Financing problems and the lack of entrepreneurship in Albania: findings from small and medium enterprises

The subject of this paper is an overall analysis of the Albanian business environment, with special emphasis on the lack of entrepreneurship and managerial skills in Albania. Our questionnaire research (226 out of 350 questionnaires collected) underlined the financing problems that the Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) face in the Albanian business environment. According to the findings of the questionnaire survey of the companies interviewed, one-third of the managers were family members, and most Albanian enterprises displayed a preference for local managers, while others did not employ a manager or an economist at all. Furthermore, the majority of managers had not studied abroad and more than half of them had not participated at all in any seminar to upgrade their managerial skills. Finally, it is safe to conclude that Albanian enterprises lack entrepreneurship and managerial skills necessary for a company's survival in a modern business environment.Albania; entrepreneurship; financing problems; transition economies; planned economy; managerial skills; small and medium enterprises; SMEs; business environment; local management.