Londiwe Thandazi Zulu

Strategic management accounting (SMA) is essential for small enterprises to enhance business decision-making and optimize resource allocation, thereby fostering competitiveness and long-term sustainability in dynamic markets. The study aims to investigate the factors influencing the adoption of SMA by small enterprises in South Africa, using KwaZulu-Natal as a case study. To achieve this objective, a quantitative and cross-sectional design was employed, utilizing a questionnaire and covering 191 SEs owners. The research framework is based on contingency theory, and data analysis was performed using Stata. The vector autoregression analysis indicates that the adoption of SMA is driven by its perceived ability to address financial aspects such as cash management, decision-making regarding return on investment, and financial variance analysis. Furthermore, SMA adoption is influenced by its effectiveness in addressing non-financial factors, such as customer service. The observed relationships between SMA adoption and both financial and non-financial factors are all statistically significant at the 0.000 level. These findings underscore the critical role of SMA for small enterprises in South Africa, emphasizing its significance in their success and long-term sustainability.