Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are very vital in the development of today’s global.
They contribute significantly in terms of creating jobs, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and
social welfare of most economies. However, there is high rate of failure among SMEs due to
various reason of which lack of skills is one. The study at hand was undertaken to find out
whether training in business and entrepreneurial skills could help SMEs to succeed. The study
analysed the entrepreneurial and business skills and training needs in the Plastic
Manufacturing Industry in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. A quantitative approach
was used in which 74 questionnaires were distributed.The result showed that there is strong
linked between training in entrepreneurial and business skills and success of such organisation.
The results also showed that despite the linkage between success and training, most of the
organisations still have a lot of unskilled workers in their pool. The research concluded with a
strong argument for training as an essential tool for determining organisation success,
effectiveness and efficiency.