Measurement of SMEs corporate governance practices and competitiveness in Quindío

Abstract

This article aims to identify SEMs compliance with corporate governance practices in the department of Quindío. That is, practicesof the highest corporate body, shareholders, and board of directors in relation to the rights and equitable treatment of shareholders, managers responsibilities, conflicts and interest groups, corporate social responsibility, and transparency and integrity of information, considering that companies do not have tools to evaluate them. First, the corporate governance codes issued in Colombia for SMEs were identified through the mixed approach methodology to deepen the analysis of the components of corporate governance, and an inductive methodwas used to analyze the state of the art, corporate governance codes, and current regulations in the country. Subsequently, an instrument was used to collect information to evaluate the corporate governance measures in SMEs, allowing them to identify their weaknesses and strengths in different areas, and favoring the competitive business environment they face in the national and international context.