This thesis examines perceptions of cooperation among small to medium sized
enterprises (SME) in western Oregon's forest products industry. Recent changes in the
industry, such as corporate consolidation, global marketing, and government regulations
have created an environment in which many SMEs find it difficult to stay competitive.
Cooperation among SMEs is one method for alleviating the situation; however, few SME
owners are engaging in cooperative projects or behaviors.
Common assumptions and stereotypes about the individualistic nature of the
forest products industry lead some to believe that cooperation is an unlikely avenue for
SME owners. Through 16 in-depth interviews with SME owners, this view is found to be
overly simplistic. It does not account for the variety of factors at play and the depth of
the issues involved in SME owners' attitudes toward cooperation. In studying attitudes
toward cooperation, this study first attempts to understand the cultural values of the
decision makers. It is apparent that values play an integral role in the decision making
and strategy of SME owners.
This research highlights the complexity of the issues facing small businesses and
their owners and reveals that four main factors contribute to SME owners' perceptions
about cooperation and influence strategic business decisions: common values,
stereotypes, risk perception, and a lack of knowledge about cooperation. Values are
found to be especially relevant in understanding and influencing attitudes toward
cooperation as values affect risk perception and risk perception in turn directly impacts
business strategy. Understanding the values of SME owners helps to describe their attitudes toward cooperation and dispels the notion that they are too independent to ever
work together.
Eight recommendations stem from the findings of this study which may lead to
cooperative action and more successful SMEs: 1) Find a trustworthy agent to act as a
sponsor; 2) Build credible systems; 3) Match members with similar values; 4) Expound
the potential benefits of cooperation to reduce risk perception; 5) Find a spark plug, not a
spokesperson; 6) Provide education; 7) Define and implement both learning networks and
action groups; 8) Target new and future categories of SME owners such as women and
the children or grandchildren of current owners. / Graduation date: 2004
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ORGSU/oai:ir.library.oregonstate.edu:1957/28461 |
| Date | 09 February 2004 |
| Creators | Brown, Nicole A. |
| Contributors | Young, John A. |
| Source Sets | Oregon State University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
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