Meeting the global challenge through a collaborative business strategy for small and medium-sized enterprises

The increasing pace and cost associated with the development and exploitation of new technologies is making it prohibitive for organizations to work on their own. Supply chain companies are expected to share the risks of developing technologies, without necessarily being offered long-term commitment in the form of supply contracts. Small and medium-size enterprises are particularly vulnerable to these trends and therefore need to formulate strategies that can counter the implicit threats. Collaboration is a viable business model for these enterprises, providing an opportunity for adding very high value collectively that would not otherwise be possible, whilst at the same time, reducing risks by supplying a number of market sectors. This paper proposes a framework for enabling successful collaborative relationships among a group of manufacturing companies and supporting the skills required by the business leaders to develop and implement collaborative strategy. It presents work in progress with 8 small and medium-size enterprises located in the West Midlands region of the UK who are adopting a collaborative strategy.