High technology firms in Canada's description of their competitive advantage - a cross case analysis of a sample of SMEs

Price, Sherry and Erwee, Ronel (2006) High technology firms in Canada's description of their competitive advantage - a cross case analysis of a sample of SMEs. In: AM 2006: Knowledge, Action and the Public Concern , 14-16 Aug 2006, Atlanta, USA.

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Abstract

This exploratory research compares how high technology firms define competitive advantage and use performance management strategies to gain a competitive advantage. The eight high technology firms selected for a larger research study are located in the Okanagan Valley region of British Columbia Canada and each was pre-qualified as a small or medium-sized enterprise – two with 10 to 19 employees, four with 20 to 49, and two with 50 to 200. For this research, eight high technology case studies were constructed from interviews with the firms’ managers. This paper presents the cross-case analysis of the results of one of the research issues regarding the definition of competitive advantage in the SMEs. The results indicate that all firms view superior technology and customer service as their common differentiating qualities; nevertheless, human capital was endorsed as either a competitive advantage or an integral component. Regardless, performance management has potential for greater role in the crafting and executing of strategy than these firms employ.

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Item Type:	Conference or Workshop Item (Commonwealth Reporting Category E) (Paper)
Refereed:	Yes
Item Status:	Live Archive
Additional Information:	Deposited in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher. This paper is based on the first author's DBA dissertation and is part of a series of papers.
Faculty/School / Institute/Centre:	Historic - Faculty of Business - Department of Management and Organisational Behaviour (Up to 31 Mar 2007)
Faculty/School / Institute/Centre:	Historic - Faculty of Business - Department of Management and Organisational Behaviour (Up to 31 Mar 2007)
Date Deposited:	11 Oct 2007 00:39
Last Modified:	02 Jul 2013 22:37
Uncontrolled Keywords:	competitive advancement; performance management; SMEs; high technology firms
Fields of Research (2008):	15 Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services > 1503 Business and Management > 150305 Human Resources Management 15 Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services > 1503 Business and Management > 150314 Small Business Management 15 Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services > 1503 Business and Management > 150308 International Business
Socio-Economic Objectives (2008):	E Expanding Knowledge > 97 Expanding Knowledge > 970115 Expanding Knowledge in Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services
URI:	http://eprints.usq.edu.au/id/eprint/1315

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