Organisational performance and value (OPV) tool: an analytic autoethnographic study Open Access

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) face mounting pressure to make timely, strategic decisions amid complex, uncertain environments (Kindström et al., 2024; Reid and Smith, 2024). Yet, resource scarcity often limits their ability to engage in structured strategic analysis and development (Bellamy et al., 2019; Crovini et al., 2021; Reid and Smith, 2024). Thus, it is vital to consider how owner-managers can strengthen strategic thinking in more accessible, context-appropriate ways (Bellamy et al., 2019).

Previous research reports on various models, frameworks and tools, but largely focuses on performance measurement and management systems (e.g., Hasan and Serhat, 2024; Hudson et al., 2001; Tennant and Tanoren, 2005) and stage-based maturity models (e.g., Flamholtz, 1995; Scott and Bruce, 1987). For instance, the Balanced Scorecard (Kaplan, 2009) is one of the most widely used performance management frameworks (Tennant and Tanoren, 2005), designed to link strategy with performance metrics. However, these tools are primarily designed for tracking and evaluating performance, not for guiding individual decision-makers through context-sensitive prioritisation. They often fall short in supporting SMEs' real-time and individual-level decision-making needs. Moreover, maturity and stage-based models tend to be too generic and technocentric, failing to accommodate the diverse structures, goals and resource profiles of SMEs (Depaoli et al., 2020; Kindström et al., 2024). In SMEs, where decision-making is often intuitive, time-pressured and owner-driven, such systems can be burdensome to implement and difficult to adapt to changing realities (Crovini et al., 2021; Hudson et al., 2001; Tennant and Tanoren, 2005). Existing literature often draws on large-organisation models that overlook the unique complexities SMEs face (Kindström et al., 2024; Liberman-Yaconi et al., 2010; Tennant and Tanoren, 2005). Against this backdrop, this study asks: How can a practitioner-led decision-support tool be developed to support context-sensitive, real-time prioritisation that reflects the adaptive decision-making needs of SME owner-managers? To address this research question, this practitioner-led study introduces the organisational performance and value (OPV) framework ^[1], a structured yet flexible personal decision support system (PDDS) (Onwujekwe and Weistroffer, 2025) designed to help SME owner-managers reflect on key business domains and prioritise a small number of high-impact actions tailored to their unique organisational context.

To this end, the current study adopts an analytical autoethnographic approach (Anderson, 2006), which is central to its practitioner-informed development of the OPV framework for SMEs. This practitioner-informed, analytic autoethnography-based study contributes valuable insights from Beta testing and reflective engagement, offering practical guidance for tool developers. This methodology not only highlights the real-world experiences of the tool's developer, a management consultant but also provides a comprehensive empirical account of the tool's conceptualisation, development, negotiation and refinement processes. In doing so, this study makes two major theoretical contributions: firstly, it extends the Bounded Rationality Theory by integrating expectation-confirmation as a critical factor influencing SME tool engagement and decision behaviour (Bhattacherjee, 2001; Oliver, 1980; Pittenger et al., 2023). Secondly, it expands decision-support systems (DSSs) theory by highlighting the role of emotional design elements (Zhou et al., 2021) in building legitimacy, trust and reflective participation among SME users. Reflecting SMEs' tendency to combine effectual and causal decision-making, the OPV framework supports structured yet flexible prioritisation aligned with individual business context (Hauser et al., 2020; Kindström et al., 2024; Reid and Smith, 2024).

In addition, this study contributes to the practice-oriented DSSs research by introducing a novel personal-decision-support tool that SME owner-managers can use to guide their strategic decision-making and addresses the urgent call for more effective DSS by Reid and Smith (2024) and Soori et al. (2026). The practitioner-led nature of this decision-support system ensures that it is timely and relevant, responding to the renewed scholarly focus on the role of strategic tools and frameworks in driving organisational outcomes for small businesses (Bellamy et al., 2019). These systems have the potential to empower SME entrepreneurs, providing them with the tools to navigate their complex and demanding business environments (Reid and Smith, 2024).

The remainder of this paper discusses SME strategic decision-making and decision-support systems, outlines the rationale for the OPV framework, details the analytic autoethnographic method, presents findings from its development and beta testing and concludes with implications and limitations.

Small business decision-making contexts are characterised by limited resources, a smaller number of decision-makers and generalist managers who must balance multiple tasks simultaneously (Gomes et al., 2010; Kindström et al., 2024). Despite the potential value of strategic planning, SMEs generally do not engage in comprehensive strategic planning (Engelmann, 2024; Gibbons and O'connor, 2005; Tennant and Tanoren, 2005) but tend to be instinctive and implicit, with a short-term financial focus. They often operate with fewer strategic objectives, a smaller set of decision alternatives and a low tendency to seek optimal solutions (Gomes et al., 2010). Hence, strategy development in small businesses is often an intuitive entrepreneurial process where decisions are based on the private judgment of the owner-manager, with little analytical input (Carson and Gilmore, 2000; Engelmann, 2024; Gomes et al., 2010; Kindström et al., 2024). Performance measurement literature suggests that SMEs place less emphasis on non-financial indicators, but instead prioritise financials, customer metrics and internal processes (Tennant and Tanoren, 2005).

These patterns of decision-making can be explained through bounded rationality theory (Lu et al., 2001). Bounded rationality refers to the idea that decision-making is shaped not only by goals and external conditions but also by decision-makers’ limited knowledge, their capacity to retrieve and process relevant information, their ability to anticipate consequences, generate alternative courses of action, cope with uncertainty and reconcile competing objectives (Simon, 2000). In SME contexts, these constraints are intensified by time pressure, role multiplicity and limited access to analytical resources, making fully rational or optimising decision-making impractical (Crovini et al., 2021; Hudson et al., 2001).

Small business executives rarely have access to formal decision-support models (Carson and Gilmore, 2000) and typically spend more time gathering external information than their counterparts in large organisations (Gomes et al., 2010). The dual role of the owner-manager as both decision-maker and domain expert reinforces informal, experience-based decision processes that lack methodological structure (Carson and Gilmore, 2000; Kindström et al., 2024). Consequently, the development of DSSs tailored to SMEs holds particular promise (Reid and Smith, 2024). Such systems must accommodate bounded rationality by being simple to use, low-cost and not labour-intensive, while supporting focused prioritisation rather than exhaustive analysis (Gomes et al., 2010).

DSS refer to information systems that support business or organisational decision-making activities (Onwujekwe and Weistroffer, 2025). DSSs research is rooted in the broader Information Systems field and is notably diverse, with multiple types emerging based on usage, user needs and organisational context (Arnott and Pervan, 2005). Onwujekwe and Weistroffer (2025) identify seven categories of DSSs: Personal Decision Support Systems, Group Decision Support Systems, Negotiation Support Systems, Organisational Decision Support Systems, Expert Systems, Executive Information Systems and Clinical Decision Support Systems.

The OPV framework is best classified as a PDSS (Arnott and Pervan, 2005; Onwujekwe and Weistroffer, 2025). PDSS are small-scale systems designed to support individual managers in specific decision tasks. The OPV framework aligns with this classification, as it enables SME owner-managers to reflect on strategic priorities, evaluate capability and readiness across key business domains and identify high-impact actions.

Beyond functional capabilities, DSSs research has long recognised that decision-support effectiveness is shaped by user attitudes, perceptions and behaviours. Foundational DSSs frameworks conceptualise decision support as a socio-cognitive system in which user expectations, confidence, satisfaction and perceived credibility mediate the relationship between system capabilities and decision outcomes (Eierman et al., 1995). Building on this perspective, DSSs research distinguishes between rational approaches that rely on normative and mathematical models to generate optimal solutions and behavioural approaches that explicitly acknowledge bounded rationality, heuristics and satisficing (Lu et al., 2001). Importantly, Lu et al. (2001) demonstrate that the effectiveness of DSSs depends not only on decision quality but also on users' willingness to engage with the system, which is shaped by beliefs, attitudes and perceived usefulness rather than ease of use alone. This perspective is particularly relevant for SME contexts, where decision-making is experience-based and adaptive and where trust, credibility and perceived strategic seriousness influence whether tools are meaningfully adopted rather than superficially used (Gupta et al., 2024).

However, prior research suggests that the effectiveness of decision-support tools in SME contexts cannot be understood solely through their intended functionality. SMEs differ fundamentally from large firms due to persistent constraints in financial resources, limited expert knowledge, informal governance structures and weaker information system infrastructures, which restrict their capacity to adapt tools or absorb implementation challenges over time (Casidy et al., 2020; Gupta et al., 2024). As a result, the post-adoption experience of a decision-support tool, particularly the extent to which actual use aligns with initial expectations, plays a critical role in shaping perceived usefulness and satisfaction. Studies on SME technology use show that dissonance between expected and actual outcomes frequently leads to disenchantment and early discontinuance, even when adoption decisions are initially positive (Prashar et al., 2023). These expectation-experience gaps are especially consequential in SMEs, where unmet expectations are less likely to be mitigated through additional investment, training or organisational restructuring.

Although comprehensive DSSs are more common in larger firms, several examples in the literature demonstrate their growing relevance to SMEs through simpler, tailored tools. For instance, Gomes et al. (2010) present the ORCLASS method, and Lawson et al. (2006) developed a simplified hybrid project selection model. Their model included graphical flowcharts and spreadsheet-based tools that linked project decisions to budgets, timelines and risks and was noted for its speed and ease of use. Similarly, Reid and Smith (2024) developed an empirical model of the innovative small firm. Recent scholarship notes a significant development and increased attention on AI-based DSSs (Soori et al., 2026), particularly using machine learning (Onwujekwe and Weistroffer, 2025). The Balanced Scorecard (BSC) (Tennant and Tanoren, 2005) is often discussed alongside DSSs. However, while BSC is more aligned with performance measurement, tools like OPV occupy a niche in decision facilitation, particularly in prioritising actionable improvements rather than comprehensive performance tracking.

SME entrepreneurs, who often serve as both owner and manager, are required to make rapid decisions under pressure, frequently relying on a limited set of financial and operational indicators such as liquidity, gearing, solvency and productivity (Reid and Smith, 2024). In digitally saturated and volatile environments, these indicators are increasingly supplemented by weak, fragmented and ambiguous signals from markets, customers and technologies, which require managerial sensemaking to translate into meaningful strategic action (Malik et al., 2025). However, effective use of decision tools still presupposes a degree of practical experience and cognitive capacity that many SME owner-managers must exercise under severe time and resource constraints (Gomes et al., 2010). To be useful, decision-support tools must therefore be easy to use, holistic in design and capable of signalling problems quickly while supporting the identification and prioritisation of improvement opportunities (Bahri et al., 2011).

Yet, SMEs often lack access to decision-support systems that support this kind of real-time sensemaking and prioritisation (Bahri et al., 2011; Reid and Smith, 2024). Traditional performance frameworks rely heavily on backward-looking financial indicators and are poorly aligned with the continuous, adaptive decision-making required in contemporary SME environments (Kindström et al., 2024; Tennant and Tanoren, 2005). Recent strategic agility research similarly conceptualises organisational adaptability as the alignment of strategic sensitivity, leadership unity and resource fluidity under conditions of market dynamism and digital disruption, but these frameworks remain largely conceptual and offer limited guidance on how individual SME decision-makers translate agility into concrete, prioritised action (e.g., Mueller-Saegebrecht and Walter, 2025). Likewise, recent SME-focused DSS research shows that while multi-criteria digital tools can generate rich performance diagnostics, they often fail to provide a structured, context-sensitive roadmap that helps managers convert scores into actionable priorities (e.g., Falasco et al., 2025). This behavioural gap is empirically confirmed by recent SME evidence showing that perceived usefulness, organisational competency and management support do not significantly predict the adoption of intelligent DSSs, whereas ease of use, competitive pressure and government support do (e.g., Mootien and Lallmahomed, 2026), underscoring that SME engagement with decision tools is driven more by usability, salience and context than by rational evaluation alone.

In parallel, although extensive research has examined the initial adoption of digital technologies and DSSs, scholarly attention to post-adoption experiences, particularly user disenchantment, discontinuance and sustained engagement, remains limited in SME contexts (Lu et al., 2001; Prashar et al., 2023). Responding to these gaps, the present study focuses on the post-adoption development and refinement of a practitioner-led decision-support tool, examining how design, expectations and user experience shape sustained engagement and practical usefulness for SME owner-managers. By supporting managerial sensemaking, expectation calibration and focused prioritisation under constraint, OPV is positioned as a next-generation decision-support system aligned with contemporary theories of strategic agility and digitally enabled decision-making.

This study follows a qualitative research design, particularly following analytic autoethnography (Anderson, 2006). It is a widely used qualitative research method in entrepreneurship and business management research (e.g., Fisher et al., 2020; Frandsen et al., 2020; Marks, 2021). “Analytic autoethnography refers to ethnographic work in which the researcher is (1) a full member in the research group or setting, (2) visible as such a member in the researcher's published texts, and (3) committed to an analytic research agenda focused on improving theoretical understandings of broader social phenomena” (Anderson, 2006, p. 375). In this study, the broader social phenomenon under examination is how SME owner-managers make strategic decisions under conditions of bounded rationality, uncertainty and resource constraint, and how decision-support tools shape adaptive prioritisation and action in small business contexts. This aligns with this study's approach to exploring the development of a non-traditional organisational performance diagnostic tool for small businesses, which is a practitioner innovation (Marks, 2021). This study follows Anderson's (2006) five key principles for an autoethnography: (1) the writer being a complete member researcher, (2) practising analytic reflexivity, (3) providing narrative visibility of the researcher's self, (4) including dialogue with informants beyond the self and (5) committing to theoretical analysis. These collectively support methodological rigour and trustworthiness through reflexivity, dialogue and analytic transparency (Le Roux, 2017; Lincoln and Guba, 1985). This study received Human Research Ethics approval from an Australian University (HREC - 20,258,385–20875).

The first author of this study, John, served as a complete member researcher, drawing on his over 30 years of lived experience in consulting and reflective knowledge as the creator and user of the tool. Enabling a layered reflective analysis, this study used three primary forms of data (Marks, 2021), thereby supporting data triangulation through multiple reflective and dialogic sources (Lincoln and Guba, 1985; Teoh et al., 2023). Firstly, this study used a recorded reflexive conversation with John, where he articulated the origins, development and application of the OPV tool. The second author of the study interviewed John, who was given the latitude to share his journey in the management consultancy industry and the approach to developing the OPV framework.

Secondly, e-mail correspondence between the authors was used to clarify, elaborate and reflect further on specific decisions and turning points in tool development. In addition, written reflections from John, drafted after the initial interview, where he elaborated on philosophical influences, methodological choices and client interactions shaping the tool's evolution, were used to support the analysis, contributing to method triangulation by combining reflexive narrative, dialogic reflection and theory-informed interpretation (Le Roux, 2017; Teoh et al., 2023). Finally, the study used the findings and feedback received from his clients and beta testers to create a dialogic space (Anderson, 2006), strengthening confirmability by situating practitioner reflections alongside external user perspectives (Le Roux, 2017; Lincoln and Guba, 1985; Teoh et al., 2023) and offering a rich contextual examination and a comprehensive understanding of the tool's conceptual development and practical application.

As this study is based on a single respondent, there is the possibility of social desirability bias and self-reported biases of managerial perceptions (Lyon et al., 2000). The involvement of the second author as a neutral co-analytic partner limited the effects of this bias and implemented the stance of “working from a neutral distance” (Boehm, 2008, p. 84), functioning as investigator triangulation to enhance confirmability and analytic credibility (Le Roux, 2017; Teoh et al., 2023). This account was further validated by checking external references, including The CEO Institute and the author's consultancy website (Acorro, 2024; The CEO Institute, 2024a, b), supporting credibility through external corroboration (Le Roux, 2017).

This study commits to a theoretical analysis by elevating the study from a reflective narrative to a scholarly contribution. Adopting an iterative narrative interpretation approach rooted in analytic autoethnography (Anderson, 2006), narrative excerpts from the interview and written reflections were selected based on their conceptual richness and relevance to the tool's evolution. John reviewed the excerpts to ensure the data's construct validity. The second author, while external to the development of the tool, engaged as a co-analytic partner (Anderson, 2006), facilitating reflexive discussion and theoretical framing of key insights (Kosonen and Ikonen, 2022), thereby strengthening analytical dependability through iterative co-analysis (Le Roux, 2017). The tool's development incorporated frameworks such as DuPont and the Balanced Scorecard, refined through feedback and workshops and situated within strategic management literature (Marks, 2021).

To further assure credibility, we analysed the data from the Beta Testing carried out by John, which provided insights into the tool's practicality, usability and effectiveness. There have been 25 clients involved in this beta testing, and they are generally CEOs, management consultants and peers with businesses. This user feedback provided insights into the use of the tool, the relevance of the performance items and the impact of the recommended actions on their business operations. The analysis does not aim for generalisability in the positivist sense but instead contributes to analytical generalisation by offering theoretical insights on the micro-processes of strategic decision-support tool development in entrepreneurial settings. This transparency enables other researchers to understand the specific conditions under which the tool was developed and applied, supporting dependability and analytical transferability rather than statistical reliability (Le Roux, 2017; Teoh et al., 2023).

The OPV tool was developed from over 3 decades of consulting experience and is grounded in the practitioner insight that most businesses, particularly in the SME sector, can realistically implement one or two significant changes each year. This realisation led to the guiding philosophy of ruthless prioritisation, which shaped the OPV tool. The tool is designed to help CEOs and senior leaders identify and commit to a small number of high-impact actions with realistic and transformational outcomes. The OPV tool was developed as a structured, yet flexible decision-making tool to support SME-specific reflection and prioritisation. Hence, the tool aims to achieve three key objectives: educate business leaders on the underlying drivers of performance and value; establish a benchmark OPV Score to track progress over time, support prioritisation by helping users identify the one or two improvements with the greatest business impact. These objectives ensure that the tool moves beyond diagnostics to enable structured, sustained action.

The OPV framework is structured around six interrelated performance levers: Vision and Strategy, Build Revenue, Deliver Profitability, Support People Performance, Drive Asset Returns and Develop Organisation (CriticalFewActions™, 2025). Figure 1 presents a visualisation of the structure with key constructs of the OPV framework.

Each lever corresponds to a critical domain of business operations and value creation. Within these six levers are 11 streams and a total of 75 diagnostic factors. Each factor is assessed using a 5-point Likert scale with an optional “Not Applicable” category, allowing leaders to reflect on their organisation's current performance in granular detail (John, 2024).

The following examples illustrate the phrasing and intent of the assessment items. Under the Vision and Strategy lever, one factor (Future Vision) asks: “Our Future Vision describes what success looks like in the future, whether it be revenue, profitability, geographic reach, customer segments, product ranges, acquisitions/disposals, or an exit or liquidity event.” Owner-managers of the SME are asked to rate their organisation on a scale from 1 (“Does not exist and we should have it”) to 5 (“Is always used and is best in the industry”) (John, 2024). Similarly, under the Build Revenue lever, a diagnostic item (Up Selling and On Selling) assesses the use of up-selling and on-selling techniques, while the Develop Organisation lever includes items evaluating the implementation of OKRs and KPIs ^[2] at multiple organisational levels. Each item is phrased to prompt awareness and reflection, enable benchmarking and support clear prioritisation.

Delivered via SurveyMonkey and Google Sheets, the tool generates a 40+-page report upon completion (CriticalFewActions™, 2024). This report includes a performance overview across the six levers, detailed feedback on the 75 individual factors, and a prioritisation summary. Figure 2 exhibits the spidergram and the net promoter scores produced by the tool, which are included in the detailed report upon completing the assessment.

Beyond diagnosis, the tool facilitates planning and accountability by helping leaders select two initiatives to focus on, formulate an action plan and receive automated reminders to maintain implementation momentum. Figure 3 presents a diagnostic “Heat Map” summary for an SME as it appears in the final report generated by the OPV tool.

The colour-coded output visually summarises the organisation's responses using five maturity levels: red (not in place), light pink (partially in place), cream (in place but needs improvement), moss green (mostly current) and neon green (best practice). White indicates “not applicable” or “unknown.” This format enables quick identification of strengths, gaps and improvement areas. The OPV tool is purpose-built for CEOs and senior leaders seeking to grow, restructure or exit their business with clarity (CriticalFewActions™, 2025). In contexts with over 75 potential improvement areas, the OPV framework provides structure and discipline, enabling leaders to achieve greater impact through fewer, more focused actions.

John earned a degree in Economics and Politics, majoring in Accounting and Information Technology, in 1985. He joined Deloitte as a graduate, working in EDP Audit and microcomputer systems development before moving into corporate finance roles in Melbourne and London. During this time, he gained exposure to IT-based performance evaluation and international corporate valuations, providing early insights into the factors influencing business value across different organisational sizes.

This experience sparked his interest in the strategic and operational drivers of performance. His training focused on sustainable earnings and beta risk factors, key influences on the valuation of publicly listed and large unlisted companies.

After returning to Australia, John worked on consulting projects to commercialise government entities and outsource business processes. He evaluated major public investments, including a $100+ million courthouse, the restructuring of an airline's inflight catering operations and the digitisation and capacity doubling of a government identity service.

He was later invited to Chicago to lead Deloitte's global development of business transformation methodologies, managing a virtual team of 200 and training over 1,000 consultants in building IT-enabled business cases. This deepened his understanding of how IT can drive business strategy and operational improvement, laying the foundation for identifying the levers, streams and factors that underpin the OPV framework.

John's experience and exposure to medium-sized clients following his career at Deloitte provided him with important insights into the need for a performance diagnostic tool for SMEs. He realised that his early-stage clients ($1.0  m–$50 m turnover) lacked understanding of the core areas of the business and their interconnectedness. John expresses this as the client's lack of understanding of the “moving parts” of the business. This supports a common issue reported in SME literature. SME owner-managers are driven entrepreneurs with high contextual knowledge, experience and pronounced growth ambitions, but lack formal managerial and organisational training. Such personal drive can lead to situations operational aspects are emphasised and other areas neglected, potentially compounding any managerially oriented challenges (Kindström et al., 2024). As organisations grow, the number of neglected areas multiplies, leading to managerial “crises” in stage-oriented growth literature (Delmar et al., 2003). The quote below from John's conversation echoes this understanding.

This experience led John to synthesise a framework that draws on DuPont analysis and the Balanced Scorecard. Yet, conversations with his clients provided a distinct perspective. John realised that entrepreneurs could enhance their businesses but given the inherent nature of time and resource-poor SMEs, they cannot make multiple and significant changes within a year. As firms progress and experience growth, they confront managerial challenges. For organisations that expand from micro to small, then small to medium, these challenges become pronounced (Kindström et al., 2024). Yet, stage models advising growth strategies seldom provide a complete map. Instead of static and prescriptive models, the progression of SME growth is typically more dynamic, where network, relationships and existing structures are used to transform opportunities into value for the growing firm and its customers (Levie and Lichtenstein, 2010). John reflected on his learning from his clients as follows.

In addition to organisation-specific reasons, the bounded rationality of managers also plays a role. The Bounded Rationality perspective suggests that cognitive limitations restrict their ability to know all the alternatives, account for uncertainty and calculate the consequences of their decisions (Simon, 2000). With this limited ability to process information, managers cannot maximise a given utility function but use cognitive shortcuts such as satisficing and heuristics, which create errors and biases (Kotlar and Sieger, 2019).

Based on these learnings, John rationalised the development of the tool, which he explained as follows:

John followed a systematic process to identify the tool's levers, streams and factors. These included financial and structural aspects (e.g., Build Revenue, Deliver Profitability, Drive Asset Returns), leadership and strategic direction (Vision and Strategy) and human capital development (Support People Performance, Develop Organisation) to provide a structure for the tool with six levers. His consultancy experience, accumulated over 40 years, informed the tool's initial conceptualisation. Hence, the conceptual development of this tool is informed by practical experience rather than a traditional research-based approach. The quote below from John's conversation captures the essence of this practice in diagnostic tool development.

Recent SME growth models support John's focus on business model, leadership and people, highlighting the need for a balanced, firm-level approach to address complementary operational and strategic challenges (Kindström et al., 2024).

In 2009 and 2010, John held six half-day workshops with management consultants and franchise owners, each focused on a specific lever, to identify the lowest-level key factors for the tool. The first step involved designing franchising systems to replicate operations. Next, discussions identified the factors SME owner managers need to assess success, profitability, growth and value. Then, McKinsey's MECE principle was applied to remove overlaps, address gaps and assign factors to the most suitable stream. For example, “operations manager training” was moved from the “Support Organisation Leadership” lever to the “Grow Product or Service Delivery” stream under “Build Revenue” (see Figure 1). This process refined each lever to a maximum of eight factors. An initial framework of 75 factors across six levers was developed. Factors were then sequenced through further workshops, which also simplified and clarified their wording. This led to the second draft of the OPV tool, used by John in consulting sessions where SME owners rated their business using a five-point scale and identified key priorities for improvement.

Informed by client feedback and growing cybersecurity concerns, John developed a third version of the diagnostic tool on the secure Google platform. This version allowed clients to assess their performance across 75 factors and generate a raw OPV score across the six levers. It also guided clients to prioritise two key initiatives, formulate action plans and receive periodic reminders to stay focused on committed improvements. John initially trialled the tool on SurveyMonkey, but it lacked analytical reporting capability. A team from India was then hired to create a web-based version, but concerns about client data security halted its development. Google Forms was later adopted as a secure and practical alternative, enabling the tool to generate a 40-plus page analytical report for SME owner managers after completing the prioritisation process. Through consulting sessions, John identified the need to include Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors and OKRs in the tool. Clients working with large corporations emphasised ESG's importance for enhancing reputation, managing risk and improving financial performance by attracting investors, engaging employees, fostering loyalty and promoting innovation. ESG was therefore added to the “Improve Organisation Value” stream under the “Drive Asset Returns” lever.

Some clients in the Tech Development sector recommended incorporating OKRs alongside KPIs, highlighting their value in setting structured goals and enhancing strategic alignment, transparency and accountability (Worren and Pope, 2025). OKRs support progress tracking, focus, measurable outcomes and ongoing improvement and innovation (Jones and Schou, 2023). Their iterative nature allows teams to respond quickly to market shifts and stay competitive. Based on this feedback, OKRs were added to the “Group, Function, Unit, Product/Service, OKRs/KPIs” factor under the “Measure, Learn, And Improve” stream of the “Develop Organisation” lever.

John conducted a beta test of the OPV tool with SMEs, drawing on feedback from 15 respondents via SurveyMonkey and qualitative interviews. Thematic analysis revealed two broad areas: platform-level (diagnostic form) and report-level (output report) feedback. Five key themes emerged across both: navigation, user interface and functionality; time and effort required; relevance and question design; design and experience suggestions; and engagement and consolidation potential. Figure 4 summarises the five beta-testing themes by linking the observed challenges reported by participants to their implications for SME use.

These themes and representative quotes are summarised in Table 1.

Collectively, these themes reflect the adaptive decision-making needs of SME owner-managers, highlighting how decision-support tools must accommodate changing expectations, time pressure, cognitive load and context-specific prioritisation rather than assume stable, linear usage conditions.

Navigation, User Interface and Functionality – One of the frequent feedback themes found in the analysis was about the user interface and functionality of the OPV tool. Respondents highlighted two major challenges regarding the user interface and functionality. They commented on the difficulties in navigating between the sections and the low engagement with static content. The form's linear progression design was not matched with flexible navigation controls, which created frustration, especially for users who wanted to reflect more deeply on earlier answers, as echoed in quotes below:

Human-data interaction literature informs the frustration highlighted in beta testers' feedback. Effective interface design should balance substantial qualities such as clarity, syntheticity and informativity, with formal qualities like intuitivity, elegance and attractiveness (Locoro et al., 2017). Feedback suggesting a need for more flexible navigation, clearer visual cues and more interactive or visually engaging design elements reflects a shortfall in these dimensions (Victorelli et al., 2020). For instance, the then-current design limits intuitivity and fails to offer immediate feedback or graceful backtracking. These interface issues affect the cognitive load defined as “load imposed on the cognitive systems of users when undertaking tasks, and is closely related to pragmatic attributes of usability” (Zhang et al., 2023, p. 1423). Poor interface design causes fluctuations in cognitive overload, which results in poor performance and compromises both usability and engagement (Locoro et al., 2017; Zhang et al., 2023). For SME owner-managers, this directly affects their adaptive capacity, as tools that cannot be navigated flexibly under time pressure fail to support adaptive, real-time decision-making.

Reflecting on this feedback, John commented on the improvements they made to the tool as follows:

However, while acknowledging the complexities within the OPV tool, John further highlighted the practical constraints experienced by a tool developer.

John's reflection reveals a tension between usability and security, showing how user feedback in entrepreneurial tool development is often limited by platform constraints, budgets and data protection responsibilities, highlighting that design quality is shaped by more than theory and user insight (Soori et al., 2026). Beta testers further described the form as lacking emotional and sensory engagement in the OPV tool. For instance, Beta tester 6 commented as follows.

These comments suggest a deeper need for affective engagement and real-time feedback. According to human-computer interaction quality research, user-friendly, intuitive and responsive systems provide feedback to user actions and create an environment that encourages user participation, driving user engagement (Zheng et al., 2025). This is significantly important to John because when users perceive a system to be of high quality and the information provided to be accurate and reliable, their perceived value increases (Mwiya et al., 2022). Following the theory of Emotional Design, Kumar et al. (2019) suggest that the aesthetics and sensory appeal are not merely decorative; they influence users' trust, attention and willingness to engage with a product. For a diagnostic tool like the OPV, first impressions and intuitive interaction strongly influence user motivation and confidence. Recognising these emotional cues as critical to uptake and perceived value, John integrated several Beta Tester suggestions into the tool, as described below.

These aesthetic enhancements are intentional shifts by the developer to encourage user interaction, subsequently increasing the user adoption of the OPV tool.

Time and effort required – Across several beta testers, the time required to complete the OPV tool emerged as longer than initially expected. While not framed as criticism per se, the responses suggest that the discrepancy between expected and actual time commitment impacted their perception of the tool's efficiency and accessibility. For instance, Beta Testers 12 and 15 reflected on the experience as follows:

The comments reveal a disconnect between the tool's framing as a “quick self-assessment” and the actual cognitive and time demands it places on users (Zhang et al., 2023). This gap can be understood through Expectation-Confirmation Theory, commonly used in consumer behaviour to explain satisfaction and post-use evaluations (Oliver, 1980). Expectations serve as a baseline for evaluating a product or service; when actual experience, particularly in effort and time, falls short, dissatisfaction can result, even if the tool is ultimately useful (Bhattacherjee, 2001; Oliver, 1980; Zhang et al., 2023). This highlights the need to set realistic usage expectations early and to consider perceived effort as a key factor in user satisfaction. In small business management, where time is critically limited (Justy et al., 2023), this is especially important. Bhattacherjee (2001) also notes that post-acceptance satisfaction reflects more grounded evaluations and strongly influences continued use. Tools that under-communicate time requirements or demand sustained focus without pacing or reinforcement risk being perceived as inefficient. In reviewing beta tester feedback, John recognised that overlooking post-acceptance satisfaction could jeopardise the OPV tool's retention and reflected on how he addressed this feedback as follows:

John's reflection as a practitioner indicates that it is not the tool's depth but the framing of user expectations from the outset that leads to negative feedback or expectations around time to be invested in the assessment. It suggests that, rather than following the “shorter is better” assumption in tool development, focusing on purpose-aligned expectation setting is essential as the tools need to drive thoughtful reflection and meaningful decision-making. This finding highlights SMEs' adaptive decision-making needs, where decision-support tools must adjust to changing expectations, time constraints and situational priorities rather than assume stable usage conditions.

Relevance and question design – The beta testers raised concerns about the sequencing, language and framing of diagnostic questions, suggesting that some items felt either abstract, misaligned with their business context or lacking in justification for why the question mattered. Particularly, some items in the OPV tool seem not to be relevant and applicable to small businesses, as echoed in the below quote from Beta Tester 15.

This feedback demonstrates the uniqueness of SMEs' decision-making activities as they often operate in dynamic, uncertain environments. Their processes are less formalised but often intuitive, situational and tacit, and problem-solving is generally context-specific and reactive but not based on codified procedures or routines (Salles, 2006). However, when questions feel misaligned, too abstract or geared toward a different kind of business, the diagnostic process can feel alienating or irrelevant, even if the tool is well-designed overall. In reflection, John commented on the target audience of the tool and the actions he took to address the user feedback as follows:

John also highlighted that the OPV tool is not merely an assessment tool but also an educational tool, guiding the SME owner managers as follows.

This indicates that perceived misalignment is not necessarily a defect in the tool but part of the tool's developmental logic.

Design and experience suggestions – Beta testers reflected on their experience with the design elements of the OPV tool. For instance, Beta Tester 2 suggested the below as they engaged with the OPV tool.

Although this feedback is about appearance at the surface level, these matters affect the small business owner's perception of credibility and usability. This is indicated by the below comment by the same Beta Tester as follows.

Such details of interface design affect trust, motivation and the perceived value of the tool and contribute to how seriously they take the tool. This sets the emotional stage for whether users perceive the process as worth their time. From a human interaction design perspective, Locoro et al. (2017) suggest that elegance and attractiveness, which refer to clear, consistent and aesthetically pleasing layouts, support comprehension and positive user perception. Users are more likely to engage deeply with tools that are perceived as clean, familiar and visually structured (Victorelli et al., 2020). A well-structured information interface can significantly reduce users' cognitive load (Yan et al., 2017). Interface layout is a significant factor in computer system design that can minimise users' cognitive load and improve working performance and usability (Zhang et al., 2023). SME owner-managers are time-poor and decision-overloaded individuals who use heuristics for evaluating tools quickly. When the experience feels cluttered, inconsistent or unpolished, it introduces friction. This may result in them questioning whether the insights they get will be equally disorganised or generic. People's trust perceptions of electronic online environments influence their intentions to engage, use and accept these systems, enhance cooperative behaviour and influence the perceived user experience (Skarlatidou et al., 2013). To John, this experience forms a critical part of his value proposition of the tool, and thus, he commented on the actions taken to address the user feedback as follows:

These adjustments signal a shift toward a more polished and emotionally engaging interface, aligning the user's experience with the reflective and strategic purpose of the tool. In doing so, the OPV reinforces not just usability but credibility, depth and perceived legitimacy.

Engagement and customisation potential – Beta Testers reflected on two main aspects of engagement and customisation. They valued the tool's contents and the opportunity it provides to the owner-manager to identify what is needed in running a business. For instance, Beta Testers 9 and 13 commented as follows:

However, they also indicated a desire for personalisation, cognitive pacing and progressive insight, all key to turning diagnostic tools from static checklists into dynamic learning and reflection experiences. For instance, Beta Testers 4 and 6 reflected on the OPV tool as follows:

This feedback indicates that rather than seeking just a tool that gives a score or output, participants wanted something that helped them think, prioritise and internalise, but in a way that was broken down, supportive and adaptable to who they are and how they work. This expectation is aligned with the interactivity principles outlined by Locoro et al. (2017). John reflected on the improvements he made to the tool and the rationale behind them as follows:

This structured design supports cognitive chunking and encourages focused, step-by-step reflection. However, beyond interface changes, John emphasised the deeper learning the tool was designed to foster.

This approach positions the OPV not just as a decision support mechanism, but as a practical thinking tool, one that helps SME leaders move from diagnostic insight to grounded, measurable action.

This study used an analytic autoethnographic approach to examine the practitioner-led development and refinement of a personal decision-support tool for SMEs, with the aim of understanding how such tools can support context-sensitive prioritisation under conditions of bounded rationality and resource constraint. Overall, the findings highlight the adaptive decision-making needs of SME owner-managers, demonstrating how engagement with decision-support tools is shaped by evolving expectations, time pressure, cognitive load and situational priorities rather than stable or linear decision processes.

Drawing from the analytic autoethnography, the study findings lead to three major theoretical contributions to the literature on SME decision-making, strategy development and decision-support systems. Firstly, study findings extend the bounded rationality theory by demonstrating that SME owner managers' engagement with decision-support tools is not only determined by cognitive limits, incomplete information and simplification strategies but also by the misalignment between expectation and experience (Bhattacherjee, 2001; Oliver, 1980; Pittenger et al., 2023), particularly in the adaptive decision-making contexts characteristic of SMEs. For example, beta testers' perceptions of the tool's time demand stemmed less from its content and more from an initial expectation that it would be a “quick assessment.” This aligns with Expectation-Confirmation Theory, which highlights how expectations, formed through prior experience, personal preferences and commercial communications, shape perceived usefulness and satisfaction (Hossain and Quaddus, 2011; Oliver, 1980). Empirically, this shows how bounded rationality in SMEs is enacted through expectation management rather than information processing, with OPV functioning as a mechanism that aligns perceived effort with strategic engagement.

Secondly, this study contributes to emotional design and decision-support systems research by evidencing the role of aesthetics, emotional cues and trust-building features in tool engagement. Study findings indicated that, for resource-constrained decision-makers, design elements such as quotations, visuals and layout signal credibility, influence perceived legitimacy and trigger reflective participation, consistent with prior work on emotional design and human-computer interaction that emphasises the role of affective and aesthetic cues in shaping user trust, engagement and meaning-making (Locoro et al., 2017; Zhou et al., 2021). This shows that in SME decision contexts, emotional design operates not as a surface-level usability feature but as a cognitive and symbolic device that shapes managerial sensemaking, perceived legitimacy and willingness to engage in strategic reflection.

Thirdly, this study contributes to the DSSs literature by underscoring that decision-support tool conceptualisation for SMEs should be based on a holistic framework that balances strategic domains for growth. Particularly, small businesses depend less on analytical methods such as setting long-term goals, conducting environmental analyses and establishing formal planning (Engelmann, 2024; Gibbons and O'connor, 2005; Herbane, 2019). Thus, SMEs require integrated thinking across leadership, business model and people dimensions, not siloed improvements (Kindström et al., 2024). Empirically, this reveals that SME owner-managers achieve prioritisation by integrating leadership, business model and people considerations simultaneously, rather than through sequential analytical optimisation across isolated functional domains.

Translating these theoretical advances into practice, the findings indicate that SME decision-support tools must be designed not merely to deliver information but to structure managerial sensemaking, expectation calibration and focused action under constraint. A practical implication of the expectation-experience misalignment identified is that while SME owner-managers are cost-conscious and time-poor, decision-support tools must help them adaptively think, prioritise and act (Engelmann, 2024), rather than targeting simplicity as the ultimate design goal (Zhang et al., 2023). Thus, context-aware decision-support systems personalising outputs for individual user preferences and operational conditions enhance the relevance and usability of the tool in dynamic SME environments (Soori et al., 2026). Embedding purpose-driven expectation management and strategic activation principles into the tool development process is essential to foster meaningful reflection and purposeful action. Real-time decision support, powered by analytics and AI, can further help SME managers act effectively within their bounded rationality (Onwujekwe and Weistroffer, 2025; Soori et al., 2026).

Another practical implication is that while usability remains important, tools must go beyond functionality to foster credibility, depth and emotional resonance. This aligns with Norman's (2004) Emotional Design framework which identifies three levels of user-product interaction: visceral (i.e., users' immediate reactions to the tool's layout, visuals and aesthetic coherence), behavioural (i.e., usability and task efficiency) and reflective (i.e., meaning making in the context of business vision, values and decision-making style) (Zhou et al., 2021). Owner-managers seek trust, emotional engagement and strategic seriousness from the tools they use, not just usability or efficiency (Kumar et al., 2019). SMEs' decision-making is shaped by managerial sentiment, heuristics and ongoing dynamic communication (Engelmann, 2024). Thus, credibility and legitimacy emerge through depth, reflection triggers and a clear alignment with strategic seriousness (Locoro et al., 2017).

Another important implication for entrepreneurial tool developers is that they must design frameworks that promote system-wide strategic coherence rather than reinforcing narrow, functionally isolated perspectives. The recent research on AI-based DSSs suggests that knowledge-based systems integrating diverse data sources and reasoning mechanisms can facilitate holistic decision-making as they leverage ontologies and semantic models to provide comprehensive insights (Soori et al., 2026). This aligns with the need for SMEs to develop decision support tools that consider the broader business context, rather than focusing on isolated functional areas.

Finally, an important practical implication of the study is that real-world tool building involves entrepreneurial negotiation rather than a pure application of user experience (UX) design principles. The modern role of design takes a multifaceted and iterative approach to align customer expectations with the strategic objectives of organisations (Tuffuor et al., 2025). Therefore, it is essential to embrace the impact of real-world constraints such as platform limitations, cybersecurity requirements and budgetary pressures, while still integrating user feedback meaningfully (Soori et al., 2026). This is consistent with Moultrie’s (2007) experience in developing an audit tool, where achieving an effective outcome required careful balancing between comprehensiveness and usability. In the context of SMEs, they balance operational needs and innovation efforts dynamically, not formally, as they prioritise operational and security risks over perfect usability (Engelmann, 2024). Hence, an important implication for decision-support tool developers is that user-centred feedback, while critical, should not always override broader considerations of risk management and business model viability.

This study has broader societal relevance through its focus on improving the quality of managerial decision-making in SMEs. SME owner-managers play a critical role in local economies yet frequently make strategic decisions under conditions of bounded rationality, uncertainty and cognitive overload (Engelmann, 2024; Gomes et al., 2010). By demonstrating how practitioner-developed decision-support tools can facilitate adaptive prioritisation rather than prescriptive optimisation, this study provides insights into mechanisms that can improve real-world decision quality (Soori et al., 2026). Supporting more reflective, focused and context-sensitive decision-making in SMEs has implications for business sustainability, employment stability and the effective allocation of managerial effort, thereby contributing to more resilient entrepreneurial ecosystems and healthier regional economies (Crovini et al., 2021).

Building on these insights, several valuable directions for future research are identified. Firstly, future studies could investigate how integrated diagnostic tools influence strategic action and organisational adaptability through longitudinal designs. This aligns with the findings of Dőry and Németh (2017), who confirmed that the use of systematic and operative decision-making tools positively affects both economic and innovation performance of SMEs, driving their professionalisation for growth. Secondly, researchers could explore how entrepreneurial constraints and tensions shape innovation pathways in SME-oriented tool development. This is important as recent research suggests that severe resource limitations and institutional voids significantly alter how strategic capabilities, such as design management, translate into performance outcomes in SMEs (Tuffuor et al., 2025). Thirdly, further inquiry could examine how decision-support tools frame and manage the expectations of SME owner-managers. Finally, future research might investigate design approaches that foster credibility, depth and emotional engagement to support sustained tool adoption among SMEs (Kumar et al., 2019; Locoro et al., 2017).

While this study advances the literature on entrepreneurial decision-support tools for SMEs by providing a rich practitioner perspective, it is subject to certain limitations. The analysis is based on a single developer's experience with the OPV tool, which limits generalisability. Although generalisation is not the intent of analytic autoethnography, future research could benefit from comparative multiple-case study designs, capturing diverse tool development experiences. Furthermore, while beta testing provided valuable feedback on usability, complementary user interviews could yield deeper insights into SME leaders' strategic expectations, emotional engagement and decision-making behaviours during tool adoption.

This study addressed how a practitioner-led decision-support tool can support context-sensitive, real-time prioritisation in line with the adaptive decision-making needs of SME owner-managers. The findings show that this is achieved not through prescriptive optimisation, but through a structured yet flexible personal decision-support system that enables managers to interpret their organisational context and focus on a small number of high-impact actions as conditions change. Through reflective engagement across key business domains, the OPV framework translates complex performance signals into actionable strategic focus in real time.

Beyond answering this research question, the study provides a rich analytic autoethnographic account of how a personal decision-support tool for SMEs was conceptualised, developed, negotiated and refined. The findings emphasise the need for a holistic framework in tool design that balances strategic domains of SME growth and reflects the lived realities of owner-managers. The study also highlights the importance of addressing business-model constraints and risk elements when integrating user feedback rather than simply responding to user preferences. Moreover, it underscores the need to promote purpose-driven usage over completion-focused practices and to foster credibility and legitimacy alongside usability. Together, these insights contribute to a deeper understanding of how practitioner-led innovation can align with theoretical perspectives on SME growth, bounded rationality and strategic decision-making support.

Human Research Ethics Committee Approval was obtained from the ethics committee of the second author's affiliated institution (HREC – 20,258,385–20875).

The first author of this study, who developed the OPV tool, conducted the Beta testing with the tool. Beta testing results were used as secondary data for this study and a consent waiver was obtained from the Human Research Ethics Committee of the second author's affiliated institution.

Consent for publication was granted by the ethics committee under the approved consent waiver application.