Bakgrund: Idag har det blivit allt viktigare att företag växer, då det skapar förutsättningar att utveckla samhället genom att exempelvis skapa fler nya jobb. I de små företagen finns stor tillväxtpotential och tillväxtvilja, men det är svårt att undkomma olika tillväxthinder och växa lönsamt. Många små företag består av byggföretag och det är vanligt att små byggföretag lyckas växa snabbt, men många av dem går ändå i konkurs. Frågan är hur en anpassad styrning av företagens organisation kan bidra till att underlätta tillväxten och hjälpa företagen att lösa de organisatoriska styrningsproblem som kan uppstå. Syfte: Vårt syfte med studien är att undersöka vilka styrningsproblem som vanligtvis uppstår vid tillväxt av små byggföretag och hur dessa problem påverkar den fortsatta tillväxten, samt ta reda på hur styrningsproblemen kan lösas med en, för branschen, anpassad styrning. Definitioner: Tillväxt betyder vanligtvis att något växer eller ökar i mängd. Tillväxt kan även innebära att något ökar i storlek eller att kvalitén förbättras till följd av en processutveckling. Styrning innefattar de instrument, regler och procedurer som används för att styra de anställdas beteenden inom organisationen i enlighet med företagets mål. Genomförande: Datainsamlingen har skett genom intervjuer med representanter och dokumentation från tre små byggföretag som vi har använt som fallföretag. Slutsats & resultat: Flera de vanligaste styrningsproblemen inom små byggföretag liknar de som uppstår i andra tillväxtföretag. Vi ser dock att valet av styrning i tillväxtföretag ändå behöver ta hänsyn till hur de anställda inom branschen beter sig och andra branschegenskaper. Vi ser även att styrningen måste anpassas i takt med att företag växer, då företags behov och beteende förändras. / Background: Today it has become more important with growing firms, because it creates opportunities to develop the society by, for example, creating more jobs. There is great potential and willingness to grow in small firms, but it is difficult to avoid different barriers to growth and to grow profitably. Many small firms are represented by construction firms and it is common for small construction firms to grow fast, but many of them are still going bankrupt. The question is how an adjusted management control of the firm’s organization can contribute to facilitate growth and help firms to solve their organizational management control problems that can arise. Purpose: Our aim with this study is to examine the management control problems that usually occur during the growth of small construction firms and how these problems affect the future growth, and also find out how the management control problems can be solved with different types of control, which are adjusted to the industry. Definitions: Growth usually means that something grows or increases in amount. Growth may also mean that something increase in size or that there is quality improvements resulting from a process development. Management control includes the tools, rules and procedures that are used to control employees’ behavior within the organization in accordance with the firm’s objectives. Completion: Data has been collected through interviews with representatives and documentation from three small construction firms that we have used as cases. Conclusions & results: A number of the most common management control problems in small construction firms are similar to those arising in other growing firms. However, we see that the choice of control in growing firms still needs to consider how the employees in theindustry behave and other industry characteristics. We also see that the management control must be adapted as the firms grow, because the firm’s needs and behavior change.

<p>Internationalisation is today part of every firm’s reality and impossible to deny. Researchers have developed several models and theories concerning this topic describing firms internationalisation in terms of innovation models, behavioural-, sequential-, and learning processes. However, there is a lack of export research for small firms that are practically oriented towards a specific market. Small firms often lack the resources and time to investigate new markets. We have seen an empirically driven need for research about entry strategies due to a request from a Swedish design company.</p><p>The Japanese economy is the second largest in the world with a population interested in consumer goods such as design products and services. During the last years, the fascination for western cultures, Swedish design and lifestyle has grown. Due to this, it is interesting for small Swedish design firms to examine the Japanese market.</p><p>The purpose of the thesis is to empirically examine small Swedish design firms’ internationalisation process to Japan. Appropriate export entry strategies will be evaluated in order to find suitable suggestions for other design firms with similar characteristics that wish to expand to Japan.</p><p>To fulfil this purpose, a qualitative method with an orientation towards induction was used. Primary data was gathered by interviews with five Swedish design firms with experiences from Japanese market penetration. To approach the Japanese market and entry strategies from another perspective, complementary information and interviews were conducted with for example the manager at Swedish Trade Council Japan, and the founder of the agent association Japan Porten.</p><p>Internationalisation theories, export entry strategies, and theory about the Japanese market have also been presented. As a result of the theory chapter, research questions rose concerning what international entry strategy this type of companies should use. What entry mode and distribution channels are most appropriate, how should the marketing plan be composed and what other things should to be considered before a Japanese market entry? A cross-analysis was then made contrasting and comparing theory and empirical data in order to reach conclusions.</p><p>The conclusion gives suggestions about what steps small Swedish design firms should take after they have decided to enter Japan. We have found evidence during this research process that suggests them to use a direct entry mode, contracting an agent or distributor. To get in contact with business partners, the companies can participate in trade fairs or events, promote themselves through magazines, and take help from the Swedish Trade Council. Products should be slightly adjusted to the Japanese market, especially in terms of physical size and packaging materials that has to be flawless and professional. The price can be set higher than in Sweden and the company should position themselves as high quality producers. Swedish design, originality, and handicraft tradition should be promoted. Further, the Japanese business culture has to be respected, where negotiation manners, honesty and politeness should be considered. The companies also have to bear in mind that things take time in Japan and it is important to develop personal life-lasting relationships.</p>

This thesis deals with how managerial work sets the agenda for managerial learning in small firms. Although studies of learning in organizations are numerous, research on managerial learning in the small-firm context is limited. In particular, our knowledge of managerial learning suffers from an insufficient understanding of what top managers in small firms do. The primary purpose of this thesis is to describe how the work of small-firm managers sets the agenda for managerial learning, and how their learning can be supported. Additionally, the thesis explores the use of so-called “Action Technologies” in supporting managerial learning in small firms.Drawing on an observational study of six owner-managers in small (17-43 employees) manufacturing firms, and a synthesis of earlier studies, this thesis shows that three features of managerial work shape managerial learning in small firms: The small firm’s top manager (i) operates in context with specific structural conditions that affect his/her behavior, (ii) have certain cognitive predispositions guiding his/her behavior, and (iii) have certain behavioral preferences directing his/her behavior.The main argument in this thesis is that managerial learning in small firms is made difficult due to features that make it hard to come to a point where learning (in terms of reflection and conceptualization) is given time and resources, as the manager has trouble in finding time for learning, and as learning risks to become low-priority. Learning is also difficult due to barriers related to the learning process: the work of the manager fosters a superficial learning orientation, makes it difficult to probe deeply into and to develop complicated understandings of issues at hand, and makes peer-learning rarely possible.Drawing on an action research project of managerial learning in four networks of small-firm owner-managers, the thesis also explores, in a concrete manner, how managerial learning might be supported in a way that circumvents the deficient situation for managerial learning in this kind of firm. More specifically, it seems that Action Technologies by their design constitute a learning context that supports the learning of the small-firm top manager by dissolving the barriers to learning identified above. / <p>Original papers included. Paper III, "Managerial behavior in small firms - a critical analysis of evidence from observational studies" changed title to "Managerial work in small firms: summarising what we know and sketching a research agenda".</p>

Bakgrund Regeringen ansåg trots införandet av 1994 års Skuldsaneringslag (1994:334) att man behövde en lösning på problemet att enskilda näringsidkare varken kunde bli beviljade skuldsanering eller företagsrekonstruktion för att på så sätt ha möjlighet att fortsätta bedriva sin verksamhet om de hamnat i ekonomiskt obestånd. 2007 tillsattes därför en särskild utredare som skulle utreda och lämna förslag om skuldnedsättning för enskilda näringsidkare. Denna utredning låg till grund för regeringens proposition som riksdagen oktober 2010 fattade beslut om. Problemformulering Vilka effekter har den nya Skuldsaneringslagen medfört för näringsidkare såväl som borgenärer? Syfte Vårt syfte med kandidatuppsatsen är att undersöka om införandet av den nya Skuldsaneringslagen (2006:548) gjort att de förväntade effekterna uppnåtts, samt om det inneburit att andra effekter uppstått. Metod Studiens syfte besvaras genom en personlig intervju samt flertalet enkäteter som har samlats in för det empiriska materialet. Bearbetningen av det empiriska materialet gjordes med en kvalitativ metod. Även remisser och propositioner har används för att hjälpa till att besvara kandidatuppsatsens syfte då referensramen och slutsatsen ställts mot varandra. Slutsats De faktiska effekter som den nya Skuldsaneringslagen (2006:548) inneburit är att enskilda näringsidkare kan skuldsanera om obeståndet beror på att denne inte kunnat arbeta under en längre period och därför hamnat i ekonomiskt trångmål. Vid ett ekonomiskt trångmål beaktas inte skuldernas ålder på samma sätt som tidigare vilket gjort att en gäldenär kan ansöka om skuldsanering i ett tidigare stadie. Att detta skulle bidra till försämrad betalningsmoral och förhöjda räntor visar sig oförändrad. Vid förändring av rekvisit såsom skuldernas ålder syns en tydlig effekt på antalet skuldsaneringsärenden. / Background The Government considered despite the introduction of the 1994 debt rescheduling act (1994:334) that a solution was needed to the problem that individual traders neither could be granted debt relief or corporate restructuring to thus be able to continue operations if they got into financial insolvency. Therefore in 2007 a special investigator was added to investigate and make proposals for debt relief for individual traders. This study was the basis for the Government bill that the Parliament in October 2010 decided upon. The main issue What impact has the new debt rescheduling act meant for traders as well as creditors? Purpose Our purpose of the bachelor thesis is to explore if the new debt rescheduling act (2006:548) has achieved the expected goals, the study will also investigate if the new debt rescheduling act has resulted in any other effects. Method The study's purpose is answered by a personal interview and several questionnaires that have been collected for the empirical material. The processing of the empirical material was made by a qualitative method. Referrals and propositions have also been used to help answer the bachelor thesis purpose, when the reference frame and the conclusion were set against each other. Conclusion The actual impact of the new debt rescheduling act (2006:548) is that individual traders can get debt relief if the insolvency was because the trader could not work for a long period of time and therefore ended up in financial trouble. In an insolvency situation the age of the debts are not considered in the same way as before, which meant that a debtor can apply for debt relief in an earlier stage. That this would contribute to deterioration in payment behavior and elevated interest rates appears unchanged. At the change of a criterion such as the age of the debt, a clear effect on the number of debt applications can be seen.

The purpose of this study is to examine how the internationalization process in small firms impacts their resource base renewal. The relationships between organizational learning, dynamic capabilities, operational capabilities and resources are empirically examined to determine the impact of internationalization on changes to the firm’s resource base. The empirical analysis follows a multiple case study research methodology and is based on in depth case studies of four internationalized professional service firms in Ontario. Cases include born-global and born-again global firms, exemplifying both location-based and knowledge-based services. The study finds evidence supporting the relationships between internationalization, organizational learning and planned change via dynamic capabilities, as well as internationalization, organizational learning and ad hoc problem solving. Findings also suggest that the firms’ repetitive use of ad hoc problem solving when faced with similar situations leads to the creation of dynamic capabilities. This research adds to the existing body of literature on services, international entrepreneurship and strategy by responding to a call for empirical examination of organizational learning within the RBV and DC constructs. Furthermore, it also applies a novel theoretical framework with which to examine the impact of small firm internationalization and their strategic renewal. By doing so, this thesis extends the RBV and DC perspectives to small service firms. Findings demonstrate a need to further continue this research path to gain greater understanding of the change processes that occur during the evolution of the firm’s resource base, as pertains to small knowledge-intensive service firms.

Business growth has been a widely interesting topic among researchers throughout the years. Most research has emphasised growth as an outcome that considers different measures to growth, whereas the outcome of growth that reflects upon managing challenges when growing and growth as a process that refers to how firms adapt internally whilst growing have been much more neglected. As an organisation grows, human capital has been suggested as one of the most critical aspects to manage when firms need to develop knowledge, competencies, and skills beyond what already exists within the organisation. Small firms in comparison to their larger counterparts seldom have specific departments to manage human resources, which leaves room for interesting areas to understand how small firms can manage processes to develop human resources beyond those already existing as firms grow. As small firms grow and encounter various challenges in need of management, absorptive capacity considers means for managers to address growth challenges by realising the value of new and external knowledge to produce dynamic capabilities, which in turn enable firms to align resources to the changing environment of a growing organisation. Previous research highlights the need to develop a practical understanding of internal processes that managers apply when managing a wider range of competencies. The purpose of this study serves to create an understanding of how small firms that encounter growth challenges can manage human resources to develop necessary skills and competencies beyond existing means as organisations grow. To develop this understanding, this study develops a conceptual framework based upon human capital, absorptive capacity and dynamic capabilities with the guiding research question: How can small firms manage human resources when growing? Through a qualitative study with data collected through semi-structured interviews, this study concludes that small firms can manage human resources through various processes, in which organisational culture should serve as a foundation throughout the entire process of managing human resources. This study also concludes that as organisations grow, it is important to be aware of and question current processes to efficiently address challenges in changing environments. Furthermore, this study considers the importance of being an attractive firm and to manage human resources through means of defining a market to attract and acquire human resources when growing. With previous research highlighting the need to develop a more practical understanding of processes that managers utilise when managing a growing organisation, this study contributes to existing literature by emphasising the role of the manager throughout the process of managing human resources. The study also provides practical reasonings for small firms to remain efficient and survive in a market dominated by competition of larger organisations with financial resources to outcompete smaller and less established firms.

Com base na literatura sobre capacidade absortiva e nos estudos de inovação, argumenta-se neste trabalho que a capacidade absortiva influencia as atividades de de inovação. O modelo de capacidade absortiva utilizado foi o de Zahra e George (2002), que tem por base a capacidade absortiva potencial (dimensões de aquisição e assimilação) e capacidade absortiva realizada (dimensões de transformação e exploração (exploitation)). A inovação foi entendida como um processo que pode gerar inovações organizacionais, em produtos e processos, e de marketing. Este estudo tem por foco, porém, inovações de produtos e processos. Dessa forma, com o objetivo de entender como a capacidade absortiva influencia a inovação de produtos e processos em micro e pequenas empresas brasileiras, o presente estudo adotou uma abordagem qualitativa, por meio da investigação sob a forma de múltiplos casos. Para isso, foram desenvolvidos dois estudos de casos no segmento da indústria náutica. Os casos foram analisados em separado e depois foram comparados, buscando semelhanças que ampliassem a compreensão do fenômeno. Os resultados sugerem que há uma influência positiva da capacidade absortiva nas atividades de inovação das micro e pequenas empresas da indústria náutica brasileira. Alguns elementos diferenciais foram encontrados, como o fato de que, nos casos estudados, o processo de inovação se inicia a partir da experiência acumulada, da percepção dos proprietários, das informações oriundas de clientes e velejadores e das informações obtidas junto aos fornecedores. Outro elemento foi de que há, por vezes, um processo de realimentação entre as dimensões de assimilação e transformação, mesmo que curto, antes da informação ser explorada (exploited) sob a forma de novos produtos ou de processos mais eficientes. Por fim, foi encontrado que o nível de desenvolvimento da capacidade absortiva influencia na inovação de produtos e processos. A contribuição final do estudo se compõe de um framework integrado que demonstra a influência e o funcionamento da capacidade absortiva na geração de inovações de produtos e processos nas empresas estudadas. / Based on the literature on absorptive capacity and innovation studies, it is argued in this research that the absorptive capacity influences the activities of innovation. It was used the model of absorptive capacity of Zahra and George (2002), which is based on the potential absorptive capacity comprised by the dimensions of acquisition and assimilation, and on realized absorptive capacity, based on the dimensions of transformation and exploitation. Innovation is understood as a process that can generate innovations in products and processes, services, organization and marketing. However, this study focuses on innovations in products and processes. Thus, in order to understand how the absorptive capacity influences the innovation of products and processes in Brazilian micro and small firms, this study adopted a qualitative approach. A multiple cases study was conducted in the marine industry. The two cases were analyzed separately and then compared, looking for similarities that would broaden the understanding of the phenomenon. The results suggest a positive influence of absorptive capacity on innovation activities of micro and small firms in the Brazilian marine industry. Some differential elements were found, such as the fact that, in the cases studied, the process of innovation starts from the accumulated experience, the perception of the owners, the information from customers and sailors and the information obtained from the suppliers. Another factor is that there is sometimes a feedback process between the dimensions of assimilation and transformation, even though short, before the information is exploited in the form of new products and more efficient processes. Finally, it was found that the level of development of absorptive capacity influences the innovation of products and processes. The final contribution of this study consists of an integrative framework that demonstrates the influence and operation of absorptive capacity in generating innovation of products and processes in micro and small firms.

Submitted by Alison Vanceto (alison-vanceto@hotmail.com) on 2016-10-06T13:51:49Z No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseVRZR.pdf: 1985391 bytes, checksum: 371d61d2112a51cf7a42d23a1aeda939 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Marina Freitas (marinapf@ufscar.br) on 2016-10-20T19:25:26Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseVRZR.pdf: 1985391 bytes, checksum: 371d61d2112a51cf7a42d23a1aeda939 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Marina Freitas (marinapf@ufscar.br) on 2016-10-20T19:25:31Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseVRZR.pdf: 1985391 bytes, checksum: 371d61d2112a51cf7a42d23a1aeda939 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-10-20T19:25:37Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseVRZR.pdf: 1985391 bytes, checksum: 371d61d2112a51cf7a42d23a1aeda939 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-05-29 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / This project investigates the foundation and strengthening of SEBRAE institution, known as a reference in the consulting segment for micro and small enterprises in our country. For this purpose, makes an initial survey of scientific literature on the subject, beyond identifying and presenting some data and indicators related to small Brazilian companies, in order to demonstrate their actual importance in the Brazilian economic scenario. Then, it reexamines the consulting industry history in Brazil and in the world, resuming Consulting Cartography in Brazil and the studies conducted here about the sector. Finally, it presents the data identified about SEBRAE's trajectory since its birth and its development over the 40 years of its history. The study is based on the analysis of documents and data generated by the institution, publications about it, interviews with directors, employees and consultants, and it makes a general analysis of the institution from its activities in consulting, in order to identify and describe how it is made setting the agenda and products offered, the attended audience, the consulting agents, its organizational structure and the applied strategies for achieving their goals. As a result, it was possible to identify the major growth with consulting services as from changes in the strategies and products offered to different customers in all three stages presented: decades of 1970/1980, the 1990s and from 2000s, when it strengthens its performance in public policy, and its products are defined to micro and small enterprises, in addition to individual micro entrepreneurs, both formal and potential. / Este trabalho investiga o movimento de criação e fortalecimento da instituição SEBRAE, tida como referência no segmento de consultoria para a micro e pequena empresa em nosso país. Para isso, faz um levantamento inicial da produção científica sobre do tema, além da identificação e apresentação de alguns dados e indicadores referentes às pequenas empresas brasileiras, de modo a demonstrar sua efetiva importância no cenário econômico brasileiro. Na sequência, faz uma releitura do histórico da indústria da consultoria no Brasil e no mundo, retomando a Cartografia da Consultoria no Brasil e os estudos realizados aqui acerca do setor. Finalmente, apresenta os dados identificados acerca da trajetória do SEBRAE, desde seu nascimento e seu desenvolvimento ao longo dos 40 anos de sua história. O estudo parte da análise de documentos e dados gerados pela instituição, publicações sobre a mesma, entrevistas com diretores, funcionários e consultores e faz uma análise geral da instituição a partir de sua atuação na consultoria, a fim de identificar e descrever como é feita a definição da agenda e dos produtos oferecidos, o público-alvo atendido, os agentes de consultoria, sua estrutura organizacional e as estratégias empregadas para o atingimento de seus objetivos. Como resultado, foi possível identificar o grande crescimento no número de atendimento com consultorias, a partir das transformações nas estratégias e produtos oferecidos para clientes distintos nas três fases apresentadas: décadas de 1970/1980, década de 1990 e a partir dos anos 2000, quando fortalece sua atuação em políticas públicas, e são claramente definidos seus produtos para micro e pequenas empresas, além dos produtos para microempreendedores individuais, tanto os existentes quanto potenciais.

Com base na literatura sobre capacidade absortiva e nos estudos de inovação, argumenta-se neste trabalho que a capacidade absortiva influencia as atividades de de inovação. O modelo de capacidade absortiva utilizado foi o de Zahra e George (2002), que tem por base a capacidade absortiva potencial (dimensões de aquisição e assimilação) e capacidade absortiva realizada (dimensões de transformação e exploração (exploitation)). A inovação foi entendida como um processo que pode gerar inovações organizacionais, em produtos e processos, e de marketing. Este estudo tem por foco, porém, inovações de produtos e processos. Dessa forma, com o objetivo de entender como a capacidade absortiva influencia a inovação de produtos e processos em micro e pequenas empresas brasileiras, o presente estudo adotou uma abordagem qualitativa, por meio da investigação sob a forma de múltiplos casos. Para isso, foram desenvolvidos dois estudos de casos no segmento da indústria náutica. Os casos foram analisados em separado e depois foram comparados, buscando semelhanças que ampliassem a compreensão do fenômeno. Os resultados sugerem que há uma influência positiva da capacidade absortiva nas atividades de inovação das micro e pequenas empresas da indústria náutica brasileira. Alguns elementos diferenciais foram encontrados, como o fato de que, nos casos estudados, o processo de inovação se inicia a partir da experiência acumulada, da percepção dos proprietários, das informações oriundas de clientes e velejadores e das informações obtidas junto aos fornecedores. Outro elemento foi de que há, por vezes, um processo de realimentação entre as dimensões de assimilação e transformação, mesmo que curto, antes da informação ser explorada (exploited) sob a forma de novos produtos ou de processos mais eficientes. Por fim, foi encontrado que o nível de desenvolvimento da capacidade absortiva influencia na inovação de produtos e processos. A contribuição final do estudo se compõe de um framework integrado que demonstra a influência e o funcionamento da capacidade absortiva na geração de inovações de produtos e processos nas empresas estudadas. / Based on the literature on absorptive capacity and innovation studies, it is argued in this research that the absorptive capacity influences the activities of innovation. It was used the model of absorptive capacity of Zahra and George (2002), which is based on the potential absorptive capacity comprised by the dimensions of acquisition and assimilation, and on realized absorptive capacity, based on the dimensions of transformation and exploitation. Innovation is understood as a process that can generate innovations in products and processes, services, organization and marketing. However, this study focuses on innovations in products and processes. Thus, in order to understand how the absorptive capacity influences the innovation of products and processes in Brazilian micro and small firms, this study adopted a qualitative approach. A multiple cases study was conducted in the marine industry. The two cases were analyzed separately and then compared, looking for similarities that would broaden the understanding of the phenomenon. The results suggest a positive influence of absorptive capacity on innovation activities of micro and small firms in the Brazilian marine industry. Some differential elements were found, such as the fact that, in the cases studied, the process of innovation starts from the accumulated experience, the perception of the owners, the information from customers and sailors and the information obtained from the suppliers. Another factor is that there is sometimes a feedback process between the dimensions of assimilation and transformation, even though short, before the information is exploited in the form of new products and more efficient processes. Finally, it was found that the level of development of absorptive capacity influences the innovation of products and processes. The final contribution of this study consists of an integrative framework that demonstrates the influence and operation of absorptive capacity in generating innovation of products and processes in micro and small firms.

As PEBT?s carecem de estudos e modelos específicos sobre o seu processo de formulação de estratégias. Visando aumentar o corpo de conhecimentos nesta área, objetivou-se nessa pesquisa, apresentar um modelo de formulação de estratégias de PEBT?s e realizar contribuições ao seu processo. Isso foi feito através de uma pesquisa de abordagem qualitativa, com método descritivo e natureza exploratória e estudo de casos múltiplos. Nas seis PEBT?s escolhidas foram feitas entrevistas semi-estruturas com os sócios, baseada no Modelo de Planejamento Estratégico para Pequenas Empresas de Almeida (2003), até a parte da formulação de estratégias. A análise dos dados também foi feita com base no Modelo de Almeida. Como sugestões ao seu processo de formulação destacam-se a necessidade da busca do demand pull ao invés do technology push e a criação de uma assessoria de prospecção de novos negócios. O modelo sugerido é composto de três fases. A primeira delas é a da concepção do negócio com as seguintes atividades: análise da vocação, campo de atuação, definição da missão e da visão. A segunda é a do diagnóstico, composta da análise do entorno competitivo, análise interna e estratégia vigente. Por último, tem-se a fase da formulação de estratégias, na qual deve-se identificar as estratégias corporativas e competitivas. / There is a lack of studies and models about the process of strategy formulation on small technology-based firms. With the goal of increasing knowledge in this area, this research intended to present a model for strategy formulation in small technology-based firms and to suggest improvement to the process. The research was developed based on qualitative study, a descriptive method of exploratory nature and by using a multi-case study. In the six small technology-based firms, semi-structured interviews were made with owners, based on the strategy planning model from Almeida (2003), up to the strategy formulation. Data analysis was also developed based on Almeida?s model. As a recommendation to the formulation process, we stressed the importance of searching for the demand pull versus the technology push and the creation of a new business prospect advisory. The suggested model is composed of thee phases: first is the conception of the business with the following activities: vocation analysis, market segmentation, and mission and vision definition. The second is the diagnosis, involving the competitive environment, internal analysis and current strategy. Last is the strategy formulation, where the corporate and competitive strategies are defined.