Manager's Perception About Innovation within the SMEs in Montemorelos, Nuevo León, México

This research studies the perception of innovation by managers of small and medium enterprises in Montemorelos, Nuevo León. Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are the engine that drives the economy in Mexico and play a fundamental role in the creation of new sources of income. Therefore, research regarding SME.s is important. Montemorelos is a municipality of Nuevo León that depends economically on SMEs. As several authors have mentioned, one of the success factors of SMEs is innovation. In this research we examine the perception of the administrator regarding innovation. We analyze our results based on gender, type of company and level of education. It is quantitative, descriptive, cross-transversal research. Sample selection was done using the convenience method to meet certain criteria. Some 80 SME managers were surveyed in their areas of work. For the data collection, an instrument was used to measure self-perceived innovation by the managers. The instrument consisted 15 items with a scale of 1 to 7 and a reliability of .919 alpha of Cronbach. The study showed no difference in the perception of innovation based on gender, type of business and level of education. It was also found that most Small Business Managers (SMBs) consider the complaints and suggestions of their customers to improve their product or service