No abstract

cultural dimensions, NAFTA, sexual harassment, whistle-blowing,

This research tried to identify similarities and differences in motives between male urban entrepreneurs from Mexico and Morocco. The Mexican sample of 192 respondents was drawn from Chambers of Commerce listings in Guadalajara and Monterrey. The Moroccan sample of 222 respondents came from the Fès-Meknès region. In both countries a majority of entrepreneurs went into business by necessity and pursued monetary goals in order to secure their financial future for their families and for themselves. Larger cohorts of younger entrepreneurs were present in Mexico, where female spouses tended to be more often involved in their husband’s business and contributing more to family income, as compared to Morocco. In Mexico, a larger proportion of entrepreneurs were also expressing a very strong interest for intrinsic goals involving self-actualization, meeting challenges, while Moroccan respondents were more in search for autonomy and independence besides pursuing extrinsic or financial goals. Results generally confirm results obtained elsewhere in Africa and Latin America.

The need for an income is cited by several studies as a primary motive for both formal and informal business start-up activities found in emerging countries. Conversely, entrepreneurs from developed countries enjoying more favorable economic conditions (such as the United States, Canada, or the European Union) are mainly motivated by intrinsic motives. Given the extant literature, it appeared important to determine which motivators were at play in larger Mexican urban centers, where economic conditions seemed to have become similar to those of Canada and the United States. No significant differences were observed between the motives of female as compared to male entrepreneurs from urban Mexico because a majority went into business primarily for economic reasons rather than for intrinsic motives. Knowing that Mexican entrepreneurs are mostly motivated by economic goals should help local governments in designing policies aimed at fostering and facilitating entrepreneurship.

Key Word: Family business; leaders, owners or managers, profits, SME’s business; SME’s exportingAbstract: The main purpose of this document is to state the importance that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) exporting and non-exporting have, as well as family businesses in Mexico´s economy and specifically in the state of Nuevo Leon. It establishes certain family SMEs, exporting and non-exporting, characteristics to take into consideration by Nuevo Leon leaders that seek success under the determinant of profits. It also locates qualities, from our stand point, classic and contemporaries, recommended for managers and administrators of this type of companies.Palabras Clave: Dueños o administradores, ganancias, líderes, negocios familiares; Pymes, Pymes exportadorasResumen: El presente documento tiene como finalidad plasmar la importancia que tienen las pequeñas y medianas empresas (Pymes) familiares, exportadoras y no exportadoras en la economía de México y específicamente en el estado de Nuevo León. Se establecen ciertas características a considerar de las Pymes familiares exportadoras por los líderes nuevoleoneses que buscan el éxito bajo la determinante del aumento de las ganancias. Igualmente se ubican cualidades, a nuestro juicio, clásicas y contemporáneas, recomendadas para directivos y administradores de este tipo de compañías.