Financial management of the company. Are there differences of opinion between owners and managers in the SME segment?

Abstract

Research background: Financial management of small and medium-sized enterprises is an important area of corporate governance. The quality of financial management has a significant impact on the sustainability and development of these enterprises. In this context, there is a scientific interest to investigate how aspects of financial management are perceived by business owners and how they are considered by business managers.   Purpose of the article: The aim of the article is to define and quantify the important attitudes in the field of financial management and to make a comparison of the attitudes of owners and managers of SMEs in this area. Methods: In order to achieve this objective, an empirical research was conducted to investigate the attitudes of small and medium-sized firms in the area of financial management, was conducted in June 2022 in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. In the Czech Republic, the total number of respondents was 347, of which 170 (49.0%) were owners and 177 (51.0%) were managers in senior management positions. In the Slovak Republic, the total number of respondents was 322, of which 179 were owners and 143 were managers.  Findings & Value added: The attitudes of owners and managers in understanding the most important aspects of financial management are relatively high in both countries, and these attitudes were similar. Perceptons of financial risk differ between owners and managers in the Czech Republic. Financial risk is better perceived in the category of managers than in the category of SMEs owners. The correct perception of financial risk in Slovakia is at a slightly higher level than in the Czech Republic, while the perception of owners and managers is very similar. Business owners in both countries confirmed that they are better able to manage financial risks in the firm than managers (however, these differences were not statistically significant). Managers in Czech firms were more positive about financial performance compared to owners (statistically significant difference). Similarly in Slovakia (however, this was a statistically insignificant difference). These findings may be inspiring for the scientific field and also for economic policy in these countries.