Based on the observation of hundreds of SME cases, a number of characteristics were found that make smaller companies particularly strong and resilient. These lines of action (ten in all) are recurrently found in companies that are able to overcome market difficulties well.
Strong small companies are also those that are able to compete successfully in foreign markets. Knowing these traits is therefore a fundamental pre-requisite for a successful internationalisation. The ten typical traits of strong companies are listed below.
The strategic characteristics of strong SMEs:
- Set the goal of maximise the economic result in the medium to long term.
- Look for the comparison with those who are 'ahead'.
- Doing better what you have always done (making it visible).
- Knowing how to do innovation (even in mature sectors).
- Moving from a strategy based on reduction of costs to one aimed at realising quality and service.
- Treating the corporate dimension as a management variable.
- Designing company boundaries in a way flexibleKnowing how to move between outsourcing and internalisation.
- Making a difference also through business organisation and human capital management.
- Staying rooted in the territory of belonging.
- Having a strong entrepreneur.
This decalogue can be used as a 'mirror' to detect the presence or absence of the distinctive traits of strong SMEs.
The majority presence of these characters, based on evidence from many real-life cases, makes it possible to help SMEs in their expansion abroad.
This can be implemented by adopting different organisational solutions.
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