From SMEs networks towards collaborative management

The main problem of small companies in a global market is to be recognized by potential customers and provide them the products at a competitive price. Their small size, in terms of design and production capacity, puts them in crisis (about 30% of small Italian enterprises have disappeared or have been greatly reduced, since 2007). Hence micro and small enterprises are forced to come together in a "enterprises network", to conclude a "network contract" and to evaluate the advantages to be collaborative members of a network. This paper discusses the problem of analyzing the types of Small Mid Enterprises (SMEs) networks that have been be established in some European countries, the evolution in time of their organization, and the contractual arrangements to establish them. A discussion of some performance indicators will show how a collaborative management can improve the SME networks strength, thus giving them a competitive advantage.