Working Paper;No. 9408
dc.rightsCC BY 3.0 IGO
dc.rights.holderWorld Bank
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo
dc.subjectBUSINESS TRAINING
dc.subjectMICROENTERPRISES
dc.subjectMANAGEMENT PRACTICES
dc.subjectSOFT SKILLS
dc.subjectENTREPRENEURSHIP EDUCATION
dc.subjectKAIZEN METHODS
dc.subjectMENTORING
dc.subjectPSYCHOLOGY
dc.titleSmall Business Training to Improve Management Practices in Developing Countriesen
dc.title.subtitleReassessing the Evidence for 'Training Doesn’t Work'en
dc.typeWorking Paperen
dc.typeDocument de travailfr
dc.typeDocumento de trabajoes
dspace.entity.typePublication
okr.crossref.titleSmall Business Training to Improve Management Practices in Developing Countries: Reassessing the Evidence for “Training Doesn'T Work”
okr.date.disclosure2020-09-21
okr.doctypePublications & Research
okr.doctypePublications & Research::Policy Research Working Paper
okr.docurlhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/593081600709463800/Small-Business-Training-to-Improve-Management-Practices-in-Developing-Countries-Reassessing-the-Evidence-for-Training-Doesn-t-Work
okr.guid593081600709463800
okr.identifier.doi10.1596/1813-9450-9408
okr.identifier.externaldocumentum090224b087deb7a2_1_0
okr.identifier.internaldocumentum32422037
okr.identifier.reportWPS9408
okr.importedtrueen
okr.language.supporteden
okr.pdfurlhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/593081600709463800/pdf/Small-Business-Training-to-Improve-Management-Practices-in-Developing-Countries-Reassessing-the-Evidence-for-Training-Doesn-t-Work.pdfen
okr.statistics.combined8862
okr.statistics.dr593081600709463800
okr.statistics.drstats6440
okr.topicPrivate Sector Development::Business Development Services
okr.topicPrivate Sector Development::Enterprise Development & Reform
okr.topicPrivate Sector Development::Microenterprises
okr.topicPrivate Sector Development::Organizational Management
okr.topicSocial Protections and Labor::Skills Development and Labor Force Training
okr.unitDevelopment Research Group, Development Economics
relation.isAuthorOfPublication148d6d6d-76e5-5d6f-9af9-98313e30551f
relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscovery148d6d6d-76e5-5d6f-9af9-98313e30551f
relation.isSeriesOfPublication26e071dc-b0bf-409c-b982-df2970295c87
relation.isSeriesOfPublication.latestForDiscovery26e071dc-b0bf-409c-b982-df2970295c87
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