Abstract
Long-established Schumpeterian theory on innovation assumes that significant innovations are generated by large companies with ample spare resources. The allocation of time and money to speculative endeavours with unclear outcomes has often been regarded as beyond the scope of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). As a result, authorities sometimes advise SMEs to concentrate on the adoption of existing innovative products and processes rather than the generation of new creative ideas. Despite this traditional wisdom, some very capable individuals actively choose to participate in the SME sector because the relative absence of internal bureaucratic processes and the capacity for agile response to changing circumstances. Ten case studies of significant technical innovations generated within construction SMEs were examined in the light of common themes identified through a literature review. The case studies were classified according to existing taxonomies of innovation. Content analysis was used to map the identified themes against the published material about the innovations from patent applications, company websites, trade literature and industry magazines. The findings indicate that SME innovation stems from several distinct motivations. These drivers of innovation can be described vectors. They inspire innovative solutions but the generated innovations also drive development towards solutions for other, quite different problems.
Highlights
A business strategy focussing on innovation and continual improvement has long been identified as an effective means of ensuring ongoing financial success for businesses in a market economy (Schumpeter, 1934; Schumpeter, 1942; Tushman and Moore, 1988; Audretsch, 1995; Drucker 2002; Fagerberg, Mowery and Nelson, 2005)
There are three polar pairs developed from the works listed: Strategic/Proactive/Top-down compared with Project-based/Reactive/Bottom-up (Mitropoulos and Tatum 1999); Bounded/Autonomous compared with Unbounded/Systematic (Harty, 2005); and Analytic/Rational compared with Intuitive/Behavioural (Gopalakrishnan and Bierly, 2001)
The small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) sector in construction is large in number and diversified in nature
Summary
A business strategy focussing on innovation and continual improvement has long been identified as an effective means of ensuring ongoing financial success for businesses in a market economy (Schumpeter, 1934; Schumpeter, 1942; Tushman and Moore, 1988; Audretsch, 1995; Drucker 2002; Fagerberg, Mowery and Nelson, 2005). Openness to innovation is being associated with improved environmental and social performance in many sectors of the economy in a worldwide context. In particular, are widely reported to have avoided the challenge to adopt new attitudes and modes of operation (Reichstein, Salter and Gann 2005). In the Australian context, this belief was widely voiced in submissions to the Cole Royal Commission into the Building and Construction Industry (Cole, 2003). In his Summary of Citation: Hardie, M. Vectors of technical innovation delivery by small and medium Australian construction firms, Construction Economics and Building, 16(3), 59-70.
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