Determinants of Sustainability of Agricultural SMEs Mediated by Social Capital in West Java: A Case Study of Sukabumi Regency

Authors

  • Ade Sudarma Pancasila University Author
  • Arissetyanto Nugroho Pancasila University Author
  • Derriawan Pancasila University Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.61492/mgfymf26

Keywords:

Leadership Agility, Entrepreneurial Experience, Organizational Culture, Social Capital, Business Sustainability, Agricultural SMEs.

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the influence of Leadership Agility, Entrepreneurial Experience, and Organizational Culture on the Sustainability of Agricultural SMEs, as well as to examine the role of Social Capital as a mediating variable in horticultural agricultural SMEs in Sukabumi Regency. The study used a quantitative approach with a cross-sectional design. Data were obtained through questionnaires from 261 agricultural SMEs who are members of farmer groups in Sukabumi Regency. Data analysis used Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) with a bootstrapping procedure. The results showed that Entrepreneurial Experience had a positive and significant effect on Business Sustainability (β = 0.191; t = 2.860; p = 0.004), as did Organizational Culture (β = 0.182; t = 2.141; p = 0.032) and Social Capital (β = 0.175; t = 2.309; p = 0.021). In contrast, Leadership Agility did not significantly influence Business Sustainability (β = 0.106; t = 1.921; p = 0.055) or Social Capital (β = 0.113; t = 1.847; p = 0.065). Entrepreneurial Experience (β = 0.362; t = 6.175; p < 0.001) and Organizational Culture (β = 0.309; t = 5.907; p < 0.001) significantly influenced Social Capital. In the mediation test, Social Capital mediated the influence of Entrepreneurial Experience (p = 0.029) and Organizational Culture (p = 0.032) on Business Sustainability, while mediation on the relationship between Leadership Agility was not significant (p = 0.175). This finding confirms that the sustainability of agricultural SMEs is stronger built through experience, organizational culture, and social relationships than individual leadership abilities alone.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Abbas, A. (2025). Impact of agile leadership on adaptive performance and business sustainability: Mediating role of capabilities. Journal of Educational Psychology and Pedagogical Sciences.

Ahmed, S., et al. (2024). Entrepreneurial experience, entrepreneurial capabilities and firm performance. International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal.

Akbar, A., Salam, M., Arsyad, M., & Rahmadanih, R. (2024). Mediating role of leadership and group capital between human capital component and sustainability of horticultural agribusiness institutions in Indonesia. Open Agriculture, 9(1), 20220250. DOI: 10.1515/opag-2022-0250

Al-Hakimi, MA, Al-Swidi, AK, Gelaidan, HM, & Mohammed, A. (2022). The influence of green manufacturing practices on the corporate sustainable performance of SMEs under the effect of green organizational culture: A moderated mediation analysis. Journal of Cleaner Production, 376, 134346. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2022.134346

Al-Swidi, AK, Gelaidan, HM, & Saleh, RM (2021). The joint impact of green human resource management, leadership and organizational culture on employees' green behavior and organizational environmental performance. Journal of Cleaner Production, 316, 128112. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.128112

Anggreny, WRS, Sumekar, W., & Prasetyo, AS (2022). Sustainability of MSMEs based on social capital and the triple bottom line. Agribest Journal, 6(1), 64–75. https://doi.org/10.32528/agribest.v6i1.6274

Arsawan, IWE, Koval, V., Dwanto, W., Tjahjana, D., & Aryanto, R. (2022). The impact of strategic agility on SME performance: The role of social capital and innovation capability. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Markets, and Complexity.

Sukabumi Regency Central Statistics Agency. (2024). Complete results of the 2023 Agricultural Census–Phase II: Individual Horticultural Agricultural Enterprises (UTP) in Sukabumi Regency. BPS Sukabumi Regency Publication

Boudreaux, C. J., Nikolaev, B., & Klein, P. (2021). Socio-cognitive traits and entrepreneurship: The role of social capital in small business. Small Business Economics.

Bozward, D., & Rogers-Draycott, M. (2024). Exploring the impact of entrepreneurial experience on future entrepreneurial aspirations. Entrepreneurship Education, 7, 417–440.

Bumulo, S., et al. (2024). Local culture, social capital and business resilience in rural enterprises. Journal of Rural Studies.

Choi, Y.R., Kim, J., & Kim, J. (2022). Entrepreneurial experience and firm performance: Evidence from small and medium-sized enterprises. Managerial and Decision Economics. https://doi.org/10.1002/mde.3647

Chowdhury, S., Dey, P.K., Rodríguez-Espíndola, O., Parkes, G., Tuyet, N.T.A., Long, D.D., & Ha, T.P. (2022). Impact of organizational factors on the circular economy practices and sustainable performance of small and medium-sized enterprises in Vietnam. Journal of Business Research, 147, 362–378. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2022.03.077

Fitri, F., et al. (2022). Green-oriented leadership, relational capital and SME sustainability. Sustainability.

Ghi, T.N., et al. (2024). Entrepreneurial experience, social networks and SME performance. Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

Grolleau, G., et al. (2025). Entrepreneurship experience and environmental and social sustainability in new companies. Business Strategy and the Environment. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.70109

Herawaty, Febrimely, D., Zuliyanti, A., & Siregar, AA (2022). Cohesitivity and social capital of horticultural farmers group developing the quality of agro-tourism sector in South of Tapanuli Regency, North Sumatra. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 977, 012063. DOI: 10.1088/1755-1315/977/1/012063

Khusaini, K., Lestari, LW, Widiarti, A., & Suherman, A. (2022). Social capital and location as determinants in improving MSME performance. Journal of Economics and Business Education, 10(2), 123–136. https://doi.org/10.21009/JPEB.010.2.3

Lau, V., Anggraini, R., & Ariyanto, HH (2025). Transformational leadership and strategic agility: Driving innovation performance and business sustainability for MSMEs in Indonesia in the post-pandemic period. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 15(12). https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v15-i12/27321

Masdiantini, PR, Devi, S., & Kusyanda, MRP (2025). The role of financial literacy and social capital on the performance and sustainability of MSMEs. Ekuitas: Journal of Economic Education, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.23887/ekuitas.v12i1.73258

Mishchuk, H., Štofková, J., Krol, V., Joshi, O., & Vasa, L. (2022). Social capital factors fostering the sustainable competitiveness of enterprises. Sustainability, 14(19), 11905. DOI: 10.3390/su141911905

Moura, LRC, et al. (2022). Sustainability in small and medium-sized enterprises: A systematic literature review and future research agenda. Sustainability, 14(11), 6493. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14116493

Moursellas, A., De, D., Wurzer, T., Skouloudis, A., Reiner, G., Chaudhuri, A., & Manousidis, T. (2023). Sustainability practices and performance in European small-and-medium enterprises: Insights from multiple case studies. Circular Economy and Sustainability, 3, 835–860. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43615-022-00224-3

Pardiman, P., Susyanti, J., Heriyawati, D.F., & Zakaria, Z. (2022). Impact of financial capital, social capital, and business digitalization on business sustainability of SMEs in Indonesia. Journal of Services Management and Marketing, 15(1), 69–82. DOI: 10.25105/jmpj.v15i1.13114

Pertiwi, W., & Najmudin. (2023). Customer focus and business agility on leadership agility for sustainable MSME performance: Study at Rengginang production in Cirebon. International Journal of Management, Economics, Business and Accounting, 2(3), 45–52. https://doi.org/10.58468/ijmeba.v2i3.182

Purwati, AA, et al. (2021). Entrepreneurial leadership and sustainable SME performance: The mediating role of social capital. Journal of Entrepreneurship and Sustainability.

Rado, I., Lu, M.-F., Lin, I.-C., & Aoo, K. (2021). Societal entrepreneurship for sustainable Asian rural societies: A multi-sectoral social capital approach in Thailand, Taiwan, and Japan. Sustainability, 13(5), 2747. DOI: 10.3390/su13052747

Saputra, D., & Nasution, M. (2023). Strategic agility, entrepreneurial leadership and SME sustainability: The mediating role of social capital. Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

Simmou, W., Shehadeh, M., Ed-Dafali, S., Hussainey, K., & Nandy, M. (2025). From culture to green innovation: The interplay of social capital, entrepreneurial leadership, and green knowledge sharing in Moroccan agricultural SMEs. Business Strategy and the Environment, 34(5), 6264–6282. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.4303

Siregar, AA, Afiff, AZ, & Halim, RE (2023). Linking agile leadership and business sustainability through the mediation of political and social capabilities. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Markets, and Complexity, 9(4), 100153. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joitmc.2023.100153

Siti Sadiah, S., & Zevender, R. (2022). Organizational culture, social capital and SME market access. Journal of Entrepreneurship and Sustainability.

Sutikno, S., et al. (2022). Entrepreneurial competence, social capital and SME performance. Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business.

Tan, J., Gao, S., & Peng, S. (2025). Forming knowledge and constructing social capital: Founder's prior entrepreneurial experience how to promote SMEs' innovation? Small Enterprise Research. DOI: 10.1080/13215906.2025.2593009

Utomo, A., & Savitri, C. (2025). Eco-culture, social capital and sustainable innovation in SMEs. Sustainability.

Van Praag, M., Parker, S.C., & van der Sluis, J. (2023). Entrepreneurial human capital and firm productivity. Research Policy. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2022.104716

Wang, S., & Huang, L. (2022). A study of the relationship between corporate culture and corporate sustainable performance: Evidence from Chinese SMEs. Sustainability, 14(13), 7527. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14137527

Yulia, A., & Masdupi, E. (2024). Strategic agility, social capital and SME performance. International Journal of Business and Management.

Yusfiarto, R., Pambekti, GT, Setiawan, A., Khoirunnisa, AN, & Nugraha, SS (2022). Does Islamic social capital enhance SMEs' sustainable performance? Journal of Islamic Monetary Economics and Finance, 8(1), 113–132. https://doi.org/10.21098/jimf.v8i1.1398

Downloads

Published

2026-08-14

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Determinants of Sustainability of Agricultural SMEs Mediated by Social Capital in West Java: A Case Study of Sukabumi Regency. (2026). DANESIA: International Journal of Social Sciences and Economics, 1(3), 269-293. https://doi.org/10.61492/mgfymf26