Attharat Wimonjariyaboon Industrial Business Administration King Mongkut's University of Technology North Bangkok, Thailand.
Email: attharat.wimon@gmail.com
Kanecha Thanawatparinya Associate Professor Dr. Industrial Business Administration King Mongkut's University of Technology North Bangkok, Thailand.
Email: kanecha.t@fba.kmutnb.ac.th
Thitirat Thawornsujaritkul Assistant Professor Dr. Industrial Business Administration King Mongkut's University of Technology North Bangkok, Thailand.
Email: thitirat.t@fba.kmutnb.ac.th

Abstract:

The coffee processing industry is a significant sector in Thailand’s economy. This study aimed to examine the strategic management practices within the coffee processing business to promote sustainable growth, employing a structural equation model alongside a mixed-methods approach. The qualitative phase involved validating the model through in-depth interviews with nine experts and a focus group comprising 11 successful business professionals. For the quantitative phase, data were collected from 500 manufacturing enterprises using a questionnaire, followed by descriptive statistics, inferential analysis, and multivariate techniques. Findings revealed that strategic management for sustainable growth in the coffee processing business encompassed four key dimensions of importance: 1) Product (mean = 4.49), focusing on taste management; 2) Business Competition (mean = 4.49), emphasising promotion via social media; 3) Business Alliance (mean = 4.48), involving governmental tax incentives and funding; and 4) Innovation and Technology (mean = 4.44), relating to development that extends the shelf life of coffee products. Hypothesis testing indicated that businesses of comparable size attributed similar importance to these strategic management components. The structural equation model developed was found to satisfy evaluation criteria and aligned well with empirical data. The fit indices obtained were as follows: CMIN–ρ (chi-square probability) = 0.079, CMIN/DF (relative chi-square) = 1.143, GFI (goodness of fit index) = 0.960, and RMSEA (root mean square error of approximation) = 0.017.

Keywords:Strategic Management, Structural Equation Model, Thailand, Coffee Processing Business, Sustainable Growth.