The Influence of Market Competition, Environmental Uncertainty, and Technological Innovation on SME Performance: The Mediating Role of Strategic Management Accounting in Culinary SMEs in South Tangerang City

Abstract

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are vital to Indonesia’s economic growth, with the culinary sector in South Tangerang expanding rapidly amid intense competition, uncertainty, and technological change. Preliminary observations of 15 culinary SME owners revealed rising competition and reliance on manual financial recording. This study examines the influence of market competition, environmental uncertainty, and technological innovation on SME performance, with Strategic Management Accounting (SMA) as an intervening variable. A quantitative approach sampled 129 owners/managers of culinary SMEs operating ≥2 years with ≥5 employees, selected via purposive sampling across seven subdistricts. Data were collected using five-point Likert scales and analyzed with PLS-SEM in SmartPLS 4. All indicators met validity and reliability criteria. Results show environmental uncertainty and technological innovation positively affect SMA, while market competition does not. Market competition and technological innovation positively affect SME performance, while environmental uncertainty does not. SMA positively affects performance, fully mediating environmental uncertainty’s effect and partially mediating technological innovation’s effect, but not market competition’s. SMA serves as a strategic mechanism translating uncertainty and innovation into improved performance, supporting Contingency Theory and the Resource-Based View.