Strategy development by SMEs for competitiveness: a review

Purpose SMEs are considered as engine for economic growth all over the world. After the globalization of market, SMEs have got many opportunities to work in integration with large‐scale organizations. They cannot exploit these opportunities and sustain their competitiveness if they focus only on certain aspects of their functioning and work in isolation. This paper tries to identify the major areas of strategy development by SMEs for improving competitiveness of SMEs in globalised market. Design/methodology/approach About 134 research papers, mainly from referred international journals are reviewed to identify thrust areas of research. On the basis of review, gaps are identified and research agenda is proposed. Findings SMEs have not given due attention for developing their effective strategies in the past. They are localized in functioning. On export fronts SMEs face many constraints due to lack of resources and poor innovative capabilities. For sustaining their competitiveness, they have to benchmark their assets, processes and performance with respect to the best in industry. There is also need for developing a framework for quantifying the competitiveness by adopting a holistic approach. Originality/value This paper explores major areas for research on SMEs. It will be of great value for researchers and professionals involved on SMEs management.